TRAVEL LOG

Global cruise canceled

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12:00 AM PST, January 30, 2005

P&O Cruises' 1,870-passenger Aurora ship aborted its around-the-world cruise Jan. 19, nine days after setting out from Southampton, England, because of a mechanical breakdown.

The cancellation of the 103-day journey cost P&O's parent company, Miami-based Carnival Corp., about $40 million, its biggest-ever loss from an aborted cruise, said Carnival spokesman Tim Gallagher.

Passengers, most of them British, had paid more than $18,000 to nearly $75,000 in cruise fares. P&O offered them refunds and a 25% credit on a future cruise.

Gallagher said the problem was with one of the Aurora's electrical propulsion motors.

"They worked on that around the clock and just could not repair it satisfactorily," he said.

Trains still delayed by track damage

Passenger train service in California continued to be disrupted last week after storms earlier this month damaged and blocked tracks.

Commuter operations between Los Angeles and Oxnard resumed last week on a slightly altered schedule.

Amtrak service between Los Angeles and Santa Barbara is expected to resume by Feb. 8.

But full restoration of service between Los Angeles and Oakland isn't expected until Feb. 28, according to Union Pacific Railroad, which operates the tracks.

Passenger lines using the affected tracks include Metrolink's Ventura County commuter line and Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner and Coast Starlight trains; the latter runs from Los Angeles to Seattle.

For service updates, visit http://www.amtrak.com and http://www.metrolinktrains.com .

Bookings begin for Wynn resort

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