My Barbados Blog

Hello!
It's good to be back. I've been on vacation, along with attending a family reunion. Getting away is always good for the spirit, but it's back to business as usual with catching up on e-mail and blogging - Linda

Celebrity Cruises will offer Caribbean cruises on five ships in late 2009 and early 2010 - Celebrity Constellation, Celebrity Equinox (shown here), Celebrity Mercury, Celebrity Solstice, and Celebrity Summit.

The ships will call at 26 ports during sailings of seven to 14 nights, departing from Fort Lauderdale and San Juan - and bookings opened for sale Wednesday.

Celebrity Equinox will sail 10- and 11-night "Ultimate Caribbean" cruises roundtrip from Fort Lauderdale, featuring ports such as St. Thomas, St. Kitts, Barbados, Dominica, St. Maarten, Grand Cayman, Colombia, Costa Rica and Mexico. The 11-night itinerary includes a stop at Roatan, Honduras, which Celebrity has not visited since 2007.

Celebrity Constellation offers several 14-night "Exotic Southern Caribbean" sailings roundtrip from Miami, featuring calls at St. Thomas, Antigua, St. Lucia, Barbados, Grenada, Tobago, Aruba and Curacao.

For more information, visit www.celebritycruises.com or www.celebritysolstice.com

One more exciting Barbados island water activity in addition to my last posting - Linda

Barbados is the only country in the world offering a tour in a boat like this!!

Sit back and relax as you're taken on an adventure of a lifetime, which people of all ages can enjoy. The Sea Eye will glide effortlessly across the azure of the Caribbean Sea, giving you the chance to view this beautiful Island under a warm tropical sun.

The Sea Eye will take you to view the sea life and the turtles through its enormous viewing screen, the first of its kind in the world. You will also feed the fish and snorkel with the turtles in the crystal clear coastal waters of Barbados.

You can view the underwater world and the intriguing shipwrecks through the viewing screen, sipping on your rum punch listening to light reggae rhythms in the comfort of the air cooled dome.

Snorkeling equipment is provided for those who wish to get in the water!

Tour commences with pick-up from your hotel, cruise ship terminal or from Blue Monkey Paynes Bay, St James

For more info, or to book this one of a kind tour, click here

 

Experience an adventure of a lifetime in Barbados on board the Atlantis Submarine!

Explore beautiful coral reefs and marine life at 55 feet, then descend down to depths of 115 to 150 feet to discover a sunken shipwreck from the view port of this real submarine!

We are offering special pricing of $99.00, a savings of 10% off the regular rate of $110.00. Hotel pick-up can be arranged from most Barbados hotels at a charge of $7.50 per adult and $5.00 for children.

Find out more on this special Barbados offer

See More Barbados Tours and Activities - Day Tours, Sightseeing, Day and Night Cruises

**And we always provide roundtrip airport "transfers" in order that visitors to Barbados can securely book their transportation from the aiport to their hotel/resort, and the return trip to the aiport in advance**

Just look under "transfers", choose which area of the island your hotel/resort is located, and get this additional charge taken care of prior to getting to the island.

Saw this posting at Terry Breen's blog, and thought it was certainly worth posting. Terry is popular on the cruise lecture circuit, has written a cruise friendly onboard guide, and has sailed around Cape Horn 39 times, and through the Panama Canal 61 times! - Linda

The cruise ship terminal in Bridgetown, Barbados is so large it can now accommodate eight ships at one time. Not only are they calling on the island for traditional one day port stops, many cruise lines are now using Barbados as an embarkation and debarkation point port as well. Departure out of Barbados allows ships a chance to visit Caribbean and South American ports not accessible from Miami or Ft. Lauderdale on a typical seven day cruise.

Terry says that "one such itinerary that particularly caught my eye was offered by Fred Olsen Cruises" - From Barbados the Braemar sails to Manaus and back in fifteen days. All the Amazonian stops are included like Santarem and Parintins including an encore presentation of the ever popular Boi Bumba Festival.

