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P&O Cruises all ships in service, publishes summer 2024 itineraries

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 29 March 2022 29 March 2022

P&O Cruises, the UK focused contemporary market unit in Carnival corporation & plc group, has now returned all its six ships into service and it has also unveiled its itineraries for the summer of 2024.

Arcadia that sailed from Southampton on 27 March was the last ship of the line to resume service after the Covid-19 pandemic had suspended operations two years earlier.

These will include “island” itineraries, the scenic Norwegian fjords and extended time in many destinations to maximise the new programme of tailored shore experiences.

The 185,000 gross ton Arvia that will join the fleet in December 2022 will offer two different 14-night western Mediterranean itineraries, each with six ports of call. One will include Italy, Spain and France with calls to La Spezia (for Florence and Pisa) and Barcelona while the other will be Spain and France with calls to Barcelona and Valencia.

Iona will continue to spend the summer season in the Norwegian fjords for seven night itineraries of spectacular scenic cruising with calls to the world heritage port of Geiranger, as well as Olden and Alesund.

Britannia’s summer programme will include seven night Norwegian fjords and 14-night western Mediterranean “island” cruises to the Balearics with extended calls to Palma and Ibiza and one itinerary including Cagliari in Sardinia. These itineraries also include many new shore experiences to discover the beach clubs and off the beaten track vineyards, adrenaline activities and countryside of Ibiza.

Malta will be the homeport for Azura’s summer season of seven and 14-night fly/cruise holidays. The western Mediterranean itineraries include a call to Civitavecchia for Rome and to Monte Carlo from Villefranche. The Eastern route includes selected calls to Ephesus from Kusadasi and the picturesque Greek islands of Mykonos and Santorini. Central Mediterranean itineraries include calls to Trieste for Venice and a new southern Adriatic itinerary features Taranto, Catania and the Greek Ionian islands of Cephalonia and Corfu.

Short breaks to Amsterdam are part of Ventura’s summer programme as well as The Canary Islands, Iberia and southern cruise breaks. These holidays include longer time in the ports of Lisbon and Amsterdam to make the most of these popular capital cities.

Aurora and Arcadia, both mid-sized ships, will offer longer “discovery” itineraries for experienced cruisers. Arcadia will sail a 16-night Iceland cruise in June ’24 with an overnight call in Reykjavik and a 30 night Canada & USA cruise in September ’04 with overnight calls in Boston and New York to see the sights in these vibrant cities.

Tangier and Casablanca will be part of Aurora’s 18-night western Mediterranean cruise in April ’24 while the ship’s Arctic Circle cruise in October ’24 includes Iceland and the North Cape and the chance to see the Northern Lights.

Ambassador Cruise Line postpones first cruise on supply chain issues

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 29 March 2022 29 March 2022

Ambassador Cruise Line, the new UK based company that had intended to commence its first cruise on 6 April, has been forced to postpone this by a fortnight due to supply chain concerns.

The 70, 285 gross to Ambiance that started life in 1991 as Regal Princess, has been undergoing a refit in Croatia. The war in Ukraine has put additional strain to already stretched supply chains, which has forced the company to revise its plans.

Two seven night cruises and a trade event in Tilbury that is located east of London , from where the ship will operate, have been cancelled.

Fincantieri warns inflation, geopolitics can hit cruise industry

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 24 March 2022 24 March 2022

Fincantieri, the Italian company that is the world’s largest builder of cruise ships, says the cruise industry is rapidly recovering from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, but warns that price pressures and geopolitical events can negatively affect the cruise industry and cruise ship building.

Russian attack on Ukraine represents a disruptive geopolitical, economic, and financial event. “The macroeconomic effects related to the crisis, such as potential travel restrictions and tourism limitations which could affect the cruise industry, as well as the impacts of the sanctions towards Russia on both the global economy and international politics are complex and still hard to estimate,” the company said in a statement.

