A gazillion shrimp cocktails… The world’s largest cruise ship left Miami on Saturday for its maiden passenger-stuffed voyage (the internet’s calling it “human lasagne”) . The Icon of the Seas floats 8K people, 20 decks, 20+ dining spots, and a 55-foot waterfall. Like the sold out Royal Caribbean-owned Icon (the biz reports Thursday, BTW), the cruise industry’s bursting at the “wave season” seams: bookings are expected to hit a record 35.7M this year, up 6% from 2019. But the mega ship and the industry are getting pushback over environmental concerns.
The best time of the year… for accountants. Tax-filing szn kicks off today and millions of Americans could see plumper refunds. Last year, many got a shock when the end of pandemic-era benefits (like bigger child tax credits) led refunds to shrink ~3% from 2022. This year, the IRS raised tax brackets by 7% to ease “bracket creep” — when inflation bumps your income into a higher tax bracket, but your dollars don’t go as far. Thanks to the income-tier adjustments, experts say many refund checks could jump.