Carnival Corporation announced that is has reached a “voluntary” agreement with Florida’s Attorney General to refund retroactively applied fuel supplements for all six of its cruise lines –Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, Princess, Costa, Cunard, and Seabourn.
The refund applies to bookings that were made prior to November 7, 2007 when the fuel supplement was announced. The supplement remains in effect for bookings made on or after November 7, 2007.

The company says the amount of funds to be returned is around $40 million. For cruises departing on or prior to April 4 passengers due a refund will receive it in the same form they used to purchase their cruise. For sailings departing from April 5 through June 23, passengers will receive an on-board credit. Customers sailing on or after June 24 will have their booking adjusted to remove the supplement.

The Florida Attorney General said more than 1.1 million bookings were affected. A similar settlement was reached last month with Royal Caribbean Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, and Azamara, resulting in $21 million in consumer refunds.

Crazy about Elvis? Looking for a Star Trek fix? Want to shimmy bare-naked under the stars? Believe it or not, you can indulge these passions – and a host of others – on a cruise vacation. In honor of April Fools’ Day, I give you four of the craziest theme cruises to hit the high seas.

The King of cruises

Imagine you’re lying back in a deck chair enjoying the ocean breeze when all of a sudden a man in a white jumpsuit and rhinestone cape starts singing Elvis Presley’s “Viva Las Vegas.” He’s then joined by more costumed Elvi swinging their hips as music blasts from the speakers. Welcome aboard the Elvis Cruise.

This August, Carnival Fantasy will host the second annual Elvis Cruise, a four-day voyage to New Orleans and Cozumel, Mexico. The program includes nightly Vegas-style shows celebrating the different phases of Elvis’ career. Elvis trivia contests, Elvis movies, Elvis-themed bingo and an Elvis tribute competition, the winner of which will receive a cash prize. It’s an all-around Elvis love fest.

For more information: Elvis Cruise

Hogs on the High Seas rally

On April 13, Royal Caribbean’s Vision of the Seas will be full of hogs – biker hogs, that is. Billed as good people and great times for a good cause, the Hogs on the High Seas biker rally will host some 2,000 motorcycle dudes and mamas from all over the U.S. How wild do things get? Well, the group will participate in such onboard competitions as the “belly wacker contest,” the “sexy senorita contest,” and the “topless hombre contest,” to name a few.

This is no stuffy, dress-up cruise; attire is strictly biker-style and that means jeans and leather – only! Even the waiters and waitresses get in on the act, donning their own biker apparel. These fun-loving hogs have heart, too; in fact they will donate a percentage of all money raised on board to the Hogs on the High Seas Kidney Dialysis Fund. The fund provides no-cost cabins, airfare, dialysis treatments and spending money for motorcycle enthusiasts requiring this life-altering therapy. Last year’s rally raised more than $110,000.

For more information: Hogs on the High Seas

Beam me up, Cruise Trek!

This sailing sci-fi adventure has taken Trekkies around the globe since 1991. This year, Cruise Trek is boldly going where no Trek convention has gone before: on a river cruise on the Danube.

Don’t be fooled. There’s a lot more to this cruise vacation than walking around with phaser guns. The cruise brings aboard actors from the “Star Trek” series to talk about the show, give presentations, sign autographs and mingle with guests. Entertainment is Trek-style and includes parodies of popular game shows (think “Match Trek” and “Wheel of Trek”). The program also includes contests and rituals known only to Star Trek fans. Yes, people do dress up in Trekkie costumes and Spock ears to role-play, but that’s what makes this cruise so out of this world.

For more information: Cruise Trek

Dare to bare

When Star Clipper’s Star Flyer sets sail around Tahiti in May, the first thing all 170 passengers will do is take off their clothes. Touting beautiful scenery and friendly folks who enjoy the warmth of the sun “au naturel,” this cruise is not for prudes.

Since 1991, Bare Necessities Tour & Travel has produced more than 40 clothing-optional cruises. The company says passengers can choose to be nude almost anywhere – in the pool, at the roulette table or while dancing to music. The two exceptions? In the formal dining room and while the ship is in port.

Bare Necessities has two other cruises planned for the 2008 season: one in the Mediterranean, the other around the Greek Isles. In 2009, the company has a “Homecoming Cruise” planned on the 2,100-passenger Carnival Legend. This is one cruise where you could care less if the airline loses your luggage.

For more information: Bare Necessities

Theme cruises are growing in popularity as they provide an entertaining and enriching venue for guests sharing the same interests. Best of all, the shared exuberance fosters an easy spirit of camaraderie, making for a great vacation and sometimes lifelong friendships.

Starting this year, ships sailing Alaska waters will be required to obtain permits to discharge their waste in the state’s waters. State regulators say the stricter standards are required by the cruise ship ballot initiative passed in 2006.

Among its many provisions, the initiative required that the state develop a wastewater permit for cruise ships.The permit has more stringent standards for certain pollutants, including copper and ammonia, than is required for Alaska’s drinking water, or for industries and cities that discharge treated sewage into the state’s waters.

Problem is cruise lines say they can’t comply because the necessary treatment technology isn’t yet available for cruise ships. If the standards aren’t changed many ships are likely to detour outside of Alaska waters to discharge their treated wastewater, and that could shorten the amount of time they spend in Alaska ports say cruise lines.

Read the entire story in the Anchorage Daily News.

An interesting story appeared in the Orlando Sentinel yesterday where Carnival Corporation says its fuel surcharges had been approved by the state of Florida in October 2006, according to records reviewed by the paper.

The newspaper reported that records showed that representatives for Carnival Corporation approached Charlie Crist, then the state’s attorney general, looking for approval to charge a fee to help offset surging fuel costs. Crist is now Florida’s governor.

Florida’s current attorney general, Bill McCollum, is investigating whether the fuel surcharges imposed on cruisers by Carnival and other cruise companies violate antitrust laws.

The Orlando Sentinel said that Carnival’s lawyer corresponded with investigators at McCollum’s office that under Crist, the attorney general’s office “expressly approved” the fee 18 months ago, and that Carnival was told “that the approval came from the highest level” of the office.

In the story Carnival said they hope to eliminate the charge once fuel has spent 30 days trading below $70 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Light, sweet crude oil closed at $107.01 a barrel Thursday. Last month, Royal Caribbean announced it reached a settlement with the Florida attorney general and agreed to refund $21 million in surcharges to customers charged even after they booked. Carnival says it would forfeit $40 million if they have to refund the surcharge to all previously booked passengers.