Though most of the guests are coming from the United Kingdom, the chance to see the Amazon with the convenience and added savings of flying round-trip out of Barbados makes the opportunity an attractive one not to mention the opportunity to spend a few extra days in Barbados!

Source: Terry's Blog
 

Visit Cruise Friendly Onboard Guides

Cruise Passenger ID and New Pre Departure Requirements

New Cruise Passenger Pre-Departure Requirement - if you are planning a Caribbean cruise, or have already made reservations for a cruise vacation, please be advised of this new pre-departure time requirement.

As of Feb 18, all cruise passengers departing from U.S. ports must be on board at least one hour prior to sailing, a new pre-departure requirement of U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Cruise ships are required to provide U.S. Customs and Border Protection a full passenger and crew manifest an hour before leaving port. So when flying into your port of departure, you should factor this new time frame into your airline flight schedule, as well as the time it will take you to get from the airport to the cruise port terminal.

Just so everyone is clear, I will post the travel requirements for land and sea travel, AND air travel from the U.S. again because there is still confusion as to what travel documents are needed versus type of travel. I will also add that the U.S. Government has not done its job in making this information clear to the traveling public, nor have they rolled out the requirement documents in a timely fashion.  

January 31, 2008 - All U.S. citizens 19 or older traveling by LAND OR SEA ports or borders, must prove their identity and citizenship with a valid U.S. passport, or provide TWO other documents that prove identity and citizenship.

Having a valid U.S. passport proves both your identity and citizenship.

If you do not have a passport and plan to travel on a cruise, or cross the borders between Mexico and Canada by land, you need to provide TWO pieces of ID - a valid driver's license or government issued ID AND an original or certified birth certificate. No copies of birth certificates are accepted. As of January 31, oral declarations of citizenship, which were allowed are no longer accepted.

This new ruling should not be confused with the travel requirements from January 2007 which required all Americans who are traveling by AIR to the Caribbean (except U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico), Canada, Mexico, and Bermuda to be in possession of a valid U.S. passport, or TWO pieces of ID that prove both citizenship and identity.

This should also not be confused with the new Passport Card which can be used instead of a passport to cross the land borders between Canada and Mexico. The new Passport Card will not be ready until this Spring, however you can apply for the card at the same facilities that provide passport processing.

This new Passport Card is not valid for AIR travel outside the U.S. - only for land and sea crossing to Mexico and Canada. The cost is $45 for adults (16 and over) and is valid for 10 years. Cards for children under 16 cost $35 and are valid for five years.

And for the latest on passport processing - from the latest indication, U.S. Passport processing is back on schedule. If you apply for a U.S. Passport, or need to renew your passport, the time frame to receive your passport is currently six weeks.  

Formerly known as the "Run In The Sun Cruise" - the event is once again bringing an estimated 150 fun runners to Barbados on board the Crown Princess.

They will run an exhilarating 5K along the Spring Garden Highway and return to the lawns of the Barbados Investment and Development Corporation.

The cruise, which sold out several months ago, will arrive in Barbados on Monday before travelling to St Lucia, Antigua, Tortola and St Thomas for similar events.

Read full article in the Nation News

Over 600,000 cruise travelers are about to be the target of a new cruise conversion program in Barbados.

The Freestay Caribbean Cruise Conversion Program, which was designed to influence cruise passengers’ intention to return as long-stay guests, will be officially launched on Wednesday, January 9, 2008.

According to industry officials, the program is geared toward increasing visitor arrivals and the overall economic benefit derived from the tourism segment.

The promotion was put together by a local company, Tropical Shipping Co. Ltd, a division of Goddard Enterprises Ltd., in cooperation with the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association, the Hotel and Tourism Associations and tourism ministries of the Caribbean.

Top local tourism officials and cruise tourism stakeholders will gather at the Bridgetown Cruise Terminal Inc. where they will unveil the program.

The program is made up of several components including a silver doubloon, which will be distributed to each passenger.

Upon returning home visitors can then use the coins to log into the Freestay Caribbean website, where they can access special vacation offers, sweepstakes and the opportunity to subscribe to an e-newsletter.

The coin also serves as a reminder to cruise passengers of their visit to Barbados and thanks them for choosing the island.

