Dear Sir,
We received a gift certificate from our family in July of 2004 to enjoy a cruise on the Scotia Prince. We were looking forward to our getaway sometime during the summer season of 2005.   When we found out the 2005 season was cancelled, we immediately contacted Scotia Prince to find out our options.  They were very quick to suggest returning the certificate for a full refund.  We did so in October of 2005.  The certificate was received and signed for and we haven't heard a thing since.  Please let us know who we can contact to remedy this situation.  Thank you.

Gary.White54@verizon.net

I would suggets you recontact them  Email is info@friendsofscotiaprince.com
Webaddress:http://www.friendsofscotiaprince.com/

Dear Staff,
     I have organized several automobile trips to Nova Scotia in the past ten years as an officer of the Austin Healey Club of America. We found that TOURING Nova Scotia is a wonderful way to really enjoy the beauty and wonder of your lovely province. We had the opportunity to stay at wonderful B&B's, eat at excellent and diverse eateries, shop at unique out of the way stores etc.  Traveling along the quiet back roads with the picturesque vistas and quaint villages and scenic views is what it is all about! We ALWAYS used the Scotia Prince as a way on getting to your fair province, well rested and in great spirits.  The fact that the Scotia Prince is no longer making the journey from Portland to Yarmouth can only bring the tourism industry down.
 

    By way of example, our groups spent approximately $8.000 to $12,000 on accommodations each time we toured Nova Scotia (8 times since 1996) What our appetites did to your mussel, lobster and scallop population is probably not a good thing, but were they all ever delicious.  But I am sure that your fishing industries benefited greatly. We shopped and we shipped all sorts of items. One fellow even left with an old lobster pot strapped to the rear deck of his Austin Healey.
 

     In 2000, we so enjoyed our visits, especially along the South Shore, that we ended up buying property in Round Bay, just west of Shelburne. WE plan to have a summer retreat on the shores of the Atlantic and add to the provinces tax base, and happy to do so are we.
 

     WE live in the Boston area, and we took the CAT this past summer when the Scotia Prince was not available.  It certainly gets us there, but it is more like riding a bus than a nice luxury liner.  The fact that a ferry is being considered closer to Boston is actually a great idea.  While Portland was a 2 hour ride up a very busy Interstate 95, Bar Harbour was a ridiculous 6 1/2 hour chore, with getting into the seaside resort   like trying to get into Boston during rush hour.
 

    Nova Scotia Tourism doesn't need more flights of people dropping into Halifax for 2 or 3 days, or a cruise ship docking overnight.  What will certainly help is a pleasant enjoyable sail onto your lovely shores, which have always seemed welcoming as we rolled off the decks, through the courteous customs agents and onto your marvelous and spellbinding winding roads!  Spending 2 weeks circumnavigating the province is what of the most pleasant times of my life.  The Doers and Dreamers Guidebook is built to allow just that.  Touring is the way to see diverse Nova Scotia.  From the green and bountiful Annapolis Valley the the small fishing villages along the South Shore, to the wild and windswept shores of the Marine Drive and out onto the highlands of Cape Breton!
 

     Bringing vehicular traffic into Nova Scotia has nothing but pluses for the tourism industry, which is important to Nova Scotia.  Finding a port and a cruise ship that can carry cars, bikes and vans is important.  We will get there no matter how we have to do it, but the cruise ship was the right way, convenient, pleasant and a proper introduction when entering a Maritime province.... don't you think!

Good luck and a happy 2006, let's hope it can also be a prosperous one!  Please feel free to send me information whenever and if someone needs to contact me, I will be gald to respond!
All the best,  Steve Bell  508-947-6499 

hello my name is janet hughes, i recently last september went on the scotia prince and i loved it. we were going to go in july this year and were very upset about the ship having to cancel the season. i would have loved to sailed again with you again. i would have loved to have gone to nova scotia again. i sure hope you have the luck of sailing from boston i live in tewksbury,ma. and i would like that very much. my husband and i loved your ship and would love to go back to peggy's cove it's beautiful there and so isn't every other place i went to there.
please consider going out of boston,ma. it's a great place to go out of. i would be one of your passengers on your ship.
please think about boston,ma.
thank you 
mr. & mrs. jos. hughes
tewksbury,ma. 

Dear Webmaster .
I recently sent you e-mail concerning the subject matter .

I would like to send you a copy of the following corrospondence I had with my fiancee regarding the "Prince" and the situation regarding the problem connected with tourist's transportation via the sea to Nova Scotia . Perhaps there is hope yet !

Please bear in mind the following was correspondence from one individual to another and not necessarily written directed to a newspaper as such . It is just my first thoughts . I do however hope that a palatable solution is reached by all parties . My corrospondence to my fiancee may sound negative , but I do hold out hopes for a good solution .

CORRESPONDENCE TO FIANCEE IS AS FOLLOWS !

Date: May 31, 2005 3:27:34 PM EDT
Subject:  Boston/Yarmouth Sea Transportation .

