Cruise to Your Outdoor Theater

Growing up, we had a drive-in movie theater near our home. When young, my brother and I in our pajamas, along with our parents would park and watch the latest new movie out, often a Disney film. Pull into a parking spot, take a speaker off its pole and put it on your window. As teens, the trick was to pack the car tight with friends which often included trying to sneak someone in “free” in the trunk. (I didn’t say we were smart teens!)

Back then, cruise ships offered movie theaters for those who wanted to go watch a movie.

But time went by and the local drive-in property became a Two Guys department store and then a Bradlees followed by the Wal-Mart which now resides there.

Not long after many drive-ins closed, cruise lines felt that shipboard movie theaters were wasted space on ships. Shipboard theaters were converted for other uses and guests’ cabin televisions started carrying movies.

In a new twist over the past decade, some cruise lines started building huge outdoor movie screens reminiscent of those old drive-in theater screens on some of their ships. Princess Cruises started the trend with large outdoor screens able to show movies, major sporting events, concerts and more. Now following the trend on some of their fleet’s ships are Norwegian Cruise Line, Carnival Cruises, Costa, Disney Cruises and Royal Caribbean International.

If you are looking for added outdoor entertainment or you want to lay out on a deck chair to watch a movie while remembering drive-ins from your childhood, call 610-532-0989 and ask your consultant at Connie George Travel Associates to help you choose the right ship.

~ Connie

Rock & Roll All Nite

KISS frontman, Gene Simmons, is in the news for more than just the recent marriage to his longtime girlfriend, Shannon Tweed. This time, he’s in the travel news. With two performances and theme events, a boatload of people will be rockin’ and rollin’ all night long during the upcoming KISS Kruise on Carnival Destiny next week!

Bowzer meets Stacy and Barb from SOFT.

KISS is joining a continuing growing trend of celebrity singers and bands performing on cruise ships. Lynyrd Skynyrd has also played on Carnival. Taylor Swift, Rhianna and Bowzer (former lead singer with Sha Na Na) are among many who have performed for guests on Royal Caribbean. While James Taylor has thrilled fans on Cunard’s Queen Mary 2, NCL’s guests have enjoyed the sultry pop sound of Sara McLachlan. Holland America has pleased American Idol fans by having Adam Lambert sing on one of their ships (pre-AI) as well as the Texas Tenors (post-AI).

How do you get to be on a cruise with your favorite performers? Some celebrities are on chartered “fan” cruises either alone (such as next week’s KISS Kruise) or with multiple celebrities typically in the same or similar genres of music. Other times a singer will be a headliner on a cruise. The best way to know is to follow your favorite performers on their websites, Facebook and Twitter. Or you can try “googling” your ship and sailing to see if anything comes up in the way of headliner news.


Rock on!

~Connie

This Cruise Night Gives Back

 
Connie George Travel Associates held a Cruise Night at the Hilton Garden Inn Kennett Square last week. So exactly what is a Cruise Night? And is there a benefit to you if you didn’t attend it? (Yes! Keep reading!)

Simply put, Cruise Nights are an informational event sponsored by a travel agency and at least one cruise line. They usually include light refreshments, announcements of special promotions and door prizes. We had a typical mix of experienced cruisers, those who had never cruised, mixed ages, people who are already clients of ours and others were new to us. Three people were group leaders excited about their groups being announced that night.

We partnered with Royal Caribbean International. Our district sales manager, Nancy, gave an exciting presentation on cruising from the nearby ports of Baltimore on Enchantment of the Seas and Bayonne (Cape Liberty Port) on Explorer of the Seas, and also about the incredible Oasis-class ships which sail from Fort Lauderdale. Feedback and questions from the audience were great!

Afterward, I gave a short overview of Connie George Travel Associates and what makes us so special in the travel industry. We announced  promotions for Cruise Night attendees (hold onto your keyboard because I’m going to share them with you!), shared a couple of new group cruises in the area (and you are invited to join in!) and drew for the prizes. The event was about 90 minutes long, but many stayed afterward to talk about vacations.





We had an exciting addition to our Cruise Night. We asked everyone attending to bring a canned food item to be donated to the Kennett Area Food Cupboard. With our thanks to those who came, we were able to collect dozens of cans and a monetary donation to be sent to them. I challenge my fellow travel agents to add a canned food drive for a local food bank if they produce a Cruise Night. It’s exciting to know you are giving back to the community you are asking to support you!

I think my only disappointment for the evening was that we were planning to present a check to the Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Fellowship of Hope organizer for the fundraising cruise they had recently operated, but the person who runs it was unable to attend due to illness.



