So what's wrong with Norfolk?

[Breadman54]

They were filling ships in Norfolk, but the yields were low. Maryland has the highest average median income and reaches a population of nearly 8 million in the Baltimore Washington metro drive area. I found this really cool graphic that gives a bunch of facts about Baltimore.

 

The cruise that left out of Norfolk two weeks ago had only a little over

2000 passengers.The cruise that followed was a CTN,not full either.

I think if they would go somewhere else beside the Bahamas,they might

get full ships.Just received an e-mail from my PVP,and she said she's been

told nothing,then she said not to believe everything you hear on CC.

[GRANNYOFSIX]

Hi Bear Jim......I truly don't know if Norfolk has cruise and park packages. I guess if you called a few hotels in the area they may be able to advise you. Since we live in VA Beach, we have the luxury of being dropped off at the port which I LOVE!!!

 

We are also cruising on October 13th. There is a thread started on CARNIVAL ROLL CALL. We would enjoy chatting with you. There is a nice group of people chatting already:)

 

Have a great day!

[EZ4]

Why should Norfolk be any different then Houston ... or Mobile.

 

We have an empty baseball stadium here.

 

I guess "if you build it, they will come" doesn't actually work.

 

Mobile has a very nice, $25 million riverfront wedding chapel now. :)

[arpie05]

They were filling ships in Norfolk, but the yields were low. Maryland has the highest average median income and reaches a population of nearly 8 million in the Baltimore Washington metro drive area. I found this really cool graphic that gives a bunch of facts about Baltimore.

 

I thought the graphic was very cool. But closest port to the Midwest isn't true. I'm just miles from the Mean Center of the US Population - smack in the middle of the US - and it's a 17 hour drive vs 10-13 for Houston, Galveston, NOLA and Mobile! :p

[repo-cruiser]

Why should Norfolk be any different then Houston ... or Mobile.

 

We have an empty baseball stadium here.

 

I guess "if you build it, they will come" doesn't actually work.

Well actually Houston will have Princess and NCL cruising out of it.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/cruiselog/2012/11/16/princess-norwegian-cruise-houston/1708455/;)

[Hanzo]

The cruise that left out of Norfolk two weeks ago had only a little over

2000 passengers.The cruise that followed was a CTN,not full either.

I think if they would go somewhere else beside the Bahamas,they might

get full ships.Just received an e-mail from my PVP,and she said she's been

told nothing,then she said not to believe everything you hear on CC.

 

This was confirmed on Carnivals Facebook according to the people that posted it here, but I didn't look on Facebook to confirm so it may indeed be all incorrect info.

 

As far as passenger numbers you're quoting, where can I see how many people sailed on the ships, do you have a link for it?

[foflocruiser]

supply-demand-fuel costs

[BearJim]

Hi Bear Jim......I truly don't know if Norfolk has cruise and park packages. I guess if you called a few hotels in the area they may be able to advise you. Since we live in VA Beach, we have the luxury of being dropped off at the port which I LOVE!!!

 

We are also cruising on October 13th. There is a thread started on CARNIVAL ROLL CALL. We would enjoy chatting with you. There is a nice group of people chatting already:)

 

Have a great day!

 

Thank you for responding. We looked online & several offer it. Just wasn't sure which one to use. I think there is a big Pier with shopping, restaurants, etc somewhere near the port & we were hoping to pick one within walking distance. Actually we live around 3.5-4hrs from the port but it's our 1st cruise without the kids so we thought we would checkout the area. We'll checkout the Roll Call. Thanks for your help.

[sunshine252]

I, like everyone else, am posting my "hypothesis": it seems like the majority have bailed since the grand new terminal was built. I'm with the others that surmise that the new terminal may have resulted in higher port fees, thereby making sailing from there less profitable. It really is disappointing - we were looking at possibly sailing in both May and October next year since it's so close to home. :(

[dougandmo]

We cruised out of Norfolk last year precisely because it was significantly cheaper than doing an almost identical cruise out of Baltimore. My guess (and it's just a guess) is that it's hard to sustain demand in a part-time port, and Baltimore and Charleston are more lucrative for them. I did enjoy sailing out through the Navy docks and seeing all the big decks in port though.

[bettyboop16]

Speaking of Norfolk it sounds like you have cruised out of there before. Can you tell me a good Hotel with a cruise & park package? We are sailing on the Glory in October too. Oct 13th in fact. We cruised out of Norfolk once before but drove in the same day as the cruise. This time we are thinking about spending the day before the cruise there & enjoying the area.

 

Check out Trip Advisor on hotels, things to do & then call a couple of them. We are about 40 min. drive from the terminal...we don't need a hotel. I believe there are 3 or 4 hotels near the terminal.

