Added: 08/30/2005 |
American cruise lines ships cause some troubleCarnival Corp. & plc, the top cruise operator, launched the world's largest passenger ship last year: The luxury liner Queen Mary 2 stretches nearly four football fields. But the monarch's reign isn't lasting long:the American glory - rival Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will start sailing an even bigger ship next year, the Freedom of the Seas.
As the industry builds ships that keep getting bigger to meet growing demand, these megaships also create new problems. The American cruise lines ships have to balance the preferences of passengers who want flashy new amenities with those who are looking for quiet vacations. Many ports say these vessels make it tough to process thousands of people in just a few hours. Environmental groups also complain that bigger ships mean more pollution.
Most passengers are clearly happy with the massive ships. Passenger numbers have risen an average of about 8 percent a year for more than a decade.A cruise on the big new American cruise lines ships is primarily what people want to buy. People are clearly voting with their wallets.
The industry also isn't shunning smaller ships altogether. Carnival's 79 ships can hold anywhere from 150 to 3,800 passengers.There are ships for all different types of people and all different sizes, just like the hotel industry. There's some people that love hotels like Bellagio, and others prefer staying in a hotel right with six rooms.
The first modern cruise ship in the 1960s held just 560 passengers and in the 1980s, the Carnival Cruise Lines brand got three new ships that could hold nearly 1,800 each. At the time, many observers wondered if there were enough travelers to fill them and some said the move was "a little bit crazy."
Royal Caribbean's Freedom of the Seas will be able to hold 4,370 passengers. Carnival is kicking around the idea of building a ship to take the title back, but it doesn't have any firm plans.
Frequent cruisers hope the companies don't get too caught up in the race to outsize one another. Some of them are turned off by megaships' long buffet lines and fights over deck chairs.They can go to a mall at home so they go cruising to relax.Most American cruise lines ships sailing in U.S. waters provide better access for passengers in wheelchairs. Cruise lines do it in terms of reconfiguring pools, restaurants and emergency equipment for wheelchairs.
But most of the cruisres love giant vessels because they're able to play miniature golf and people-watch, there's a never-ending list of activities: art auctions, bar hopping, people watching.
But maneuvering and fitting those ships into ports puts pressure on destinations, especially smaller ones. For example, Antigua's port recently spent $22 million to accommodate larger ships, but it's unclear whether the Freedom class will fit there. Many smaller ports are also worried that American cruise lines ships might avoid them as passengers' tastes change.
Even massive ports have trouble with megaships. The Port of Miami is spending $350 million to make improvements to handle more people. They include better roads, bigger parking garages and two new terminals. Post-Sept. 11 security requirements also mean more port improvements.
Cruise lines also say that the newer, larger ships have better technology that protects the environment from the sewage and other pollution that vessels produce, but they don't convince environmentalists and those people who protect the american eagle and other species of wildlife.
As cruise ships continue to grow in size, they'll continue to see ever-increasing amounts of pollution. Since today's vessels are equivalent to small cities in size, the volume of waste discharged every day is rapidly growing.
For lovers of riding out the storms while on vacation rushing to purchase insurance once a hurricane warning has been issued won't do any good.
IF last summer's tempests weren't a powerful enough reminder of the risks of traveling during hurricane season, this year's early string of violent storms should do the job. Between Dennis and Emily, and the National Weather Service's grim prediction of seven to nine hurricanes this season, the odds of a tropical getaway turning into a brush with disaster seem stacked against the traveler.
With the Caribbean and Florida now fully established as year-round American cruise lines destinations, travel industry officials have a new mantra for storm-dodging travelers: Be prepared. Hotels and cruise lines are also heeding that advice with hurricane-protection policies and evacuation procedures, many of which have been refined or introduced following the devastation caused by last year's major storms -- Ivan and Frances and this year's - when up to 80 people were reported dead in Mississippi, and floodwaters poured into low-lying New Orleans through levees battered by powerful Hurricane Katrina. ...
Most cruise lines do not have formal storm policies, citing their freedom of movement as a factor that makes rerouting relatively simple. Each trip is considered on a case-by-case basis. It's very rare that a sailing would be canceled because of a hurricane. The joy of a cruise is that it's mobile, so you just sail away from the storm and into nice, sunny weather. Most cruise lines assess storms on a ''case by case'' basis; that clients opt for the company's travel insurance (prices are based on the cost of the trip) to protect against unforeseen events, including hurricanes.
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