Chapter 6Travel and Tourism

Magic at Sea: The Cruise Industry

OBJECTIVES

• Determine why people go on cruises• Describe different types of cruise lines and

ships• Reveal what a cruise experience is like• Explain how cruises are priced and sold

TERMS

• Air-sea package• Berth• Bow• Deck• Gangway• Gross registered

tonnage

• Inside Stateroom• Outside Stateroom• Pax• Starboard• Stern• Tender• Zodiac

Why People Cruise

• Romance• Luxury• Magic of the sea

adventure• Great ships• Get away from it all-

relax

• Pampered service • Interesting destinations• Learning experience • Socialization• Safe experience• Vacation value-more for

money

Kinds of Cruise Lines and Ships

• Mass-Market Cruise Lines: Carnival, Norwegian, Royal Caribbean-operate large vessel that can have over 1000 passengers, may have pools, casinos, theaters, shops, medical facilities, staterooms, spas, several dining facilities, cost less

Kinds of Cruise Lines and Ships

• Specialty Cruise Companies: focus on smaller target market• Luxury Cruise Lines: appeal to wealthy,

have smaller vessel, top line of service• Education and Adventure: built around

learning and exploration, generally small vessels that visit ecological places

• Masted Sailing Ships: Real sailing vessels, have all price levels

• Riverboats: “time machine” paddle wheelers on the Mississippi, Nile, Danube, Rhine Rivers

Kinds of Cruise Lines and Ships

• Miscellaneous Lines: Some are cargo ships that carry passengers, ferry ships, barges, houseboats and sailboats

How big is that ship?

• Ships are measured by:• Number of staterooms• How many passengers it

can accommodate• Gross Registered

Tonnage (GRT) which represents only that area of the ship that is enclosed public space (not crew area such as kitchens or engine rooms)

How big is that ship?

• Very small ship: Less than 10,000 GRT, under 200 pax (pax is industry term for passengers)

• Small ship:10,000-20,000 GRT, 200-500 pax• Medium ship: 20,000-50,000 GRT, 500-1200

pax• Large ship: 50,000-70,000 GRT, 1,200-2,000

pax• Megaship: 70,000 GRT or more, over 2,000

pax-may have as many as 1000 employees

Who owns Cruise Lines?

• Carnival owns: Holland America, Windstar, Princess, Seabourn, Cunard, Costa and Carnival

• Royal Caribbean owns: Celebrity and Royal Caribbean

• Star owns: Norwegian and Orient

Cruise Lines Registration

• Cruise lines may be headquartered in one country and have their ships registered in another to keep from having to follow certain hiring laws, work hours, and other regulations

• Ships fly the flags of the country they are registered in

Career Opportunities

• Captain: in charge of all ships operations

• First Officer: in charge when the captain is busy, also in charge of ship security

• Chief Engineer: in charge of all mechanical

• Chief Medical Officer: ship doctor

• Communications Officer: oversees all ship communication systems

Career Opportunities

• Chief Purser: hotel manager of ship• Purser: similar to front desk manager of

hotel• Shore Excursion Manager: in charge of

booking port-based tours• Cruise Director: overseas entertainment• Executive Chef: Kitchen supervision• Food & Beverage Manager: over the

serving of meals and beverages• Chief Steward: head housekeeper

What Cruises Cost

• Cruises usually sell at prices below what’s listed in brochures.

• Brochure prices are more like “suggested retail prices”

• You can lower the price of a cruise by booking 6 to 9 months in advance

What Cruises Cost

• If a cruise is not full, the cruise line may offer last minute sales promotions.

• 3rd and 4th guests to a stateroom are often discounted

• Prices are seasonal• Repositioning cruises are a bargain; when

they move a ship from a northern port to a southern port

What Cruises Cost

• The higher the deck for a stateroom, the higher the cruise price

• Outside staterooms (ocean-view) costs more

• Inside staterooms (usually windowless) costs less

• Outside staterooms with a balcony costs more

• Suites (rooms with separate sitting areas) cost more than regular state rooms (note: staterooms on the lower decks and mid-ship have the least movement and cause less motion sickness)

Stern (back of a ship)Stern (back of a ship)

Bow (front of ship)

Berth (bed on a ship)

Deck (floor of a ship)

Stabilizer (underwater device that helps reduce ship’s motion)

Starboard (when facing the forward, the right-hand side of the ship

Port (facing forward, the left-hand side of the ship

Tender Boats

Transports passengers to and from shore if the ship is too large or the port is too shallow for docking to a peer

Zodiacs-(large inflatable rubber boats) are used in exotic places like Antarctica

Port Experiences

• 3 Categories of Port Experiences• Precruise: Before you depart, usually an extended

time in the port city where the cruise begins• Postcruise: After your cruise, usually in the port city

or around the city at the end of the cruise• Intermediary Port Stops: Options available

during cruise, short tours, excursions available for purchase, some excursions are in the price of the regular cruise ticket

Port Experiences

• If you buy a shore excursion from the ship and something goes wrong, the ship will probably wait for you

• If you buy a shore excursion from an independent at the dock and there is a problem, the ship probably will sail without you

How Cruises Are Sold

• Travel agents sell 90% of cruise bookings• Tour companies may have package cruises

with pre or post cruise tours• Cruise Consolidators buy blocks of

staterooms and offer them at discount prices• Cruise lines sometimes sell directly

to consumers using Web sites

Cruise: This and That

• Caribbean is the world’s most popular place to cruise followed by Europe, Alaska, Mexico, Panama Canal, Hawaii

• Only a few cruise ships are totally “smoke-free”

• May cruises feature theme sailing such as Jazz, history, baseball, etc.

• Many lines are doing away with set seating times to eat and are more like restaurants, dine when and where you want.

Web Sites

• American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA): http://www.aapa-ports.org

• Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA): http://www.cruising.org

• International Council of Cruise Lines (ICCL): http://www.iccl.org