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Cruise Start Date Anticipated - Hyped Incorrectly


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1 hour ago, Flopper said:

Ohio is offering the Vaccine to everyone starting March 29 and the rest of the country isn’t that far behind. Time to cruise. 

I agree. The missus and I just received Shot 1 of the Pfizer vaccine on Monday...Shot 2 next month...cruise time is just around the corner, baby! ?

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8 minutes ago, Vancity Cruiser said:

The news is Navigator will be homeported in LA. 

Worst kept secret

Worse hyped announcement

well, OK then.  Yay for LA?  Could be a better announcement like a new ship going there like Carnival did with Panorama.  I was hoping for test cruises so the ships can get sailing again.

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https://www.royalcaribbeanpresscenter.com/press-release/1506/stealing-the-spotlight-royal-caribbean-reveals-new-west-coast-adventures-from-los-angeles/

STEALING THE SPOTLIGHT, ROYAL CARIBBEAN REVEALS NEW WEST COAST ADVENTURES FROM LOS ANGELES

MIAMI, March 17, 2021 – After a decade-long hiatus, Royal Caribbean International will once again call Hollywood home starting in June 2022, casting Navigator of the Seas as a “series regular” that will sail from Los Angeles. The amplified ship will broaden the cruise line’s West Coast offerings, sailing 3-, 4- and 5-night itineraries to Catalina Island, California and Ensenada and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico – plus, select winter holiday 7-night sailings will feature overnights in the popular resort city. Royal Caribbean’s new year-round adventures from LA will open for sale the week of March 29, 2021.

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1 hour ago, DublinFC said:

well, OK then.  Yay for LA?  Could be a better announcement like a new ship going there like Carnival did with Panorama.  I was hoping for test cruises so the ships can get sailing again.

Pretty sure Navigator wasn’t the “real” news that was originally hyped. It couldn’t possibly be the “news we’ve all been waiting for” so I guess we sit and wait until either Bayley or Fain spill the beans. 

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6 minutes ago, Jill said:

Pretty sure Navigator wasn’t the “real” news that was originally hyped. It couldn’t possibly be the “news we’ve all been waiting for” so I guess we sit and wait until either Bailey or Fain spill the beans. 

Actually i wouldn't be surprised at all that this was "it" and they just didn't think at all about how "the news we have all been waiting for" was going to be thought of by everyone else ..

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6 minutes ago, jticarruthers said:

Actually i wouldn't be surprised at all that this was "it" and they just didn't think at all about how "the news we have all been waiting for" was going to be thought of by everyone else ..

I agree. The news we are all waiting for is industry wide and most likely will not be a RCI exclusive announcement

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I love that NAV is coming to LA, as that's close to me in Arizona. However, hearing "the news you've all been waiting for" and then this is kind of like having a house that's flooded and living in a hotel, having the contractor fixing the house call you and leave a voicemail saying, "I have the news you've been waiting for!" and then telling you that he found a ten dollar bill in your still-flooded kitchen. Thanks...but you hyped it up WAY too much.

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  • DisneyWorld30th changed the title to Cruise Start Date Anticipated - Hyped Incorrectly
18 hours ago, twangster said:

Announcing a restart is a pretty big deal but it also admits all cruises prior to the restart date are cancelled.   Plus if the restart involves a small restart like two ships doing short Florida cruises as they've suggested that also admits all other cruises are cancelled.

That's a pretty big message that they'll want to be fully prepared for.  It's the kind of message that will drive the stock price one way or the other.  They'll announce something that big only once they've got a much bigger plan well thought out and ready for consumption by the public.  Not sure but that message might be better delivered by someone higher up.  

No disrespect meant for Vicki but that impacts other brands as well, so maybe it's something Richard delivers, or RCG corporate, coordinated across the brands.

I started to type something similar yesterday but decided not to post it. My comment was that an important announcement like cruises restarting wouldn't be delivered via "coffee chat" no matter their position in the company. However, everyone was still being so optimistic about the (sorry to say) "click-bait" "must tune in to my podcast" title I decided to let everyone have their moment. ?

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The more I think about it the more I am annoyed with "the news we've all been waiting for" click-bait.  Only speaking my own thoughts here, but wth was she thinking?  After the past year how in the world is Navigator going to LA the news we have been waiting for?  I am actually more than annoyed.  I know in the grand scheme of things that has gone on with covid, cruise vacations being cancelled for so long is not the worst that has happened. 

But, knowing you have a consumer base wanting to know when we will potentially get back to sailing this was a really bad idea.  Not to mention the crew members who want to get back to work.  I'm frustrated about all of it. 

Sorry for the rant/venting.  

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5 hours ago, mook1525 said:

I agree.

I just don’t understand their hatred/ignorance/inaction against cruise industry.

I've thought a great deal about the hatred/ignorance of the cruise industry.  I think the answer may be in Twangster's post about the CDC.  Only 15% of Americans have ever taken a cruise.  That means 85% have not.  While many claim they don't want to vacation on a floating petry dish, I think it's something different.

