Croisi's 2020 St. Lawrence Seaway Cruises - Pricey!

[Roz]

I've been waiting for CroisEurope to release their 2020 St. Lawrence Seaway itineraries on La Belle des Oceans.  A few days ago I received an email from one their booking agents letting me know the information is available.  Yikes!  11 day itineraries start at $8,407.  A bit beyond my budget  I didn't even bother to check out solo fares.  I was hoping that since their European offerings are reasonably priced, the same would be true of their new Canadian cruises.  

[sharkster77]

We keep looking for reasonable St. Lawrence seaway cruises, as we live in Boston area and would be easy to board such a cruise, but yeah, they are very expensive.  Gaspe peninsula has been on our bucket list for years, and it's a 700 mile drive from Boston!

 

A relative keeps giving me guff for traveling so much in Europe, as opposed to spending my $$ in "Murica", but I shut him down by pointing out how much cheaper it is to travel Europe from the east coast.

[Roz]

I would love to take a cruise along the Columbia River, but you're right, the domestic cruises cost as much or more than the European ones, and flying to the west coast can be as much as flying to Europe. 

[franski]

On 10/29/2019 at 6:56 AM, Roz said:

I've been waiting for CroisEurope to release their 2020 St. Lawrence Seaway itineraries on La Belle des Oceans.  A few days ago I received an email from one their booking agents letting me know the information is available.  Yikes!  11 day itineraries start at $8,407.   

 I got the same e-mail... and almost had a stroke when I read the price!!  The itinerary is good, but you can do most of it (except for St. Pierre/Miquelon) easily as a land tour. 

 

Fran

[cormike1]

Wow those prices are unreal!!!  I have been looking at another cruise line that does Kingston, Ontario to Quebec City or Ottawa and those prices are high also.   No wonder we go to Europe and don't travel in our own country.

 

[sharkster77]

I am looking at 7 night trips to Scotland, Ireland, Italy, etc that include breakfast and dinner every day and include airfare for only 3000 pp.  Cannot cruise Columbia River, St. Lawrence, or the Great Lakes for anywhere close to that.  Agree with all here, no wonder we go to Europe, especially from east coast.

[Peregrina651]

It is the US laws that make it so expensive. That is why ships with a mostly US itinerary include a stop in Mexico or Canada. Our law-makers have done nothing to help the cruise industry in the US. They want us to "buy American" but they make it so unattractive for us to do so.

[TravelerThom]

2 hours ago, Peregrina651 said:

It is the US laws that make it so expensive. That is why ships with a mostly US itinerary include a stop in Mexico or Canada. Our law-makers have done nothing to help the cruise industry in the US. They want us to "buy American" but they make it so unattractive for us to do so.

How exactly do US laws affect a cruise on a ship owned by a French company, registered in the Bahamas and sailing a route that never stops in the US but rather cruises primarily in Canada with a stop in the French Overseas Collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon?  
 

[Roz]

1 hour ago, TravelerThom said:

How exactly do US laws affect a cruise on a ship owned by a French company, registered in the Bahamas and sailing a route that never stops in the US but rather cruises primarily in Canada with a stop in the French Overseas Collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon?  
 

I think maybe Peregrina was referring to river cruises on the Missisippi, Columbia, Ohio, etc.

[Peregrina651]

1 hour ago, Roz said:

I think maybe Peregrina was referring to river cruises on the Missisippi, Columbia, Ohio, etc.

 

Yes, I was. The conversation had become rather general at that point.

[sharkster77]

There is a law in place (its name escapes me) that mandates US built ships and US crews in US waters.  It's the law Viking hoped to get overturned when they announced with great fanfare a few years back that they were entering the Mississippi river cruise market--it went nowhere, as the law is still in place.

[TravelerThom]

6 hours ago, sharkster77 said:

There is a law in place (its name escapes me) that mandates US built ships and US crews in US waters.  It's the law Viking hoped to get overturned when they announced with great fanfare a few years back that they were entering the Mississippi river cruise market--it went nowhere, as the law is still in place.

Passenger Vessel Services Act of 1886 generally requires that foreign flagged vessels originating a cruise at a US port have to stop in a foreign port before returning to their port of origin (Closed Loop Cruise) OR stop in a distant foreign port before terminating at a different US port. US flagged ships which generally have to have been built in the US and be crewed by US residents are exempt from those restrictions. There are a number of minor loopholes in PVSA rules.

 

The Merchant Marine Act of 1920 (aka Jones Act) applies to cargo vessels, not cruise vessels, but the name Jones Act is often mistakenly applied to provisions of PVSA 1886.