Record cheap cruises pirating industry profits
Saturday, 29 Mar, 2007
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If you leave the steadily growing amenities aside, travelers are finding another major reason to book cruises: low prices.
“The inflation-adjusted price of a cruise has never been lower. It honestly is a buyer’s market out there,” said Alan Fox, chairman of the Houston travel agency Vacations to Go.
Prices average about $70 per day on some ships, he says, “and it got down to as low as $40 in the fall.”
As a result, there’s been a general softness in demand for Caribbean cruises last year.
That’s cutting into revenues for cruise lines, however, according to industry executives at the annual Seatrade Cruise Shipping Convention held this month.
Some other trends:
- This year, cruise ships will go to more destinations than ever before, according to CLIA.
- Cruise ships have returned to hurricane-stricken New Orleans.
- Luxury is in everywhere with Baby Boomers also wanting adventure travel without giving up comfort. Fine wines and balcony suites were unheard of 25 years ago.
- In dining, the days of assigned meal seating at designated times are numbered.
- More themed cruises than ever. Regent Seven Seas, for example, offers cruises on which 16 passengers at a time don aprons to learn French cooking with visiting Le Cordon Bleu chefs.
- Both culinary and religious cruising are growing.
- Ships are wired: No matter where people cruise, Vacation to Go’s Alan Fox says, more of them want to stay connected to the mainland via e-mail and cell phone. More ships also have internet cafes and wireless connections in public areas.
Report by David Wilkening
David
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