 

I would be willing to bet that most either can't afford to cruise, think they can't afford to cruise, or just never taken the time to book a cruise.  All of their excuses(hatred and jealousy) serve to blame someone or something other than themselves.

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53 minutes ago, DublinFC said:

The more I think about it the more I am annoyed with "the news we've all been waiting for" click-bait.  Only speaking my own thoughts here, but wth was she thinking?  After the past year how in the world is Navigator going to LA the news we have been waiting for?  I am actually more than annoyed.  I know in the grand scheme of things that has gone on with covid, cruise vacations being cancelled for so long is not the worst that has happened. 

But, knowing you have a consumer base wanting to know when we will potentially get back to sailing this was a really bad idea.  Not to mention the crew members who want to get back to work.  I'm frustrated about all of it. 

Sorry for the rant/venting.  

Navigator wasn’t the news we have all been waiting for.. she said that and then she back-pedalled saying they now couldn’t say anything.. BUT we can tell you about a new home port instead.

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Look, I've said this elsewhere and probably in this thread as well. Those of us who have been loyal to RCG for decades and  who aren't getting any younger, our time in this world where we are still vital and active is ticking away. Meanwhile, we wait for the resumption of cruising from US ports. My take is that we're getting a raw deal on two fronts: (1) The CDC's unobtainable goal of requiring cruise lines to get the risk of COVID aboard their ships to near zero through a litany of complex and costly tasks. (2) RCG's lack of leadership in getting them eased and keeping their loyalists informed.

Admittedly, I don't know what is going on behind the scenes but this dance is ridiculous. It is becoming more and more obvious to me, anyway, that as time goes on this dance is being orchestrated at the corporate level. It is a marketing strategy to keep revenue flowing in through advanced bookings, sustained by falsely feeding our insatiable optimism that cruising is going to restart "very soon."  It amounts to stall tactics and should be called out. I'm calling it out.

I don't know about the rest of you but out of 7 planned cruises in the past year, all of them have been moved forward which means RCG has a lot of my money without any reassurances that I'm actually going to cruise in the next year.

Yes, I had options. Did many cruisers holding cancelled bookings ask for refunds?  Based on booking figures and optimistic outlooks for profits we get from corporate, Nope. Moreover, those predictions supported by investment analysts talking those profits up - propping stock prices up and keeping them tanking - makes it appear that folks pushing their chips forward to the next round of cancellations is a good bet. I'm seriously beginning to wonder about that.   

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1 hour ago, JeffB said:

Look, I've said this elsewhere and probably in this thread as well. Those of us who have been loyal to RCG for decades and  who aren't getting any younger, our time in this world where we are still vital and active is ticking away. Meanwhile, we wait for the resumption of cruising from US ports. My take is that we're getting a raw deal on two fronts: (1) The CDC's unobtainable goal of requiring cruise lines to get the risk of COVID aboard their ships to near zero through a litany of complex and costly tasks. (2) RCG's lack of leadership in getting them eased and keeping their loyalists informed.

Admittedly, I don't know what is going on behind the scenes but this dance is ridiculous. It is becoming more and more obvious to me, anyway, that as time goes on this dance is being orchestrated at the corporate level. It is a marketing strategy to keep revenue flowing in through advanced bookings, sustained by falsely feeding our insatiable optimism that cruising is going to restart "very soon."  It amounts to stall tactics and should be called out. I'm calling it out.

I don't know about the rest of you but out of 7 planned cruises in the past year, all of them have been moved forward which means RCG has a lot of my money without any reassurances that I'm actually going to cruise in the next year.

Yes, I had options. Did many cruisers holding cancelled bookings ask for refunds?  Based on booking figures and optimistic outlooks for profits we get from corporate, Nope. Moreover, those predictions supported by investment analysts talking those profits up - propping stock prices up and keeping them tanking - makes it appear that folks pushing their chips forward to the next round of cancellations is a good bet. I'm seriously beginning to wonder about that.   

On the brightside you can now book a cruise from LA that may also need to be shifted ? it probably wont need to be but who knows 

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The Today Show did a story on this topic today I think they were expecting some news from the CDC, even though I get the feeling many of their anchors are not fans of the cruise industry.  In the report (link provided below) Kerry Sanders which I think is a friend of the cruise industry and probably the reason NBC did this story did say the CDC has issued no new guidance and declined (the politically correct way of saying the CDC refused) to take questions or comment on the cruise industry.

 

As much talking at the new CDC director has been doing over the past several days lamenting the record number of Americans traveling for spring break, one would think the director would at the very least take a few questions from NBC's Kerry Sanders concerning concerning the resumption of cruising in this country seeing that cruise lines have been shut down for more than a year now. 

https://www.today.com/video/cruise-ships-prepare-to-welcome-back-passengers-108624965839?playlist=mmlsnnd_todayarchiveswednesday

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1 hour ago, JeffB said:

Look, I've said this elsewhere and probably in this thread as well. Those of us who have been loyal to RCG for decades and  who aren't getting any younger, our time in this world where we are still vital and active is ticking away. Meanwhile, we wait for the resumption of cruising from US ports. My take is that we're getting a raw deal on two fronts: (1) The CDC's unobtainable goal of requiring cruise lines to get the risk of COVID aboard their ships to near zero through a litany of complex and costly tasks. (2) RCG's lack of leadership in getting them eased and keeping their loyalists informed.

