Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Holland America MS Westerdam 3 Night Pacific Coastal Cruise From $148.38!


For those with not a lot of time but who are looking to get on a cruise ship, why not take a three night journey up the Pacific Coast from San Diego, California to Victoria, British Columbia? There are no distracting ports of call along the way, allowing you to fully enjoy all the luxury MS Westerdam of Holland America Line has to offer. Even better, the pricing right now is outstanding!

The Cruise

holland america ms westerdam pacific coastal
 

MS Westerdam embarks from San Diego, California on Tuesday, April 29, 2014 on this three night cruise up the coast to Victoria, British Columbia. There are no stops along the way, just the ocean and the coastlines of California, Oregon, Washington and British Columbia. Westerdam arrives in Victoria on Friday, May 2 at 12 noon.


Guests board Westerdam at the B Street Cruise Ship Terminal in downtown San Diego. Upon arriving in Victoria, guests get off the ship at Ogden Point Cruise Ship Terminal, right in the centre of the historic Canadian city and the capital of the province of British Columbia.

In essence, this is an extension to a 14 night Panama Canal cruise that originates in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and, in essence, this is Repositioning Cruise. After wintering in the Caribbean, MS Westerdam makes this April journey to her summer home port of Seattle, Washington. After adjusting a bit south from Victoria to Seattle, Westerdam settles into a routine of seven night roundtrip Alaska cruises for the summer months.

The Price


Holland America is having a ‘flash sale’ and an interior stateroom can be had for as low as $148.38 per person, based on double occupancy. With the additional $63.80 per person in government fees and taxes, which apply to all passengers regardless of stateroom level, an interior cabin for two can be had for $424.36, including taxes.

From there, the prices don’t move up too quickly. You can have an ocean view for as low as $208.25 per person. A balcony stateroom (Deluxe Ocean View Verandah) starts at $248.20 per person. A Superior Verandah Suite will run $937.88 per person.

The Ship 

ms westerdam holland america line
Built by Fincantieri in Italy, MS Westerdam has been in service since 2004 for Holland America Line. Westerdam is one of four Vista Class ships in the fleet. Together with MS Zuiderdam, MS Oosterdam and MS Noordam, the Vista Class ships are named for the four main compass points.

For Holland America, Westerdam is a large ship with a gross tonnage of 82,500. She is 285 metres or 936 feet in length and has eleven decks accessible to passengers. There is a capacity for 1,916 guests and 800 crew members onboard.

The Small Print


·Because of the nature of last minute deals, the pricing printed here is fleeting and could change at any time.

·Prices are in Canadian dollars.

·Most meals are included in a typical cruise price but DRINKS ARE NOT!

·Also not included are gratuities.

·Cruise pricing does not include air fare, ground transfers and hotel accommodations before and after the cruise.

Monday, March 24, 2014

Cross The Atlantic In Style Onboard Celebrity Equinox From Just $699!


If you’re going to spend the first six days of a 13 night Transatlantic Repositioning cruise at sea, why not sail in luxury? If you can do it at the price of a lower quality cruise ship then it’s even better. Celebrity Equinox crosses the Atlantic Ocean on a 14 night journey in mid-April, 2014. You can be onboard for as low as $699 per person. If you’re 55 or older, take $50 per person off that price. If you qualify as military, fire or police, the savings on an inside stateroom run as high as $115 per person!

The Cruise

celebrity equinox transatlantic repositioning cruise itinerary
 

Celebrity Equinox embarks from Port Everglades at Fort Lauderdale, Florida on Monday, April 14, 2014 at 5pm for a 13 night crossing of the Atlantic Ocean. Equinox arrives at her final destination of Malaga, Spain at 6am on Sunday, April 27. Along the way, the ship makes three port calls, along with a full day transit of the Strait of Gibraltar.


After six full days at sea, Celebrity Equinox arrives at Ponta Delgada in the Azores Islands on Monday, April 21 for her first port of call. Equinox is in port from 9am until 6pm at what is the largest urban centre in Portugal’s Azores.

After two more full days at sea, Equinox reaches the mainland of Portugal. On Thursday, April 24, the ship docks at Lisbon and remains in port from 7am until 5pm. Upon leaving Lisbon, the ship moves down the coast to Sevilla, Spain. Equinox is docked at this Spanish port on Friday, April 25 from 10am to 8pm.

Upon leaving Sevilla, Celebrity Equinox enters the Strait of Gibraltar for a full day of scenic cruising on Saturday, April 26.