The Barbados Tourism Authority will measure the success of the program and track the conversion levels via web matrix.

Source: Caribbean Net News

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The Hebridean Spirit received a warm welcome yesterday when it made its inaugural visit to the Bridgetown Port.

One of the smallest international cruise ships in the world, Hebridean Spirit will be charting nine extraordinary courses through the Caribbean, Central America, and the western coast of South America on its winter/spring schedule which runs until April.

The Hebridean Spirit can accommodate 96 guests, is more like a luxury private yacht than a cruise liner, and has approximately 80% of it repeat passengers.

The ship caters to older couples, with most of its passengers from Britain.

After leaving Barbados, the ship will set sail on its 14 day cruise visiting Montserrat, Antigua, the British Virgin Islands, Tortola and Grenada before returning to Barbados.

Source: Barbados Nation News

Star Clippers is offering reduced round-trip airfare to Barbados on upcoming Caribbean voyages for as little as $95 per person from Fort Lauderdale and $195 from New York.

Cruise fares for the voyages begin at $1,545 per person, double occupancy, after a $400 early booking discount. The air and cruise rates are available on six departures between November and March.

The 227-passenger Royal Clipper sails two seven-night itineraries roundtrip from Barbados.

The Windward Islands itinerary calls at St. Lucia, Dominica, Antigua, St. Kitts, Iles de Saintes and Martinique. The Grenadine Islands itinerary visits the Grenadines, Grenada, Tobago Cays, St. Vincent, Bequia, Martinique and St. Lucia.

Contact us about this cruise, and spending some extra time on the beautiful island of Barbados! We can give you hotel quotes either before the cruise or after - airfare special still applies.
Linda

The new policy will go into effect aboard 18 of the line's 21 ships initially, with Legend of the Seas, Rhapsody of the Seas and Splendour of the Seas following suit with the 2008 summer season.

"Results from online polls, as well as input from all of our international offices worldwide, show very strong support of the new smoking policy," said Alice Norsworthy, senior vice president-marketing for Royal Caribbean International.

Currently, smoking is prohibited in guest hallways and corridors, restaurants, entertainment venues and most of the ship's interior public spaces except for designated areas in bars and lounges.

The new policy will add all guest staterooms and suites, and one bar or lounge on every Royal Caribbean ship onto the roster of smoke-free spaces.

Guests wishing to smoke may still do so from starboard outer decks, in designated areas in bars and lounges, and on stateroom and suite balconies. Ashtrays are available in designated smoking areas or by request through stateroom attendants.

Violations of the smoking policy will result in cleaning charges to the guest's onboard account and may also be addressed through the line's Guest Conduct Policy, details of which are available both online and in all staterooms.

The new policy also dovetails with Royal Caribbean's new Vitality wellness program, which presents healthier lifestyle choices across the cruise experience, including fitness classes and spa treatments, onboard and land-based activities, shore excursions, and healthful drinks and food selections

Carnival Cruise Lines has launced an interactive website FunShipIsland.com ( www.funshipisland.com), which provides a virtual glimpse of the cruise line's onboard and ashore activities.

Visitors can explore, play and experience a Carnival cruise first hand such as the Twister Waterslide on the Lido deck, ride the Rhino 4x4 Jeep, swim with dolphins, relax at the spa or gamble in a virtual casino.

"These days more travelers are turning to the internet to research their vacation options," said Christine Arnholt, Carnival's vice president of marketing services. "Instead of simply providing them with pricing, itinerary details and a virtual ship tour with photos, FunShipIsland offers them a highly interactive experience that provides a comprehensive, visual overview of the various aspects of a Carnival cruise."

Other site features include a downloadable screen saver, ring tones for mobile phones, downloadable music for iPods and personalization for each visitor.

In the Caribbean from January through April, the two SeaDream yachts will sail in the British Virgin Islands, U.S. Virgin Islands, French West Indies, Netherlands Antilles and the Windward & Leeward Islands.

Embarkation and disembarkation ports include San Juan, St. Thomas, Antigua and Barbados.