“Such phenomenon can cause in the short to medium term high uncertainty on future scenarios, such as the potential increase in commodities and energy prices, possible discontinuity in supply chains and productive activities, making it hard to evaluate side effects on the Group’s future performance,”

Nevertheless, the cruise business is rapidly resuming activities, also thanks to the easing of restrictions; 264 vessels totalling 461,000 lower berths from 68 brands are expected to be in operation starting from March 2022, equal to around 75% of the global lower berth capacity.

Meanwhile, CLIA’s projections on the state of the cruise industry forecasted nearly 100% of fleet sailing by summer 2022. Indeed, most cruise operators witnessed a surge in bookings in the second half of 2022 and in 2023 in line and for some even above 2019 levels.

Giuseppe Bono, CEO, however warned about uncertainties ahead: ”Inflation, raw material shortages and the ongoing conflict introduce even more uncertainties to the current scenario. The challenges we are facing require the highest level of determination and cohesion from all of our employees to address such demanding times. As a matter of fact, today’s results prove the commitment and dedication of our employees and our suppliers to the Group.”

Saga says cruise bookings strong despite challenging environment

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 24 March 2022 24 March 2022

Saga Cruises, the boutique deep sea and river cruise operator in the Saga plc group, has reported a slightly wider loss for 2021 than the previous year and noted that bookings are strong despite challenges in the environment.

Pre tax loss of Saga Cruises widened to £47.7 million from £41.6 million in the previous year, with higher financing cost following the delivery of a second deep sea newbuilding cruise ship in October 2020, the company said in a statement.

“Cruise generated positive EBITDA and cash in the second half, with a load factor of 68% and per diem of £299, despite pandemic-related operational challenges. External environment remains challenging but bookings for 2022/23 remain strong with a load factor of 73% and per diem of £319 for the full year, as at 20 March 2022,” the company said.

Saga Cruises was EBITDA positive for the second half, and cash positive for the full year, which the parent company believe puts it in a much better position than many of our, often much larger, competitors.

“The higher loss of the Cruise business compared with the prior year was mainly due to increased financing costs following delivery of our second ship in October 2020 and return to service costs in the first part of 2021, partially offset by much improved results following the resumption of trading from the end of June,” Saga said.

The group offers travel and financial services to those over the age of 50.

Firming bookings indicate extended wave season – Carnival

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 23 March 2022 23 March 2022

A firmer trend in bookings in the recent past indicates that an extended wave season is taking place, Carnival Corporation & plc President, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Climate Officer Arnold Donald said

"Given the recent strengthening in booking volumes coupled with the closer-in booking patterns, we expect an extended wave season. In fact, we gained occupancy even in the month of March with fleetwide occupancy nearing 70%and several sailings already exceeding 100%," he said in a statement.

Since the middle of January, the company has seen an improving trend in weekly booking volumes for future sailings. Recent weekly booking volumes have been higher than at any point since the restart of guest cruise operations.

During the first quarter, the company increased its booked occupancy position for the second half of 2022, albeit not at the same pace as a typical wave season due to the Omicron variant.

As a result, cumulative advance bookings for the second half of 2022 are at the lower-end of the historical range. However, the company believes it is well situated with its current second half 2022 booked position given the recent improvements in booking volumes and its continued expectation that occupancy will build throughout 2022 and return to historical levels in 2023.

Normalised for bundled packages, prices on bookings for the second half of 2022 continue to be higher, with or without future cruise credits ("FCCs"), as compared to 2019 sailings.

Cumulative advanced bookings for the first half of 2023 continues to be both at the higher end of the historical range and at higher prices, with or without FCCs, normalized for bundled packages, as compared to 2019 sailings. Due to the ongoing resumption of guest cruise operations, the company's current booking trends will be compared to booking trends for 2019 sailings.

As of March 22, 75% of the company's capacity had resumed guest cruise operations as part of its ongoing return to service. The company's enhanced COVID-19 protocols have helped it become among the safest forms of socializing and travel, with far lower incidence rates than on land. The company expects to have each brand's full fleet back in guest cruise operations for its respective summer season where it historically generates the largest share of its operating income.