VIKING PARTNERS ON BRITISH BAKING SHOW

Viking Cruises has announced it is extending its MASTERPIECE PBS partnership to include The Great British Baking Show, now airing Sundays at 8 p.m. EST. For the past four years, Viking has been a sponsor for the highly acclaimed series, Downton Abbey, which Cruising Squared never misses BTW. As they do on Downton, Viking commercials will bookend each episode. They will also leverage recipes from the show across its marketing channels.

The Great British Baking Show follows "the trials and tribulations of passionate amateur bakers whose goal is to be named the U.K.’s best. Each week, the bakers tackle a different skill, the difficulty of which increases as the competition unfolds. Mary Berry, a leading cookbook writer, and Paul Hollywood, a top artisan baker, serve as judges. Together with hosts and comic foils Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc, Berry and Hollywood search for the country’s best amateur baker by testing the competitors’ skills on cakes, breads, pastries and desserts, crowning a winner after 10 weeks of competition." 

Here's hoping there's a show on making scones: Nothing goes better with afternoon tea, you know. --Gerry

WORLD'S LARGEST YACHT

The Azzam -- designed by Nauta Yachts (Nauta Yachts website)

Business Insider reports the world's largest yacht -- the 590-foot Azzam -- has embarked on its first world voyage. For comparison, the Azzam is half the length of the world's largest cruise ship, Allure of the Seas. That's a big boat by any measurement. What does operating a boat of that size cost? Plenty, according to this article. If you happen to see it, send us a snap!

'NEW LOOK' QUEEN VICTORIA SETS SAIL

Queen Victoria has always been a beautiful ship. Now she is even more beautiful after a recent 20-day refit. Here are the details from Cunard:

"Queen Victoria sailed past a fusillade of fireworks to mark the start of her 2015 World Voyage and show off her stunning new look. The ship set out from Southampton in tip-top form having just returned from an intensive 20-day refurbishment at the Blohm and Voss shipyard in Hamburg. 

"Nine brand new single staterooms were installed as part of the refurbishment. In addition to refreshing existing furnishings, enhancements have been made to the outdoor spaces, beverage provision in the ship’s informal Lido restaurant and eight brand new internet stations have been installed on the upper floor of the library."

It's another highlight marking Cunard's 175th anniversary year. -- Gerry

GET READY FOR CARNIVAL 'VISTA', COMING 2016

Carnival has released details on its newest -- and largest -- ship, Carnival Vista, set to debut in 2016. Happily for cruise aficionados, the innovations keep on coming. How about a suspended open-air cycling experience called SkyRide? Or the first IMAX theater at sea? Or Carnival's first water-tube slide?

It's all that and a lot more. 

Here's a video from Carnival with more details, and their release follows. 



High-Powered Outdoor Fun

With SkyRide, the cruise industry’s first pedal-powered open-air aerial attraction, Carnival is creating some of the best and highest outdoor vistas ever offered on a cruise ship. Adventurous riders can climb aboard hanging recumbent-like bikes to cycle their way around the 800-foot suspended track with panoramic views from 150 feet above the sea. 

TRIPADVISOR'S TOP 25 WORLD HOTELS

Coming in at number one (TripAdvisor)

TripAdvisor is out with their Top 25 Hotels in the World list, as voted by their millions of users. It's interesting that only one U.S. hotel made the list -- The Langham, in Chicago. It may not be long before the top rated hotel is out of this world, literally, as tourism expands into space and we get the first orbiting Hyatt or Hilton. Shades of 2001: A Space Odyssey. -- Gerry

CARNIVAL MAKES $5 MILLION DONATION

This news is worth five million smiles:

"Carnival Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Carnival Corporation, is donating $5 million to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami to create the Carnival Center for Excellence. The donation — timed to celebrate National Mentoring Month — marks the largest gift ever received by the organization’s Miami chapter.

"The Carnival Center for Excellence building at 550 Le Jeune Road in Miami will serve as the headquarters for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami and will provide facilities to support ongoing mentoring and educational activities for Big Brothers Big Sisters’ participants, often referred to as 'Littles.'

"Carnival Foundation’s signature initiative, the Carnival Scholarship and Mentoring Program, pairs a Carnival employee with a South Florida high school student matched by Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami. Currently, 95 Carnival management team members mentor 95 Miami-Dade County high school students through the in-the-workplace program sponsored by Carnival in partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami.

"The program also awards four-year college scholarships to 15 participating students every year. For the past 12 years, Carnival Foundation has purchased STARS scholarships representing a collective value of more than $2.1 million. Since 2010, 75 scholarships have been awarded, and in 2014 several students from the first group of recipients graduated college."

'ZOOMINATIONS' COMING TO TAMPA ZOO

If you find yourself in the Tampa vicinity this spring, you don't want to miss the chance to experience Zoominations -- A Chinese Lantern Festival of Lights, coming Feb. 28 to May 31 to the Lowry Park Zoo.