Among the new Caribbean ports are Lucaya, Grand Bahama Island; Egg Island, Bahamas; Cockburn Town, Turks and Caicos; Samana, Dominican Republic; Peter Island, BVI; and Trois Ilets, Martinique.

SeaDream II will also call on Miami in November for a seven-day voyage to the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, St. Barts and Jost van Dyke.

Contact agents at Travel 2 the Caribbean for reservations, or more information.

We started blogging about Earthrace back in August 2006, and here's an update since the biodiesel boat left Carlyle Bay, Barbados this month.

On 10th March, Earthrace started its attempt to set a new world record for a powerboat to circumnavigate the globe. 

Leaving Barbados at an unofficial time of 12:06:26am (UTC), Earthrace set a course for Panama, some 1250 nautical miles away, however just 16 hours later and the boat has been forced to almost abandon the attempt.

Read more at the Earthrace site

The World Coming to Barbados
March 29, 2007 - March 31, 2007

I've been looking for more cruise ships coming to Barbados during World Cup.

The dates that The World will be in Bridgetown port do not correspond to cricket matches in Barbados - just Antigua and Guyana.

Now this isn't just any cruise ship. This is a residential home purchased by the very rich to sail the world continuously, and commune with each other.  

Here's what the website says:
We have created a world that suits us. The World is a ship that carries our luxury vacation residences to the four corners of the earth. Our ocean residences are as comfortable as we can make it with an excellent crew, caring staff and extremely comforting security. The ship cruises on, stopping for a night or two at ports around the world. We enjoy our life-style. We enjoy each other’s company and we also enjoy our own private apartments - our luxury residences at sea.  Many people have tried to describe our life aboard The World but the reality – the sheer quality of life – can only be understood by being here, by seeing it yourself.

If you would like to join us - or come and stay with us for a while - you will be very welcome.

The Residents of The World

A two bedroom, two bath, 1,300 sq. ft residence aboard the cruise ship can be purchased for $2.7 million US, with annual fees of about $235,000 - which averages out to $650 per day.

About 30% of the owners put their onboard residences into the rental pool, so you can rent a residence (minimum stay six nights), like a hotel room. Rates range from $1,000 to $4,000 per night per couple.

http://www.aboardtheworld.com/

Find a comprehensive list of Caribbean (including Barbados) & Central America vacations provided by hundreds of leading suppliers.

Click on a destination name at the site listed below to view free brochures.

Free Brochures

Queen Mary 2 continues to significantly expand her presence in New York.

Cunard Line announces an extended series of 12 ten-day voyages to the Caribbean from the Big Apple, as well as two 13-day sailings to Panama and the Caribbean and a 14-day Caribbean Celebration Voyage featuring Christmas Day at sea and New Year's Eve in the port of St. Thomas.

Queen Mary 2's faster speed allows her to sail farther south than other ships out of New York, affording more Southern Caribbean port stops, such as Barbados, on ten-day voyages.

Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance take a well-earned break aboard the Queen Mary 2. 

The Golden Globe Award winning actress, and actor husband enjoyed leisurely pursuits during a Caribbean Holiday Voyage.

The actors continue a legacy of luminaries who've made Cunard their line-of-choice since her launch in 2004.

In 2007 and 2008, Cunard will offer more than a dozen Caribbean voyages sailing roundtrip from New York.

Ranging in length from ten to 14 days, the 2007 and 2008 Queen Mary 2 cruising schedules includes: 

Connoisseur's Caribbean - A total of 12 departures (from Oct. 31, 2007 - April 6, 2008) featuring ten days with stops in the picturesque ports of Tortola, St. Kitts, Barbados, St. Lucia and St. Thomas.

Caribbean Celebration - A 14-day voyage departing Dec. 20, coinciding with the Christmas and New Year's holidays, with stops in Tortola, St. Maarten, Curacao, Grenada, Barbados, Dominica, St. Kitts and St. Thomas.

Panama and the Caribbean - Two 13-day voyages departing Feb. 2 and March 24, 2008, with stops in Costa Rica, Panama, Curacao, Bonaire, St. Lucia and St. Thomas.

