Will Celebrity Ever Sail out of San Francisco Again?

[blackshirt]

On 7/6/2021 at 8:45 PM, LGW59 said:

Yes you did, you conveniently left out Houston and Dallas, unless they have no homeless or crime there?

Seriously? You know another requirement for being a port city is having a port. Where are Houston’s and Dallas’s ports?

[cruisestitch]

Houston Cruise port, known as Bayport) was a miserable place to cruise from.  The year I was there, I did back to back Christmas and new year Cruises on Princess. Due to the fog, first a cruise (not mine yet) couldn’t make it up the channel and parked out in the bay, causing a full day’s delay.  Imagine how mad all the passengers were, having to scramble to rearrange flights etc. But what is worse, they had not properly notified the oncoming passengers, who showed up at the dock only to find no ship.  They all had to scramble to find an extra hotel night, and there weren’t any hotels nearby. So their cruise was shortened by a day once it finally started.

 

Mine was the next cruise. Having seen the effect of the fog, when the cruise was coming to an end, the captain made a decision to go on up to Ship Channel a day early and simply park at the dock overnight.  So there was our floating hotel, on the last night of the trip, parked at the cruise port, where the casinos had to be closed and we’re the only alcohol that we could purchase had to be “made in Texas”. 
 

I remember asking the bartender, what kind of gin do you have? And he said “Texas Gin.”  Well what kind of scotch do you have?    “Texas Scotch”.  Oh there were a lot of unhappy passengers on that cruise

[cruisestitch]

6 minutes ago, blackshirt said:

Seriously? You know another requirement for being a port city is having a port. Where are Houston’s and Dallas’s ports?

 

look up Bayport and you can find Houston’s cruise port exact location 

[NMTraveller]

15 minutes ago, cruisestitch said:

 

look up Bayport and you can find Houston’s cruise port exact location 

Are you referring to the one that has not been used for years?

[cruisestitch]

It’s still a cargo port — the largest container port in the US—but is no longer a cruise port.  Princess and NCL used it until 2016.

[nocl]

2 hours ago, Alakegirl said:

Our one and only cruise out of the Houston cruise port and down the ship channel was is it among the worst ever.  Adding insult to injury, whilst we were in the channel where we could only order alcohol that had been made in Texas, the casino has to remain closed.  I believe that there have been no Cruises from there for five or six years due to the unpopularity of this cruise port

The law is not made in Texas, the law is that to be served while in state waters the alcohol must have been purchased in Texas.

[rugerdog]

6 hours ago, blackshirt said:

Seriously? You know another requirement for being a port city is having a port. Where are Houston’s and Dallas’s ports?

 

Exactly!

[cruisestitch]

A little more about Houston’s cruise port in Pasadena Texas

[Hlitner]

4 minutes ago, cruisestitch said:

A little more about Houston’s cruise port in Pasadena Texas

I think Bayport suffers a similar problem to a few other US Ports such as Philadelphia.  Access to these ports involves many hours of slow transit on inland waterways.  This is inconvenient for the cruise lines and uses valuable time.  The USCG imposes relatively slow speed limits in these busy inland channels.   But I will admit that the idea of embarking from Houston sounds like a better option then trekking to Galveston (we have done this for a Princess cruise).   As to Dallas (used to live in Big D) I guess somebody needs to start digging a very long canal :).

 

Hank

[NMTraveller]

Next up is why not have a cruise stop in Cuba ... 🙂

[TeeRick]

1 hour ago, Hlitner said:

I think Bayport suffers a similar problem to a few other US Ports such as Philadelphia.  Access to these ports involves many hours of slow transit on inland waterways.  This is inconvenient for the cruise lines and uses valuable time.  The USCG imposes relatively slow speed limits in these busy inland channels.   But I will admit that the idea of embarking from Houston sounds like a better option then trekking to Galveston (we have done this for a Princess cruise).   As to Dallas (used to live in Big D) I guess somebody needs to start digging a very long canal :).

 

Hank

This is true for Baltimore too but a few cruise ships did routinely embark from there pre-pandemic like Grandeur OTS. But now replaced by Enchantment OTS I believe.  Also Carnival Legend. 

[Hlitner]

12 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

This is true for Baltimore too but a few cruise ships did routinely embark from there pre-pandemic like Grandeur OTS. But now replaced by Enchantment OTS I believe.  Also Carnival Legend. 

