Cruising Dave - Cruise Blog

50 Days Until a “Legend”ary Cruise

Dave — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 23:46:28 +0000

Today marks the 50-day countdown to my cruise on the Carnival Legend! I can’t wait!

Carnival Does Not Re-instate Fuel Supplement

Dave — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 15:47:04 +0000

After Carnival took away the fuel supplement, they said they could re-instate it should oil prices rise about $70/barrel. Well, over the past couple days they did rise above that level. However, Carnival issued a statement saying they wouldn’t re-instate the supplement due to economic conditions. I’m sure if prices continue to rise they will re-instate it, but for now, we’re still good!

At the time we suspended fuel supplements for our six North American brands, we reserved the right to reinstate them if the price of light sweet crude oil, according to the NYMEX, should increase above $70 per barrel. While we have now exceeded that threshold, in light of the economic crisis and resulting consumer weakness, we presently have no plans to institute a fuel supplement. We will continue to monitor the situation in the markets and review our position as the situation warrants.

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RCI Presents New “Why Not” Blog

Dave — Thu, 07 May 2009 13:14:31 +0000

Royal Caribbean has a new blog. It is written by RCI’s CEO and President, Adam Goldstein.

Follow Adam as he discusses the latest news, happenings and ship innovations from Royal Caribbean, the different types of experiences Royal Caribbean cruisers can expect from their journeys at sea, and Adam’s personal insights on the travel and cruise industries as a whole.

Why Not will showcase exclusive Royal Caribbean content including: video and photo features from aboard their latest voyages. In addition, readers will discover and learn more about the vast array of onboard activities and get a first-hand feel for what the adventure will be like from the crew’s perspective, all through recurring series posts.

Why Not is now live. Hear what Adam has to say:
http://www.nationofwhynot.com/blog.

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Cruise Lines Being Hit by Swine Flu

Dave — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 23:00:34 +0000

So far no incidents of swine flu have been reported on a cruise ship, and I hope none ever do. But the cruise lines themselves are taking a toll, along with other travel companies. Carnival’s stock fell almost $4 per share today, that’s nearly 15% in one day! Royal Caribbean took an even bigger hit, falling $2.36, over 15%!

While it’s a shame our cruise lines are taking a hit, it’s good news in my quest to buy Carnival stock. It’s getting closer to my $20/share mark. I don’t want to wish any bad news on any cruise line, especially Carnival since it’s my favorite, but I just wish it could get back down to $20 so I could afford it.

Okay, enough ranting for now. I’m sorry if this post seems negative.

97 days! Yay!

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100 Days!

Dave — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 15:47:14 +0000

There are 100 days left until my cruise on the Legend! Can’t wait…

I’m hoping we get Roberto again as a waiter, if he’s still on the Legend (which is probably unlikely).

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Cruising Dave on Twitter

Dave — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 22:30:18 +0000

I’ve finally bitten the bullet and have created a Twitter page. I’ll be updating (when I remember about it) every now and then. Go see what I’m up to!

Follow me on Twitter!

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Carnival Stock

Dave — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 19:55:04 +0000

For quite a few years, probably since about 2002, I wanted to buy stock in Carnival. Back then I had no money, and when I finally did have some money to buy stock, Carnival’s price was in the $40s. Well, several days ago, I checked out CCL again just out of curiosity. To my surprise, it was about $20. Apparantly it went as low as about $15. So I’m reconsidering purchasing stock in Carnival again. Since I’m not filthy rich, I’d like for it to go back down to $15 again before I buy, but anything below $20 would be very reasonable for me.

Based on what I’ve been reading, it seems like it could be a good stock to buy too, at least compared to other cruise stocks. From what I’ve heard, RCI is having trouble financing their two new ships (or to-be ships), and their CEO said he does not want to lower prices. So they’re sailing with empty cabins and are having trouble getting financing for their ships. Their S&P rating has also fallen to a BB-, compared to Carnival’s BBB+.

There’s no doubt Carnival has also been hurting recently due to the economy and prior to that, gas prices. But compared to RCI, they seem to be doing well. They’ve halted new ship building so they won’t be carrying much new debt. They’re also discounting their fares so they sail with near-capacity ships. Empty cabins don’t bring in any revenue on board. Occupied cabins, whether paid in full or discounted, are much more likely to. In addition, Carnival CEO Gerry Cahill has said Carnival won’t be making any cutbacks that are similar to RCI. That doesn’t mean they won’t cut anything, but things like past guest perks will not be affected. Smart move on Carnival’s part, in my opinion. John Heald has also alluded to the fact that new changes are in the works, but he didn’t mention anything specifically.

So, I will be following the Carnival stock closely. And if the price is right, I’ll make the buy.

In other news, 120 days until the Legend!

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It’s Officially Official!

Dave — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 23:44:59 +0000

My mom contacted the travel agent and I’ve been added to the booking. So it’s officially official now. I’ll be cruising on the Carnival Legend on August 2! Can’t wait!

130 days to go!!

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I’m Going to the Caribbean!

Dave — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 23:02:43 +0000

It’s as official as it can get without it being official! My parents’ friends decided today that they’re not going on a cruise. The vacation they’re going on doesn’t interest my parents, so they’re probably just going to go to Vegas this summer. After discussing it last night, I decided I want to go with my grandmother and uncle on their cruise. They’re leaving on August 2 on the Legend, out of Tampa. We’ll be going to the Western Caribbean.

I’m so excited! I finally have a vacation planned for this summer. I just need to take the time off from work and my grandmother has to add me to the reservation I’ll be good to go. Yay!

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The Future’s Looking a Little Brighter

Dave — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 23:22:38 +0000

Still no cruise booked, but there are more possibilities now. And my parents seem to definitely want to cruise now. The question now remains: which one?

Our options at this point are:

A cruise with friends. This would most likely be the 5-day Canada cruise.
My grandmother just booked a 7-day western Caribbean cruise. It leaves August 2 from Tampa. My mom said if the cruise with the friends falls through, we’ll consider this one.
The Baltimore cruise on July 3, which seems most unlikely at this point. If we did though, it might be with my mom’s long-time friend.

So that where we stand as of right now. It’s just very uneasy not having anything booked. It’s almost April and we’re still undecided. We’re waiting for our friends to decide, but by the time that happens, it could (but probably not) be too late. I will update as soon as there are any more developments.

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