 

We are sailing 10/13:)

 

Betty

[kgymn]

It's most likely both a demand and a convenience issue. Not every port along the US is suitable for cruise ships or cruise ship demands. Sailing out of Baltimore probably satisfies a large majority that section of the Mid Altantic-Northern South crusiers demand. Additionally national access to Balitmore is easier via BWI than trying to puddle jump into Norfolk form hubs.

 

Puddle jump into Norfolk? Seriously? We may not be a major hub but we certainly don't require puddle jumpers.

 

~Katy

[kgymn]

IDK what to believe about why they aren't coming in to Norfolk next year but in response to some of the theories I have read in this thread...

 

Too similar iteneraries to Baltimore/Charleston with nothing unique to offer: Not true, we can accomodate a bigger ship.

 

Port Fees: They pass these on the the customer, and these fees aren't quite as transparent as airfare... I'm not sure how many people other than those of us who are obsessed actually go through and start a booking to see exactly what they would pay after taxes and fees for the room/fare they want. Also comparing departtured in Oct from Norfok vs Charleston (same ports, same week, both 5 days) the port fees and taxes out of Charleston is $17 or so more for 2 people. Given the proximity of Charleston to Florida and ALL the ports there, why choose Charleston over Norfolk?

 

Not able to book the ship full: Yes, the sailing we were on this month had just over 2000 people. But the Fantasy which sails out of Charleston only holds that many to begin with, with the Pride holding slightly more. Why not give Norfolk a smaller ship, so 2000 people is full?

 

People not spending enough onboard? Possible. I really can't comment on that, because I really don't have any data there. Seems the most feasible explanation, lacking other data.

 

Pathetic marketing attempts by Carnival? (ok this wasn't previously mentioned in this thread) Definitely. There is the perfect demographic here, people who want to go on an affordable vacation with their kids (or without) and particularly with the case with the sale we took advantage of to book, plenty of people who cannot guarantee until the last month or two before the vacation that they can go (military!) Not having to fly last minute at a premium just to be able to enjoy a vacation is the IDEAL and if they were adequately marketing to the military population here I don't think they would have ANY trouble filling the ship. Especially when they do have a sale, and when they have a military sale in particular, if they also did some targeted marketing in the area I don't doubt they would sell out.

 

Clearly I am biased because I would kill to have a cruise ship here MORE not less. But those are my thoughts.

 

~Katy

[loxley]

The only "someone" in the know is some cruiseline VP who is in charge of scheduling these ports of embarcation and dealing with negotiating with port authorites. That person, if you were to locate him/her, would not tell you if they are in middle of discussions to head for a new port. Even port authorites would not "reveal" details of any discussions that are going on. All eithe rof these parties would do is maybe or maybe not tell you or any media outlet "there were no discussions going on at this time". Thus the issue becomes non-newsworthy.

 

you don't have to be very smart to figure it out. if there was money to be made, they would be there. end of story.

[Mandy923]

Someone mentioned the ship not sailing full. I can tell you, on the CTN that just happened the ship was AT capacity! It sold out 3 weeks before sailing.

It was PACKED.

I asked at customer service how many pax on this particular sailing and was told 3362

I though the ship only held 2900(ish) so that number was a bit shocking. But maybe that is double occupancy.

[bartleby112]

Baltimore is just in a great spot. A 3 hour drive gets you NYC, philly, Baltimore of course, DC and Northern VA. Probably 10's of millions of people. The port is 100 yards from the busiest interstate in the nation.

 

Norfolk is almost 100 miles from Richmond (i'm guessing that is next the closest major urban area).

[pulspark]

Could it have anything to do with the ship that used to be the "go to" ship in Norfolk was the Triumph? Perhaps they don't have a ship available to use on a regular basis that was the same size as the Triumph?

 

Just a thought.

[kgymn]

Baltimore is just in a great spot. A 3 hour drive gets you NYC, philly, Baltimore of course, DC and Northern VA. Probably 10's of millions of people. The port is 100 yards from the busiest interstate in the nation.

 

Norfolk is almost 100 miles from Richmond (i'm guessing that is next the closest major urban area).

 

Norfolk is 0 miles from Virginia Beach (as in, their borders touch), which is the most populous city in the state of Virginia. Norfolk itself is the second most populous, and Chesapeake (also borders Norfolk) is the 3rd. And that doesn't include the rest of the "seven cities." Norfolk is SURROUNDED by other cities. Richmond doesn't hold a candle.

 

 

Norfolk is also a 3-3.5 hour drive from DC.

 

Could it have anything to do with the ship that used to be the "go to" ship in Norfolk was the Triumph? Perhaps they don't have a ship available to use on a regular basis that was the same size as the Triumph?

 

Just a thought.

