New Orleans cruising is back

Royal Caribbean just announced they'll launch wintertime Western Caribbean cruises aboard Voyager of the Seas from New Orleans starting in November 2011. With over 3,000 passengers, she's the largest vessel ever to sail out of New Orleans, and by joining Carnival Triumph and Norwegian Spirit there, we can now say that the city's cruise industry has really recovered from 2005's disastrous Hurricane Katrina.

New Orleans is a terrific city for a cruise vacation, with so much fun to be had: just add a few nights before or after your cruise. The legendary Bourbon Street will keep you entertained all night, and with fine dining options galore, it's Cajun decadence at its finest.

Voyager was the largest ship afloat when she was introduced in 1999 and wowed the industry with still-popular features like rock climbing, ice skating, mini golf, inline skating, and the indoor Royal Promenade.

More info from WWL.

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Celebrity Eclipse gets back to England after volcano rescue mission

Celebrity's spanking-new Solstice-class vessel Eclipse enjoyed her delayed naming ceremony... once back at her homeport of Southampton, England, from Bilbao, Spain, after recovering 2,000 British tourists who had been stranded thanks to Iceland's very rude volcano.

"We're proud of our tradition of planning and implementing meaningful and memorable ship launches, but the launch of Celebrity Eclipse is particularly unique,” said Celebrity’s President and CEO Dan Hanrahan. “The atmosphere has been fantastic among the guests and our crew. Everyone feels they are part of something truly special."

The naming ceremonies on April 24 in Southampton featured Godmother Emma Pontin, ocean-racing yachtswoman and breast cancer survivor.

The ship had been previously scheduled to host VIPs and industry guests on a short introductory cruise, but parent company Royal Caribbean International generously canceled those plans and made the vessel available for the rescue project instead.

More details at BBC.

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First female captain named for a British cruise ship

Sarah Breton, 45, has been named by P&O Cruises to be the first female captain of a cruise ship in Britain. In command of the 1,200-passenger Artemis, Captain Breton told The Telegraph, “Growing up near the water I always loved boats and the ocean, so it really does fulfill a lifelong ambition of mine to be a Captain with P&O Cruises. It is made even more special to be Captain of the first cruise ship I ever served on, after joining P&O Cruises as third officer back in 1989.”

Her promotion puts her at the pinnacle of her profession after having worked her way up the ranks onboard many other P&O/Princess ships.

But Captain Breton isn't the first female cruise ship captain. The honor of being the first was bestowed on Royal Caribbean's Karin Stahre-Janson, promoted to Master of Monarch of the Seas in 2007.

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"Gin and Titonic" ice cubes for your next party

We tend to find offensive things funny, and being in the cruise business we can't resist the opportunity to call your attention to an ice-cube tray that creates a sinking Titanic along with several icebergs. Gin and Titonic: the perfect way to keep your drink chilled, and conveniently available to be ordered from Amazon.com.

When this fine product was introduced, unsurprisingly there were some who found it offensive, making it that much more appealing, don't you think?

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Sixty injured when Carnival Ecstasy tips dodging submerged buoy

Carnival Ecstasy tipped by 12 degrees on Wednesday afternoon during evasive action to avoid a large, drifting, submerged buoy while on the way back to Galveston, causing 60 minor injuries. The buoy--being mostly or entirely under water--didn't show up on the ship's radar, forcing the sudden turn.

The 2,000-or-so passenger ship returned a bit late to end its 5-day Galveston cruise today, with everybody safe and sound. Our kudos to the bridge officers for seeing and avoiding the buoy!

More details at Houston's KHOU.

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Cruise to avoid volcano nonsense rather than fly?

We had a rash of customers and friends calling with hopes of moving them by ship during the volcanic European air shutdown. Not surprisingly, Cunard told the New York Times they, too, were deluged with frustrated fliers since their Queen Mary 2 sails the last remaining regular trans-Atlantic cruises between the US and Europe.

Sadly, the near-term crossings were already sold out. Among our cases, we had one person trying to relocate herself and her dog to Europe (Queen Mary 2 uniquely has kennels onboard), a friend stranded in London trying to get back, and another gentleman trying to rescue a relative from Dubai. Meanwhile, Queen Mary 2's trips were selling out farther and farther into the future. Heck, Cunard said they had 1,000 people on one waitlist.

Hopefully the volcano will simmer down and stay that way. If not, book your crossing cruise ASAP!

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Dept. of Transportation grows teeth, fines airlines for trapping passengers

If you travel to a cruise, you need to fly. If you fly, odds are good you've been inconvenienced by an airline. And the odds just went up a bit that when the airline really steps out of bounds, they'll have to pay.

You undoubtedly recall one or more of the several episodes of truly bad airline behavior, stranding passengers for hours on the tarmac trapped in stinky planes, sometimes within easy walking distance of a terminal. The Department of Transportation, for the first time, handed down substantial penalties of $175,000 to the airlines involved in one incident--Continental, Continental partner ExpressJet, and Delta partner Mesaba Airlines.

ExpressJet operated a Continental flight on August 8 that was diverted due to bad weather to Rochester NY. There it sat on the tarmac for almost six hours with its passengers unable to escape due in part to the non-cooperation of Mesaba, who was manning the airport terminal at that time of night.

The flight's captain does come out of the story smelling good, so to speak, having repeatedly pleaded for relief for the aircraft's passengers.

We all hope that this marks the beginning of a trend of the DOT smacking down airlines for bad behavior, as the airlines have proven time and again of doing the right things when left on their own.

"I hope that this sends a signal to the rest of the airline industry that we expect airlines to respect the rights of air travelers," said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. We hope so too!

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Relive the 80s: Cruise with Rick Springfield

There's a theme cruise for everybody, including Rick Springfield fans. Remember Jessie's Girl? How about Waiting for a Girl Like You? Well, you can relive those highlights live and in person about the Rick Springfield & Friends Cruise aboard Carnival Destiny on November 12, 2009.

Rick told Oprah about the cruise recently, which will also include Richard Marx, soap stars Doug Davidson and Brandon Barash, and original MTV VJ Mark Goodman.

Since, as frequent cruisers are aware, only about half a ship's guests can fit into the showroom at a time, the big concert will be ashore at the Playa Mia Beach Resort. Plus, Rick says he'll do plenty of mingling with fans while aboard.

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