What Is Project Genesis?

We do know this will be the largest and grandest cruise ship ever built!

All the buzz in the biz surrounds the newest project that Royal Caribbean is undertaking- code name "Genesis". We do know this will be the largest and grandest cruise ship ever built. Currently Royal Caribbean's "Freedom Class" holds that distinction at 160,000 GNT. Genesis will eclipse that with its projected size at 220,000 GNT.

What we do know is that the ship will be doing 7 night alternating Eastern and Western Caribbean cruises out of a new terminal in Ft. Lauderdale that is being built to handle the size of the ship. A Genesis ship will hold 5,400 passengers, which is about the population of the town of Hampden, MA. It will feature a Central Park theme with live vegetation and other plantings along a town square the length of a football field. More surprises are scheduled to be announced in June 2008. If construction goes as planned, the ship will be in service late 2009.

We will be sailing on our annual January group cruise on or about January 10, 2010 onboard this ship. The Cruise Store is presently building a list of names of people that have an interest in this cruise, or any other Genesis sailing. We hope to take reservations sometime in August 2008 for the late 2009 and 2010 cruise sailings. We WILL have the best prices in the nation. We are not just your local travel store, as we have been selling and marketing to the world since 1991.

Both Genesis class ships are being built at the Aker yards in Finland. According to the shipyard, when the first ship is finished next fall and sent to Florida, it will be the biggest export product in Finland's history!

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and since we don't have space for a thousand words, please go to our website at www.CruiseStore.Com and click on the link in our Featured Groups section to view the official Genesis video. The word "Wow" will come to mind. While you are there, just above our Group section, we invite you to sign up for our free specials newsletter. It is extremely easy to do and takes only seconds. If you have signed up in the past and are not receiving it, please sign up again as your SPAM filter may have blocked them.

We can't wait for Genesis and, as the area's number one Royal Caribbean seller, we will be at the forefront for everything Project Genesis. As always feel free to stop in at 55 Maple Street, East Longmeadow and say hi. Drop us an email at anderson@cruisestore.com or call us at 525-9001. Let us know what subjects you want covered in this column. Bon Voyage!