The Price


An inside stateroom can be had for as low as $699 per person, based on double occupancy. With the additional $81 per person in government fees and taxes tacked on, the price for two for an inside cabin starts as low as $1,560. Other levels of stateroom still available include ocean view from $959 per person and balcony cabins from $1,079 per person.

Seniors 55 years or older can have that same inside cabin for as low as $649 per person. Folks who work in the armed forces, fire or police services get a great discount and can have that same room from $584 per person. Remember, just one person per stateroom needs to qualify in order to get the discount.

It should also be noted that an inside stateroom on Celebrity Equinox is not like the same category on other cruise ships. On Equinox, the inside cabins are generally 200 square feet and designed to have a double bed and a sofa. Compare this to 128 square feet for an inside stateroom on the Norwegian Epic and 182 square feet on the Ruby Princess.

The Ship 

celebrity equinox cruise ship
Celebrity Equinox is a Solstice Class ship that was built by Meyer Werft in Papenburg, Germany. Equinox is a new ship, making her maiden voyage on July 31, 2009. She is also a large ship with a gross tonnage of 121,878 and a length of 317 metres or 1,041 feet. There are 13 decks accessible to passengers.

However, Celebrity Cruises is a luxury line and the size doesn’t mean massive amounts of guests crammed in like sardines. The capacity is for 2,850 guests, based on double occupancy. The passenger to crew ratio reflects a premium cruise ship with 1,250 crew members onboard.

The Small Print


·Because of the nature of last minute deals, the pricing printed here is fleeting and could change at any time.

·Prices are in Canadian dollars.

·Most meals are included in a typical cruise price but DRINKS ARE NOT!

·Also not included are gratuities.

·Cruise pricing does not include air fare, ground transfers and hotel accommodations before and after the cruise.

Friday, March 21, 2014

Staterooms Remain For Regal Princess Maiden Voyage On May 20!


Princess Cruises introduces their latest ship to the world in May and there are still limited staterooms available for the maiden voyage! What’s even better is that Princess has a flash sale on right now for that May 20, 2014 inaugural sailing of the Regal Princess with inside cabins as low as $1,299 per person. There are just inside and balcony staterooms left for this seven night Mediterranean voyage.

The Cruise

regal princess maiden voyage itinerary
 

Regal Princess embarks on her maiden voyage, a seven night Mediterranean cruise, from Venice, Italy at 11pm on Tuesday, May 20, 2014. The late departure time must be due to launch ceremonies beforehand. Regal arrives at Piraeus, Greece at 6am on Tuesday, May 27. Along the way, she makes three port calls, including an overnighter in Istanbul. By the way, Piraeus is part of the Athens metro area and is 12km from the Greek capital’s centre.


After a full day at sea, cruising down the Adriatic Sea from Venice, Regal Princess reaches her first port of call at 7am on Thursday, May 22 at Corfu, Greece. She remains in port until 5pm. Corfu is one of the Ionian Islands and is directly off the coast of Albania.

After another full day at sea, Regal makes her way around to Istanbul, Turkey, arriving at 9am on Saturday, May 24 and not leaving until the following day at 2pm. She then makes her final stop at Mykonos, Greece on Monday, May 26 from 9am until 7pm. Mykonos is an island in the Cyclades, east of Athens on the Aegean Sea.

The Price


Currently, an inside stateroom can be had on this maiden voyage of the Regal Princess for $1,299 per person, based on double occupancy. There is an additional $104 per person in government fees and taxes tacked on which makes the total price for a room for two as low as $2,806, including taxes.

A stateroom with a balcony starts at $1,599 and would be well worth the additional cost. For veterans and current members of the armed forces in the U.S. and Canada, there is no discount off the total price but Princess offers a $100 onboard credit per stateroom. For those who qualify, a form must be submitted to Princess no later than 14 days before sailing in order to receive this credit.

The Ship 

Regal Princess is for the most part a twin of Royal Princess. She was built by Fincantieri in Monfalcone, Italy, not far from Venice on the Adriatic Sea. This is a large ship with a gross tonnage of 141,000, the largest in the Princess fleet. Regal is 329 metres or 1,079 feet in length. She has capacity for 3,600 passengers, based on double occupancy. A small town’s worth of crew members are onboard, typically around 2,000. There are 15 decks accessible to guests.

The Small Print


·Because of the nature of last minute deals, the pricing printed here is fleeting and could change at any time.

·Prices are in Canadian dollars.

·Most meals are included in a typical cruise price but DRINKS ARE NOT!

·Also not included are gratuities.

·Cruise pricing does not include air fare, ground transfers and hotel accommodations before and after the cruise.