Admittedly, I don't know what is going on behind the scenes but this dance is ridiculous. It is becoming more and more obvious to me, anyway, that as time goes on this dance is being orchestrated at the corporate level. It is a marketing strategy to keep revenue flowing in through advanced bookings, sustained by falsely feeding our insatiable optimism that cruising is going to restart "very soon."  It amounts to stall tactics and should be called out. I'm calling it out.

I don't know about the rest of you but out of 7 planned cruises in the past year, all of them have been moved forward which means RCG has a lot of my money without any reassurances that I'm actually going to cruise in the next year.

Yes, I had options. Did many cruisers holding cancelled bookings ask for refunds?  Based on booking figures and optimistic outlooks for profits we get from corporate, Nope. Moreover, those predictions supported by investment analysts talking those profits up - propping stock prices up and keeping them tanking - makes it appear that folks pushing their chips forward to the next round of cancellations is a good bet. I'm seriously beginning to wonder about that.   

I agree completely. My attitude has shifted over time, and as such, I changed ALL of my FCCs into refunds. Based on what I'm seeing, there is no concrete plan at all, indicating a failure in leadership at the CDC level (definitely) and at the RCG level (seems likely).

I would LOVE to go on a cruise, but at this point, I don't know if cruises will come back soon, and I'm starting to think the cruise industry may not survive. Cruising will still be around, of course, but not as we know it today. I'm hopeful, but certainly not expectant at this point.

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On 3/16/2021 at 8:17 AM, DisneyWorld30th said:

Travel agents were informed today at 9:15AM that there is Breaking News to be announed to agents tomorrow.  Here was the message:

 

I can't contain my excitement, I have some late breaking news to share with you all! The anticipation is too much for me to wait another week to share this news so I will be switching up my previously planned Coffee Talk. Join me tomorrow Wednesday, March 17 at 12 p.m. EDT, for an exclusive Coffee Talk with some hot off the press updates. I guarantee this is a session you will not want to miss out on - I'd say this is the news we've all been waiting for!

 

 

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Three or four  weeks ago, I was pretty optimistic. The leading factor for that optimism was what appeared to be a shift in EU governments to a position that was supportive of the resumption of tourism, including cruise ship tourism, this in contrast to the CDCs fear monkey position on congregate settings, e.g., cruise ships.

Then came news of a surge in new cases within the EU member states and more rigorous lock-downs. This was quickly followed by the AZ vaccines  debacle. Increases in new case numbers compared to the experience in the UK, US and eslewhere had less to do about people behaving badly and irresponsibly in the face of COVID and much more to do with a failed vEUC vaccine program. At this point I'm not optimistic at all about a cruise restart being led by Europe. Walenski at the CDC is trying to outwardly be optimistic but follows a listing of every gain with two or more downsides.

As I have said, THE #1 task for global governments should be getting vaccines in arms. It is undeniable that vaccines work and for countries that have done well distributing it to their citizens, disease burden is declining. An added benefit is that it is anecdotally but still clearly reducing transmission. Americans are not stupid. It defies logic and science for the CDC to, instead of being excessively guarded, start telling us that great progress is being made (which it absolutely is) and these are the steps you need to follow to start resuming normal activities safely.

Failing to do this, and having Americans recognize that failure, is entirely counter productive and instead of increased attention being paid to meaningful public health messaging, it is being rejected as non-sensical and inconsistent with the facts on the ground. That is producing exactly the opposite affect .......Americans saying screw your advice  and acting without any caution at all.

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21 minutes ago, JeffB said:

Americans saying screw your advice  and acting without any caution at all.

This was DeSantis's position in regards to Florida back in June/July of last year ... I cant keep you locked down indefinitely "just in case", so we are going to bubble wrap the elderly and let everyone else go back to normal.

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16 hours ago, DublinFC said:

The more I think about it the more I am annoyed with "the news we've all been waiting for" click-bait.  Only speaking my own thoughts here, but wth was she thinking?  After the past year how in the world is Navigator going to LA the news we have been waiting for?  I am actually more than annoyed.  I know in the grand scheme of things that has gone on with covid, cruise vacations being cancelled for so long is not the worst that has happened. 

But, knowing you have a consumer base wanting to know when we will potentially get back to sailing this was a really bad idea.  Not to mention the crew members who want to get back to work.  I'm frustrated about all of it. 

Sorry for the rant/venting.  

 

16099225a8e485df229d6a81c314265b_XL.jpg

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10 hours ago, jticarruthers said:

This was DeSantis's position in regards to Florida back in June/July of last year ... I cant keep you locked down indefinitely "just in case", so we are going to bubble wrap the elderly and let everyone else go back to normal.

At least you can float.  Safer on the ship 

maxresdefault.jpg

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