 

I don't see why it has to be a regular basis (although of course us locals would love that.) There was nothing wrong with having a ship here part time, and the ship we did have part time was the Glory which is larger than the Triumph.

 

~Katy

[PhotoPete]

I have kids that live in the Norfolk area. One reason I believe is that it cost too much to fly into Norfolk. I always check airfare and it is always high to Norfolk. I end up driving to see my kids due to the expence of buying 2 expensive tickets. Plus where would you like to spend your precruise? Norfolk or Baltimore? I was stationed in Norfolk, there is not a lot to do there. If the Navy ever pulls out the place would dry up and die.

[UKJJ]

you don't have to be very smart to figure it out. if there was money to be made, they would be there. end of story.

 

 

^^^

This. Carnival is a business, and they wouldn't stop sailing from Norfolk if there was $$$ to be made there. Since they didn't return a ship there this year, it is fairly obvious that Norfolk isn't as profitable as some of the other ports mentioned in this thread.

[kgymn]

I have kids that live in the Norfolk area. One reason I believe is that it cost too much to fly into Norfolk. I always check airfare and it is always high to Norfolk. I end up driving to see my kids due to the expence of buying 2 expensive tickets. Plus where would you like to spend your precruise? Norfolk or Baltimore? I was stationed in Norfolk, there is not a lot to do there. If the Navy ever pulls out the place would dry up and die.

 

There really is quite a bit to do in Norfolk and the surrounding area. Virginia Beach is quite the popular vacation destination on its own. If I didn't already live here, I would have a blast staying at the beach before/after going on a cruise... but that's just me...

 

~Katy

[Ms. Fun Bunch]

Speaking of Norfolk it sounds like you have cruised out of there before. Can you tell me a good Hotel with a cruise & park package? We are sailing on the Glory in October too. Oct 13th in fact. We cruised out of Norfolk once before but drove in the same day as the cruise. This time we are thinking about spending the day before the cruise there & enjoying the area.

 

Sheraton Norfolk Waterside - nice hotel. I have stayed there for the last six years the day before I cruise.

[Ms. Fun Bunch]

I am really sad that Carnival will not be using Norfolk next year:(. This October will be my 7th CTN from Norfolk and I wanted to do a B2B next year from there:(.

[Beacher123]

IDK what to believe about why they aren't coming in to Norfolk next year but in response to some of the theories I have read in this thread...

 

Too similar iteneraries to Baltimore/Charleston with nothing unique to offer: Not true, we can accomodate a bigger ship.

 

Port Fees: They pass these on the the customer, and these fees aren't quite as transparent as airfare... I'm not sure how many people other than those of us who are obsessed actually go through and start a booking to see exactly what they would pay after taxes and fees for the room/fare they want. Also comparing departtured in Oct from Norfok vs Charleston (same ports, same week, both 5 days) the port fees and taxes out of Charleston is $17 or so more for 2 people. Given the proximity of Charleston to Florida and ALL the ports there, why choose Charleston over Norfolk?

 

Not able to book the ship full: Yes, the sailing we were on this month had just over 2000 people. But the Fantasy which sails out of Charleston only holds that many to begin with, with the Pride holding slightly more. Why not give Norfolk a smaller ship, so 2000 people is full?

 

People not spending enough onboard? Possible. I really can't comment on that, because I really don't have any data there. Seems the most feasible explanation, lacking other data.

 

Pathetic marketing attempts by Carnival? (ok this wasn't previously mentioned in this thread) Definitely. There is the perfect demographic here, people who want to go on an affordable vacation with their kids (or without) and particularly with the case with the sale we took advantage of to book, plenty of people who cannot guarantee until the last month or two before the vacation that they can go (military!) Not having to fly last minute at a premium just to be able to enjoy a vacation is the IDEAL and if they were adequately marketing to the military population here I don't think they would have ANY trouble filling the ship. Especially when they do have a sale, and when they have a military sale in particular, if they also did some targeted marketing in the area I don't doubt they would sell out.

 

Clearly I am biased because I would kill to have a cruise ship here MORE not less. But those are my thoughts.

 

~Katy

Been out of Norfolk twice, RCI to Bermuda, 7 days (I think it was the first cruise using the new terminal) and Triumph, 7 days to Caribbean. Two of my favorites and wanted especially to repeat the Bermuda one again. Yes, I am a local and loved the 20 minute ride and drop off and am very sad Norfolk isn't utilized.

 

Baltimore is a good alternative (approx 6 hours) and did that last July on the Pride. Just wish there were more 7 day options.

[BearJim]

Sheraton Norfolk Waterside - nice hotel. I have stayed there for the last six years the day before I cruise.

 

Thanks Fun Bunch. How far from the terminal is it?