The October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel by Hamas led to a number of lines canceling port calls (see below), while the latest attacks on cargo vessels in the Red Sea in early 2024 has led to cruise lines canceling itineraries in that region. Cruise Radio prioritizes well-balanced cruise news coverage and accurate reporting, paired with ship reviews and tips. In a later social media post, the guest says she was told by crew members that the route change was a directive from the cruise line’s Miami office. Guests booked on the cancelled cruise are receiving a full refund of their cruise fare and all pre-paid services. The line also is offering a 50% future cruise credit for any future Princess Cruises sailing booked by November 30, 2024 and sailed by December 31, 2025.
Cunard Officially Welcomes Queen Anne with Ceremony at Fincantieri Shipyard
Norwegian Star is sailing a 14-day South America cruise roundtrip from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Port calls include destinations in Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Shetland Islands, and Falkland Islands The itinerary also originally included scenic cruising in Paradise Bay, a well-known cove off Antarctica’s mainland. Carnival Cruise Line, in the last two years, has promoted three cruise directors to fleet cruise director posts. They are Mike Pack, Chris “Donkey” Salazar, and Chris “The Flying Scotsman” Williams. Fleet cruise directors are not assigned to a specific ship; rather, they are based shoreside and travel to various ships to train, mentor, and evaluate cruise directors, develop programming, and handle other tasks. While there are subtle changes between the two ships, the most obvious difference is Indulge Food Hall, an included restaurant that brings the popular land-based food hall concept to the seas.
Princess Cruises and Fincantieri Delay Delivery of Second LNG Ship
Cruise Industry News looks at the key cruise ship moves that took place between November and early December. Cruise Lines International Association predicts passenger numbers will exceed pre-pandemic levels next year. "Future is bright, industry is growing, guests are coming back, so we're all very happy," says Lutoff-Perlo. This week, Celebrity and other lines loosened their COVID protocols, no longer requiring vaccinated passengers to test before most cruises and allowing unvaccinated passengers, who must test before boarding. Cruise insiders in recent weeks had been expecting an announcement of a new ship for Carnival Cruise Line, after unconfirmed reports indicated that parent company Carnival Corporation was poised to disclose the development. (December 5, 2023) -- As part of the inaugural U.S. sailing, Cruise Critic had a chance to take in Beetlejuice The Musical.
Crystal Cancels Middle East Cruise on Symphony; Reroutes World Cruise
Holland America Line’s Nieuw Statendam, meanwhile, had already docked in Israel and had sent passengers on tour when the conflict broke out. MSC says the changes were made due to the ongoing situation in Israel and uncertainty with countries in the surrounding area, as countries impose entry restrictions and governments issue travel warnings and advisories to various parts of the region. "Given recent developments and following extensive consultation with global security experts and government authorities, we have made the decision to reroute our itinerary to bypass the Red Sea and the surrounding area," the company wrote. The line is also rerouting segments on the 2024 World Cruise on Crystal Serenity to avoid the Middle East. Juneau, Alaska is continuing with its efforts to limit the number of cruise passengers as the capital city of Alaska pre...
Stay updated on cruise ships, ports, policy changes, deals, and anything else impacting cruise lines and your vacation at sea. Cruise Critic's cruise industry news focuses on cruise lines, such as updated policies and partnerships, as well as cruise ships, ranging from the latest on updated itineraries to the newest and best ships on the oceans (and rivers) today. Highlights of the newly opened cruises include three ships sailing from Bayonne — Odyssey of the Seas, Symphony of the Seas, and Liberty of the Seas. The ships will offer a mix of seasonal Caribbean/Bahamas sailings, plus Canada/New England itineraries. Once in JaxPort, Norwegian Gem will offer three 12-day and two 11-day roundtrip sailings to the Eastern Caribbean each year. The voyages will call in ports like Great Stirrup Cay, NCLs private island in the Bahamas; Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic; St. Thomas; St. John's; St. Kitts; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Antigua, among others.
We will keep tabs on the situation as it develops, but if you have a cruise booked in this region it is best to reach out to your cruise line for all the latest information on changes and cancellations. Ports and their surrounding communities are benefiting strongly from the rebound in cruising. Princess Cruises reported today that it has agreed with Italy’s Fincantieri to delay by two months the scheduled 2...
Norwegian Cruise Line cancels more than a dozen upcoming cruises - WGN TV Chicago
Norwegian Cruise Line cancels more than a dozen upcoming cruises.
Posted: Fri, 19 Apr 2024 19:54:13 GMT [source]
Chibang: Carnival Cruise Line's hybrid Chinese and Mexican restaurant (with menu) - The Points Guy
Chibang: Carnival Cruise Line's hybrid Chinese and Mexican restaurant (with menu).
Posted: Sat, 20 Apr 2024 12:03:08 GMT [source]
In front of NCL executives, travel advisers, media and crew, singer/songwriter Luis Fonsi christened the ship November 28 at Norwegian's expansive cruise terminal in PortMiami. The "Despacito" singer served as the ship's godfather, saying the traditional blessing and pressing a large button that sent a giant bottle of Champagne careening into the ship's hull. (December 5, 2023) -- While Norwegian Viva has been sailing since August, the ship wasn't christened right out of the dock. When asked if NCL might roll out Indulge to existing ships, Herrera rule it out completely but said the space requirement the restaurant needs would make it difficult to retrofit. “Expanding our popular cruise program provides passengers throughout the Southeast U.S. and beyond with even more reasons to choose Jacksonville for their next vacation,” said JaxPort CEO Eric Green.
