TUI Cruises to host musical festival at sea

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

Category: More News More News

Published: 26 August 2015 26 August 2015

TUI Cruises, the Hamburg based premium market company, says it will host a musical festival at sea during a four night cruise from Hamburg to Kiel via Copenhagen and Oslo, which will sail on 27 August. There will be 13 artists and bands on board Mein Schiff 1 on the cruise, which will offer about 30 concerts, meets and greets, workshops, films, lectures and other music themed activities, the company said in a statement.

P&O Cruises unveils 2017 World Cruise collection

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

Category: More News More News

Published: 26 August 2015 26 August 2015

P&O Cruises, the British contemporary market unit in the Carnival Corp & plc group, has launched its 2017 World Cruise Collection featuring two full world circumnavigations offering a choice of east or west, a 180th anniversary celebration cruise on Aurora, fly cruises and Australasian journeys, a 50-night cruise round trip Southampton to the Caribbean, USA and Amazon, Northern Lights cruises on Oriana with numerous overnight and evening calls, the companysaid in a statement.

P&O Cruises’ marketing director, Christopher Edgington, said: “P&O Cruises has a reputation for offering original and appealing world cruise itineraries which we spend a lot of time planning, based on extensive research and trends. Our round the world cruises are not a once-in-a-lifetime dream but a truly affordable and realistic holiday for “empty nesters” looking for long haul adventure and “this is the life” memories.”

World circumnavigations on Aurora and Arcadia

In the year that P&O Cruises celebrates 180 years of heritage, Aurora’s world circumnavigation will be particularly poignant. Echoing the trade routes of the British Empire, Aurora will sail a 104-night eastern circumnavigation from Southampton calling at 35 destinations in 21 countries and sailing nearly 30,000 nautical miles. Departing January 9 2017, this cruise will feature 23 new ports of call (compared with Aurora’s 2016 world cruise), four overnight stays in Dubai, Singapore, Sydney and San Francisco and seven evening calls. The cruise will also feature calls into some of the world’s most iconic destinations including sailing under the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco, sailing into Sydney Harbour and “City of Sails”, Auckland and transiting both the Panama and Suez canals.

Arcadia’s 114-night Polynesian and Asian Adventure is a full world western circumnavigation from Southampton calling at 37 destinations in 21 countries and sailing over 36,000 nautical miles. Departing January 2 2017, the cruise will feature 22 new ports of call (compared with Arcadia’s 2016 world cruise), five overnight stays in San Francisco, Auckland, Sydney, Hong Kong and Singapore and nine evening calls. As with Aurora’s world cruise, Arcadia  will also feature calls into some of the world’s most iconic destinations including sailing under the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco, sailing into Sydney Harbour and “City of Sails”, Auckland and transiting both the Panama and Suez canals.

Prices for the world cruises start from £10,299 per person Select Price (based on Aurora’s world circumnavigation) plus onboard spending money from £350 per person up to £1,000 per person depending on cabin grade.

Oriana’s Caribbean and Amazon Adventure

This 50-night cruise on Oriana round trip from Southampton will call at 17 destinations in 13 countries in the Caribbean, the USA and South America and will sail over 14,000 nautical miles including 1,500 nautical miles on the Amazon over six days. Departing January 3 2017, Oriana will feature 10 new ports of call, compared with her 50-night cruise in 2016. Highlights of the cruise include calls at Bermuda, New Orleans and Manaus as well as cruising the mighty Amazon.

Prices from £3,999 per person Select Price plus onboard spending money from £150 per person to £475 per person depending on cabin grade.

Northern Lights cruises

In 2017, Oriana will offer two 12-night Northern Lights cruises round trip from Southampton calling at Andalsnes, Tromso, Alta (overnight) and Stavanger as well as cruising in Romsdalsfjord. Highlights include the overnight in Alta which is known as “The Town of the Northern Lights” and a late evening in Tromso where adventurous guests can head out on a traditional husky-drawn sled.