Whether your interests lie in marine life, history, architecture or cuisine, guests plying the crystal waters of the Caribbean will find numerous diversions ashore . . .

For nature enthusiasts, Bridgetown, Barbados is of tremendous appeal. Popular attractions that showcase the island's abundant tropical flora include Flower Forest, Orchid World and Andromeda Gardens. Historians enjoy a tour of Gun Hill, a former British lookout post, and Sunbury Plantation House, a 300-year-old sugar estate.

In the picturesque colonial city of Basseterre, St. Kitts, the 17th century Brimstone Hill Fortress affords magnificent views of the coast and neighboring Caribbean islands. Other popular stops include Romney Gardens, and its well-known batik studio, and Mt. Liamuiga, the island's highest peak.

In Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, guests can explore this popular U.S. Virgin Islands port both above and below the sea. Its close proximity to St. John (home to the Virgin Islands National Park) makes it ideal for hiking eco-tourists while sun-bathers enjoy unwinding on Magens Bay, considered one of the world's ten most beautiful beaches. Blackbeard's Castle, shopping in Charlotte Amalie and Coral World are other popular shore excursions.

Fares for Queen Mary 2's 2007-2008 Caribbean voyages start from $1,499 per person, based on double occupancy.

Onboard Queen Mary 2, guests dance the night away in the Queens Room - the largest ballroom at sea - and enjoy Caribbean-themed balls during voyages to the region. Guest also revel in extravagant musical productions in spacious theatres, enjoy the vast selection of 8,000 books in the largest library at sea, take a ride through the Cosmos in the only planetarium at sea, engage in stimulating activities and fascinating lectures, and savor superb gourmet dining prepared by world-class chefs.

Here's an interesting European, Moroccan, Greek Island, Caribbean Cruise that includes the island of Barbados,  and will open MSC Cruise Lines Caribbean cruising season:

These cruises only occur twice each season, and offer travelers an opportunity for a much longer cruise - 17 days in this case - budget prices, and a most interesting cruise itinerary.

The cost of this 17 day cruise is the same price many cruise passengers pay for a 7 day Caribbean cruise - of course you have to factor in a one way air flight to Italy. 

On this reposition cruise, passengers fly out of Italy with port calls in Spain, Morocco, the Canary Islands, and then setting sail for the Caribbean with its first stop in Barbados.

Leaving Barbados, MSC Lirica sails on to Grenada, Martinique, Puerto Rico, and then disembarks at its port home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for the start of the 2007 - 2008 Caribbean cruise season. The cost of this reposition cruise is $1,249 per person, double occupancy.  

When MSC Lirica ends the Caribbean cruise season, it will again reposition for a 17 night transatlantic cruise to Dover, London that will depart Fort Lauderdale on March 29, 2008, and then beginning the European/Mediterranean season.

Royal Zante Cruises, The Caribbeans first domestic cruise line is expected to arrive and dock at Port Zane in Basseterre, St Kitts in mid-February, and offer year round cruising, inter-island ferry and cargo service.   

I ran cross the Non-Tourist Trap Blog from the island of Nevis, which posted an article about Royal Zante Cruises. I have not included the full article, which can be read the the Non Tourist Trap Blog link above, and I've also included links to the cruise lines website at the end of this posting - Linda

According to the article, the cruise line is offering floating accommodations for Cricket World Cup, and afterwards will be offering  intra-regional cruising with 3, 4, 7 and 14 day cruise packages. The cruise line also has the ability to act as a inter-island ferry service, along with the ability to offer inter-island trade by way of a freight service - and officials say the price will be affordable. 

Officials say they met in Barbados with Caribbean Tourism Officials to investigate which other islands needed floating hotels. The vessel was designed as a cruise ferry ship, and has served the Scandinavian countries.

Royal Zante Cruises boasts four-diamond accommodation, according to Williams. The ship has commodore class, which is a four-diamond accommodation, with restaurants, casinos, a hospital, an indoor swimming pool and jacuzzi, and a sauna.

http://www.royalzantecruises.com/

The website says the company is developing a new site for 2007, but there is a link to the old site, as well as contact info. I contacted them and will post further information. Linda

The cruise lines are reporting that they are having trouble filling cabins in the Caribbean this winter season.

