six days in Miami

[gabelle]

I noticed that the Regatta docks in Miami on 2/2/05 and doesn't have a listed sailing again until 2/8/05. Anyone know what's happening in those six days?

[douganswerphone]

Three Possibilities Come to Mind:

 

1. There may be a mini-overhaul / refurb planned. Regatta's been in service for 18 months. Most of the original Ren cabin furnishings were left intact with Oceania, for example, and perhaps they plan to do some replacement. Also, every year or two, most cruise ships spend at least a few day days with the engineering spaces shut down for major repairs, even if the ship isn't drydocked for hull inspection / painting.

 

2. There may be a charter cruise booked. An increasing slice of the cruise business is where a Fortune-500 type company reserves an entire ship for some sort of company function.

 

3. Oceania may have a special cruise planned for "Friends of Oceania". This may be a short Owner's Cruise, or there might be a couple of 2-3 day "Familiarization" cruises where they set sail with a swarm of travel agents, in hopes f building a buzz within the travel industry. This is most common right after the launch of a new ship, but a cruise line might decide to do it at some other time. Because so many of the cruise-selling TA's are headquartered in South Florida, a short cruise from Miami is inexpensive and easy for all parties to participate.

[drwong]

I think she was used as a floating hotel during the Superbowl - see my posting on the Yahoo board.