Baltimore has another major issue.   The idiots (and that is what they are) that made the decisions on building their cruise port located it near the Inner Harbor which means that ships must be able to pass under a relatively low bridge.  None of the larger and newer ships can make it under that bridge so their cruise port is now only able to handle medium and smaller vessels that meet the height maximum.

 

Hank

[TeeRick]

1 minute ago, Hlitner said:

Baltimore has another major issue.   The idiots (and that is what they are) that made the decisions on building their cruise port located it near the Inner Harbor which means that ships must be able to pass under a relatively low bridge.  None of the larger and newer ships can make it under that bridge so their cruise port is now only able to handle medium and smaller vessels that meet the height maximum.

 

Hank

Yes definitely true.  We live near Philly.  It was nice to drive the relatively short distance to Baltimore, park and cruise.  We did Grandeur. Smaller older ship.  We knew going in.  To Bermuda and back.  One of the most friendly ships we have ever sailed.  Loved it.  And the scenic sail through the Chesapeake was awesome including going under the aforementioned bridge.

 

Of similar note the Panama Canal cruises can only support cruise ships that fit under the Bridge of the Americas on the Pacific side.  Even with the newer locks this is still the limitation for full transit.  We did M-Class (Infinity) through the old locks.  Very historical!

[Hlitner]

6 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

Yes definitely true.  We live near Philly.  It was nice to drive the relatively short distance to Baltimore, park and cruise.  We did Grandeur. Smaller older ship.  We knew going in.  To Bermuda and back.  One of the most friendly ships we have ever sailed.  Loved it.  And the scenic sail through the Chesapeake was awesome including going under the aforementioned bridge.

 

Of similar note the Panama Canal cruises can only support cruise ships that fit under the Bridge of the Americas on the Pacific side.  Even with the newer locks this is still the limitation for full transit.  We did M-Class (Infinity) through the old locks.  Very historical!

We have previously cruised out of both Philly and Baltimore.  I recall returning from the Baltimore based cruise, jumping in our car which was parked right at the port and being home by 10am.  While it was enjoyable it doesn't work for our normal cruise habit which involves very long cruises to more exotic locations.

 

Hank

[Fouremco]

24 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

Yes definitely true.  We live near Philly.  It was nice to drive the relatively short distance to Baltimore, park and cruise.  We did Grandeur. Smaller older ship.  We knew going in.  To Bermuda and back.  One of the most friendly ships we have ever sailed.  Loved it.  And the scenic sail through the Chesapeake was awesome including going under the aforementioned bridge.

 

Of similar note the Panama Canal cruises can only support cruise ships that fit under the Bridge of the Americas on the Pacific side.  Even with the newer locks this is still the limitation for full transit.  We did M-Class (Infinity) through the old locks.  Very historical!

A similar situation exists on the St. Lawrence Seaway, with only smaller cruise ships being able to continue upriver from Québec City to Montréal. Even those than can make it must time their passage under the Pont de Québec, as the river is tidal at this point. Completed in 1919, the Pont de Québec is the longest cantilever bridge in the world, while the Pont Pierre-Laporte, just upriver from it, is the longest suspension bridge in Canada.

 

In the first photo below, it appears that the Pont Pierre-Laporte in the background is the lower of the two bridges, but that's just an optical illusion. The second photo shows the MS Maasdam just clearing the Pont de Québec on our way to Montréal.

 

 

[TeeRick]

1 hour ago, Fouremco said:

A similar situation exists on the St. Lawrence Seaway, with only smaller cruise ships being able to continue upriver from Québec City to Montréal. Even those than can make it must time their passage under the Pont de Québec, as the river is tidal at this point. Completed in 1919, the Pont de Québec is the longest cantilever bridge in the world, while the Pont Pierre-Laporte, just upriver from it, is the longest suspension bridge in Canada.

 

In the first photo below, it appears that the Pont Pierre-Laporte in the background is the lower of the two bridges, but that's just an optical illusion. The second photo shows the MS Maasdam just clearing the Pont de Québec on our way to Montréal.

 

 

Thanks.  It seems that bridges built before mega cruise ships always are a problem ruining our vacations everywhere!

[Kathy53]

I'm just going to chime in on some ports and cities of today who are experiencing more crime, homelessness, drug use and the like.  My city of Vancouver, BC has welcomed many US and International travellers and is recognized as a beautiful city.  Our port is in the heart of downtown, offers beautiful views and great restaurants BUT venture out of Gastown just a few blocks and you are in a cesspool.  I would never walk in this area and I can't tell you the number of times, while driving home from work, we've seen cruise passengers walking in this area, likely looking at a map, where we have actually stopped the car and told them to turn around and go either south towards the shopping district or west towards Stanley Park.  Every large city has its issues but I certainly would not like to stop welcoming visitors to Vancouver.  Maybe during port talks, these areas since so close to the port, should be identified as 'no go zones'.      