Virgin Voyages Reroutes Resilient Lady's Repositioning Voyage
The family-owned company also runs the largest container shipping line in the world. This is enormous and I think it's one of the biggest at sea." CBS News Correspondent Wendy Gillette got a reduced rate to sail aboard Beyond and Seashore, which boasts a water slide, infinity pool, and specialty restaurants. Disney Cruise Lines added its fifth and largest ship, Disney Wish, to the fleet this summer and the biggest ship in the world, Royal Caribbean's Wonder of the Seas began sailing in March. But the cruise line had altered the route, removing Paradise Bay and replacing it with scenic cruising near Elephant Island, which is farther from the Antarctic mainland but still technically part of Antarctica. Additionally, guests who have already traveled to Europe for the maiden voyage will receive reimbursement of their roundtrip airfare plus money toward hotels, meals, and other costs incurred while making travel plans to return home.
The next sailing date on the cruise line website is February 28, 2024, when the ship will operate a 10-day “Grand Mediterranean” voyage from Rome to Barcelona. Royal Caribbean has not disclosed details about the new Oasis-class ship order, but the vessel is expected to be roughly the same size as the existing ships in the class, which can accommodate about 5,600 guests in double occupancy. The Oasis class introduced the line’s popular neighborhood concept, including Boardwalk, with its AquaTheater, arcade, and carousel, and Central Park, a leafy, open space with thousands of live plants and a choice of restaurants and bars. The announcement comes after the JaxPort board of directors approved a four year agreement with the cruise line. Norwegian Cruise Line will join Carnival as the second mainstream cruise line to sail out of Jacksonville, as Carnival Elation homeports year-round from JaxPort.
Weigand currently works as cruise director on Carnival Freedom, and was to remain there until mid-June 2024, however, with her promotion, Todd Evans will serve as cruise director starting on March 30, as Weigand begins her new duties. Cruise directors are crucial to the operation of every cruise, and at Carnival Cruise Line they are tasked with making sure guests enjoy the line’s Fun Ship vibe. In this week’s cruise news update, we’ve got coverage from Royal Caribbean, Carnival Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, and Norwegian Cruise Line.
On Viva, Norwegian removed Coco's, the Starbucks kiosk (there's a large Starbucks in the atrium) and moved the ice cream venue outside, creating more seats and space. Norwegian Viva is nearly identical to fleetmate Norwegian Prima, which debuted in 2022, winning a Cruise Critic's Editors' Picks award for best new ship of the year. The cruise line highlighted that Jacksonville is a growing drive-to cruise market, with more than 98 million people living within driving distance to the cruise port. (April 16, 2024) -- From Thai flavors to plant-based menus, Norwegian Aqua will introduce culinary experiences that are brand new to Norwegian Cruise Line as well as redesigned venues and familiar favorites. “We were due to visit Israel, Egypt and Jordan next April but spoke to TA this afternoon about canceling."
A Windstar spokesperson told Cruise Critic, “Windstar staff are contacting all booked guests with an offer to move their sailing to a 2024 date. Other destination options being offered aboard Windstar’s ships are Caribbean, Tahiti, Costa Rica and Panama. Some brands, like Princess, are re-routing ships away from the conflict areas and opting to travel around the horn of Africa.
Replacement voyages for MSC Orchestra and MSC Sinfonia have not yet been announced. Cruise lines have begun canceling itineraries scheduled to call on the Middle East as the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Gaza Strip escalates. “The three ships will transfer directly to Europe without any passengers on board and avoid transiting through the Red Sea. The move comes after a series of attacks by Yemen-based Houthi rebels on vessels transiting through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, followed by U.S. and U.K. The line has canceled three repositioning ‘Grand Voyage’ sailings in April from South Africa and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Europe. MSC Cruises has become the first cruise line to cancel cruises due to the ongoing risks to shipping in the Red Sea.
Queen Mary 2 will maintain its existing itinerary until after its call in Colombo, Sri Lanka. At that point, the ship's itinerary will sail south along the east coast of Africa before rounding the horn and coming up the western coast of the continent. In a letter to passengers, Cunard said the changes were being made for the safety of passengers and crew aboard the company's flagship. The cruise line also shared that it is currently reassessing other geographically similar repositioning voyages and will provide an update in the coming weeks on further changes. Originally scheduled to traverse the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, the ship will now sail around the coast of Africa on its way to the Mediterranean.
Cunard Line informed guests it will re-route its World Cruise aboard Queen Mary 2, changing a full month of the planned voyage itinerary in order to bypass the Red Sea and Suez Canal in favor of transiting around the horn of Africa. Ongoing unrest in the Middle East has led to a series of changes and cancellations to cruise line itineraries, with more lines opting to re-route their Red Sea itineraries, including World Cruises, away from the conflict. The Caledonian Sky recently entered service for its new operator, Captain Cook Cruises Fiji. After being acquired by the company earlier this year, the 114-guest vessel is now offering varied itineraries to Fiji and the South Pacific.
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