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Princess Cruise Line Alaska Article
Repositioning: Cruising on the Run
You probably know that cruises come in many different sizes and flavors: various destinations, diverse target passengers, sundry activities on board, several price categories, and so on. Still, the class of repositioning cruises may be less familiar to you, because it is a category apart. How exactly it differs from regular cruises, and why you would or would not want to go on such a cruise, are two issues we will discuss below.
Due to the changing water climates, cruise lines need to relocate their ships north or south, depending on the season. There are, of course, costs involved in this migration. The solution cruise lines have found is to offer voyages at major discounts, so that the ships won't be traveling without passengers. You can probably already guess the main feature of repositioning cruises: they will not bring you back to the port from which you have set sails; they will take you from one port and drop you off in another.
On the one hand, this can be an advantage, since you'll be paying much less than for a regular cruise. On the other hand, if you include plane tickets in the calculation, it may not prove to be that inexpensive after all: you'll need to come back from the destination port, and chances are you won't find another repositioning cruise for that, so you'll have to fly back.
The duration of such a cruise can also be a good thing or a bad one. They usually take longer than average cruises, typically between nine to eighteen days. If you can afford to take so much time off work, you might be tempted to try such a cruise. Otherwise, you should look for a normal cruise.
Because the main purpose of the cruise line is to move the ship from one place to another, there will be fewer stops at ports of call. If your main purpose is to sail, you'll love it, because you can spend more time at sea than you would on a regular cruising vacation. On the other hand, if you enjoy exploring ports, you might find this type of cruise less suitable for you.
If you decide you want to give it a try, there are a few resources you can review in order to find a repositioning cruise. You can check the schedule for the Carnival Spirit, which sails on the Mexican Riviera during the winter and moves to Alaska through Hawaii in autumn. Or consider the Carnival Liberty, which sails the Mediterranean in the summer and crosses the Atlantic in the fall. The Celebrity Constellation and the Celebrity Millennium move from the Caribbean to Europe in spring and return to the Americas in the fall. You can also inquire about the Costa Atlantica and the Costa Mediterranea, which reposition from the Caribbean to Europe in spring.
Princess Cruise Line Alaska News
Dead whale found pinned to Alaska cruise ship
A dead whale was discovered pinned to the bow of a Princess Cruises luxury liner near Juneau, the third such incident involving the company's Alaska fleet in a decade, officials said on Thursday.
Read more...Dead whale was cruise line's third such incident
A dead whale has been discovered pinned to the bow of a Princess Cruises luxury liner near Juneau, the third such incident for the company's Alaska fleet in a decade, officials said on Thursday.
Read more...Dead whale found pinned to Alaska cruise ship
By Yereth Rosen
Read more...Cruise ship strikes whale near Juneau
The Sapphire Princess, operated by Princess Cruises, discovered a dead whale on top of the ship's bulbous bow, the part of the bow that goes through the water. The cruise was delayed by three hours going towards Juneau.
Read more...Whale found pinned to ship's bow
A dead whale has been discovered pinned to the bow of a Princess Cruises luxury liner near Juneau, the third such incident for the company's Alaska fleet in a decade, officials said.
Read more...Ask Gill: Persistence pays for ash cloud victim
Gill Charlton takes up the case of a stranded traveller; advises on theft claims and the best time for an Alaskan cruise.
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