Yesterday was one of those postings that never ended.  I went on tangential tours and finally crashed to a conclusion as I was falling asleep.  Hope to clean up the typos soon. I sometimes tend to be spiritual on Sundays, but today will reflect on why luxury cruise lines tend to now and then go bankrupt.  After all, Jesus Christ was born, lived, crucified and was resurrected. The prime example was the demise of the very successful Crystal cruises. Very early in 2022 I was planning on a fall trip and thought maybe I'd work in a European river cruise with Crystal.  These tend to be be around 10 days long and on Crystal, maybe $12,000 for two. That is the amount we would have lost, although there are indications that  you can recover most of that if you take five future trips with them . So here is what went wrong with Crystal. The pandemic was not kind to the parent company of Crystal,  Genting Hong Kong . Their first cruise line was Star Cruises in 1993. They purchased Norwegian Cru

  I BEGAN WRITING THIS POSTING THREE DAYS AGO...THEN OUR SHIP ENTERED A DEAD ZONE...UNTIL NOW.  I'll probably have another article later today if the Wi-Fi works.  We just arrived in Phuket, Thailand. Earlier this year  Cruise Travel Outlet  reported on the Best Luxury Cruise Lines.  At the top was Regent Seven Seas.  They said: All four cruise ships of Regent Seven Seas feature all-suite accommodation, cozy retreats that’ll feel like home, whether you’re at sea for 7 or 120 days. What sets this cruise line apart is its staffing—there’s one crew member for every one or two guests. When they’re not indulging in great food and spa treatments, passengers can join programs about the culture and cuisine of each cruise’s destinations. Their fleet consists of 6-star, all-suite and all-balcony ships, all featuring plenty of amenities. Complimentary WiFi is available throughout each ship, while other features range from open-air pool decks and Regent Choice Shore Excursions to the Smithsoni

I yesterday thought I ended my cruise series.  However, Part 6 mentioned the December 2023 to May 2024 274-night  Ultimate Global Cruise , with four segments, and one of them interested me, so to quote: May 9 to July 4:  Dubai to Barcelona, middle east treasures and marvels of the Med. Hmmmm.... I wonder if space is still available.  We fly on November 11 to Dubai for a Regent Seven Seas cruise to Singapore. Why not a summer of 2024 cruise from Dubai to Barcelona, as they pay for the business class fare from Honolulu to Dubai, then Barcelona to Honolulu. I thus inquired.   Cabins still available at $352/night with free drinks, wi-fi and tips, but the business class fare is only for those who take the full world option.   If they covered first class from Honolulu to Dubai, then from Barcelona to Honolulu, we'd be inclined to go.  Maybe we can yet work out a deal.  Nah, they won't, so this is one cruise I will miss.   Anyway, the ship Royal Caribbean uses for this ultimate sailin

 On  September 19 I ended Part One  of my cruise series with: Our current state of mind is that, in the short time we have to travel ( I'm getting old ), might as well go for some luxury.  So Part Two of this series will describe a stage of our 21-day Regent Seven Seas Explorer trip from Dubai to Singapore in November, and a 53-day  Seabourn Odyssey journey from Sydney to Honolulu beginning in March of next year.  We welcome you to join us. To answer that question, my answer is no.  I've been on several Crystal cruises, but the company went bankrupt earlier this year.   All current signs show their ships being readied for service next year .  We were very close to reserving a cabin on a 2022 Crystal European Christmas river cruise, but backed off because we instead found another option which I'll talk about.  As far as I know, those who paid deposits have not yet been refunded, but  Royal Caribbean  said it will be acquiring Crystal Cruise and will protect the deposits of c