[Baron Barracuda]

Did a 17 night PC sailing from SF five years ago on Infinity.  Loved it.  Must have been lucky as we saw few homeless or panhandlers.  Enjoyed a real nice port stop at Monterey before turning south.

[Hlitner]

1 hour ago, TeeRick said:

Thanks.  It seems that bridges built before mega cruise ships always are a problem ruining our vacations everywhere!

Some of us might say that the "Megaships" are the problem :).  While DW and I have cruised on a few ships that would be considered large (up to about 4000 passenger) I still prefer the much smaller vessels (less then 800 passenger) which are primarily used by the luxury lines (and some premium lines).  "Megaships" have led to lots of "over tourism" problems in quite a few ports around the world.  

 

Hank

[nocl]

5 hours ago, Hlitner said:

I think Bayport suffers a similar problem to a few other US Ports such as Philadelphia.  Access to these ports involves many hours of slow transit on inland waterways.  This is inconvenient for the cruise lines and uses valuable time.  The USCG imposes relatively slow speed limits in these busy inland channels.   But I will admit that the idea of embarking from Houston sounds like a better option then trekking to Galveston (we have done this for a Princess cruise).   As to Dallas (used to live in Big D) I guess somebody needs to start digging a very long canal :).

 

Hank

The primary problem with bayport was fog. Several cruises had problems returning to port there. A fairly high percentage of cruises experienced delay in one form or another. More than with other ports.

[NMTraveller]

1 hour ago, Kathy53 said:

I'm just going to chime in on some ports and cities of today who are experiencing more crime, homelessness, drug use and the like.  My city of Vancouver, BC has welcomed many US and International travellers and is recognized as a beautiful city.  Our port is in the heart of downtown, offers beautiful views and great restaurants BUT venture out of Gastown just a few blocks and you are in a cesspool.  I would never walk in this area and I can't tell you the number of times, while driving home from work, we've seen cruise passengers walking in this area, likely looking at a map, where we have actually stopped the car and told them to turn around and go either south towards the shopping district or west towards Stanley Park.  Every large city has its issues but I certainly would not like to stop welcoming visitors to Vancouver.  Maybe during port talks, these areas since so close to the port, should be identified as 'no go zones'.      

So you are comparing Vancouver crime to San Francisco crime?  All that I can say is LOL.

[Kathy53]

1 minute ago, NMTraveller said:

So you are comparing Vancouver crime to San Francisco crime?  All that I can say is LOL.

Respectfully, I am not.  My reference is more to unsavory areas that exist in all large cities.

[NMTraveller]

3 minutes ago, Kathy53 said:

Respectfully, I am not.  My reference is more to unsavory areas that exist in all large cities.

Most cities will mitigate these issues with a law enforcement presence.  San Francisco has not yet figured out how to do this or does not desire to do this.

[kelmac]

How can people who live in South Florida consider San Francisco too dangerous?

 

https://www.bestplaces.net/crime/?city1=51245000&city2=50667000

[JRG]

On 7/6/2021 at 12:55 PM, CruiseLoverFromNorCal said:

I would love to hear your thoughts on this! Thanks!

 

I asked Carmac the Magnificent and here is what he said.

 

The future is bright and we should all be wearing shades.   It may take an 

 

Act of Congress to overturn the PVSA and open up the markets and that is just what the doctor has ordered.

 

I envision a stronger demand for triangle cruises between Cali/Seattle/Vancouver and Hawaii and Alaska that cater to the emerging markets created by the pandemic,   after the ball and chain restrictions of the PVSA have been lifted.    I also see a strong increase in the demand for back to back cruising within the US (including Alaska and Hawaii) without the distant border detour.

 

I believe we will see a SURGE in domestic sailings because the rest of the world will not be vaccinnated to the degree that we are here in the US,   and that will cater to the needs of many cruisers who no longer want to sail far from home because of Covid or perhaps their health reasons and opening up these kinds of cruises will be more appealing and it will be good for all cruisers.

 

Markets get what they want,   conditions change and barriers come and go.

 

People still want to cruise longer durations,   but if the rest of the world isn't ready then we should be doing longer US routes.  West Coast,  East Coast,  and Gulf Coast included.

 

Thanks to the OP for opening up the thread for thoughts and ideas.