It took her 46 days to get here, and she didn't look the least bit tired. Good thing too, because we (Mr. Makarma) had the wonderful opportunity to help welcome Royal Caribbean International's Mariner of the Seas to her new home port of Los Angeles last week. Among those joining us on this adventure were Buffy and Ron, our very best friends in the travel industry.
The Mariner was the last built of the five-ship Voyager class, joining the Royal Caribbean fleet in November 2003. Her older sister, Voyager of the Seas, was introduced in 1999 and brought with it a host of cruise ship innovations. These included the four-deck Royal Promenade consisting of shops, cocktail lounges and cafes along its lowest deck, along with three decks of interior cabins with a floor-to-ceiling view of all the activity below. An ice rink (yes, ice rink), three-deck dining room, multi-level main showroom and a Johnny Rockets help round up all the excitement.
Mariner of the Seas is the largest cruise ever based on the West Coast (by far) and, based on our short stay, we're planning to keep her here for some time. After a quick check-in, we enjoyed lunch in the ship's Windjammer Cafe and the "Ice Under the Big Top" show mid-afternoon. In the evening, a delicious dinner (with outstanding service to match), followed by the "Pure Energy" show in the ship's Savoy Theatre. Later in the evening, both a 70's dance party and "Enchanted Knights" parade in the Royal Promenade. It was great to see Angelo performing in the Schooner Bar following his long, successful stint on the Monarch of the Seas when the latter ship was based in LA.
Although very comfortable, we didn't spend too much time in our stateroom, as the ship had much to explore and partake in. Still, we did need a couple hours sleep, followed by breakfast in the dining room and, sadly, debarkation.
Our one minor complaint had absolutely nothing to do with the ship or cruise line but, rather, with the World Cruise Center in Los Angeles (San Pedro). We had been under the impression a new terminal would be built to accommodate ships such as Mariner. Not only has this not yet been built (it's possibly still years away), the existing terminal doesn't appear ready for its close-up. We're not sure where the blame for this situation lies, but we do hope the Mariner gets the facilities she deserves soon. Nevertheless, we know RCI will not let the situation in the port affect its guests' embarkation/debarkation process, and the terminal's not-ready-for-prime-time status will do nothing to affect anyone's enjoyment of the cruise.
Thanks go out to Mariner of the Seas and her incredible crew, led by (Super) Captain Johnny Faevelen. Welcome to Los Angeles. Enjoy your weekly visits to Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas. We'll be joining you again really soon.
Return to the Makarma Travel Home Page: http://www.makarmatravel.com/
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Why use a travel consultant? We'll tell ya.
You can imagine the sheer volume of email we (Mr. Makarma) get on a daily basis. Much of it is sent by our many travel partners. These emails have (thankfully) almost totally eliminated the avalanche of faxes we used to get. Needless to say, the environment is now in much better shape as a result of the switch to email.
Naturally, the balance of our email consists mostly of client inquiries. These are typically requests for price quotes or questions related to itinerary, availability, etc.
We recently received an email which was an absolute delight, because its writer not only told us of their interest in booking a particular cruise, it also asked if we could explain the advantages of booking through a travel agent. We'd be happy to oblige......
Thanks for contacting Makarma Travel! The benefits of booking through a travel agent are many, but the key items……
1) Service – We make it easy for you, as we handle many of the little details you’d otherwise need to be concerned with.
2) Experience – We’ve been in this business a long time, have sailed many different cruise lines and ships, and can give you the pros and cons of each.
3) Price – You don’t pay more for working with a travel agent; in fact, we can save you money by making sure you get the best overall value.
I ended the above email by again thanking its sender for contacting us, and let them know I'll be happy to give them a call or, if they preferred, they could contact us. The phone number I gave them, by the way, was our personal cell phone number - the same number we give all our clients. A good travel consultant will do this for you. Would a boiler room order taker do the same?
Return to the Makarma Travel Home Page: http://www.makarmatravel.com/
Naturally, the balance of our email consists mostly of client inquiries. These are typically requests for price quotes or questions related to itinerary, availability, etc.
We recently received an email which was an absolute delight, because its writer not only told us of their interest in booking a particular cruise, it also asked if we could explain the advantages of booking through a travel agent. We'd be happy to oblige......
Thanks for contacting Makarma Travel! The benefits of booking through a travel agent are many, but the key items……
1) Service – We make it easy for you, as we handle many of the little details you’d otherwise need to be concerned with.
2) Experience – We’ve been in this business a long time, have sailed many different cruise lines and ships, and can give you the pros and cons of each.
3) Price – You don’t pay more for working with a travel agent; in fact, we can save you money by making sure you get the best overall value.
I ended the above email by again thanking its sender for contacting us, and let them know I'll be happy to give them a call or, if they preferred, they could contact us. The phone number I gave them, by the way, was our personal cell phone number - the same number we give all our clients. A good travel consultant will do this for you. Would a boiler room order taker do the same?
Return to the Makarma Travel Home Page: http://www.makarmatravel.com/
Sunday, February 08, 2009
How the Fun began
Last week, we (Mr. Makarma) spoke about Carnival Cruise Lines' new "Fun" advertising program. Although the current campaign is fairly new, the concept of fun has been a part of Carnival's message since shortly after the company's inception.
Reader Robert recently asked if we would share some of our own experiences having fun on Carnival. We'd be happy to, but think we should start by sharing how our company's love affair with the "Fun Ships" began.
