African-American themed cruises have been around since at least 1992. That's when a small San Francisco-based travel agency called Blue World Travel announced its first "Festival at Sea" cruise, and the party hasn't stopped. Entering 2010, Festival at Sea has cruised every year since that inaugural event, growing from just a few hundred people on the first cruise to a full-ship takeover several years later. The entertainment has included R & B legends such as the Isley Brothers, the Ojays, the Gap Band and the Ohio Players, along with superstar black comedians Sinbad, D.L. Hughley, Mark Curry and Bruce Bruce.
festivalatsea.com
Festival at Sea is one of the few African-American themed cruises offering a full-ship takeover, and it's also one of the few aggressively targeting the entire family. Certain black-themed cruises, such as "Blacks Over 40 at Sea," are for adults only. On its website, Blacks Over 40 at Sea claims to be the first cruise for African-America men and women over the age of 40. The cruise began in the year 2000.
blacksover40.org/cruise.html
A group called the National Professionals Network organizes annual cruises that are a bit different than other African-American themed cruises. The group reserves only a few hundred cabins on the ship, and for the most part relies on the ship's usual offerings for entertainment. So what's the attraction? Networking. The cruise usually attracts a who's who of the black academic and business worlds, who gather for elegant cocktail parties and a slew of classes and workshops on black empowerment. According to the NPN website, luminaries who have cruised with NPN include Bishop T.D. Jakes, former NAACP president Kweisi Mfume, former New Orleans mayor Marc Morial, noted attorney Willie Gary, former ABC News correspondent Carol Simpson and former heavyweight boxing champion Evander Holyfield.
npncruise.com
African-American themed cruises can be great fun, but expect to pay more---sometimes much more---than you would for a regular cruise. The extra entertainment, parties and shows come at a price, as the cruise organizers pay the cruise line market rates for the chartered ship and then add on the special events. The cost is passed along to the cruisers, resulting in cabin prices that can easily be double the usual price. Despite that, fans of the cruises keep coming back for more.
