Project Genesis: Names

Well, we know now the names of the first two Genesis-class ships:  Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas.

 
Here’s the press write-up:
 
 
ROYAL CARIBBEAN SELECTS 
OASIS OF THE SEAS AND ALLURE OF THE SEAS 
AS THE NAMES FOR ITS PROJECT GENESIS SHIPS
 
MIAMI, May 23, 2008 – An oasis is commonly defined as a fertile area in an arid region or a place of refuge,
relief, or pleasant contrast. Today, Royal Caribbean International adds another use of the term, defining it as
the official name for the cruise line’s newest and most awe-inspiring class of cruise ships, until now referred to
by the code name “Project Genesis.”
 The name Oasis of the Seas was selected from more than 91,000 entries in Royal Caribbean’s “Name
that Ship” contest, which the cruise line launched on January 18 in partnership with USA TODAY. Entrants
were invited to submit two names ending in “of the Seas” that best encapsulate the universe of experiences a
Royal Caribbean cruise provides guests. The contest marks the first time members of the general public,
outside of the cruise industry, have been given the opportunity to name a cruise ship. 
 The winning combination of names, Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas, was submitted by George
Weiser, of Livonia, Michigan. Weiser’s well-chosen names scored the highest among all contest entries
considered by a panel of judges, and earned him the honor of naming not only the world’s next largest and
most innovative cruise ships, but the entire class of the new ships, the Oasis-class. Weiser is joined by Jennifer
Conley, of Robertsville, Missouri, who suggested Mystique of the Seas and also Allure of the Seas. Conley is also a
winner in the naming contest for earning the second-highest score.
 “Our customers are remarkably passionate about Royal Caribbean,” said Adam Goldstein, President
and CEO, Royal Caribbean International. “This naming contest has been a fantastic expression of their
interest and commitment. We are thrilled to announce these two names and grateful to USA Today for
partnering with us.” 
 The “Name that Ship” contest was judged by a panel of industry experts including Lauren Teton,
founding partner of Name One!, which specializes in finding unique names for products and business entities;
John Maxtone-Graham, maritime historian, lecturer and author of numerous books, including the latest,
“Normandie: France’s Legendary Art Deco Ocean Liner”; and Albert Mehrabian, Ph.D. Professor Emeritus
of Psychology at UCLA and author of more than 14 books, including “Baby Name Report Card: Beneficial
and Harmful Baby Names.”  
 
 “Taking into account the remarkable sea-going destination Oasis of the Seas will be, the name
selection evokes an appropriate feeling of verdant comfort and luxury,” said John Maxtone-Graham, maritime
historian. “I was very pleased with the final selection and for being invited to take part in the contest.”
 When launched in late 2009, Oasis of the Seas will be the largest and most revolutionary cruise ship in
the world.  An architectural marvel at sea, she will span 16 decks, encompass 220,000 gross registered tons,
carry 5,400 guests, and feature 2,700 staterooms.  The ship will homeport in Port Everglades in Fort
Lauderdale, Florida.  In 2010, she will be joined by a sister ship, Allure of the Seas.  Additional information is
available at www.oasisoftheseas.com.

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Tags: futurecruises

400 to go

ON a day like today where my job is causing me fits, it is nice to think of better things to come:  today, it is 400 days until our Caribbean Princess cruise.  Not exactly close enough to be excited about it, but a nice round number nonetheless.  Of course, the Liberty of the Seas cruise is 268 days away, so that of course, sounds much better.

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Disney Cruise information

In September, my wife and I are heading to Disney World alone (i.e. without the kids) to celebrate our fourth wedding anniversary.  However, in 2011 (it sounds so far away, doesn’t it!) we plan on taking our then-five year old to Disney followed by a week-long Disney Cruise out of Florida.  Keep in mind that in 2011, Disney will be sailing a new ship, the first of two new ships being crafted by Meyer Werft Shipyards of Germany.  Both of the un-named ships will be 122,000-tons and have room for 4,000 guests.  The current ships are 83,000 tons holding 2,400 guests.

For more information, visit the Meyer Werft site.

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Embarkation Thoughts

The first thing that one should do after boarding a ship for their cruise is to find their cabin and then go exploring.  As someone that has studied the deck plans of the ship prior to boarding, and has a general idea where everything is, one of the first trips of this exploration is finding the specialty dining venues and make reservations for the week.   For RCCL, this means a booking at Portofinos; for Princess, we like the Crown Grill, or the equivalent restaurant, depending on the ship. 

Portofinos is a wonderful dining experience, especially if it will be a dinner for two.  Of course, a group dinner here is nice as well.  When I decided to ask my now-wife to marry me in 2004 aboard the Voyager of the Seas, we headed to Portofinos after I popped the question.  Romantic.

After this, I suggest finding your table in the regular restaurant, buying a soda card and last but not least, find a place for a celebratory drink.  And, since food will play a major role in the days ahead, the lunch is always a good time prior to embarkation.  One quick note on the soda card:  if there are only two of you, buy one soda card and share it.   It’s technically not allowed but no one working on board will really care.  Really.

