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By Dan Levin, The New York Times
February 25th, 2007
Ships Are Rocking More and Not From Waves
As the apparent success of EasyCruise demonstrates, cruises aren’t just for retirees and families anymore.
Shedding its image as a stodgy pastime for old people, the cruise industry is working to attract passengers under 35 with themed party cruises, raves, poker tournaments, beer pong matches and onshore excursions like bar hopping that appeal to those still paying off their college loans.
“The onboard products have evolved to include more activities, amenities and programs for younger travelers,” said Terry Dale, the president of Cruise Lines International Association. “Bearing this in mind, it is not surprising that special interests geared toward younger travelers, such as music, are on the rise.”
The number of cruisers 25 to 39 continues to grow steadily, accounting for 31 percent of cruise passengers in 2006, compared to 28 percent in 2002, according to the association.
Among the pioneers of the spring-break-style voyage is the Groove Cruise, a series of three trips that began in 2004 and that each now draws about 300 passengers, mostly close to 30 in age. They offer three days of house music with DJs like Bad Boy Bill and Donald Glaude, beach parties, belly-flop contests and volleyball tournaments.
This year’s voyages, on Royal Caribbean Sovereign-class ships, will sail from Miami for Coco Cay and Nassau, the Bahamas (May 11 to 14) and from Los Angeles to Ensenada, Mexico (July 20 to 23). A third cruise from New York City to Bermuda is being planned for the fall. Prices range from $389 to $2,299 a person, double occupancy (877.438.9438 ext 4, www.whettravel.com).
Binge drinking seems to be a major pastime on the Rock Boat, an annual cruise that has attracted more than 2,000 passengers, averaging about 30 years old. While rock ‘n’ roll is the main draw, with over 20 acts like Sister Hazel and Toad the Wet Sprocket, there are plenty of other frat-worthy attractions. No shuffleboard here: featured activities include beer pong matches, wine tastings, Texas Hold ‘Em tournaments and a Mardi Gras-style parade, using luggage trolleys as floats.
“It’s a bunch of drinking with no rules,” said Andrea Garcia, 30, a marketing consultant from Los Angeles who has been on the Rock Boat three times. “People are hung over, clinging to their chairs while the bands are playing, and the whole boat is singing.”
Unlike most cruises, the port of call is secondary. Many Rock Boat passengers didn’t bother venturing into Turks and Caicos during its recent voyage from Fort Lauderdale, preferring instead to recover from the night before. “Sometimes I don’t even pack a swimsuit,” said Annie Alred, 29, another repeat passenger from Charlotte, N.C. The next Rock Boat hits the high seas Jan. 19 to 24, from Miami to Jamaica and Grand Cayman.
For those who prefer tie-dye and Birkenstocks, there is the chartered Jam Cruise, which gives some 2,000 pseudo-hippies, most in their early 30s, all the bands they might see at Bonnaroo or Gathering of the Vibes without the mud pits, squalid portable toilets and dirty tents. Last month’s Jam Cruise embarked from Fort Lauderdale to Cayo Levantado, the Dominican Republic, and the Turks and Caicos, and had poker games, a pirate costume contest and karaoke. Instead of chocolate mints on their pillows, guests found free beer coupons. “Where else can you see over a hundred of your favorite musicians and get a tan on a Caribbean beach?” said Mark Brown, the organizer of the Jam Cruise. Reservations are being taken for the next cruise, sometime in January. And for those still in college, there is the Spring Break Bahamas Party Cruise, which shuttles students between Fort Lauderdale and Grand Bahama Island today through April. The five-hour journey aboard the 1,300-passenger Discovery, will offer plenty of reasons to party, most prominently that the minimum drinking age is 18 on the ship and in the Bahamas.
Mainstream cruises are also making pitches for younger passengers. Carnival Cruises offers 22 bars and lounges on its new ship, the Liberty, including a nightclub covered in fluorescent tattoo designs and black lights. Royal Caribbean, which installed rock climbing walls and other action sports on all their ships, has started offering DJ classes.
Whatever the draw, the young crowd seems ready to set sail. “My credit card is ready to go,” one person wrote in a recent posting on the Rock Boat’s message board, “even if my liver still isn’t.”
To reserve your cabin onboard the GROOVE CRUISE, please book online or call 877.438.9438 ext. 4
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