Cruise West Closes Its Doors!

[RiverCruiseReporter]

I'm sad to see that they are closing when cruising is becoming less and less about the destination:

http://www.rivercruisereporter.com/2010/09/stick-a-fork-in-it-cruise-west-ceases-operations/

[dfb]

Thanks for posting. It is sad. I am sorry to see it as well, since we just finished the Columbia & Snake Rivers cruise onboard Spirit of '98. I am happy to say that there was absolutely no indication onboard that Cruise West was on its last legs. Good for them, and their staff and crew. I posted a blog (still a work in progress)

http://oregoncruisewest.blogspot.com/

 

Debbie

[Coral]

I am so sad to hear this. While I had not cruised with them, I had wished to do so. I heard they were a great line.

[rimau]

Sad to hear it. We were booked on a cruise with them for next May and were really looking forward to it. Since we have other cruises booked for before then, the disappointment isn't as great as it could be. Insurance claim going in Monday.

[gbucky]

Having gone with Cruise West 6 times, I too am sorry to see its demise. I wonder if, along with the economic downturn that we can blame so many things on, things didn't start to be a problem when they launched the Oceanus and went into longer pricier trips. Then when they announced entering the European river cruising market, I predicted they were going to overextend themselves. They even had announced they would start cruising on the Mississippi. I have met Dick West and knew crew members and Captain Mike from those trips and am so sorry a great company ended this way.

[rafinmd]

Sad to hear it. We were booked on a cruise with them for next May and were really looking forward to it. Since we have other cruises booked for before then, the disappointment isn't as great as it could be. Insurance claim going in Monday.

 

As both a first timer on Cruise West and one of their last passengers, disembarking Spirit of Columbia less than a week ago, I share everyone's disappointment. Just a thought, rimau. I have sailed Blount Small Ship Adventures (formerly ACCL) a number of times. They don't actually sail the Mississippi much but are in that region on the Mobile, Tombigbee, Cumberland, Ohio, Tennessee, Illinois and a small section of the Mississippi between New Orleans, Memphis, Nashville, and Chicago mid-April to mid-July. Their ships are similar to Cruise West (Spirit of Columbia is a former ACCL ship) and their operations are fairly similar. Creature comforts with Blount are just a bit more basic but I felt very much at home on Cruise West. I've posted a review of last year's cruise on these waters here:

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=67460.

 

If you get the blues about missing your Mississippi cruise you might consider them.

 

Roy

[surfklutz]

It is sad to see them go. I had cruised a number of times on them and enjoyed the small ship feel. When I go back and look at what I paid for all the cruises I went on with them, I am surprised they went out of business. I found that I could go on SeaDream and get much better service, accommodations and have everything included for less money. Anyone who is looking for an alternative should really check out SeaDream.

[1americanrev]

I too, will greatly miss Cruise West. We loved the shore excursions that provided a wealth of experiences with the land and people. We enjoyed the beach landings and the adventures that awaited us where ever we went. We loved packing lightly and wearing the same clothes all day, even to dinner. My question is what cruise line out there would come closest to providing this same small ship experience?

[rafinmd]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

For my nominations look at:

 

Mid-America, Northeast, and Carribbean: Blount Small Ship Adventures

Northeast: American Cruise Lines

West Coast: Linblad Sea Bird and Sea Lion

Carribbean: Blount Small Ship Adventures, Windstar

Replacement of Spirit of Oceanus: Windstar, Seabourn triplets

[pms4104]

Some insight into Cruise West's demise: http://www.travelpulse.com/Resources/Editorial.aspx?n=76738

[outerspaceguy]

"but some sailings only had 25 or 30 people. Our philosophy was to never discount."

 

I think that was the fundamental mistake: half of a cup of water is better than no cup of water....

 

I seriously thought about booking on them for Alaska earlier this summer, with their no-single-supplement promo (a great idea, BTW), but by then (later July/early August) it was well known that their finances weren't great, and without sufficient details on that, I wasn't willing to chance getting stuck in the middle of my vacation: trip insurance is great, but an aborted vacation would still suck....

 

Who got their slots into Glacier Bay?

[rafinmd]

"but some sailings only had 25 or 30 people. Our philosophy was to never discount."

 

I think that was the fundamental mistake: half of a cup of water is better than no cup of water....

 

I seriously thought about booking on them for Alaska earlier this summer, with their no-single-supplement promo (a great idea, BTW), but by then (later July/early August) it was well known that their finances weren't great, and without sufficient details on that, I wasn't willing to chance getting stuck in the middle of my vacation: trip insurance is great, but an aborted vacation would still suck....

 

Who got their slots into Glacier Bay?

 

I agree generally with your comments, although cutting the price on a sailing raises equity and passenger relations if the cuts aren't passed on to existing passengers.

 

I don't think the slots will be a major issue. Cruise West's small ships were considered tour boats rather than cruise ships and in a different slot regime, so there may not be much competition for those slots.

[outerspaceguy]

so there may not be much competition for those slots.

 

fyi:

 

"An Alaskan company with a long history in the boating business has announced plans to launch a new small ship cruise line in the state.

 

As was first reported today by industry watcher Travel Weekly, the new line will be called Alaskan Dream Cruises and operate two vessels that until last month were part of the Cruise West fleet."

 

 

http://travel.usatoday.com/cruises/post/2010/10/alaska-alaskan-dream-cruises-cruise-west/128558/1

[Glaciers]

fyi:

 

"An Alaskan company with a long history in the boating business has announced plans to launch a new small ship cruise line in the state.

 

As was first reported today by industry watcher Travel Weekly, the new line will be called Alaskan Dream Cruises and operate two vessels that until last month were part of the Cruise West fleet."

 

 

http://travel.usatoday.com/cruises/post/2010/10/alaska-alaskan-dream-cruises-cruise-west/128558/1

 

Alaskan Dream Cruises is gearing up for the 2011 season sailing round trips out of Sitka.

http://www.alaskandreamcruises.com/

[dfb]

Thanks for posting this... Looks pretty good!