A cruise in the high seas now within our means

By Shirajiv SIRIMANE in Singapore

Anyone watching the movie, Titanic, would dream of taking a cruise and watching the deep blue sea from the top of an observatory deck of a cruise ship.

However, sailing around the world on cruise ships was confined to the elite and was considered as something beyond the means of the middle class. In a bid to breach this gap, Star Cruises, the leading cruise liner in Singapore, has come up with economical offers through which Sri Lankan families and friends too could enjoy this ultimate luxury.

One could cruse in luxury for three days, in the Super Star Virgo to the cost of a three-days stay at a three-star hotel in Singapore.

The Super Star Virgo takes off from Singapore Pier and travels to Malaysia and returns after three days to the starting point. The ship can be described as a floating five-star hotel with two swimming pools, golf course, badminton and basketball courts, comprehensive gymnasium with hot water pools, 24-hour casino and a large number of Restaurants.

The cruise ship has 12 decks with the capacity to carry 2,000 passengers and a crew of over 1,200. They also carry water and other provisions sufficient for the entire journey.

RMS Titanic was the largest passenger steamship in the world when she set off on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, on April 10 nearly 100 years ago.

Four days into the trip, she struck an iceberg and sank, resulting in the deaths of 1,517 people in one of the deadliest peacetime maritime disasters in history. The high casualty rate when the ship sank was due in part to the fact that, although complying with the regulations of the time, the ship carried only a handful of lifeboats.

Since this unfortunate incident, ship builders have taken measures never to see a repeat of this fiasco. Super Star Virgo, built in Germany, too has lifeboats to carry all the passengers and the crew in the rare event of an emergency.

The Sunday Observer too was invited by NKar Travels, one of the preferred passenger sales agents for the past eight years and Cathy Pacific, which provides the lowest air fare to Singapore, to experience this luxury cruise.

The ship sets sail every Wednesday and Sunday. The first experience after check-in was the safety drill which is compulsory for all passengers where the ship crew explained all safety measures in operation in case of an emergency.

The accommodation offered ranges from an executive suite with balcony to the State Room which could accommodate four persons. All rooms have their own toilets, in-house television, hot and cold water and all modern amenities that are offered at a star class hotel.

A wide variety of cuisines is offered for passengers dining pleasure - Japanese food at The Samurai, Indian at The Taj, Italian at the Palazzo, Chinese at Noble House, ice cream and desserts at Gelato and international buffet spreads. It is the only cruise ship in the world that has an authentic Indian restaurant on board that is certified ‘halal’!

In addition to shops that offer items from garments to souvenirs and gold and silver jewellery many other forms of entertainment are also available. For the businessmen, there is a business centre equipped with modern telecommunications systems so that they can stay in touch with friends, loved ones or business associates.

The interests of children too have been taken in to account. They will have a ball of a time at Neptune’s Wet and Wild, Starlight Disco and Video Arcade and Charlie’s Child Care Area. They’ll be kept busy with swimming pools, octopus slides, endless snacks, a comprehensive computer learning centre and lots more activities to run themselves ragged.

Pump up the energy

To keep passengers looking fit and good, sports and fitness facilities are offered at the Fitness Centre. Nights are made alive with free live shows in the giant theatre while live music is provided at the lobby and disco. There is also the karaoke room and many other games for both adults and children. The casino is in operation 24 hours of the day and is another major attraction especially during the weekend cruises.

The cruise has a stop-over in Pulau Redang Island in Malaysia for a few hours in the evening. Passengers are provided free boat services to and from the island; most passengers disembark and explore the sandy island while some snorkel and dive.

Malaysian souvenirs are also on offer at the island while live entertainment awaits at the beach.

Meneka de Alwis who handles this package for Sri Lankans, said they are offering this package with a one-night stay in a three-star hotel in Singapore. “A unique feature of this package is that we offer a return air ticket on Cathay Pacific with all taxes being paid,” she said.

Cathay Pacific Airways, voted as the Skytrax- Airline of the Year 2009, has been operating flights from Colombo for the last 16 years with Finlays Colombo as its General Sales Agent. The aircraft that operates to Colombo is a Boeing 777-300 with a capacity of 398 seats with a two-class operation of Business and Economy.

They also offer daily flights to Hong Kong, with four or three flights via Singapore and three via Bangkok.

Most passengers take this opportunity to visit the newly-built sky park, said to be the world’s first, and the world’s largest giant wheel, and also for shopping.

De Alwis said that in addition to the Singapore cruise, they also offer outbound packages to Kenya, Egypt, Europe, India, China, Middle East and also pilgrim tours.

Star Cruises had also included Sri Lanka as a stop-over destination.

However, with the ethnic conflict this had been discontinued. Deputy Minister of Ports and Aviation, Dayasritha Tissera said that they would like to see Star Cruises anchor in Sri Lanka once again.

Trincomalee is expected to be suggested to the Star Cruise group as a possible destination.