Deployment schedule: let the guessing begin!

[fielddreamer]

Dont forget that the Allure is dry docking in about three weeks from now ! And the canal looks like it will be ready to go April of 2015 ! Speaking of the West Coast it looks like Princess will pull the Crown out of the west coast after Alaska. They are having a bad time booking those 3 and 4 day crusies and have been giving it away ! Mexico is really a bad profit venture for everyone right now.

[Aussie FF]

Mariner to Australia.:)

Rhapsody leaving.

 

Very sad.

Edited January 23, 2014 by Aussie FF

[Cruisegroover]

Rhapsody heads to Europe from Australia around April 2015 so what replaces Rhapsody's Alaska season and Australia's summer season?

[timtam2]

Mariner to Australia

[Clarea]

Rhapsody heads to Europe from Australia around April 2015 so what replaces Rhapsody's Alaska season and Australia's summer season?

We will know in a few weeks, when Royal starts releasing new itineraries.

[squadron]

RCI 2015 Jewel..San Pedro (Port of Los Angeles)

 

This is what I have heard so far...hope it's true.

 

9-26-15

10-3-15

10-10-15

 

Let's hope it turns out this is just testing the west coast waters again and they will be "Good" :D

 

Agreed! For Western Canadians LA is an easy, inexpensive flight and I would certainly book. A cruise either north or south from LA would be a great option.

[JasonV1]

Anthem will stay in the UK for Med cruises until winter, per this article. It will then sail out of Port Everglades.

 

How about the new Quantum class ship - Anthem is it? Isn't it due to come out late 2015? When will it appear for booking? Where will it go?

 

Interesting that Jewel may go to Los Angeles...! Where will it cruise to - Alaska? or somewhere along Calif coast?

Edited January 23, 2014 by JasonV1

[crazyventures]

Dont forget that the Allure is dry docking in about three weeks from now ! And the canal looks like it will be ready to go April of 2015 ! Speaking of the West Coast it looks like Princess will pull the Crown out of the west coast after Alaska. They are having a bad time booking those 3 and 4 day crusies and have been giving it away ! Mexico is really a bad profit venture for everyone right now.

 

Hopefully Princess keeps a ship or two on the West Coast if that happens. The 10-11 day Alaska itineraries out of San Francisco through Princess seem relatively popular.

[negc]

Dont forget that the Allure is dry docking in about three weeks from now ! And the canal looks like it will be ready to go April of 2015 ! Speaking of the West Coast it looks like Princess will pull the Crown out of the west coast after Alaska. They are having a bad time booking those 3 and 4 day crusies and have been giving it away ! Mexico is really a bad profit venture for everyone right now.

 

That news doesn't augur well for those hoping for RCI to return to the West Coast since what Princess is apparently experiencing is exactly what caused RCI to withdraw Mariner from California.

Perhaps full transits of the widened Canal will become a regular RCI feature.:)

[squadron]

That news doesn't augur well for those hoping for RCI to return to the West Coast since what Princess is apparently experiencing is exactly what caused RCI to withdraw Mariner from California.

Perhaps full transits of the widened Canal will become a regular RCI feature.:)

 

Three or four day cruises won't draw people other than those who live next to the port. Not worth people paying for air fare and those who choose not to sail Princess.

[Phamer55]

Rhapsody heads to Europe from Australia around April 2015 so what replaces Rhapsody's Alaska season and Australia's summer season?

 

Looks like the Jewel will replace Rhapsody in Alaska during the summer of 2015.

[Ashland]

Three or four day cruises won't draw people other than those who live next to the port. Not worth people paying for air fare and those who choose not to sail Princess.

3/4 day cruises..agree...however the 7 nighter coastal cruises PCL was doing were selling out as was their MR itinerary (we sailed on a few)...I am keeping my fingers X's RCI sees something they can offer for us much abandoned west coasters ;):)

[Ander026]

Freedom to Asia, Enchantment to South America, and Oasis to PC.

 

Sigh....will miss the Freedom and the Enchantment. :(

 

I hope the Explorer decides to plant some roots here!!

 

I really don't see Enchantment going anywhere anytime soon. Those 3/4 day cruises out of PC are a money maker. Plus the Enchantment hasn't been here long.

 

I do see Majesty leaving the fleet without replacing a ship to Miami. On my last cruise I have talked to many fellow cruisers who believe RCCL will not have any ships in Miami once Majesty moves on.

 

In terms of Port Canaveral here is what I think will happen.

Enchantment stays

Freedom is replaced by Oasis

3rd ship to be seasonally placed here. Maybe Indy.

[dodgersmom]

Anxiously waiting Anthem's schedule.

[kimmiecruises]

3/4 day cruises..agree...however the 7 nighter coastal cruises PCL was doing were selling out as was their MR itinerary (we sailed on a few)...I am keeping my fingers X's RCI sees something they can offer for us much abandoned west coasters ;):)

 

I SO agree with you! Hoping to get on the Jewel for one of the two 7 night cruises in 2015, and that they will see there are a lot of us out here that will fill the ship :)

[Topo Gigio]

If the Bahamas cruises are money maker for RC, then definitely Majesty will be replaced by another ship. Either from Miami or Port Everglades!

Edited January 23, 2014 by Topo Gigio

[negc]

I SO agree with you! Hoping to get on the Jewel for one of the two 7 night cruises in 2015, and that they will see there are a lot of us out here that will fill the ship :)

 

The problem is that they heard similar claims and promises before they moved Mariner to the West Coast, so you need to be prepared to back up those claims if they decide to try again. Once bitten, twice shy.