Sixty highly-skilled craftsmen from the village of Zigong in China’s Sichuan province will travel to Florida to custom build larger-than-life lantern structures out of steel covered with silk that will light up the Zoo.

The exhibition will feature 30 scenes, including replicas of the Beijing Temple of Heaven (China’s largest existing masterpiece) and large-scale dragons, pandas, and zoo animals. Zoominations will also feature performances by Chinese acrobats and an authentic artisan market with unique handmade crafts.

If the video above is any indication of what to expect, cell phone cameras will be working overtime. --Gerry

CELEBRITY DEBUTING SUITE-CLASS RESTAURANT

Luminae restaurant  (Celebrity Cruises)

Celebrity's Suite Class passengers will soon be saying, "How suite it is" to have a new restaurant tailored for them. Named “Luminae,” it will be introduced onboard Celebrity’s ships beginning in April. Here's more from the release:

"Guests dining at the brand's first suite restaurant will enjoy warm hospitality, impeccable Celebrity service, and eclectic, one-of-a-kind menus that are only available in Luminae.

"Celebrity's dedicated team of chefs has created the new elegant menus for the venue’s complimentary breakfast, lunch and dinner - each menu item will only be featured once during a two-week cruise vacation. With handcrafted dishes that are made from scratch, the unique menus will also feature locally sourced regional and seasonal ingredients inspired by the destinations Celebrity sails to among the world’s seven continents.

"With special touches like tableside preparation of signature dishes and the daily presentation of a new delectable gourmet chocolates and desserts cart, the menus are complete with pairings made by the restaurant’s dedicated head sommelier. The wine list, specially designed for Luminae guests, will feature more than 400 selections, each from the most notable wine-producing countries in the world.

"For full details about Luminae, visit celebritycruises.com/luminae."

LIVING LARGE IN THE ROYAL LOFT SUITE

If you cruised before and had an inside cabin, or even a balcony, you may be awe-struck seeing the Royal Loft Suite on Quantum of the Seas. Here's the description of what you get:

One bedroom, two bathrooms, sleeps up to 6. Two-deck-high stateroom with panoramic views. On main level, open living/dining room with dry bar and sofa that converts to double bed. Separate media room with sofa that converts to queen bed and full bath with shower. Large private balcony with whirlpool and dining area. Master bedroom on second level has two twin beds that convert to a Royal King, measuring 72.5 inches wide by 82 inches long, a private bath with a soaking tub, shower, two sinks and bidet, plus private balcony with dual whirlpool tub. Separate dressing area.

(1,640 sq. ft., main level balcony 415 sq. ft., main level side balcony 109 sq. ft.; upper level side balcony 89 sq. ft.) ...Also includes hair dryer, TV, radio, phone mini refrigerator and safe.

I love that last part. And what does all that luxury cost? A mere $1,600 a night, per person.

Take a video tour with the people who designed it:

RETIREMENT ON A CRUISE SHIP -- JUST $164K A YEAR

Cruise ship as a retirement home? That's just what this 86-year-old Florida widow is doing, according to this story in the Asbury Park Press:

"Mama Lee, as she's known aboard the 11-year-old Crystal Serenity, has been living on the 1,070-passenger vessel longer than most of its 655 crew members — nearly seven years."

And you could,too -- if you can afford the $164,000 yearly tab. Where's that lottery ticket I bought last week? -- Gerry

'EPIC' TO GET NEW TUNNEL THRUSTER. WHO KNEW?

File this one under Cruise Ship Things We Didn't Know:

According to the website, MarineLog: "Rolls-Royce says that Norwegian Cruise Line has selected a Rolls-Royce permanent magnet tunnel thruster to upgrade the propulsion package onboard the 4,100 passenger cruise ship Norwegian Epic, delivered in 2010 by shipbuilder STX France.

"According to Rolls-Royce, the permanent magnet tunnel thruster offers numerous advantages over traditional tunnel thrusters including significant reduction in noise and vibration, an increase in power output of around 25% from the same size propeller, and is removable underwater eliminating the need for dry docking."

Who needs the martini bar when you can grab a lounge chair and watch a permanant magnet tunnel thruster? -- Gerry

14 AMAZING HOTEL POOLS

The Perivolas Hotel in Oia, Greece (TripAdvisor)

Here's TripAdvisor's list of 14 Amazing Hotel Pools. Need we say more?

CARNIVAL INTROS APP; UPS INTERNET ACCESS

Carnival Cruise Line understands that even though its passengers may be hundreds of miles at sea, they still want to stay connected. We love our vacations but are loathe to give up our phones and the World Wide Web.

To those points, Carnival has launched a new free mobile app that provides vacationers aboard Carnival Breeze a variety of useful features, including the ability to “chat” with other guests throughout the voyage for a flat fee of $5 for the entire cruise.

