What’s on my mind? Himself and I need a vacation. Maybe a cruise? Or not.
I’ve been studying the ads for one particular cruise ship that holds 3,000 passengers. Yikes! Those ads describe: “Your home away from home ...”
The ads call the ship the “jewel of the sea” in which dining is a “joyful celebration” and the spas promote “joyful rejuvenation.” My, oh, my!
And wellness! The ads for this particular ship promise to “nurture wellness on every level.” Under the heading WELLNESS, they say: “Chart a course for body and mind renewal on a relaxing cruise with (name of liner).” And under the heading: ONBOARD EXPERIENCE ... “Wellness.” I get the point. Yowza!
Another ad for this particular cruise ship refers to amenities that include “priority embarkation and disembarkation ...”
What’s the name of this amazing ship? The Diamond Princess. Yes, that Diamond Princess, otherwise known as the world’s largest floating petri dish. Yet more ad copy describes the ship as “A treasure trove of exceptional delights waiting to be discovered.” Tell that to the 542 people who developed Novel Coronavirus onboard this ship, two of whom died.
As if everything were business-as-usual, the Princess Cruise line describes Diamond’s upcoming itinerary as:
2020, Mar. 07: 8 days, roundtrip, Japan & Taiwan (from Tokyo)
2020, Mar. 09: 6 days, one-way from Kobe to Yokohama
Et cetera, et cetera, et cetera Tacky.
The Diamond Princess didn’t cause the Novel Coronavirus. But nor has Princess Cruises’ management been smart or swift in their effort to contain the outbreak and ensure passengers are removed to a safer environment than a cruise ship.
A Diamond Princess ad suggests passengers “Share stories of your Princess adventures ... via Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest.” You can be sure they will.
Look ... It’s easy to criticize. I know squat about running a cruise ship. I’m sorry the passengers, crew, managers, and owners of the Diamond Princess have suffered through this nightmare, but ...
Note to cruise line: Common sense says there’s a time to advertise and a time to keep quiet. This is a time to keep quiet. The Diamond Princess should yank its ads immediately, decommission the ship for as long as it takes, rename it if necessary, and pray anyone considering a Princess cruise forgives and forgets this débacle sooner than later.
© Nicole Parton, 2020
