Happy Holidays everyone!!!!!

LOOKING FOR THAT LAST MINUTE GIFT FOR THE PERSON WHO HAS EVERYTHING?

Why not take them on the World Championship Bingo Cruise!  

Have you heard?

Special Event Cruises 24th Annual World Championship Bingo Tournament and Gaming Cruise?  Check out the link: bingocruising.com.

Sounds like it's going to be a fantastic time!

2011 Bingo Cruise a HUGE success!

The 23rd Annual World Championship Bingo Cruise aboard the Sapphire Princess ended yesterday with many smiles and happy memories. With the exception of a little bit of rain, everything was perfect. Check out the Cruise Photo Gallery and meet the winners!. And when the representatives from Special Event Cruises announced that next years World Championship Bingo Tournament & Gaming Cruise ^sm will be a Caribbean sailing held next November aboard Norwegian Cruise Lines EPIC, you can bet that a whole bunch of "repeaters" signed-up as soon as they heard the news! For the complete details click here.

More on the Bingo

Well, lets talk about the important stuff. All the bingo will be played in the main show lounge aboard the Sapphire Princess. There will be 4 or 5 sessions played during the week for a total of 100 games. $80,000 plus a free cruise is up for grabs!
They play on paper (no machines) and everyone gets 9 cards per game..no more, no less. They only play during the days..and when the ship is NOT IN PORT. They supply the daubers. Good callers..using all the standard variations: 4 corners, letters of the alphabet, top hat, cover-all, etc.,etc.,etc.
And I was also glad to see that they add extra bingo sessions for buy-in, apart from the actual tournament. So there is alot of bingo being played. Its a very well run organization..these people have been doing it for 25 years.

Alaska Shore Excursions..this just in!

Well, you know that Princess will have a nice assortment of shore excursions...but did you know that you can get the same excursions for less money if you arrange them ahead of time through an outfit called Port Promotions. Click here for all the scoop!

Are you Driving to Seattle for the Cruise?

Parking is available at Pier 91 (provided by Republic Parking Northwest) for $20 per day or $140 per week for regular sized vehicles. For RVs up to 18', the cost is $196 per week and for RVs 18' and larger (including 5th wheels) is $245 per week. If passenger has an RV towing a car on a trailer, they must pay both the RV and the regular sized car pricing. There are 1000+ parking spaces (including handicapped parking) and oversized vehicles and RVs are welcome. Parking is on a first come, first served basis and Republic Parking Northwest does not take reservations, however, passengers can go to www.rpnw.com/cruise and pre-pay (online only) for a quicker exit post cruise.

Helpful Information for Bingo Cruisers!

Just learned that Special Event Cruises has lined up some very attractive rates at the Holiday Inn Seattle Airport hotel for those of us wishing to arrive in Seattle a day or two early. I like it because its adjacent to the Seattle "Light Rail" system that can get you into town without any fuss. Info here.

Its a "Jewel": Sapphire Princess named "Top Ship"

I subscribe to a bunch of Travel Mags, and not to my surprise was delighted to see in this month's issue of CONDE NAST TRAVELER that the SAPPHIRE PRINCESS was named #7 in the list of all "Mega Ships" (ships with over 2500 passengers). And, of course, the Sapphire Princess is the star of this year's World Championship Bingo Cruise.

Its Official!

Just learned from the Tournament Director that the current number of registered Bingo players meets the minimum to once again guarantee the advertised tournament prize fund of $80,000 making your odds of winning pretty good. They will be playing 100 games and limiting the number of players, so the percentage of winners will most likely cap the 38% total reached on last year's Bingo Cruise.

This just in!

Heard today from reliable sources that a change has been made in determining who wins the free cruise during the onboard Bingo Tournament. In years past, the player holding the most winnings automatically received the free cruise. However due to past player recommendations, the Tournament Committee has decided to introduce a special game to determine who gets the free cruise. Super! Just another chance to WIN WIN WIN!