Happy Holidays

Goldring Travel December 25, 2008

Happy Holidays! I have been enjoying a bit of quiet time with my family, so I have not been posting these last few days. (OK, so my son breaking his wrist snowboarding the other day wasn’t so quiet, but he has his badge of honor – a cast). Sorry for the lack of new info

Norwegian Cruise Lines F3 Project Has Wind In Its Sails!

Goldring Travel December 18, 2008

It was announced today that NCL’s F3 project will be going forward with an estimated delivery date of May 2010. Very few details have been announced about the deal between STX France and NCL, but what has been said is that as of now the F3 project is for one ship, with the second ship being

Crystal Cruises Announces 2010 Port Calls to Iran and Other Unique Middle East Ports

Goldring Travel December 11, 2008

A few weeks ago I posted about how being uninformed can lead to misperceptions and result in comments like, “I am not going to THAT part of the world. It just isn’t safe.”…lumping the entire Middle East into a truly undeserved “No Go” area. Frankly, many Americans have difficulty in understanding the geography, no less

Discounts and Luxury – Are They Mutually Exclusive and Do They Hurt The Consumer?

Goldring Travel December 9, 2008

Over the past week…and especially the past three weeks…we all have seen something none of us have ever experienced and, worse, we do not really know where it all will be going. Today someone pointed out an article in the New York Times which was a very interesting read: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/04/fashion/04SHOPPING.html?_r=1&emc=eta1. Basically, it is about Saks

Another Seabourn Promotion – Between Friends

Goldring Travel December 8, 2008

If you are a group of three or more couples (so it does not apply to singles) traveling together on the same cruise and at least one of the couples is brand new to Seabourn and you are not paying a 50% Club Value Savings or similar 50% off promotion (a 45% Early Booking Savings

Seabourn Specials…And I Mean REALLY Special

Goldring Travel December 7, 2008

Seabourn is having somewhat of an unusual situation as a result of the economic situation: Some cruises are booking extremely well, some are essentially sold out and, then again, there are some that are just booking slow. While I am not a big supporter of “giving away the ship”, tomorrow morning (Monday) Seabourn will virtually

Cruise Lines’ Fuel Supplements Suspended by Carnival Corp.

Goldring Travel December 4, 2008

With oil prices having plummeted to $46 a barrel, Carnival Corp. has suspended (not eliminated) its fuel supplement for all of its major brands: Seabourn, Cunard, Holland America, Princess, Costa and Carnival. This is how it will work: A refund of the fuel supplement will be made in the form of a shipboard credit for all

Global Superyacht Forum – Some Thoughts About Regulations In this Economy: It Should Be About Quality Crew and Training.

Goldring Travel December 4, 2008

Last month I was on the following panel at the Global Superyacht Forum in Amsterdam: This extended debating session following on from GSF 2007, will allow delegates to discuss and debate the various ways in which interpretations and consistency of rules would help improve the process of building and designing large yachts. In addition the

Piracy and Cruise Ships – Reality vs. Hype

Goldring Travel December 2, 2008

This afternoon I walked out of a meeting in New York City with a fellow superyacht industry person discussing the now normal issues of what is the happening in world markets and BAM, it hit me in the face: A giant electronic ticker tape announcing the pirate attack on the Oceania Nautica…which happened three days

Silversea – A Call from the Captain!

Goldring Travel December 1, 2008

Late today I received a call from Marilyn Conroy, Silversea’s senior vice president of sales and marketing concerning my most recent post. We had a wonderful chat about Silversea, her perspective on a number of my comments, concerns and theories. And, of course, I listened carefully to both the information she had to share as

Windstar’s Wind Surf – Caribbean – January 2014

Goldring Travel Blog – Making Waves

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