NASB 2011 Annual Meeting

Bahamas Cruise for Shortwave Listeners and Broadcasters

NASB's  2011 Annual Meeting to be held on the High Seas

 

At its recent 2010 annual meeting in Hamilton, Ontario, the U.S. National Association of Shortwave Broadcasters (NASB) decided that next year's meeting will take place on the Royal Caribbean Majesty of the Seas cruise ship from May 13-16, 2011.  The ship sails round-trip from Miami to the Bahamas.

 The NASB had been considering an offer by member station Radio Miami International to host the 2011 annual meeting in Miami.  But initial planning revealed that it would be less expensive and easier to organize the meeting on one of the many ships that sail from Miami, which is known as the "cruise capital of the world."

 "Many of the cruise ships, like the Majesty of the Seas, are equipped with full-fledged conference centers nowadays," said Radio Miami's Jeff White, who is currently president of the NASB.  "They offered to provide us with meeting rooms, audiovisual equipment, etc. which are at least as attractive as what hotels on land offer, and those facilities are free of charge to us.  Plus we'll have the added benefit of offering conference delegates a very interesting itinerary which includes stops at Royal Caribbean's private island CocoCay and at Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas."

 "Hotel rooms on land in Miami typically cost between $150 and $200 per night just for lodging," added White.  "On the ship, it will cost $100 per night per person, in double occupancy, and that will include lodging, three meals per day at a choice of restaurants, a wide variety of entertainment and transportation."  The cost for an inside cabin with private bath on the three-night cruise is $299.00 plus $66.41 in taxes, based on double occupancy.  "Since rates are based on double occupancy," said White, "we thought this would be a perfect opportunity for meeting delegates to bring along their spouses and family members, who will have plenty of activities to keep them busy both on the ship and on the islands while the delegates are in meetings."

For many years, the NASB has invited shortwave listeners and anyone else with an interest in shortwave radio to take part in its annual meetings, and at least a few listeners participate each year.  "But in 2011," said Jeff White, "we hope a lot more shortwave listeners will join us on the cruise because of the exotic venue and the reasonable price.  And both the ship and the Bahamian islands are exotic places to do some interesting shortwave listening and DXing.  We're also expecting to have presentations by shortwave broadcasters from the U.S. and other countries on a variety of topics that will be of interest to broadcasters and listeners alike."  

 Royal Caribbean 's Majesty of the Seas was built in 1992 and was refurbished in 2007.  The ship holds over 2700 passengers and around 1000 crew members who come from all over the world.  "It's like a miniature United Nations onboard," commented White.  The conference center has three main meeting rooms with state-of-the-art audiovisual equipment and a business center with computers and Internet connections.  There is even cell phone service onboard for those who have activated international roaming on their phones. 

 The Majesty of the Seas has two main a la carte restaurants, as well as a large buffet restaurant, a pizzeria, a deli restaurant and 24-hour room service, all of which are included in the basic cruise fare.  There is a fast-food restaurant, a coffee shop and an ice cream parlor which are available for a small extra charge.  A large theater is the scene of a Las Vegas-style stage production each night with musicians, magicians and comedians.  Other facilities include programs for various age groups of children and teenagers, discotheque, game room, Internet cafe, casino, spa, gym, rock climbing wall, several lounges with musical entertainment, a small shopping area, swimming pools, Jacuzzis, sports deck and more.  The ship's cabins all have private bathrooms, flat-screen TV's and other standard facilities.  Passengers can explore the ports of call on their own, or they can take a variety of optional excursions ranging from snorkeling trips and glass-bottom boats to sightseeing tours and swimming with dolphins. 

 The NASB cruise rate of $299.00 is guaranteed for those who register before October 27, 2010 with a deposit of $100.00 per person ($200.00 per cabin).  The balance of the cruise fare does not have to be paid until March 4, 2011.  A brochure about the cruise and a registration form are available on the NASB website, www.shortwave.org.  Click on "Annual Meeting."  For an e-brochure with photos of the ship, send an e-mail to info@wrmi.net with "NASB 2011" in the subject line.