3308 replies to this topic

[todd]

My next cruise is already booked...but not until April 2022.

I bet they have small boat excursions. Check with your cruise director.

Edited by todd, 11 February 2021 - 02:14 PM.

[Nparker]

I bet they have small boat excursions.

Not in the transatlantic portion of the cruise.

[todd]

How about a monorail? https://youtu.be/ZDOI0cq6GZM

[Nparker]

Carnival Mardi Gras will feature a roller coaster

[LJ]

Time will tell, but I dont see a dramatic downside for the US if they amend the Jones act to designate Alaska as a foreign port. But lets see what happens. Certainly this is not great news for Victoria. Personally I dont miss the hoards wandering around although I recognize they are some peoples bread and butter.

It's not actually the Jones act affecting them. It is the Passenger Vessel Services Act.

[Barrrister]

LJ: good to know that

[Victoria Watcher]

Can Seattle’s waterfront businesses survive another lean season, after Canadian cruise ban?

Feb. 16, 2021 at 6:00 am  Updated Feb. 16, 2021 at 3:59 pm

 

 

https://www.seattlet...l-they-survive/
 

[Nparker]

Keep in mind that the Victoria Clipper is also unable to make international runs. I am sure this has an impact both sides of the border as well. I know I usually take it once a season or so.

[Mike K.]

I learned a lot from the comments to that article.

[AllseeingEye]

I learned a lot from the comments to that article.

 

Yup.....interesting I did not know this:

 

The Jones Act has zero, zilch, nothing to do with cruise ships. It applies to cargo and cargo vessels only.

 

The cabotage laws for cruise ships is governed by the Passenger Vessel Services Act which predates the Jones Act (officially the Merchant Marine Act of 1920) by decades. Before Flags of Convenience were a thing, these acts were meant to protect American interests far beyond just union labor.

[Mike K.]

Right. Also, since the vessels are predominantly built outside of the US, even if the act was repealed for flagging their construction outside of the country will continue to prohibit port-to-port sailings.

[LJ]

Yup.....interesting I did not know this:

 

The Jones Act has zero, zilch, nothing to do with cruise ships. It applies to cargo and cargo vessels only.

 

The cabotage laws for cruise ships is governed by the Passenger Vessel Services Act which predates the Jones Act (officially the Merchant Marine Act of 1920) by decades. Before Flags of Convenience were a thing, these acts were meant to protect American interests far beyond just union labor.

How did you not know this, I stated it just up the page. #2485  

[AllseeingEye]

How did you not know this, I stated it just up the page. #2485  

 

Me have short tiny 'ttention span; me no like reading 2 much - hurt head. Strain brain. Same for tiny print. Too squinty. Me only tune in to Victoria Watcher post #2487 cuz BIG WORDS catch eye.....(but mainly......me too lazy to go back more further in topic)

[Barrrister]

Well, I learned something and found it interesting.

[Victoria Watcher]

Young has introduced the Alaska Tourism Recovery Act that would temporarily allow cruise ships to travel directly between Seattle and Alaska. Regulations require the ships to make a stop in a foreign country, typically Vancouver or Victoria.

 

In a statement, Young said the bill would provide relief for large cruise vessels, the lifeblood of Alaska’s summer tourism economy. He noted the relief would be temporary, applying only while Canadian ports are closed to the ships.

 

https://www.timescol...eyed-1.24287846

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 27 February 2021 - 06:09 AM.

[tanker]

Chances of this actually being temporary are zero. If it passes it'll be the end of Victoria and Vancouver's cruise ship business. Pretty sure the feds would be pleased with this.

[Barrrister]

Why would the Feds be pleased with a loss of business along with tax revenue?

Not saying you are wrong but I am wondering about the motivation.

[tanker]

We need to de-industrialize and move to green collar jobs or something. Basically all high paying jobs need to move to China and everyone else will learn to code.

[Victoria Watcher]

Colby Cosh: Alaskan cruise ships' 'Canada problem' is really America's fault

 

Protectionist U.S. legislation is the reason Alaska's tourist economy was obliterated when Canada closed its ports due to COVID-19

 

https://nationalpost...-americas-fault

 

 

 

Saturday’s Times-Colonist opened a window onto a miserable sight: desperate American legislators pleading for Canada’s help in saving the state of Alaska from the destructive effects of a pointless U.S. statute. Because of the pandemic, Canada has closed its ports to cruise ships until Feb. 28, 2022. There is no real reason this should stop any American from sailing to Alaska if he can find someone to take him ― but there is the Passenger Vessel Services Act of 1886 (PVSA), which outlaws uninterrupted travel between U.S. ports by “foreign vessels.”

 

In U.S. maritime law, a “foreign vessel” is any ship flying under some other country’s flag, as nearly all cruise ships in existence do. An American-flagged cruise ship would have to observe U.S. labour laws, be U.S.-owned, and, here’s the hard part, have been built in the U.S. Companies offering Alaska cruises get around the law by making stops in Canadian ports.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 02 March 2021 - 11:50 AM.

[Barrrister]

There is movement in the US government to declare Alaskan ports to be equivalent to a foreign port. This might be permanent which could be rather negative for us. On the other hand I dont miss the flood of tourists personally.