Getaway on Norwegian Cruise Lines new luxury vessels

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16: Norwegian Cruise Line has decided on Breakaway and Getaway as the monikers for its two newest vessels.

The names were chosen from over 230,000 submitted in a contest.

Norwegian felt these names best reflected the innovation of the brand along with the freedom and flexibility of the lines signature Freestyle Cruising and invoked the feeling that these ships will provide a break  at sea from the stress of everyday life.

Breakaway is defined as a departure or break from routine or tradition and Getaway is defined as  a place where one escapes for relaxation, vacation, etc.   

The 144,017 ton vessels will have a capacity of 4,000 passengers.

The Norwegian Getaway and Norwegian Breakaway will be tied for the second largest in the NCL fleet.

As a comparision, the Norwegian Dawn, which travels to King’s Wharf in Dockyard, is just a 92,250 ton ship with 2,224 passengers.

Maiden voyages

This first ship is due to start sailing in April 2013 with the sister ship scheduled to set sail in April 2014

Norwegian is continuing its studio staterooms for solo travellers on the Project Breakaway ships.

The 59 Studios on each ship are specifically designed and priced for the solo traveller with a bathroom design that includes a separate sink and shower to provide more personal space.

The studios, the majority of which connect, feature a full-size bed with convenient lighted recess above the bed to hold books, magazines, tablet computers or electronic reading devices and have a unique window to the corridor

These rooms also have private keycard access to the studio complex and exclusive two-story studio lounge with a bar for those who want the singles scene at sea.

For those who like to relax, the 28 spa balcony and the 20 spa mini-suite staterooms feature tranquil spa décor and have easy access to the adjacent spa and fitness centre, as well as complimentary access to the thermal spa suite during operating hours.

The spa area on Norwegian ships are fantastic and a great way to relax.

On the Project Breakaway ships, Norwegian is re-introducing oceanview staterooms that feature large picturesque windows.  

Of the 158 oceanview staterooms on each ship, there are approximately 42 family oceanviews that sleep up to five guests and have a bathroom similar to the mini-suite with a modern double sink, bath tub and a second wardrobe for added storage.

The family mini-suites located on deck 12 and 13 feature all the attributes of the regular mini-suite and are located in close proximity to the children’s facilities, making it convenient and easy for families.  

There are also staterooms, which have bathtubs, so if you have small children, this makes it more convenient.

Project Breakaway ships include 449 Inside staterooms that feature two lower beds that can be converted to a queen-size bed. Many are connecting and sleep up to four guests.

BA tips its glass

British Airways raised the bar this month when it introduced a new champagne on its flights.

The first to make the grade is Grand Siecle by Laurent-Perrier. The bottle retails for $100.

British Airways will also be announcing a new champagne for club World in October.

BA said its selecting wines to match dishes on the menu and some wines will only be on certain routes “to ensure they are tailored to the customer demographic, destination and time of day”.

As examples, some Asian routes will have the Puligny-Montrachet Premier Cru Le Champ Gain 2007 and Corton Bressandes Grand Cru 2008.

Grand Slam

I’ll be giving tips each week on how to rack up the miles during US Airways Grand Slam promotion.

If you max out the programme, you can get 110,000 miles between now and November 14 (the promotion started on Wednesday).

Two easy ways to get hits and give you a head start on your first 3,000 miles is 1) download the US Airways toolbar; and 2) sign up for E-Miles (www.emiles.com).

First register for the Grand Slam promotion here www.usairways.com/gs11

If you don’t want the toolbar on your regular browser, just download a different one and download it to your backup browser. I prefer to use Google Chrome and have it loaded on Explorer.

Emiles is a survey company that allows you rack up miles you can transfer to US Airways. You will get a double dip on this as you will score a ‘hit’ for the Grand Slam promotion and also earn miles by answering the questions.

It takes four hits to earn miles and if you do the above two things you’ll be halfway there.