MARCH 2020 PAGE 26
AFLOAT HAL Bookings have opened for Holland
America’s new Ryndam cruise ship, currently under construction at Fincantieri’s Marghera shipyard in Italy and set to join the fleet in May 2021.
AMADEUS River Cruises will build a new riverboat set to debut in 2021 along the Danube and the Rhine in Europe.
CELEBRITY Cruises cut steel on the third of its revolutionary Edge-class ships at a ceremony in France today. Celebrity’s president and CEO Lisa Lutoff-Perlo and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.’s chairman and CEO Richard Fain both attended the event. FRED OLSEN
Cruise Lines has announced a series of dedicated whale-watching cruises including the 16-night “A Voyage to Remote Spitsbergen,” round-trip Liverpool on Black Watch, departing June 25 and the 16-night “Fjords & Icebergs of Remote Greenland” round-trip Dover sailing on Boudicca departing August 11.
LANDBLAD Expeditions’ new polar expedition ship, National Geographic Endurance, completed its first sea trials in Norway, near the entrance to the country’s famed Geirangerfjord. THE RIVER Cruise Line is changing
its name to Arena River Cruises in the run up to launching a new premium vessel and expanding its cruise programme.
UNIWORLD Boutique River Cruise
Collection has unveiled two new itineraries that combine one of the company’s river cruises with a journey by land and rail in 2021. The company has partnered with Golden Eagle Luxury Trains to create journeys that will travel through Italy, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia.
P&O
Cruises’ new ship, Iona, “floated out” at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany, for the first time today.
CELEBRITY Cruises’ forthcoming
Celebrity Apex passed another milestone as it completed its sea trials off the coast of France. The ship, will enter service on April 1, 2020, went through its sea trials in the Bay of Biscay and was overseen by more than 50 specialised crew members,
AMSTERDAM’s decision to impose a tax just on cruise passengers led to a 40pc reduction in calls to the city in 2019.
CMV Cruise & Maritime Voyages acquired Pacific Dawn and Pacific Aria from P&O Cruises Australia in 2021.
ROYAL Caribbean is advising passengers booked on its Southern Caribbean voyages calling on Martinique that as of 2020, all passengers will require a valid passport.
MSC Cruises introduced custom, accessible shore excursions designed for passengers with all types of mobility in 20 destinations including 11 ports in the Caribbean and nine ports to come in the Mediterranean.
Stena Estrid launched in a storm
Estrid arrives
Stena adds capacity on Dublin-Holyhead corridor
T
he newest addition to the Stena Line fleet started service on the Dublin to Holyhead route on January 13, braving the elements of Storm Brendan to complete her maiden voyage. Despite a challenging introduction, customers have been taking to social media to praise the new ship and her staff. The three-
hour and 15 minute crossing Will give passengers a chance to explored facilities including Estrid’s spectacular Sky Bar, two Happy World children’s play areas, a relaxing Hygge reclining lounge, Stena Plus lounge, two movie lounges, bigger Truckers lounge, Taste restaurant, and a bigger better shopping
experience. The ship also has 175 onboard cabins, including six deluxe cabins with double beds and balcony access. A sister ship Stena Edda is due to start service from Belfast to Liverpool in March this year, with a third next generation ferry Stena Embla due on the same route in early 2021.
LONG JOURNEY TO APEX REACHES CLIMAX
C
elebrity Cruises’ forthcoming Celebrity Apex has passed another milestone as it completed its sea trials off the coast of France last week. The ship, which will enter service on April 1, 2020, went through its sea trials in the Bay of Biscay and was overseen by more than 50 specialized crew members, including engineers and
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nautical experts. Despite strong winds and heavy seas, the ship performed admirably, the company said today in a statement. “The purpose of a sea trial is to test the functionality of the ship, but this wasn’t just any sea trial -- and Celebrity Apex isn’t just any ship,” said Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, president and CEO of Celebrity
Cruises. “In typical Edge Series-fashion, the ship absolutely exceeded our expectations, performing perfectly in line with our above-andbeyond operating standards.” Celebrity Apex is the sister ship to Celebrity’s groundbreaking Celebrity Edge, which debuted at the end of 2018.
Lisa Lutroff-Perlo and Richard Fain cutting steel
P&O PLAN REFURB OF AZURA
&O Cruises has confirmed Azura will head to the shipyard in Ferrol, North Spain, for a multimillion-pound update from April 3, 2020, following the ship’s Euro-
pean repositioning. The 12-day dry dock will see Azura get open deck areas reworked to improve outdoor dining venues, new canopies and deck furniture will be
added and swimming pools and the poolside areas will be refreshed. entertainment venues and children’s space H20 will be upgraded; Blue bar, Brodie’s, Malabar and the
poolside Terrace Bar will offer draught beer on tap and The Retreat and The Oasis Spa will offer new treatments and spa experiences.
