Here’s a quick look at what’s new this week in cruising, and how it could impact your next trip…
- Good news: This month, cruise ship entertainment took a big turn -- for the better. First of all, we had our socks knocked off by the newest Disney Cruise Line production, the Rapunzel-themed "Tangled: The Musical," which you can see exclusively on the 1,754-passenger Disney Magic sailing out of Miami. With a large cast of singers and dancers, exciting sets, and colorful costumes (including 93 feet of hair), three new songs by Academy Award-winning composer Alan Menken, and much high-tech wizardry -- including a scene where Rapunzel and Flynn "swim" in the air -- the live, one-hour show does the animated film proud.
- We were also blown away by the look back at the 1980s John Hughes "Brat Pack" movies -- performed by Los Angeles' For The Record group in the intimate Supper Club on Norwegian Cruise Line's 4,200-passenger Norwegian Escape, also out of Miami. Singers and musicians re-create scenes and soundtracks from the movies and left us tipsy with nostalgia (well worth the $29.95 admission price). All together now, "Bueller. Bueller."
- You'll have to wait a bit for what promises to be one of the most exciting cruise shows ever -- Cirque du Soleil has signed a deal with MSC Cruises to perform dinner theater productions in custom-built theaters on the line's Meraviglia ships, the first of which, the 4,500-passenger MSC Meraviglia, debuts in Europe in spring 2017.
- Heavy Seas Beer is the latest craft brewery to pop up at sea: the local Baltimore brand's pirate-themed Loose Cannon and Crossbones beers are now available on year-round sailings of Carnival Cruise Line's 2,124-passenger Carnival Pride out of "Charm City."