Two cops, standing on a corner, represent all New Yorkers. My son and I are lost trying to find our hotel. Mention the name and the cops gruffly advise they鈥檝e never heard of it. Turn away and 鈥� 鈥淗ey wait!鈥� They quickly make a call on their cell and all of a sudden we鈥檙e on our way, heading in the right direction. That鈥檚 New York 鈥� gruff but friendly. I know that鈥檚 a contradiction, but that鈥檚 the way it is.
New York is my favourite home port. The cruise is always great but the three or four days I spend there before getting on the ship is perfect.
Cruise lines are recognizing its big growth potential and are starting to home-port their latest, greatest ships in the Big Apple. Norwegian started the ball rolling with a new class of ship 鈥� Breakaway and Royal Caribbean will call New York home for its ground-breaking Quantum of the Seas, scheduled for launch late next year.
Breakaway鈥檚 Peter Max-designed hull is a familiar sight on New York鈥檚 waterfront, after a summer sailing to Bermuda and now wintering south from New York to the Bahamas and Caribbean. Kevin Sheehan, Norwegian鈥檚 president and CEO, is a born-and-bred New Yorker and he spiced up the title 鈥淕odmother鈥� by naming the Radio City Rockettes as godmothers en masse. Sabrett New York hot dogs are served from carts aboard the ship, and TV star and master baker Buddy Valastro, star of Cake Boss, has an Italian bakery on the 4,000-passenger ship. Norwegian recently became the official cruise line of the New York Knicks.
Quantum of the Seas, the latest and greatest from Royal Caribbean, will be a New York-area ship when she arrives in the fall of 2014.
Royal Princess, the newest and biggest ship from Princess, will leave New York for trips to sa国际传媒, with several departures next September and October. Carnival, Celebrity and Royal Caribbean are currently home-porting in New York (or across the Hudson River in Bayonne, N.J..
Carnival鈥檚 Splendor has staked out the Bahamas this winter with eight-day cruises from New York that include stopping at Port Canaveral, allowing passengers the opportunity to spend a day at Disney World.
Royal Caribbean鈥檚 Explorer of the Seas will cruise all this winter from Cape Liberty to the Bahamas and the Caribbean, the trips ranging from seven to 10 days.
Cunard鈥檚 iconic Queen Mary 2 continues her alternating journeys between Southampton and New York for a portion of the year. Expect others like the Celebrity Summit to arrive in the spring.
When it comes to the number of ships serving New York, it鈥檚 a pittance compared with Port Canaveral, Fort Lauderdale and Miami. However, New York is slowly becoming the port where you want to show off your biggest, newest, shiniest and best.
For airport, ground transportation and other New York information you need to know, go to my portsandbows.com blog.
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Phil鈥檚 Pick of the Week
A 12-day cruise out of New York on Norwegian's Breakaway, leaving January 5th, 2014, with stops in San Juan, St. Thomas, St. Maarten, St. Lucia, Barbados, St. Kitts before returning to New York.
Starting price: $1,179. See a cruise travel agent or go to ncl.com.