Prices from £899 per person Select Price plus onboard spending money from £45 per person to £150 per person depending on cabin grade.

Early bird discount ending, booth availability dwindling for FCCA Cruise Conference & Trade Show

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: More News More News

Published: 24 August 2015 24 August 2015

 Opportunities are running out of one of the best ways to target the cruise industry and maximize its benefits-the FCCA Cruise Conference & Trade Show. Early bird registration, a 25 percent discount, ends Wednesday, September 2, and fewer than 10 Trade Show booths remain for the five-day event offering meetings, workshops, social functions and more with key tourism stakeholders and cruise line executives who decide where cruise ships call, what sells onboard and how to invest in infrastructure.

"The FCCA Cruise Conference & Trade Show is the place to be for anyone looking to develop cruise tourism business," said Micky Arison, chairman of Carnival Corporation and the FCCA, who will be on hand at the event, deliver the opening address and participate in a roundtable discussion with cruise line presidents, COOs and CEOs. "It lets attendees gain insight from and develop business and relationships with some of the industry's most influential players."
 
Taking place in Cozumel, Mexico from October 5-9, the FCCA Cruise Conference & Trade Show will gather nearly 1,000 stakeholders from all sectors of the cruise tourism industry, along with over 100 FCCA Member Line representatives. The Conference's business sessions will include one-on-one meetings with these cruise executives, pre-selected by attendees to privately discuss with and receive personalized input from a cruise executive that can positively impact their business.
 
A schedule of workshops will also share the executives', presidents', CEOs' and stakeholders' insight to help attendees learn about topics such as the cruise lines' latest happenings and route for the future; creating and maintaining a successful tour product; developing a port in partnership with the FCCA, cruise lines and the private/public sectors; and increasing cruise tourism through a unified vision, collaboration between the private and public sectors, and continual product development and innovation.
 
The Trade Show will capture the attention of the prominent audience with Conference delegates and cruise executives entering and traveling through to access their meetings, workshops, business sessions and registration. It will also feature designated viewings for cruise executives, as well as special events like the FCCA Table Tennis Challenge hosted by Adam Goldstein, president and COO of Royal Caribbean Cruises Limited.
 
"I am pleased and excited to participate in the FCCA Table Tennis Challenge," told Goldstein. "It will combine my passions of table tennis and interacting with cruise tourism stakeholders while supporting a worthy cause."
 
Plus these key decision makers will interact with Conference delegates and Trade Show exhibitors during nightly social functions geared to promote networking while displaying Mexico's culture, gastronomy and destination product.

Pearl Seas offers luxury cruises to Cuba

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: More News More News

Published: 21 August 2015 21 August 2015

Alan Lam reporting

Pearl Seas Cruises has just announced its 2016 Cuban itinerary. Starting 6 March, the first cruise - on the 210-passenger Pearl Mist - will depart Miami and call at various ports in Cuba. The company has lavishly advertised this new offering in the colourful Time Magazine, thus putting itself in the pole position among the US based cruise lines in the race to Cuba.  

In the short to medium term, operators like Pearl Seas will have a distinct advantage, as Cuban ports are ideal to handle small to medium size ships. Ports in Cuba, including Havana, are not yet capable of handling mega-cruise liners coming from Miami. Major infrastructure upgrades will be needed before they can be accommodated. The intermediate stage is therefore the era of smaller ships for this as yet a relatively niche or specialty market. Mass-market cruises to Cuba are not yet fully functionally in terms of operational practicality.

The US government has recently granted Pearl Seas the licence to include Cuba in its itineraries, based on the so-called “People-to-People” exchange programme, permitted under the current US law. On the same principle, a dozen or so ferry companies have also been granted permits to operate between the two countries.

While it is already accepting bookings, the company is still awaiting permission from the Cuban government for this itinerary.

The Peal Seas excursions will include various Cuban cities. A seven-day cruise will cost around $7,500-$10,235, depending on types of accommodation. There is little doubt that this will be a popular product among the North American clientele.