文章基本信息

标题：Cruising past and future - Letters - Letter to the Editor
作者：Jorge L. Rodriguez
期刊名称：Cruise Travel
印刷版ISSN：0199-5111
出版年度：2002
卷号：March-April 2002
出版社：World Publishing Co.

Cruising past and future - Letters - Letter to the Editor

Jorge L. Rodriguez

I just received the 2002 Annual Directory Issue (Cruise Travel, Feb. '02) and have to compliment you on a job well done!

My first cruise was on the Amerikanis from San Juan to the Southern Caribbean. Not knowing if I would like cruising, I decided to choose the least expensive one I could book. This cruise turned out to be one of my best. Since this cruise, I have been on many others. I did not know that the Amerikanis was scrapped in 2001. I also sailed on the Meridian to the Panama Canal from Florida. Another great ship. I did not know she had sunk in 1999. It was sad to discover that neither ship is sailing. Thanks for publishing an update of these former great ships: "Hail & Farewell To The Classic Liner."

In November, I heard that Princess and Royal Caribbean had merged. In December, I heard that Carnival was trying to purchase Princess. What will this mean to passengers? Did Carnival purchase Princess? If Carnival did purchase Princess, what happens to the merger with Royal Caribbean? Any information you can furnish regarding this issue will be greatly appreciated.

Keep up the good work!

Jorge L. Rodriguez, Corona-Elmhurst, NY Indeed, P&O Princess Cruises plc and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. did announce that they had agreed to combine ("a merger of equals"), with Princess holding a slight majority interest, becoming the largest cruise line in the world (in terms of numbers of berths). Carnival Corp., currently the largest cruise operator (and still with more ships than the proposed Princess/Royal Caribbean combine), later made a conditional offer to purchase Princess. At presstime the matter was in the hands of the Princess shareholders with no decision planned prior to this issue's printing. It will be a while before this all sorts out, and when the dust settles, Cruise Travel will wrap up the whole story for its readers. In the meantime, it's business (i.e., pleasure) as usual for passengers on all the lines involved.