MORRISTOWN, N.J., Jan. 23 -- Each year CruiseReports
Contributing Editors Shirley Slater and Harry Basch compile their personal
list of the best, worst and, occasionally, silliest of the past twelve months'
events in the cruise world for their "Champagne and Keelhauls" awards. The
high points earn a champagne toast from the award-winning travel writers, and
the low receive sentences for a keelhauling, and old-fashioned nautical
punishment.

This year's list, published in the January issue of the newsletter, singles
out Premier Cruise Lines and Donaldson Lufkin and Jenrette for a rare double
keelhaul for the abrupt shutdown of the line last September. On the other side
of the ledger, Slater and Basch awarded a case of champagne salutes to the
U.S. Coast Guard sailors who saved the captain and 33 crew aboard the
SeaBreeze I, a former Premier ship, when the vessel sank off the Virginia
coast.

Champagne glasses were also raised to the fledgling United States Lines and
its newly American-flagged ship, Patriot, and to Society Expeditions on its
new expedition ship to be named the "New" World Discoverer when it sails its
inaugural cruise in May. Also singled out for a salute was the government of
Panama for its reintroduction of quality shore programs for cruise passengers
visiting the country.

Canadian entrepreneur Sam Blyth was sentenced to keelhauling for his
mishandling of aborted world cruise and Cuba cruise ventures, and Slater and
Basch also sent Turkish authorities in Kusadasi overboard for their treatment
of gay travelers on a shore excursion to Ephesus last year. On the lighter
side, Princess Cruises got a good-natured "gentle keelhaul and a free world
atlas" for misspelling "Philippines" and locating Kuala Lumpur, the capital of
Malaysia, in Indonesia in one of its brochures.

CruiseReports has set a new industry standard with its uniquely objective
cruise ship ratings based on the judgments of paying cruise passengers who
rate ships on which they have recently sailed. The newsletter publishes the
averaged numerical ratings received along with quotes from the reviewers'
comments.

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/NOTE TO EDITORS: For a copy of the entire "Champagne and Keelhauls" list,
contact Michael Brown at CruiseReports, 973-605-2442, or e-mail to
cruises@gti.net/
05:20 EST