All Aboard Elvis Tribute Cruises
Presley Fans --Choose Ships, Cruise Lengths, Departures, Ports
Mar 1, 2007
Cruise lines already know that rock 'n' roll senior travelers -- including older baby boomers -- are a huge market. Now several theme cruise companies are staging Elvis tribute cruises this summer, fall and winter. They are sure to appeal to those who grew up with the King of rock 'n' roll.
The original company to run an Elvis cruise was Jazz Cruises LLC. but it appears that after cruises in 2007 and 2008, it will not host a 2009 full-ship Elvis cruise. However, other companies are taking over the slack.
The official Elvis Web site says that in 2009 the only official Elvis Presley Enterprise-licensed cruise, designed to make the music and the Elvis experience as authentic and as rich as possible, will take place Nov. 12 through Nov. 16 . As before, the host will be Jerry Schilling, a pal of Elvis's from Memphis days and a former exec with the licensing company. No word about which ship or cruise line will host the event, or what port it will depart from.
Mahwey is another company that runs Elvis "Love Me Tender" and other cruises aboard Royal Caribbean cruise ships departing from Los Angeles and Baltimore, among other ports, to Mexican ports and Caribbean islands.
The "Love Me Tender" cruise from Baltimore is scheduled for 9 nights in the Eastern Caribbean, from July 30 to August 8, 2009. Elvis tribute artists participating are Sterling Riggs, who is currently performing his "high-energy show" at the Outerbanks Music Showcase Theater in Kitty Hawk, NC; and Will Debley, a King World Championships finalist.
The schedule of events has not been posted yet but the January 2009 version by the same company featured audience participation, movies and trivia contests, along with calls on ports in Belize, Costa Maya, Mexico and Cozumel.
On the original Elvis tribute cruise in 2007, onboard entertainment included performances by top Elvis tribute musicians. Passengers were able to see Elvis movies, compete in an Elvis Tribute Contest witha $10,000 prize and attend a costume party. Each of the days and nights was scheduled to be dedicated to one of the phases of Elvis’ life and career:
- Elvis in Las Vegas
- Elvis in Hawaii
- Elvis in the Movies
- Elvis Gospel
The November 2009 officially sanctioned Elvis cruise is being produced by Sixthman, which is an affinity travel company based in Atlanta, GA. The official Elvis Presley Enterprises Web site says that a special Web page will soon be posted about this cruise.
More information on the Baltimore and Los Angeles cruises is available here from Mahwey.
