Brainstorming SteamPunk Cruises
Update (2/28/19) planning for the 8th SP Cruise is going well and we have had a surprising number of confirmed reservations already for 4/28/20 departing Fort Lauderdale, FL for the "ABC" islands.
There have been six Steampunk cruises so far and another scheduled for March 2018: http://welcometosteampunk.com/events/steampunk-naval-expedition-6th...
It is such an expensive ordeal to travel to the l. 48 in the winter that we aim for big events like the SP Cruises which sometimes overlap with a large favorite SCA event, Gulf Wars so that we vacation to the point of exhaustion. In a good way.
The short story is that the original SP Cruise was started as a commercial venture that never engaged enough bodies to be profitable for the original organizers. Many of us had never been on a cruise of any sort and wanted the bragging rights of at least being on the 1st besides the performers were hard to pass up. Cpt Robert Brown, Unwoman, This Way to Egress, etc...
To our surprise we discovered an unadvertised benefit to these cruises which is the fantastic opportunities to socialize with most excellent people. It is sort of the opposite of a traditional weekend convention in a very good way. Activities just get worked in in the most comfortable way possible. For those who have presented at other cons try to imagine a situation with no stress. Unfortunately, despite creating a very loyal base of repeat offenders we never achieved the investor's desired attendance.
Not willing to let a great thing go and SPs being all closet pirate mutineers we took the reigns ourselves. As much as we enjoy each others' company and activities we are not growing with only a handful of new cruisers each year. It is frustratingly difficult to explain to most people the math of cruising over a weekend con. I keep trying, of course. With a few employment changes, family obligations, and separations (this does favor couples) our reservations are very low for 2018.
Being a glass half full sort and so impressed with the quality we have achieved so far, I still see this as an opportunity for greater adventure. We reserved a nice cruise schedule for 2018 in order to take advantage of discounted early bookings but where we really wanted to go was so new and uncertain that we could not schedule it - CUBA.
It is hard to not be morbidly fascinated with the idea of visiting such a forbidden port. What your SP persona might really do but with the extreme comfort of the modern cruise which is also rather steamy. We may have a chance today to switch to Cuba after all (insert happy dance). Of course everything comes with a price which in this case is not a higher cost but rather finding competing cruise options not previously available either because they had not been scheduled or because some of our regulars (who unfortunately had to drop out) could not get away that long. An excellent example is a 12 night cruise out of Baltimore visiting some past favorite and new to us countries. Gotta love those fancy passport stamps. This 12 day cruise is just a couple hundred more even though it is nearly twice as long. BTW they have excellent laundry service onboard and really know how to press clothes.
This long rant/rave/free association is me rehearsing my sale pitch to our veteran and new cruisers. I am not getting my hopes up but any constructive input from folks, even if you also think that you will never go on a cruise, is very welcome.
These are the parameters at this time: We are booking with Royal Caribbean (RCCI) even though we are aware that there are other perfectly good cruise lines these folks have been excellent to us and our veterans have collected so many bribes in the form of discounts, upgrades, and ship credit that we can't afford to move. We are limited by regulars to roughly February to March and the Caribbean mostly due to where people live and can fly into such as Canadians and Alaskans who do not want to miss summer at home and our home airlines fly to specific airports. As much as we would love to hire professional performers again, until our numbers grow enough to afford them we are using the group discount perks to reduce cruisers' fees. Besides we are fairly content with our own activities and ability get into trouble. You know that old saying about what happens on an underground river full of Mayan ruins stays in in the cavern full of Mayan ruins. Yes, we tend to stay in SteamPunk clothes especially for dining, often for swimming, and half the time for shore trips (it is kind of hot).
So from that too long "short" lead in, what would your dream cruise be if leave, family, fear of water, fear of flying, and under-employment were issues?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Captain on
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Iceland? Any interest in an Icelandic fjord cruise? Sounds a little too much like home for me but at least it would be a new stamp in my passport.
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We are polling for the 2019 SP Cruise on FaceBook right now: https://www.facebook.com/groups/189772278077087/permalink/752506465...
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The polling has been surprisingly focused on 2/2/19 out of New Orleans. Apart from the 7 night SP Cruise several folks also want to explore New Orleans so there may be some additional before/after meetups.
https://www.steamboatnatchez.com/
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"Some cruise lines offer additional discounts for Vacations To Go customers who live in certain states or provinces (regional discounts), customers who are 55 or older, airline employees, police, firefighters, EMTs, teachers, active and retired military personnel and cruise past passengers."
We are cruising with Royal Caribbean which pretty much offers allof these extra discounts.
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As the February 2nd 2019 Steampunk Cruise approaches it is time to think about the next SP Cruise like possibly a one-way trans-Atlantic "repositioning" cruise.
18664 13 nights departing November 5, 2018 on
Royal Caribbean's Navigator of the SeasBrochure Inside $1,692 Our Inside $896 You Save 47% Brochure Balcony $3,234 Our Balcony $998 You Save 69% Brochure Suite $5,892 Our Suite $1,498 You Save 75% Click for additional rates: Singles Rates Inside Offer! Book select categories and receive a FREE $25 per cabin onboard credit.Balcony Offer! Book select categories and receive a FREE $25 per cabin onboard credit.Suite Offer! Book select categories and receive a FREE $25 per cabin onboard credit.Promotions may not be combinable with all fares. Prices are in US dollars, per person, based on double occupancy. Prices are subject to change without notice by cruise lines until a deposit has been made, and must be reconfirmed at time of booking. Prices include port charges but do not include airfare or (where applicable) airport or government taxes or fees. Prices and promotions are for new bookings only, in accordance with cruise line policies. Click any price to convert to other currencies.