At the same time, Carnival is enhancing Internet access aboard Carnival Freedom, Carnival Breeze and Carnival Sunshine that greatly increases bandwidth and speed and also includes "a first-ever social media package providing unlimited access to Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and other popular sites for a fee of just $5 per day or $25 per voyage during the testing period."

Here are more details from Carnival:

CROSBY, STILLS AND NASH TO PERFORM ON 'QM2'

Crosby, Stills and Nash (Cunard)

From Woodstock to the Queen Mary 2 ... in the words of another music legend, that's a long and winding road. Fans of the group won't have to battle the elements on Yasgur's Farm this time around (the site of Woodstock). The trio is set to perform a series of exclusive concerts on board Queen Mary 2 during her Sept. 4-11 Transatlantic Crossing from New York to Southampton.

More details from Cunard:

"Crosby, Stills and Nash (CS and N) burst onto the music scene in 1969 with their self-titled debut LP, now one of Rolling Stone’s “500 Greatest Albums of All Time.” The band members are among the few to have been inducted twice into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, once with Crosby Stills and Nash, and a second time with The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield and the Hollies. They have also been inducted into the Songwriter’s Hall of fame, with the honor recognizing both CS and N as a group and each member as individual solo artists.

Their debut album

"During the Queen Mary 2 crossing the trio will perform some of their greatest hits including “Teach Your Children,” “Southern Cross” and “Wooden Ships” in the Royal Court Theatre. They will also participate in a Q and A session and special autograph opportunity for passengers on board.

"This will be a unique experience for us,” said Graham Nash. “We're really looking forward to making music, bringing back memories and creating new ones—and this journey from New York to Southampton, on this beautiful vessel, will do just that.”

RACING BUMPER CARS AT SEA

Remember bumper cars? If you do, you may be in the baby boomer demo. Newer generations probably had the equivalent in a video game. Trust me -- the real deal is more fun. And you can experience them for yourself on Quantum of the Seas, where they race around accompanying by a sound and light show in the SeaPlex. Check it out in this week's video:

KATHIE LEE INTROS NEW WINES ON 'BREEZE'

Kathie Lee Gifford and Carnival have reunited. The “Today” show host and former spokesperson for the cruise line surprised guests on Carnival Breeze Sunday, embarking on a six-day cruise from Port Miami, to officially introduce GIFFT wines at an onboard tasting event. The wines are now available for sale fleetwide on Carnival's 24 ships.

From the press release:

"Gifford became closely associated with the Fun Ship brand in the 1980s when Carnival launched the first national television ad campaigns in the cruise industry, becoming the line’s first spokesperson and appearing in such memorable campaigns as: 'If You Could See Me Now' and 'Ain’t We Got Fun?'  

"Created in consultation with California-based Scheid Family Wines—one of the largest vineyard owners in Monterey County—the GIFFT Collection consists of a Red Blend and a Chardonnay, both estate-grown. In September 2014, Wine Enthusiast magazine gave the red 91 of a possible 100 points and the Chardonnay 88 points in its tasting rating."

HOT OR COLD? YOUR CHOICE ON 'ESCAPE'

Do I want to be cold or hot? On Norwegian Escape, debuting October 2015, you can be both.

The Snow Room (Norwegian)

The Thermal Suite (Norwegian)

Guests at the two-deck Mandara Spa can enjoy the largest Thermal Suite at sea, outfitted with the line’s first Snow Room. In addition, adults will have two private lounge spaces: Vibe Beach Club and Spice H2O, which will feature an all-new grotto area for guests to cool off after a day of sunbathing.

The spa featured unobstructed views of the ocean, 17 heated loungers, a hydro-therapy pool, whirlpools, steam room, dry sauna, sanarium and salt room. If you get too hot, head for the Snow Room, where temps range from 21 to 32 degrees Fahrenheit. It even sends out "a flurry of powdery snow throughout the day."

Sounds like the perfect place to enjoy a vodka cocktail. -- Gerry

'QUANTUM'S' CREW HAS A WORD FOR THE SHIP: 'WOW'

Okay, we've heard all the the "oohs" and "ahhs" from the passengers, travel agents and cruise writers since Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas made her debut. But what do the crew members think? In a word, WOW. That's the subject of this week's video -- and it helps if you are multi-lingual. Take a look:

'CARNIVAL MIRACLE' GETTING MAKEOVER

Carnival Miracle (Credit: Carnival)

Happy New Year and welcome to 2015! 

From everything we read and see, this may be the biggest year for the cruise industry so far, as more new ships hit the waves, and cruise passengers have more options than ever before.

Speaking of new, Carnival Miracle is slated for an extensive refurbishment this spring that will add an array of new features, part of Carnival's ongoing Fun Ship 2.0 product enhancement initiative. Set to be added during a two-week-long dry dock March 7-21:

• RedFrog Pub – a Caribbean-inspired watering hole featuring the region’s best rums and beers – including Carnival’s own ThirstyFrog Red – enjoyed in a distinct British-West-Indies-meets-Key-West atmosphere