Martina McBride Stars in CarnivalLive Onboard Carnival Ecstasy

By John Roberts

Carnival Cruise Line had me on Carnival Ecstasy last week to witness first-hand the new CarnivalLive program. The headliner on our sailing: Martina McBride.

This was the ninth concert in the series this year, and the country music star's show in port in Cozumel marked the sixth sellout. The crowd was filled with dozens of McBride fans drawn to the four-day sailing, which included a stop to Key West, too, because she was performing. The seats in the ship's main Blue Sapphire showroom were also occupied by a lot of opportunists who said they had heard of McBride and were familiar with a couple of her songs and thought it would be a cool event to take in for just $20. Either way, this show in particular and the CarnivalLive concert series in general seems to be a real hit.

The audience was loud and energetic at the McBride show, and she was gracious in interacting with the crowd in the somewhat cozy confines amid about 900 attendees. She even came back for an encore to the whoops of the crowd that gave her a standing ovation.

The concert series lined up 15 acts for its inaugural season. Each was scheduled to play at least two shows. Others you can catch onboard: Trace Adkins, Olivia Newton-John, Styx, Leann Rimes, Kansas, Jennifer Hudson, Lady Antebellum and Chicago.

Norwegian Cruise Line is featuring its annual DASH perk on cruises booked this week by Friday. Passengers who book cruises three days or longer on any ship in the fleet can get onboard credits up to $500. For example, you can get $500 credit, depending on stateroom and length of sailing, when booking a cruise on Norwegian Getaway (Miami based), Norwegian Breakaway (New York) or Pride of America (Honolulu). Booking on any other ship in the fleet gets you up to $250 to spend onboard.

Also, NCL announced that Norwegian Jewel has been put back in service after its two-week drydock. The ship got a bundle of enhancements. Jewel is the first to be retrofitted with O'Sheehan's Neighborhood Bar and Grill. The ship also received a Sugarcane Mojito Bar, as well as updates such as carpeting and windows throughout. Carlo’s Bake Shop goodies also are now available at Java Cafe. Jewel will finish its Alaska summer season before heading to the port of Houston in October. 

MSC Cruises joins the list of lines that have committed to showing World Cup soccer matches onboard their ships next month. MSC says that it will show all 64 games of the tournament, which comes only every four years and begins June 12 in Brazil, on its fleet of 12 ships. Also, MSC Divina, which sails from Miami, is scheduled to leave May 24 on an 18-day cruise that ends in Rio de Janeiro in time for the start of the World Cup action. What a way to arrive in style!

Cunard Line announced that Star Trek legend actor George Takei will join Queen Mary 2 for a transatlantic cruise as part of the line’s Insights speaker program. Takei, who has enjoyed a five-decade career and most notably portrayed Hikaru Sulu on Star Trek, will sail on QM2 from New York to Southhampton. During the eight-day voyage, which embarks July 28, he will take part in two presentations and Q&A sessions. 

Celebrity Cruises is offering a huge incentive to book a sailing from Cape Liberty on Bayonne, New Jersey, to Bermuda by the end of May. If you book a seven-night cruise on Celebrity Summit by May 31 for sailings between June 15 and August 24, you can save up to $500 off your fare and get up to $500 in onboard credit per stateroom.

Royal Caribbean announced a partnership to host the Coca-Cola Party at Sea during the World Cup. The cruise line will host parties onboard its ships complete with broadcasts of the games at the official watch party hosted by Coca-Cola. Expect giveaways, souvenirs, games, soccer-themed activities -- and even samba dancers.

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