One thing that I feel makes a first-day journey complete is this:  if possible, arrive at your embarkation port the day before.  That way, you are refreshed from your flight (if necessary) and ready to spend a full first day aboard the ship.  Too many times I have seen exhausted people come aboard and many others that are beyond exhausted and now are frustrated, which is never a way to start a vacation.  Therefore, spend the extra few bucks and arrive a day early.  When we cruise out of Miami, we always book a hotel with eye view of the cruise terminal.  This way, when morning arrives, you get the see the ship in the harbor in all of its glory.

One final point:  many want to know when is the best time to arrive onboard.   Assuming that your ship will leave port at 4 p.m. or likely later, I recommend arriving at the port around 11 a.m. that day.  Perfect time to explore a near-empty ship.

LIBERTY OF THE SEAS: 273 DAYS; CARIBBEAN PRINCESS: 405 DAYS

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Tags: CRUISETHOUGHTS

Liberty of the Seas

Her younger sister is now a-sail.
 

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Back in the fold

In a previous post I indicated that we were planning on traveling on the Liberty of the Seas next summer but because of price rises, we found it cheaper to go on the Caribbean Princess instead.  We’ll, after reviewing all of our 2009 options, it came to our attention that we can go on the Liberty of the Seas after all.

We have canceled our President’s Day 2009 cruise on the Celebrity Solstice for a January 31, 2009 cruise aboard the Liberty of the Seas.

The savings:  about $1400 for roughly the same ports, and out of Miami (which we prefer) versus Ft. Lauderdale.

We couldn’t justify going on the Solstice, despite its newness, especially with two cruise planning in a four month period.

Our first time on Celebrity will have to wait.

Our Liberty of the Seas cruise will be our fourth on Royal Caribbean.  Previously, we traveled on the old Song of America, Voyager of the Seas and of course, Freedom of the Seas. 

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Tags: Libertyof the Seas

Time to vent

 

Our 2009 cruise schedule – as we have already posted here – will consist of a couples cruise aboard the new Celebrity Solstice in February and a family vacation on the Caribbean Princess in June out of New York.  While we eagerly await both cruises (especially with no cruises scheduled for us in ‘08), the original plan was not the 9-day cruise with Princess.  Rather, as our website name might suggest, our original plan was for a family vacation aboard Royal Caribbean’s Liberty of the Seas out of Miami.

Wasn’t meant to be.

We are based in Pennsylvania and although the Liberty cruise would have been for two days less than the Caribbean Princess cruise, thanks to oil prices, it was cheaper to drive to New York City (which is three hours away) and vacation for nine days instead of seven. 

For a junior suite (RCCL) vs mini-suite for four the difference was nearly $2000, which is just plan crazy in our opinion.  Even taking into account a premium price for a Freedom Class ship versus a Grand-class Princess ship, $2000 is a lot more money and not worth the difference!

But it doesn’t end there:

A Explorer of the Seas cruise at the same time and of the same length (actually leaving on the same day out of New York) was approximately $700 more than the Caribbean Princess Cruise.  And here, the ship is older (a Voyager class), so why the difference?

What we have found is that Royal Caribbean does not discount like they used to and thanks to oil prices are pricing in lots of money for air transfers; so much so that for this couple, they priced themselves at the market, at least for 2009.

Of course, they own Celebrity, so in February they will still get some cash out of us!!!

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Caribbean Princess…Too

We are booking passage on the Caribbean Princess next June (2009) from New York to the Caribbean.  This is the family trip that was postponed previously.  This means that we have two cruises planned now:  Celebrity Solstice (in February) and now Caribbean Princess.

Nice.

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Central Park

By now, most people have heard about the Central Park concept coming to the Genesis class ships of Royal Caribbean.  As someone who has traveled on both the Voyager and Freedom class vessels, this news cuts both ways with me, good and bad.  First and foremost, you gotta give Royal Caribbean credit for being ever-forward thinking.  After all, this is the same line that brought us wall climbing and ice skating to the high seas and made both work perfectly.  However, one has to wonder at what point are these latest innovations too much of a good thing and let’s be frank, too large.  Most – if not all – cruise travelers go cruising to get away from the daily traffic that is our everyday life.  I fear that the Genesis class ships are past the point of being too large for its own good and the Central Park concept is an excellent example.  While the Promenade aspect found on Voyager and Freedom class ships sought to be similar to a main street concept found in every town in America, there is no mistaking that the Promenade is simply a wistful path down the center of a very large cruise ship.  With Central Park, perhaps RC is bring home too close to the ship and hence might have travelers asking ‘what happened to the ship.”

Of course, we’ll all have to travel on the Genesis to see the concept(s) for ourselves, which is the point, of course.

Cruising is innovating, liking it our not.

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Tags: genesis

Celebrity Solstice

Well, we’ve booked our next cruise this afternoon!

After a lot of discussion, we’ve decided to cruise abroad the Celebrity Solstice next February, two months after its inaugural voyage this December.

One of the main selling points to this (to us anyway), is the introduction of the AquaClass on the Solstice ships which will be debuting here. 

For those booked in one of these cabins, you have access to the AquaSpa Relaxation Room, as well as exclusive use of the Blu restaurant, which is to offer healthy alternatives to the traditional food.  Hmm.  Should be interesting..

To read more about this, go here.

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