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I was struck by the fact that there are 5 decks of accomodation at the bottom of the ship with hardly any services: just reception, tours office, kids club but no theatre, no main restaurants, no lounges. Then all the entertainment decks - a half deck (shared with accomodation), three full decks, and a top-of-the-ship sundeck - are above all the accomodation. That seems a bit unusual - in some ways it seems like something of a return to older-style cruise ships which had the bulk of their accomodation low down. Does anyone know how it works in practice? Presumably it's popular?
quote:Originally posted by Carlos Fernandez:[...] Might Aida go premium with these two ships?
I doubt as these ships are supposed to be similar to the other ships.
quote:Originally posted by Carlos Fernandez:Is this a response to the TUI-RCI deal? Might Aida go premium with these two ships?
quote:Originally posted by Carlos Fernandez: Might Aida go premium with these two ships?
I don't think Aida will ever get premium, or this would be a 180° change from what this brand has always been intended for.
Around 90K seems to be the norm with 30K representing 'intimacy'. That makes 71K mid-sized by modern standards.
Small: Under 500 passengersMid-sized: 500 to 1,500 passengersLarge: 1,500 to 2,500 passengersMega-ship Over 2,500 passengers
But sadly, these days 'mid-sized' usually refers to the ships I'd call 'large' - all those Panamax ships to which you refer. The new AIDA ships are slightly smaller than this, at 68,500-71,000 GT, a size that was very popular in the 1990s. (See the FANTASY-class for example.) It is rare now to hear people in the cruise industry speak of a 'large ship' that is not at least 100,000 GT.
So by today's industry standards, the AIDA ships are at the small end of mid-sized, since most of the 'small' ships being built now are around 40,000-50,000 GT. (The 30,000 ships being built by Seabourn are so 'tiny' they're being called 'yachts'!)
quote:Originally posted by dougnewman:(The 30,000 ships being built by Seabourn are so 'tiny' they're being called 'yachts'!)
Imagine the 1000 passenger 3-class ss Independence, Constitution, Andrea Doria and Cristoforo Colombo being referred to as yachts!!
quote:Originally posted by dougnewman:The 30,000 ships being built by Seabourn are so 'tiny' they're being called 'yachts'!
I call them RCI's 'Genesis' lifeboats!
[ 12-25-2007: Message edited by: Malcolm @ cruisepage ]
quote:Originally posted by lasuvidaboy:Imagine the 1000 passenger 3-class ss Independence, Constitution, Andrea Doria and Cristoforo Colombo being referred to as yachts!!
Just as QE2 is about the same in dimensions and passenger capacity as, say, QUEEN VICTORIA, but is much smaller in tonnage (and was even smaller when new, before adding suites etc.).
Today's boxy ships often seem a lot bigger by virtue of their tonnage than they are in comparison to older ships. And moreover it's impossible to compare the gross tonnage of different ships before the International Tonnage Convention 1969, before which there were no standardized rules from country to country. UNITED STATES, like QE2 about the same dimensions as a modern Panamax cruise ship, came in at an incredibly paltry 38,000 GT or so because of the weird US measuring system. At times you'll see ships that moved from one flag to another and magically doubled or halved in size without any physical alteration at all!
But all that aside, I agree the Seabourn is going a bit too far in calling a 30,000 GT ship a 'yacht'. The current Seabourn ships might just be able to get away with it, but come on, 30,000 GT, 500 passengers... That's a ship already!
[ 12-25-2007: Message edited by: dougnewman ]
quote:Originally posted by dougnewman:But all that aside, I agree the Seabourn is going a bit too far in calling a 30,000 GT ship a 'yacht'.
Carnival clearly cannot tells Yachts or Ocean Liners from Cruise Ships!
He's one definition: A relatively small sailing or motor-driven vessels, generally with smart graceful lines, used for pleasure cruises or racing.
However the 'Royal Yacht' Britannia spoils this definition. She is 5,862 gt and was generally not used for pleasure or racing, but official Royal engagements.
quote:Originally posted by Malcolm @ cruisepage:Carnival clearly cannot tells Yachts or Ocean Liners from Cruise Ships! He's one definition: A relatively small sailing or motor-driven vessels, generally with smart graceful lines, used for pleasure cruises or racing.
Then this one SURELY fails in that definition:
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