I forgot to tell you . I heard on the news today on WBZ that a group of investors are trying to put together a ship , maybe the Scotia Prince , to run from Boston every other day to Nova Scotia . It is a 14 hour run between ports . Over today , back tomorrow . Trouble with that I would think , if she is berthed in Yarmouth at any time the Cat is due . She would have to leave Boston at 6:00 A.M. to arrive in Yarmouth at 9:00 P.M. Yarmouth time . That is 15 minutes after the Cat is scheduled to leave Yarmouth . We have seen the Cat held up for over an hour while her passenger list was checked by U.S.A security . That would raise hell with a ship from Boston . By the same token , if she left Yarmouth at 6:00 A.M Yarmouth time she would arrive in Boston at 7:00 PM. Boston time . The first Cat is due in Yarmouth around noon Yarmouth time , so the later the Boston ship leaves Yarmouth the later she arrives in Boston . I personally think a ship would have to make the trip in less than 14 hours to be successful . No matter what you do with the times by first thought , the Boston to Yarmouth would not be a successful operation as outlined on the news report . 

To: webmaster@yarmouth.org
From: "Bill Sr." <fuse.box@mac.com>
Subject: Magazine Yarmouth 

I am a resident of the greater Boston area with deep roots in Nova Scotia and am sorely  missing the "Prince" . We have for the past several years gone "home" via the Prince at least once a season , and on occasion , twice a season .
Portland authorities deny the "mold" situation , and the "Prince" stands by their claim.
What was an overnight trip "home" is now a two day trip as at 73 I no longer want to drive all night to
St. John for the early morning boat to Digby . Been there , done that !
Personally , I believe there is more to the story than being made public . Such as the economy lowering the bookings on the "Prince" for one .
I have no answer to the problem . I do know we probably will not be going "home" this year , and that is disheartening .
There has been some scuttlebutt about the possibility of the "Cat" running from Portland . I for one , do not believe that will happen .
Just wanted to add my/our comments .
C.W. Miller
Tyngsborough , Mass

Dear Webmaster,
We need to start a serious dialogue about the Scotia Prince.
They said it could never happen and it sailed happily for 35 odd years......
But now there will be no Prince to bring its riches to Yarmouth or Nova Scotia this summer.
I say we do everything humanly possible to keep it sailing and bringing the tourists to our shores.
I have spoken to the Port of Baltimore and they have said that they /would be/ interested in having the Prince sail out of it's cruise ship terminal.
It may not be a daily sail-, It may not be able to be docked there permanently- and it would be a longer trip to be sure but I can assure that if it was properly marketed, there would always be a full ship.
All the logistics would have to be worked out of course. Mr Hudson ( owner) needs to take the first step.
If anyone has any other ideas, I would love to hear them.
Lets keep the Prince sailing!!!

Comments: I'm sure you all have heard about the Scotia Prince cancelling it's 2005 season by now. This is a travesty! Everybody looses on both sides (USA & NS). Businesses who have relied on the Prince for 35 years (even longer)could fail, not to mention tourism which is one of Nova Scotia's mainstays and certainly doesn't hurt the malls in Portland.
As a saving gesture, I have proposed to the owner of the company, that the Scotia Prince sail out of  the Port of Baltimore.  All the big cruise ships (except the super big ones) now sail from our Port. So what if it's a longer trip!. It's still better than driving and people from the tri- state area (DC, VA, MD) have never really had the opportunity to sail to NS. Conversely, Nova Scotians can come and shop, visit our nation's capital and see a whole new part of the east coast that they have never experienced before. If marketed properly there could be a "full ship on every trip"   they caould call it the "crustacean run" ( from crabs to lobsters and back again....get it??) 
Please respond with your opinions on this or any other novel ideas.
We have to save the Prince!!
Respectfully,
D. Powell 

Comments: 
I have read the comments from Doris in Baltimore, Maryland. Her idea of the Scotia Prince sailing from their area to Yarmouth is an excellent idea. I hope that the town politicians will follow up on this idea. How about a group of concerned citizens approaching the Dept. of Tourism and the local council? It has to start somewhere. While I was in Yarmouth last November, I met with Charles Haliburton M.P.P.
I wanted to promote Nova Scotia, by passing out brochures, playing downeast music, as well as videos of various attractions, even dress up for the occasion. My 30 ft. boat would be a floating tourist bureau for the Province.I spend the summer travelling through the Trent System Waterway and the St.Lawrence, stopping overnight in many communities. I always fly the flag of Nova Scotia and it is amazing how many people (locals and tourists) stop and ask me about Nova Scotia. I  spoke to a representitive within the Dept. of Tourism. The concern was,what the outcome might be.( the amount of people that would travel to Nova Scotia)How could I measure it? I do not feel that the response was positive, so have given up the idea.I will still fly my flag  of Nova Scotia, as I am proud to be from there.Yarmouth has great potential. Services need to be provided to the town, not taken away.I am the Past Warden of Victoria County and Past Chairman of the Tourism Committee. I would like to do something for my home town, perhaps all of us that are living away from home ( Yarmouth), should e-mail the politicians and Dept. of Tourism with our concerns about the future of the town. "LET"S SAVE THE SCOTIA PRINCE"