With group leaders on hand and flyers to distribute, we announced their “AG Cabin Fever 2012” group which is for families looking for a spring break cruise and also a new Chicks at Sea (girls getaway cruise) called “Oldies Gone Wild 2012” for next Memorial Day weekend. Both groups are open to people outside the area and you can get more information by clicking on the above links.



So what about the promotions? Some promotions are only available to the actual participants who were at the Cruise Night. But there are two which we can share with others who read this blog.  If you book any Royal Caribbean International cruise through Connie George Travel Associates between 6/24-7/1/11 and mention “Cruise Night," you will receive a shipboard discount coupon booklet and if you book an oceanview or higher, you will also receive a bottle of wine in your cabin.  Each item is one per cabin.

Email info@cgta.com or call 610-532-0989 to book your cruise and get your bonus features!

~ Connie

Pizza at Sea & at Home

Are you a pizza aficionado? As a pizza lover, an article regarding Travel + Leisure’s Best Pizza award in their America’s Favorite Cities survey got my mind moving (and my mouth watering!) on the subject of pizza.

Deciding I wanted to write about cruising and pizza, I wondered about 24-hour availability for pizza lovers on cruises so I contacted the six largest cruise lines. Here’s what I was told.  With the number of ships each of the lines has, there may not be consistency among their entire fleets.

Carnival Cruise Lines, Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Princess Cruises are the best lines for true pizza addicts who need access to a 24 hour fix. Carnival claimed to have a 24-hour pizzeria on all ships, but it’s not on their room service menu.  Royal Caribbean, Celebrity and Princess said that pizza is available 24-hours a day by room service.

Holland America explained that they offer pizza in their Terrace Grill 11am – 5:30pm.

A Norwegian Cruise Line agent said they “have food courts that probably serve pizza  and there’s a $5 pizza delivery on Epic,” but she wasn't sure that they have pizza in the food court.  I was put through to another department that promised to call me back with the information for the blog, but I didn't hear back.

Going for your pizza in a buffet or pizzaria is free. Having it delivered to your cabin ranges from complimentary (but please do tip the delivery person) to $5, depending on the line.

So which cruise line has the best pizza? I couldn’t find any recent polls online for that, but my favorite “pizza at sea” has been from Sorrento’s on Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas.

Speaking of food and travel, Candy Harrington, a travel writer whose work I'm very familiar with, is finishing a book titled “Eating Well on the Road.”   In it, she shares a lot of her hard-earned experience about realistically adjusting your diet at home and when traveling around the United States to benefit your health.  Some of the tips and strategies she’ll be including can also be applied to cruise vacations.  I asked Candy if she would share a recipe “for an easy, tasty and healthy pizza for this blog. Here’s the recipe for her:

Tomato Basil Pizza

Ingredients

1 8-inch Boboli pizza crust

1 plum tomato, thinly sliced

4 fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced

2 T Trader Joe's parmesan, romano and asiago cheese blend

Directions

Place pizza crust on an ungreased baking sheet. Layer with tomatoes, basil and cheese. Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes or until cheese is

melted.

Nutrition
2 Servings
Calories: 233
Sodium: 448 mg.

Are you ready to take the “pizza at sea taste test?”

Contact Connie George Travel Associates at info@cgta.com or 610-532-0989 to book your next cruise and let us know how you felt about the pizza!

Haiti Humanitarian Relief- From this Travel Agent's View

By Vicki Thorp
Travel Consultant & Lead Specialist on our Access Travel Team


For those of you who have been thinking or praying for our sister and brother-in-law, missionaries in Haiti, here is a quick update. They are safe and had plenty of supplies (thankfully) purchased 2 weeks ago from Port-au-Prince and a grocery store that is no longer there. They are in northern Haiti, near Port-de-Paix (northwest). There is a small domestic airport in Cap-Haitien (which coincidentally is fairly close to Royal Caribbean’s private beach peninsula of Labadee). Deb and Bruce have a team of volunteer workers from the US who have been with them a couple of weeks and were scheduled to fly home from Port-au-Prince last week and today. Unfortunately, this isn’t happening, and I’ve assisted last week to notify connecting flights, etc. back in the US. There is work underway to have Missionary Flights International (MFI) from Florida fly into Cap-Haiten to bring supplies, etc. and to take the volunteers back to Florida. A small domestic airline flies from Cap-Haiten to Port-Au-Prince also, where American Airlines has flights to Miami (whenever they start those again). Hopefully MFI will be able to accomplish the above since it is completely unsafe to be in Port-au-Prince without protection where many local people are killing, beating and/or stealing the smallest bag or back pack out of desperation.

Many of the people in other regions are arranging for relatives in Port-au-Prince to come and stay with them. This is a good idea but will place higher demands on those regions and people as well since there are limited supplies and money to care for massive extra people. Many of these people are already arriving with no belongings and some with injuries that are still untreated.