[Ashland]

The problem is that they heard similar claims and promises before they moved Mariner to the West Coast, so you need to be prepared to back up those claims if they decide to try again. Once bitten, twice shy.

We were actually fine when it was Vision..didn't really need a Mariner...and it was the H1N1 that hurt us along with the violence in Mexico (as perceived) which didn't stop other cruiselines from using the exit of RCI to dominate..Lot's of violence in our world regardless of where we travel today.;):)

 

Just waiting for those schedules to open and I promise there are a lot of us that will do our best....we know the alternatives if we don't:D

[workathome]

NOOOOO we were planning on a cruise the weekend before Thanksgiving 2015 and were looking at the Freedom. We did Liberty this past Nov and loved it. Wanted to do a 7 night next time, and go to Labadee. Loved the Freedom class. Oasis class is to expensive. Darn it!

[Arizona Cruz Chic]

Willing to do our part of keeping a ship on the west coast!!!!!

 

***

[rubrrick]

Quantum won't fit thru the Panama Canal, so they would have to either go around South America or go to Australia during on the off season. Also, with Quantum being so long, it might be a tighter squeeze in the glacier viewing areas than they are comfortable with.

 

 

Bob, I believe that it will fit in the new locks, that are due, if on schedule, to be open before the first Quantum ship sails from the shipyard in Europe.

 

We will see a different world when the Panama Canal opens the new locks, for at least a few cruises on the West Coast, in ships that presently cannot pass thru the canal.

 

Rick

[Clarea]

Bob, I believe that it will fit in the new locks, that are due, if on schedule, to be open before the first Quantum ship sails from the shipyard in Europe.

 

We will see a different world when the Panama Canal opens the new locks, for at least a few cruises on the West Coast, in ships that presently cannot pass thru the canal.

 

Rick

Rick, I believe you are correct that Quantum (and even Oasis) will fit in the new locks. What seems to be the problem with these ships is that they cannot fit under the Bridge of the Americas.

[Hoopster95]

Rick, I believe you are correct that Quantum (and even Oasis) will fit in the new locks. What seems to be the problem with these ships is that they cannot fit under the Bridge of the Americas.

 

Hi everyone,

 

Here's a thread that may interest you:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1922387

 

Scroll down to post 13 I believe:

 

"I just came off of a Panama vacation and visited the locks... actually had dinner at the Captains table on the Vision with the lead Authority for the new Locks. He brought all the blueprints for the locks for the Capt and "talked shop" with him for quite a length of time.

 

I asked him point blank how long the completion delay will be, and he mentioned "hopefully Dec 2015". There are only 4 of the new gates delivered from Italy... 16 more still in Italy and the company to transport them went bankrupt. They are looking for another solution. There's also some "extremely complex" issues regarding the electronics/cabling/etc needed to be installed along the entire length of the locks. For the most part most of the labour has been local (Latin American and primarily Panamanian) but it seems their seeing issues with next the step in getting hi tech labour in that the locals cannot do.

 

Our tour drove right through the area where the new locks will be built, a drive that will no longer exist when the new canal is dug up as a bridge will have to be in place. Also witnessing the amount of work so far completed, I personally mentioned that I cannot see anything being completed unitl 2020! I really can't... the amount of work yet to do is astronimical, I can't see it being done by 2015 when projects like the big dig in Boston for example were over 15 years.

 

Having said that, he wasn't sure that bigger cruise liners would go through anyways. The new locks will hold approx 1200 foot length and 176 foot wide ships (with 2 foot clearance each side) ... so far so good for Yoyager class, but Voyager is 207 feet high. He did mention the issue will be the bridge and not the locks.

 

The other issue is cost... The highest price paid so far for any ship going theu the locks was the NCL Dawn (per Capt Srecko) at about $450,000. That's based on gross tonnage/capacity... The Legend for example would've been somewhere between $300,000-$350,000! I can just imagine what the Voyager would cost for RCL... and divide that back to the per person cabin costs of the paying customer. May not be at all profitable to bring a big ship through even if the bridge was high enough anyways.

 

 

It was pointed out in this thread that even Oasis Class can fit in the locks, which will allow for a "partial" transit itinerary thourgh the Gatun Locks into Gatun Lake and back through to the Caribbean side... Princess and HAL already do this itinerary.

 

But any ship Voyager Class and larger cannot fit under the Bridge of the Americas located at the entrance to the Pacific, and therefore no full transits to the West Coast for the larger ships. There was some discussion regarding a Voyager Class, timing the tides, and ensuring that a high(er) speed supplies enough draft to pull the ship down into the water and squeeze under the bridge... there's no way the captain wanted even to think about that risk, let alone any one of many other variables to deal with when you are already 7 feet too tall and you're trying to get under that bridge!!! :eek:

[rubrrick]

Rick, I believe you are correct that Quantum (and even Oasis) will fit in the new locks. What seems to be the problem with these ships is that they cannot fit under the Bridge of the Americas.

 

For what the Panamanians charge for a ship to cross from one ocean to another, the bridge will be rebuilt to accomodate the largest ships afloat.

 

Heresay......but that is what I was told. Only time will tell!:)

 

Rick

[Clarea]

For what the Panamanians charge for a ship to cross from one ocean to another, the bridge will be rebuilt to accomodate the largest ships afloat.

 

Heresay......but that is what I was told. Only time will tell!:)

 

Rick

Interesting, thanks for the scoop!:)

Edited January 24, 2014 by clarea