Monaco’s Grand Prix has brought out the best of Formula One auto racing each year, and to race fans waiting for that starting flag to drop, there’s nothing better. In 1929, the first winner was a sleek Bugatti, completing the difficult course in just under four hours. Last year, racing legend Mark Weber crossed the finish line in less than two.
Sail into the glamorous port of Monaco, on Windstar Cruises elegant sailing yacht Wind Surf, to experience the world’s most legendary auto racing event. With Windstar’s exclusive Grand Prix package added on to Wind Surf’s Yachting the Rivera voyage, race fans get preferred seating for the preliminaries on Saturday.
They’ll also get a glimpse at all the preparation that goes into the famous race, then the race itself on Sunday where they can cheer on their favorite driver with select seats.
Other highlights of the package include a night out in Monaco with dinner at the Café De Paris, followed by a night of gambling at Monte Carlo’s Grand Casino. Also included is an exclusive cocktail reception and Grand Prix dinner on board the yacht in Cannes as well as a special Sunday brunch the day of the race.
Rubbing elbows with the rich and famous has its cost though. The optional Grand Prix Package starts at $2,299 per person (in addition to cruise fare starting at $2999).
The Blake Shelton cruise is coming up in October, marking the first-ever country music themed cruise. On a seven-day sailing from Miami, country music fans will have the opportunity to get up close and personal with Shelton and some of the hottest names in country music. Believed to be the biggest act yet to sponsor a themed cruise, Shelton is in good company.
Called the Blake Shelton and Friends cruise, on board will be 25 country music artists performing live every night in multiple venues around the ship. Shelton will perform two live concerts during the cruise, a full-ship charter of Norwegian Pearl sailing from the port of Miami on October 15, 2012.
Taking fans to San Juan, St. Thomas, Tortola and Nassau, the itinerary also includes three days at sea and performances by special guest Trace Adkins along with Neal McCoy, Lee Brice, Easton Corbin and more.As the first country music festival at sea, this one looks to be a bit tamer than some of the hard rock festivals we have reported on previously. Kid Rock’s 4th annual Chillin the Most cruise would be one extreme, along with the KISS cruise. On the other end of the entertainment at sea spectrum would be the Beatles Fans cruise or the Turner Classic Movies cruise. Somewhere in-between looks to be where the Blake Shelton version will find a home.
Sold out in several categories, cabins are still available. Information about pricing and booking is available on the Blake Shelton Cruise website.
Fitness centers have been a standard amenity at hotels, resorts and on cruise ships for quite some time. Used or not, those facilities boast some of the latest equipment along with programs designed to maintain physical fitness on the road. Results of a new survey suggest a growing variety of reasons to work out while traveling, something cruise lines know all too well.
“Among those that exercise on vacation, 31% say their primary motivation is to maintain their fitness regimen,” says Travel Daily News reporting results of a TripAdvisor survey of 1,400 travelers. “A further 28% do so in order to avoid gaining weight, while the third most popular reason for exercising on holiday is to capitalize on having more free time to work out (14%).”
That’s no news to cruise lines that remain focused on adding healthy travel and fitness options. In an ongoing effort to move away from endless buffets where lifting a fork might be the only exercise their passengers engage in, things are changing. It’s those last two reasons, “avoiding weight gain” and “using free time,” that have cruise lines scrambling to add the latest features to ships.Carnival Breeze, the latest ship from Carnival Cruise Lines, features a SportSquare Sky Fitness Center with two ropes courses, a multi-purpose sports court for basketball, volleyball and soccer, a two-level mini-golf course, in addition to all the latest fitness equipment.
Passengers on Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas can jog their morning mile against 360-degree ocean views from the ship’s Sport Deck running track. The line’s fleet-wide Vitality at Sea Spa and Fitness neighborhood supports a healthy lifestyle, combining the latest in aesthetic skin treatments, traditional spa services and workout programs. Last year, Royal Caribbean invited guests to participate in the line’s first “Royal 5K St Maarten run,” now an annual event.
Under construction now for a June 2013 debut, Princess Cruises latest ship, Royal Princess will have features that directly reflect an increased interest in fitness by cruise passengers.
“Many of our passengers are very active on vacation,” said Jan Swartz, executive vice president for Princess Cruises. “These new facilities will offer them state-of-the-art equipment and cutting-edge classes to keep up – or even step up – their fitness routines at sea.”
To make that happen, Princess Cruises is adding a private aerobics studio that will host a selection of fitness classes, including TRX Suspension Training, MyRide indoor cycling, a Body Sculpt Boot Camp and Chi Ball Yoga.
