Northwest Passage Luxury Cruise
By James Donahue
Aug. 27, 2016
It is happening faster than the prognosticators ever thought it would. So much ice has melted away that the long sought Northwest Passage through the Canadian arctic appears to already be open for shipping . . . at least during the summer months.
Apparently some vessels have already made successful trips through the passage. And now the Crystal Serenity, an 820-foot, nine-deck tall passenger liner is in the midst of a unique trip through the passage with 1,070 passengers.
The Serenity, a 13-year-old liner with Nassau registry, is accompanied by a large icebreaker with two helicopters on its deck, providing “real-time ice condition reconnaissance” as the liner pushes its way through the cold northern regions.
The ship, under the command of Captain Birger J.Vorland, is taking special precaution and turning a 900-mile-long trip from Seward, Alaska to New York City into a slow, 32-day-long voyage.
Passengers are paying from $22,000 to $120,000 each for the trip through what critics view as an potential disaster. They will be riding that ship as it breaks its way through a vast expanse of melting ice, past Inuit communities and possible polar bear sightings.
If all goes well, the passengers will be spending most of their time doing what luxury liner passengers like to do best . . . dine in fancy restaurants, gamble in the ship’s casino, swim in heated pools and fraternize to live music. Of course there is always the chance of an iceberg. We all remember what happened to the Titanic.
If Captain Vorland and the ship’s crew do their job well, and if the icebreaker’s crew is on the ball, Crystal Serenity will arrive safely in New York by September 16.
For readers that may be alarmed about missing what they might think is the trip of a lifetime, don’t fret. Crystal Cruises, headquartered in Los Angeles, is already booking another trip through that forlorn territory for next summer. The company is obviously attempting to cash in on a world disaster while there is still evidence of a melt-down in progress.
The cruise has naturally raised concerns among environmentalists who worry about the impact such a trip might have on marine life in the area and the potential for an oil spill if the ship gets into trouble. Many of the older cruise liners navigating the world’s oceans have been making news in the last year or two because of running aground, catching fire at sea and being swept with medical problems.
The cruise company assures the critics that it is taking special precautions to guarantee the safety of the ship’s crew and passengers during this trip that takes it so far from the kind of help that can be found closer to world ports. The company says it is even using an “ultra low-sulphur content marine gas oil” and maintaining a low transit speed to do everything possible to reduce its carbon footprint through the arctic.
In spite of environmental concerns, the trip by Crystal Serenity through the Northwest Passage will probably mark the beginning of a regular trail of shipping through the same area. Even adding the cost of an icebreaker to accompany them, the reduced cost of taking the northern route may be better than paying a $500,000 fee for navigating the Panama Canal.
By James Donahue
Aug. 27, 2016
It is happening faster than the prognosticators ever thought it would. So much ice has melted away that the long sought Northwest Passage through the Canadian arctic appears to already be open for shipping . . . at least during the summer months.
Apparently some vessels have already made successful trips through the passage. And now the Crystal Serenity, an 820-foot, nine-deck tall passenger liner is in the midst of a unique trip through the passage with 1,070 passengers.
The Serenity, a 13-year-old liner with Nassau registry, is accompanied by a large icebreaker with two helicopters on its deck, providing “real-time ice condition reconnaissance” as the liner pushes its way through the cold northern regions.
The ship, under the command of Captain Birger J.Vorland, is taking special precaution and turning a 900-mile-long trip from Seward, Alaska to New York City into a slow, 32-day-long voyage.
Passengers are paying from $22,000 to $120,000 each for the trip through what critics view as an potential disaster. They will be riding that ship as it breaks its way through a vast expanse of melting ice, past Inuit communities and possible polar bear sightings.
If all goes well, the passengers will be spending most of their time doing what luxury liner passengers like to do best . . . dine in fancy restaurants, gamble in the ship’s casino, swim in heated pools and fraternize to live music. Of course there is always the chance of an iceberg. We all remember what happened to the Titanic.
If Captain Vorland and the ship’s crew do their job well, and if the icebreaker’s crew is on the ball, Crystal Serenity will arrive safely in New York by September 16.
For readers that may be alarmed about missing what they might think is the trip of a lifetime, don’t fret. Crystal Cruises, headquartered in Los Angeles, is already booking another trip through that forlorn territory for next summer. The company is obviously attempting to cash in on a world disaster while there is still evidence of a melt-down in progress.
The cruise has naturally raised concerns among environmentalists who worry about the impact such a trip might have on marine life in the area and the potential for an oil spill if the ship gets into trouble. Many of the older cruise liners navigating the world’s oceans have been making news in the last year or two because of running aground, catching fire at sea and being swept with medical problems.
The cruise company assures the critics that it is taking special precautions to guarantee the safety of the ship’s crew and passengers during this trip that takes it so far from the kind of help that can be found closer to world ports. The company says it is even using an “ultra low-sulphur content marine gas oil” and maintaining a low transit speed to do everything possible to reduce its carbon footprint through the arctic.
In spite of environmental concerns, the trip by Crystal Serenity through the Northwest Passage will probably mark the beginning of a regular trail of shipping through the same area. Even adding the cost of an icebreaker to accompany them, the reduced cost of taking the northern route may be better than paying a $500,000 fee for navigating the Panama Canal.
