Are you “It”? What is “It”? It’s the new Godmother for the Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCL) Gem, NCL’s newest ship to be christened in New York City on December 18, 2007. Invitations went out to all of NCL’s Latitudes members asking them to send in a video portraying their inner “It Girl” side, and tell NCL why they deserve to be the godmother of the newest cruise ship in the NCL fleet. Entries will be accepted from this week until November 12, 2007. A panel at NCL will determine the 5 finalists by November 15, 2007 and make an announcement. NCL is inviting the public to view the finalists video, and vote for their favorite. These votes will be used in determining the winner. The lucky grand prize winner will be in New York to christen the NCL Gem as part of an onboard ceremony by the cruise line. Ncl has done a remarkable campaign to launch the Gem, and now has almost 1800 girls comprising the online entourage for the “It Girl”. See them all at http://www.gemitgirl.com. What are you waiting for?

“Norwegian Gem represents the ultimate in Freestyle Cruising and is the ultimate “It” Girl,” said Colin Veitch, NCL’s president and CEO. “In looking for her Godmother, we wanted to reflect her hip personality while rewarding one of our past guests with this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
In addition to being named Norwegian Gem’s Godmother, the grand prize winner will also receive a seven-day cruise in the ultra luxurious Garden Villa on Norwegian Gem for her and five of her entourage.
NCL is also giving those who have not sailed on an NCL cruise the opportunity to enter the video contest and become the Latitudes “It” Girl’s BFF. While non-Latitudes members aren’t eligible to win the grand prize, they will be entered to win a seven-day Bahamas & Florida cruise for two aboard Norwegian Gem during the 2008 sailing season.
The Latitudes “It” Girl should embody the attributes of NCL’s hottest, hippest new ship, Norwegian Gem, as well as the free spirit of NCL’s Freestyle Cruising. These characteristics include sophistication, independence and confidence, eagerness to explore new destinations and learn new things, glamorous, stylish and cultured, along with a youthful and adventurous spirit regardless of age.
In their video submissions, entrants are encouraged to include how many times they’ve cruised with NCL and why they think they should be the Latitudes “It” Girl. In addition, entrants are invited to include their own unique talent (if they have one) that exemplifies the freestyle spirit of NCL cruising. Entries will be judged on creativity and originality of the submission.
SecondCity Provides Video Examples
NCL has enlisted the help of Second City, the famed improvisational group that is also featured on NCL ships, to provide video examples. Several Second City cast members have created videos that will be posted on gemitgirl.com showing what’s “it” and what isn’t “it”.
All of the submissions meeting the contest criteria will be posted at gemitgirl.com, where visitors can rank the videos and view them by a variety of categories including featured, most viewed, hottest, new, all videos and by traits including funny, glamorous, freestyle, chic, glamorous and too hot.
NCL is also giving guests sailing on its ships during the call for entries the opportunity to create their videos on board. All NCL* and NCL America ships will offer scheduled complimentary videotaping sessions for those guests wanting to enter the contest. Guests will be given a DVD of their entry that they can submit online when they return home.
On November 15, when the five finalists are announced, the public can vote for their favorite entry through December 7, 2007. The public vote will assist NCL in determining the grand prize winner.
The five finalists will be whisked away to Norwegian Gem’s christening ceremony on December 18, 2007 in New York City. Each will receive roundtrip air transportation to New York and accommodations for two on the ship’s two-night inaugural sailing.
Further details, including the contest terms and conditions, can be found online at gemitgirl.com starting on Monday, October 8, 2007.

For more information on the Norwegian Gem, or any NCL cruise, contact the cruise specialists at Destination Oceans by calling 1-800-374-3740 or visit the website at www.destinationoceans.com.