FROSCH in the news: Cruises to Hawaii on the Rise?

Photo by Flickr user paul (dex)

FROSCH travel consultant Marya Minter (from our headquarters in Houston, TX) was interviewed in yesterday's edition of Travel Agent Central for her expertise on travel to Hawaii. She addressed the rising popularity of Hawaiian cruises:

Marya Minter with Frosch Travel told Travel Agent that she personally has not noticed an increase in cruise travel to Hawaii. "There are a lot more options available, and because of the maritime law—the Jones Act—inter-island cruising is limited unless the ship is registered in U.S., meaning hull was built here. Foreign ships cannot skirt around the islands." The MS Pride of America, currently owned by Norwegian, was partly built in the United States (its hull was built in Pascagoula, Mississippi), so it is now the only American registered major cruise ship serving the Hawaiian market from Honolulu. "Cruise lines with foreign flags have to go to foreign ports," Minter explains.

On the other hand, Minter does say that she has seen an increase in repositioning cruises, especially for ships returning from Alaska after the summer. "To reposition to Southern California for Mexico cruises, some will go from Vancouver to Hawaii and then to Mexico before settling in Southern California."