Mac users have spoken (in large numbers) and the itinerary for the MacMania ocean-going cruise/conference has been set. And four speakers have been confirmed, including Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak.
Alaska will be the destination. May 27 will be the departure (from Vancouver for Alaska’s Inside Passage). For a long time, the Inside Passage has been the traditional route to Alaska. Native Alaskans, explorers and gold rush prospectors all traveled its waters, marveling at the spectacular scenery.
MacMania will be a seven-day ocean cruise that combines pleasure with 20 hours of conference courses. One conference track will involve Mac OS X and be targeted to developers. There’ll be five tracks for end users involving such topics as Office X from Microsoft’s Macintosh Business Unit. The folks at Geek Cruises, a company that schedules “cruise conferences” that combine work and play, are organizing the cruise.
Besides “Woz,” other speakers will include: Andy Gore, former editor-in-chief of “Macworld” magazine; David Pogue, well known Mac author and columnist; and John de Lancie, actor/director/writer. MacManiacs will be sailing on Holland America’s Volendam, one of the newest members of Holland America’s “next generation” of cruise ships. The Volendam combines classic and state-of-the-art features found on board both the ms Rotterdam flagship and the Statendam-class vessels, according to Neil Bauman captain and CEO of Geek Cruises.
Special features include an alternative restaurant, Internet center, a third staircase for convenient access to public rooms and a children’s play room, as well as mini-suites with verandahs. The Volendam’s predominant theme is flowers — from the 17th to the 21st centuries — featured in the ship’s artwork and interior design elements. You can learn more about the ship at the Holland Online Web site and Geek Cruises Web site.
Room for MacMania is limited to approximately 400. If you’re interested in signing up, e-mail Neil Bauman.
Cruising prices (if booked six months in advance) are: inside cabins: US$1,050-$1,100 (depending on category) and outside cabins: $1,350-$1,550 (ditto). Prices will go up on Nov. 27. The conference price is $600 for the End Users Track and $1,250 for the OS X Developers Track. Port taxes would be additional and are $184 per person.
Geek Cruises is being sponsored by Mac Publishing, publishers of Macworld magazine and Macworld.com, MacCentral, Macworld PriceFinder and Macworld Classifieds.