Royal Caribbean and Celebrity plan to deliver relief supplies to Haiti via Labadee. Hopefully, this began on January 15 if they received official approval and safety information to allow them to resume this port of call. A press announcement is below. As you can see, they have a relief fund anyone can donate too, as well as a shipboard collection feature.

My relatives, Deb and Bruce Robinson, work with CrossWorld, a missionary organization. It also collects donations and has some serious and heartbreaking photos on its website, www.crossworld.org. And, of course, there are other organizations that are helping as well, i.e. Red Cross and numerous other foundations, churches, etc. Not all of these may be using funds the way they are intended so it is wise to check them out first.

Bruce and Deb expect another team to arrive later this week, but this may be on hold as plans are revised and flights are limited. Safety is a primary concern. Bruce and Deb will remain at their home in Haiti for the timebeing and work on those plans. We hope and pray the violence does not expand into their part of the country. We are grateful that they, their home, workshop and equipment sustained no damage and are available for whatever role they will play. Bruce is an engineer by training and has been in Haiti more than 30 years. He indicates most construction cannot commence for months, partly because of continued shifting of the earth which isn’t good for pouring concrete and partly because of all the rubble that must be cleared away. Shelters of some type are urgently needed, and rain occurs frequently here. One of his projects is work to obtain supplies to create and place Quonset huts to shelter people and humanitarian workers or store furniture and equipment removed from buildings that were partly destroyed. These huts will be needed in many of the smaller towns and areas outside of Port-au-Prince as well to shelter newly arriving people. They are also seeking medical supplies for their closest hospital, which are now needed to treat arriving refugees also.

Again, thank you for your continued thoughts and prayers not only for them and their work, but for the country as a whole and the relief workers and security forces. The news is heartbreaking, and the next few weeks and months are dangerous and critical for many more people.


(Below: RCCL announcement)

Royal Caribbean Sets Plan for Haiti Humanitarian Relief
Published on: January 18, 2010

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (RCCL), following up on measures announced by Royal Caribbean International President Adam Goldstein on Thursday, revealed plans to provide at least $1 million in humanitarian relief to Haiti in response to the catastrophic earthquake in Port-Au-Prince.

Royal Caribbean one of Haiti’s largest foreign investors for almost 30 years, said it will be partnering with charitable organizations – such as Food for the Poor, Pan American Development Foundation and the Solano Foundation, the company’s foundation in Haiti, to provide additional assistance to the people of Haiti. Royal Caribbean will also be delivering much needed goods and supplies to Haiti via their cruise ships.

“The effect of the earthquake on Haiti has been catastrophic, leaving the country in need of not only immediate support, but assistance in their long-term recovery,” said Richard Fain, chairman and chief executive officer of RCCL. “Royal Caribbean wants to do its part to help out not only the general response, but also our hundreds of Haitian employees and their families through this disaster. In addition to our financial contribution, Royal Caribbean will continue to provide economic support through the continuous business we bring to Labadee.”

Leslie Voltaire, special envoy of the government of Haiti to the United Nations, said: “Given the terrible economic and social challenges we now face in Haiti, we welcome the continuation of the positive economic benefits that the cruise ship calls to Labadee contribute to our country.”

Royal Caribbean’s Independence of the Seas is making a call Jan. 15 at Labadee, Haiti, the company’s private island destination, to deliver supplies for Haitii. The supplies were loaded on the ship during its call in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and include items such as rice, dried beans, powdered milk, water and canned goods. In addition, 100 percent of the company’s net revenue from Labadee will be contributed to the relief effort.

In the next two weeks, the following ships are scheduled to call on Labadee with additional supplies: Navigator of the Seas on Monday, Jan. 18; Liberty of the Seas on Tuesday, Jan. 19; and Celebrity Solstice on Friday, Jan. 22. When the supplies arrive in Labadee, they will be transported to an offsite location to be distributed by Food for the Poor, a long time partner of Royal Caribbean in Haiti.

In addition to working with Food for the Poor to distribute relief supplies, guests sailing onboard Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises will be able to make a donation to Food for the Poor’s Haiti Relief Fund, via a charge to their onboard account. Guests who would like to contribute immediately can visit www.foodforthepoor.org/royalcaribbean to make a donation. Royal Caribbean also plans to use a portion of the $1 million donation to augment the company’s Crew Relief Fund, which can be drawn on by any of the company’s more than 200 Haitian crew members for assistance, as well as to match employee contributions to the partner organizations. As the initial response effort gives way to the long-term recovery effort, Royal Caribbean said it will consider further support efforts. For more information, visit www.rclinvestor.com.