Just received the latest Cruise Travel. Great article on "The Independents" - the cruise lines that developed cruising as an industry. Lots of old ship photos and background.

One image is the pricing for "Sunshine Cruises" out of Miami in 1959. Advertised "all-expense" prices started at $130 for a 7-day cruise. Remember, that is the cheapest cabin but it appears to be all-inclusive. I don't know if they meant open bars and tips included. So it sounds cheap, right? Well that $130 in 1959 is worth $966 in today's money. So it cost a couple $1,932 to take a cruise in what was no doubt a cramped inside cabin on a ship of 5,000 GRT. It shows how cruising is cheaper now.

On a more tragic note, Cruise Travel forgot to mention that this ship - sailing as the SS Yarmouth Castle - burned and sank in 1965 with the loss of 90 lives. You can read about the disaster HERE

How about that crew?

Thus, the reason for so long everyone thought cruising was "Too expensive". It still is one of the myth's of cruising today with people who have never cruised.