Not so good for the cruise lines, but it's a buyer's market and travelers can now snap up cruises at bargain prices.

The shorter cruises (3,4 and 5 day) have been continually passed up by travelers, so the best bargains can be found in this category. Carnival, the largest cruise company in the world has already cut prices, and the rest of the cruise industry always follows the leader. 

Carnival Corp. operates a dozen leading cruise brands, including Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Seabourn Cruise Line, Windstar Cruises, P&O Cruises, Cunard Line, Ocean Village and Swan Hellenic in the United Kingdom; AIDA in Germany; and Costa Cruises in southern Europe.

The Caribbean destination is not the problem, it appears to be over-capacity. This means that there are just too many ships sailing to the Caribbean at the same time. Cruise industry watchers report that there was a need for a couple of new ships for the Caribbean, however the entire industry went into a frenzy building boom, and at least 10 cruise lines each built mega ships for 4,000 to 5,000 passengers.

Mexico has always been a cheap, and popular destination for American vacations. So, many of these mega ships have now been repositioned out of the Florida ports to San Diego, California for Mexico sailings. With the new passport rule requiring passports to fly into Mexico, but no passport requirement for cruise passengers, the Mexico sailings are in high demand.

I never thought I'd see cruise prices as cheap as right after Sept 11, but they are around today for shorter cruises, especially to the Caribbean. And don't think you can't take a short cruise to Barbados - read on . . . 

The Carnival Destiny (pictured above) offers short 4 day cruises from Barbados, as well as 7 day cruises out of Barbados, so check it out and find a great cruise deal before the market rebounds. For example, you can now book an April 4, 2007 sailing for 4 days at just $279 for an interior cabin and $374 for an outside cabin. The price does not include airfare.

Barbados is relatively easy to tour independently. Cruise ships dock at the Bridgetown pier about 1 mile from downtown Bridgetown. (Cruise port shown at left).

Cruise ships usually have several shore excursion options, but you might want to either rent a car and explore on your own, hire a taxi, or just go into Bridgetown. There are car rental agencies located right outside the terminal.

If you don't wish to drive, there are taxis at the cruise ship terminal that will take you to Bridgetown or one of the beaches. Downtown will cost about $4 - $5, most other fares to the beaches or tourist sites run less than $20. You can also hire a taxi with a guide/driver for the day, and you can discuss the cost beforehand.

Contact our agency for a cruise/airfare quote from your departure city.

Linda, Travel 2 the Caribbean

The Disney Wonder made an inaugural call at the Bridgetown Port, and the minister of tourism and local cruise tourism partners were on hand to greet the ship's arrival.

The Barbados stop was part of the Disney Cruise Line's first 10 day Caribbean itinerary. 

Disney is creating longer itineraries for a number of repeat guests and new cruise clients who have already sailed on the usual three and four night cruises.

Disney Wonder left Miami September 7, and set sail for the islands of St Thomas, St Lucia, Barbados, Antigua.

And the cruise ship will be back in Barbados on September 22, for their first 11 day voyage which will add the island of St Kitts to the new itinerary. 

Disney is among other major cruise lines cashing in the longer cruises, and new island destinations. Let's face it, repeat customers who like a particular ship, or cruise line don't want to sail to the same places, over and over again. 

In capturing the upscale cruise market, research has shown that upscale travelers want longer cruises than the typical 3, 4 or 7 day cruise itineraries - and they want more exotic destinations.

When EasyCruise came on the scene from the French Rivera to the Caribbean, it was just a matter of time before the major cruise lines geared up their game.

While EasyCruise does not offer luxury accommodations, it does offer the opportunity to spend more time in each Caribbean port, and you can get on and off anywhere you choose. By not offering round the clock meals, it gives the more adventuresome traveler the opportunity to same the local food on each island.

So while many cruisers are looking for bargain cruises to the typical destinations, there's a whole new brand of cruise customer looking for more, and they are willing to pay for it.