Like other lines, Princess is also adding a top-deck sports court called Princess Sports Central, offering a collection of court games, lawn activities (they will have grass growing there), basketball, tennis, volleyball, badminton and a batting cage. Golfers will find a driving range facility, and a simulated laser shooting range offers a new onboard activity.
“While most Americans will spend at least some of their vacation relaxing, many now balance their fun with fitness, as TripAdvisor’s survey shows that a significant number of travelers also prioritize personal health on their trips,” said Brooke Ferencsik, director of communications at TripAdvisor.
Responding to the call, fitness experts are focusing on short, easy workouts designed with the traveler in mind, with or without fitness facilities available like this TRX suspension trainer that fits in a suitcase and provides a total-body workout:
Themed cruise vacations are special sailings when groups or organizations charter a ship, bringing like-minded travelers together to share their passion. Themed cruises appeal to groups of people varying from very broad interests like motorcycles and rock music to smaller, more specific interests like Harley-Davidson motorcycles or the Beatles. These events at sea are so popular that several repeat each year.
The Cruise for Beatles Fans (formerly known as the Beatles Tribute Cruises) is bringing back their star-studded cast of Beatles friends and musicians on a sailing of Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas.
During the seven-night Eastern Caribbean sailing, guests will be enjoying private concerts, Question and Answer sessions, and picture and autograph sessions with the special Beatles guests. In addition, passengers can enjoy Beatles Trivia and Name That Tune contests.
The fourth annual Cruise for Beatles Fans sails March 3, 2013, and stops in Charlotte Amalie, St Thomas, Phillipsburg, St Martin and the Nassau, Bahamas. See Music In M’Ocean for details.
The Rock Boat sails for the thirteenth time as the longest running music festival at sea on February 24, 2013. The Rock Boat host Sister Hazel will be joined by Alternate Routes, Bronze Radio Return, Roger Clyne and The Peacemakers, Good Old War, Will Hoge, NEEDTOBREATHE, Ponderosa, Ben Rector, Red Wanting Blue, Rusted Root, Saints of Victory, DJ Soulman, Yacht Rock Revue and many more artists to be announced.Featuring non-stop music and two days on Norwegian’s private destination island in the Bahamas, this musical marathon will showcase both fan favorites and emerging talent across multiple stages around the ship as well as intimate activities with artists and collaborations between musicians that won’t be seen anywhere else but onboard this ocean-based traveling circus.
“We had no idea that The Rock Boat would become the family of guests and artists that it has become when began in 2001. We are fortunate to be able to host some of the most promising new artists each year and are so excited to have NEEDTOBREATHE back for an encore performance,” said Sixthman CEO Andy Levine.
The Rock Boat sails on Norwegian Pearl February 24 – March 1, 2013, from Miami to Great Stirrup Cay, Bahamas.
Themed cruises are not just about music either. Sailings are planned that focus on food and wine, history, intellectual pursuits, photography, film and sports. ThemeCruiseFinder has details on these and more.
It’s been nearly seven months since the cruise shipCosta Concordiagrounded off the coast of Italy, leaving 32 dead. After lying on its side since the January 13th grounding, Costa Concordia will next be stood back up, re-floated and towed to an Italian port. But what looks to be a simple operation will involve the coordination of several salvage companies and cost millions.
A big part of the salvage plan to remove the wreck calls for 30 watertight boxes, called cassions, to re-float the ship in one piece. Once the ship has been stabilized, caissons will be fixed to the upper side of the hull and gradually filled with water as part of the operation to right the ship.
Using a system of hydraulic jacks fixed to an undersea platform, the ship will be brought upright, underwater. When the ship is upright, caissons full of water also will be fixed to the other side of the hull. Then the caissons on both sides will be filled with air to re-float the wreck as we see in this simulation.
Salvage operations began with the removal of fuel from the ship to address environmental concerns. Once the wreck is removed, the focus goes back on to the seabed with a cleanup operation devised to conserve the marine environment. The preliminary stage is expected to finish by the end of July, followed by the ship stabilization phase in August.
Looking back, history will remember the Concordia event as more of a near miss than a Titanic-like disaster.
Looking forward, via an Operational Safety Review performed by the cruise industry, improved safety measures have been put in place to prevent an incident like this from happening again.
This week, new information revealed in an Associated Press report raises more questions. The black box stopped recording before the ship was evacuated. Watertight doors, designed to keep the ship afloat, were left open. Unauthorized maps were found in the bridge.
Did these new discoveries have something to do with the wreck? That is unknown at this time so stay tuned as this story continues.