NCL America Shrinks Again

In the same week that the former Pride of Hawaii left on its final Hawaiian cruise before transforming into the Norwegian Jade, today NCL America, the sub-brand of Norwegian Cruise Line that deals with the American-Flagged ships sailing in Hawaii, announced that the Pride of Aloha will also be leaving the fleet.

The Pride of America will be transferred to parent company Star Cruises, reflagged, and redeployed to Asia effective May 11, 2008.

This leaves only the Pride of America as an American-flagged ship in the Hawaiian market, able to sail 7-night round trip cruises entirely within the Hawaiian islands. The good news is that, with this announcement, NCL America also opened up bookings on the Pride of America through the 2010 cruise season, with slight changes to its itineraries, and the full slate of "NCL 2.0" enhancements following its May, 2008 dry dock.

Folks, when NCL (or any cruise line) starts talking about "soft" or "disappointing" results in a certain market, you can expect a movement in that market, redeploying ships where they can be better (more profitably) utilized. That's obviously what's happened here, as the last reports on NCL America had that brand having to aggressively price and complaining about increasing competition from the West Coast, even going so far as to ask for tighter cabotage enforcement of the "distant foreign port" requirements for foreign flagged ships.

What does all this mean? If you're wanting to cruise Hawaii, plan on booking early and paying more. Hear me, honeymooners? This means people wanting to celebrate significant anniversaries in the Islands, too. Plan NOW!

One other hint of good news, is that Colin Veitch, CEO of NCL, stated that they hope to rebuild the Hawaii cruise business to the point they can once again re-flag and re-introduce the Pride of Hawaii. He did tie this, however, to the strengthening of the cabotage regulations of foreign-flagged vessels and enforcing "distant foreign port" requirements, which has been strongly opposed by cruise lines not only plying Hawaiian waters but many other areas as well (and which we've discussed here previously).

Realistically? I'm not holding my breath for at least 2 years for any reintroduction of the Pride of Hawaii.

NCL 2.0

I normally don't publish press releases verbatim, but this one made sense to. NCL is working to upgrade their product, from cabin comfort to dining quality. I look forward to these changes.

Many of the amenities being announced I had the pleasure of experiencing on the Norwegian Pearl in October during my company's National Conference - the concierge service through telephone, the cabin amenities such as the canapes, and lunch in Cagney's for example. It did definitely make the "freestyle" experience more workable. Certainly an incentive to book at least a balcony for the "at your service" reservation service, and the mini-suites and suites for the other added benefits.

Here's the details on the changes:

On board the newly christened Norwegian Gem, Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) yesterday announced a "Freestyle 2.0" fleet-wide enhancement program, which is already being rolled out and will be completed in 2008. The enhancements include a major investment in the dining experience; an upgrade of staterooms; new onboard activities; additional recognition, service and amenities for balcony, suite and villa guests; and a relaunch of a tiered Latitudes past guest recognition program. NCL said the initiative has been driven by feedback from guests and travel agents and has been enabled by Apollo Management's $1 billion investment in NCL and Star Cruises' continued commitment and vision.

New Freestyle 2.0 dining highlights include an increased investment in food of $50 million, equating to a 20 percent increased investment in food per passenger per day plus major fleet-wide capital investments; "Lobster Galore," which includes lobster in the main restaurant on multiple days and in one restaurant every night of the cruise; a signature specialty dish in every restaurant, such as a 48-ounce Porterhouse in Cagney's Steakhouse; and a chocolate fondue tower in the action station buffet restaurant; tablecloths, muted lighting and enhanced service in the action station restaurant; lunch on sea days in one or two alternative restaurants; a new and expanded room service menu; a welcome aboard glass of sparkling wine; samplings from the specialty restaurants on embarkation day; major hardware investment on all buffets in the Norwegian Gem and Norwegian Pearl action station restaurant; and a back-of-house investment to refine the reservations process and system.

In staterooms, improvements include upgraded bedding, sheets, pillows, duvets, towels and bathrobes; upgraded amenities including coffee maker and expanded TV offerings; and the addition of sofa beds to suite categories. Balcony and mini-suites will get a colored key card for shipwide recognition; an "at-your-service" hotline; a separate check-in for balcony and mini-suite guests; a personal escort to accommodations; and priority disembarkation. Suites and Villas will get concierge and butler service; welcome champagne; upgraded canapés everyday; private breakfast/lunch in Cagney's Restaurant; an exclusive concierge lounge; priority disembarkation and restaurant reservations; and butler presence and private breakfast/lunch in the Courtyard.

Onboard activity enhancements include additional educational, entertainment and lifestyle programs called "NCL ‘U'," new classes such as Improv, organic cooking, bartending, sommelier, etc.; an enhanced health and wellness program; an enhanced pool deck experience; drink flags to call for service on all deck chairs; and Evian spritz, cold towels and quiet times by the pool. The Latitudes program will soon include various tiers rewarding spend and frequency; a new range of benefits; and a staffed concierge lounge for Latitudes members. Freestyle 2.0 enhancements will begin rolling out immediately and will be largely implemented by summer 2008.