Marc, I am still ROTF laughing about the avalanche (how's that for flyertalk?) Seems like they can "take" us once we are hooked and have done all the "other" stuff. Strange why Asia is so much more expensive. Those $600 per diems are hard to take, that's why I hopped onto the Silversea special when we could get it in the mid $300 range. I have also tried to estimate according to the World Cruise pricing, and it looks like you just have to suck it up, unless you are willing to wait for a special that comes along later, like our Silversea cruise recently that I thought was a good value. Have to wait and see, I guess.