Date Port Arrive Depart Monday, November 5 London (Southampton), England 4:30pm Tuesday, November 6 At Sea Wednesday, November 7 At Sea Thursday, November 8 At Sea Friday, November 9 At Sea Saturday, November 10 At Sea Sunday, November 11 At Sea Monday, November 12 Boston, MA 8:00am 5:00pm Tuesday, November 13 New York (Brooklyn), NY 4:00pm Wednesday, November 14 New York (Brooklyn), NY 8:00pm Thursday, November 15 At Sea Friday, November 16 At Sea Saturday, November 17 Port Canaveral, FL 7:00am 7:00pm Sunday, November 18 Miami, FL 7:00am
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These "repositioning" cruises are usually in the fall and spring as the ships change from southern to northern routes and back. They tend to be long (c. 2 weeks) and cheap even compared to regular airfare. Remember that all cruises include food. Endless good, food. This is a wonderfully laid back venue for SP socializing.
We would have to get ourselves to London or back to Europe which is an opportunity for more adventuring.
23341 7 nights departing November 4, 2018 on
Cunard's Queen Mary 2Brochure Inside $1,349 Our Inside $949 You Save 30% Brochure Oceanview $1,259 Our Oceanview $999 You Save 21% Brochure Balcony $1,709 Our Balcony $1,099 You Save 36% Click for additional rates: Past-Guest Rates, Singles Rates Theme Cruise: Journey of Genealogy - Join Ancestry.com's genealogy experts to uncover the fascinating and sometimes surprising past of the ancestors of some of our guests, senior officers, and crew. A new story unfolds each day – rich in international diversity and life stories. Ticketed events may be subject to an additional cost and are subject to availability.
Prices are in US dollars, per person, based on double occupancy. Prices are subject to change without notice by cruise lines until a deposit has been made, and must be reconfirmed at time of booking. Prices include port charges but do not include airfare or (where applicable) airport or government taxes or fees. Prices and promotions are for new bookings only, in accordance with cruise line policies. Click any price to convert to other currencies.
Date Port Arrive Depart Sunday, November 4 London (Southampton), England 4:30pm Monday, November 5 At Sea Tuesday, November 6 At Sea Wednesday, November 7 At Sea Thursday, November 8 At Sea Friday, November 9 At Sea Saturday, November 10 At Sea Sunday, November 11 New York (Brooklyn), NY 6:30am
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28837 15 nights departing November 3, 2018 on
Celebrity's Celebrity SilhouetteBrochure Inside $2,898 Our Inside $999 You Save 66% Brochure Oceanview $3,498 Our Oceanview $1,199 You Save 66% Brochure Balcony $8,396 Our Balcony $1,369 You Save 84% Brochure Suite $8,798 Our Suite $3,999 You Save 55% Click for additional rates: Age 55+ Rates, Singles Rates Inside Offer! Book select categories and receive a FREE $150 per cabin onboard credit.Oceanview Offer! Book select categories and receive a FREE $150 per cabin onboard credit.Balcony Offer! Book select categories and receive a FREE $50 per cabin onboard credit.Suite Offer! Book select categories and receive a FREE $150 per cabin onboard credit.Promotions may not be combinable with all fares. Prices are in US dollars, per person, based on double occupancy. Prices are subject to change without notice by cruise lines until a deposit has been made, and must be reconfirmed at time of booking. Prices include port charges but do not include airfare or (where applicable) airport or government taxes or fees. Prices and promotions are for new bookings only, in accordance with cruise line policies. Click any price to convert to other currencies.
Date Port Arrive Depart Saturday, November 3 London (Southampton), England 4:30pm Sunday, November 4 At Sea Monday, November 5 At Sea Tuesday, November 6 At Sea Wednesday, November 7 At Sea Thursday, November 8 At Sea Friday, November 9 At Sea Saturday, November 10 Boston, MA 7:00am 5:00pm Sunday, November 11 New York (Manhattan), NY 3:00pm Monday, November 12 New York (Manhattan), NY 5:00pm Tuesday, November 13 At Sea Wednesday, November 14 King's Wharf, Bermuda 10:30am Thursday, November 15 King's Wharf, Bermuda Noon Friday, November 16 At Sea Saturday, November 17 Nassau, Bahamas 8:00am 5:00pm Sunday, November 18 Fort Lauderdale, FL 7:00am
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As the 7th Annual SP Cruise is approaching we are looking ahead to the 8th SP Cruise. Some of the suggestions so far include:
A repositioning (one way) Fall of 2019 from Vancouver, CA to Japan.
A February 2020 south Caribbean 9 night cruise out of Florida to some new islands (and passport stamps)
A repositioning cruise from Chile to San Diego, CA.
A repositioning cruise to or from Europe to Florida.
Any other suggestions so that we can post a polling?
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Less than two months until the 7th SP Cruise departs New Orleans so time to start looking at the 8th annual SP Cruise.
Feel free to vote in the ongoing Poll at: https://depts.washington.edu/silkroad/museums/shm/shmpazyryk.html?f...
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Saturday, March 28 Fort Lauderdale, FL 5:30pm Sunday, March 29 At Sea Monday, March 30 At Sea Tuesday, March 31 Bonaire 9:00am 5:00pm Wednesday, April 1 Aruba 8:00am 9:00pm Thursday, April 2 Curacao 7:00am 5:00pm Friday, April 3 At Sea Saturday, April 4 At Sea Sunday, April 5 Fort Lauderdale, FL Disembark
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