Cruising in the pre-Carnival days was a fairly-formal experience shared primarily by those who were well-heeled, older and/or with a lot of time on their hands. Along came Carnival, a cruise line which started with one refurbished, but fairly old, ocean liner. It's hard to imagine now, but the company was far from successful at the beginning. (We have a story to share someday about the company's inauspicious start.)
What turned things around for the firm was the new "Fun Ships" message. Cruising became something for everyone; it was less formal and - most importantly - it was one gigantic party.
Well, the last item above didn't sit well with everyone, as the company developed a reputation of passengers partaking in booze and more booze, along with the problems that came with that type of atmosphere.
By the time we invented this wondrous thing called Makarma Travel back in 1998, the cruise line was already taking the steps needed to change its image for the better. Through a number of initiatives, Carnival was able to improve its onboard atmosphere almost overnight. Still, although we had sailed a number of cruise lines, we hadn't sailed on Carnival and, frankly, we were still a bit hesitant to do so.
Our great turnabout came when we made the decision that, since Carnival was such an important part of the cruise vacation business, we absolutely had to give it a try. The rest, as they always say, is history. The food served onboard was excellent. The service? First-rate. There were entertainment options throughout. Nothing even remotely resembled the oceangoing frat party we had feared. We actually remember walking on deck the last night of that sailing thinking, "Wow, this is......a real cruise." We knew back then (and still do today) that the company had several excellent competitors which we continue to fully support; it's just that our initial experience on Carnival was such a pleasantly unexpected surprise.
Since that first cruise we took on that "fun ship" roughly 10 years ago, we can truly say that things have gotten even better. After a recent three-night sailing where the service, food and entertainment was some of the best we've had on any cruise, we believe that Carnival has become one of the more traditional cruise lines, with many of the traits of long-ago classic cruising.
And, trust us, it most certainly is still a lot of fun.
Return to the Makarma Travel Home Page: http://www.makarmatravel.com/
Reader Robert recently asked if we would share some of our own experiences having fun on Carnival. We'd be happy to, but think we should start by sharing how our company's love affair with the "Fun Ships" began.
Cruising in the pre-Carnival days was a fairly-formal experience shared primarily by those who were well-heeled, older and/or with a lot of time on their hands. Along came Carnival, a cruise line which started with one refurbished, but fairly old, ocean liner. It's hard to imagine now, but the company was far from successful at the beginning. (We have a story to share someday about the company's inauspicious start.)
What turned things around for the firm was the new "Fun Ships" message. Cruising became something for everyone; it was less formal and - most importantly - it was one gigantic party.
Well, the last item above didn't sit well with everyone, as the company developed a reputation of passengers partaking in booze and more booze, along with the problems that came with that type of atmosphere.
By the time we invented this wondrous thing called Makarma Travel back in 1998, the cruise line was already taking the steps needed to change its image for the better. Through a number of initiatives, Carnival was able to improve its onboard atmosphere almost overnight. Still, although we had sailed a number of cruise lines, we hadn't sailed on Carnival and, frankly, we were still a bit hesitant to do so.
Our great turnabout came when we made the decision that, since Carnival was such an important part of the cruise vacation business, we absolutely had to give it a try. The rest, as they always say, is history. The food served onboard was excellent. The service? First-rate. There were entertainment options throughout. Nothing even remotely resembled the oceangoing frat party we had feared. We actually remember walking on deck the last night of that sailing thinking, "Wow, this is......a real cruise." We knew back then (and still do today) that the company had several excellent competitors which we continue to fully support; it's just that our initial experience on Carnival was such a pleasantly unexpected surprise.
Since that first cruise we took on that "fun ship" roughly 10 years ago, we can truly say that things have gotten even better. After a recent three-night sailing where the service, food and entertainment was some of the best we've had on any cruise, we believe that Carnival has become one of the more traditional cruise lines, with many of the traits of long-ago classic cruising.
And, trust us, it most certainly is still a lot of fun.
Return to the Makarma Travel Home Page: http://www.makarmatravel.com/
Sunday, February 01, 2009
We just want to bang on this drum all day
Carnival Cruise Lines recently released the first in its series of television ads highlighting their new tagline of "Fun For All. All For Fun." These ads featured the world's largest pinata and the world's largest beach balls, and were accompanied by one of our (Mr. Makarma's) favorite songs, Todd Rundgren's "Bang The Drum All Day."
These ads helped the cruise line show that its cruises are fun - they are - and were based on actual record-breaking events in Dallas and Philadelphia.
The next phase of this advertising program starts nationally on February 2. The spots are entitled "Horn" and "Stateroom Steward." With titles like that, you can be assured the fun will continue. We hope you'll enjoy the ads - we know WE will.
Speaking of fun, we'd like to remind you that the fun takes place seven days a week on the 22 ships of Carnival Cruise Lines. Come join us soon, O.K.?
Return to Makarma Travel Home Page: http://www.makarmatravel.com/
These ads helped the cruise line show that its cruises are fun - they are - and were based on actual record-breaking events in Dallas and Philadelphia.
The next phase of this advertising program starts nationally on February 2. The spots are entitled "Horn" and "Stateroom Steward." With titles like that, you can be assured the fun will continue. We hope you'll enjoy the ads - we know WE will.
Speaking of fun, we'd like to remind you that the fun takes place seven days a week on the 22 ships of Carnival Cruise Lines. Come join us soon, O.K.?
Return to Makarma Travel Home Page: http://www.makarmatravel.com/
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