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Technical issues force CMV to cancel Discovery cruise

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 04 March 2013 04 March 2013

Cruise & Maritime Voyages (CMV), the UK based operator of two small cruise liners, has been forced to abandon a 15 night cruise on the 20,600 gross ton Discovery from Bristol to Norway due to technical problems and adverse weather conditions, the company said in a statement.

“The vessel was originally scheduled to sail from Bristol Avonmouth on Thursday 28 February 2013 but due to adverse weather conditions en route from Genoa, compounded by tidal restrictions in Bristol, Discovery was re-routed to Portland where our passengers embarked,’ CMV said.

The 1972 built Discovery has undergone an extensive dry docking period and is operating under her new joint venture partners, All Leisure Holidays and Cruise & Maritime Voyages. “Due to unusual and unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control and notwithstanding the recent dry docking, the vessel has encountered technical problems which prevent her from sailing. We have been unable to resolve these technical issues to enable us to continue with the cruise on time and further works will have to be undertaken to ensure all issues are fully resolved,” CMV stated.

“Passengers were informed by the Captain last evening that the vessel is unable to perform her planned itinerary and arrangements are in place for their disembarkation and onward transportation on Saturday March. Our passengers will be receiving a full refund of their cruise fare and in addition, compensation of £250 per person and a discount of 40% on a future Discovery cruise if booked by 30 April 2013,” CMV said.

It is envisaged that Discovery will be ready for its next scheduled departure from Avonmouth on 15 March.

Industry leaders to participate in Cruise Shipping Miami forum

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: More News More News; Published: 01 March 2013 01 March 2013

Seven heads of leading cruise lines are set to discuss the industry's current trends and future direction at the State of the Industry session slated for Tuesday, March 12, at the 29th annual http://www.cruiseshippingevents.com/miami conference. The session also features Christine Duffy, president and CEO of Cruise Lines International Association, who will lead off with the State of the Industry address, and David Scowsill, president and CEO of the World Travel and Tourism Council, who will provide the keynote speech.

Panelists at the 9:30 a.m. session include Adam Goldstein, president and CEO of Royal Caribbean International; Kevin Sheehan, chief executive officer of Norwegian Cruise Line; Michael Bayley, president and CEO of Celebrity Cruises; Gerry Cahill, president and CEO of Carnival Cruise Lines; Stein Kruse, president and CEO of Holland America Line; Pierfrancesco Vago, chief executive officer of MSC Cruises, and Manfredi Lefebvre d'Ovidio, chairman of Silversea Cruises.

"We are bringing together key cruise line executives to address the trends and issues shaping the industry, including the on-board experience and attractions, newbuilds, ship revitalizations, globalization of the industry, technology and port and infrastructure development," said Daniel Read, director of UBM's Cruise Shipping Portfolio. "We look forward to a lively and informative panel discussion from these engaging industry leaders."

The State of the Industry assembly has long been a mainstay of the conference program of the premier annual cruise industry conference. It is the only plenary session of the four-day conference, and typically sets the stage for the three days of conference sessions to follow.

The 2013 conference program has been revamped with a series of more concurrent 90-minute sessions and a host of first-time panelists.

Developed by UBM Live to be more in-depth and content-rich, the conference lineup is the result of solid research and feedback from Cruise Shipping Miami attendees, cruise lines and industry organizations. Conference sessions are organized into four "streams" that will thematically link sessions daily Tuesday through Thursday. The streams are Shipbuilding, Operations and Technology; Destinations and Ports; Market Segments, and Product Development.

Tallink Grupp reports increase in net profit

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: More News More News; Published: 01 March 2013 01 March 2013

AS Tallink Grupp and its subsidiaries (the Group) carried a total of 9.26 million passengers in the 2012 financial year which is 1.3% more than the year before. The Group’s unaudited consolidated revenue grew 4% to EUR 943.9 million in the 2012 financial year. Gross profit was EUR 201.2 million, EBITDA EUR 165.5 million and unaudited net profit reached EUR 56.3 million (EUR 0.08 per share) which is 49% or EUR 18.6 million increase compared to the previous year.

In the fourth quarter (1 October- 31 December) of the 2012 financial year the Group carried 2.1 million passengers, 1% more compared to the same period last year. The Group’s consolidated revenue in the fourth quarter increased by 4% to EUR 222.8 million. The net profit for the fourth quarter was EUR 5.7 million compared to the net profit of EUR 0.6 million in the same period last year.

The main contribution for the growth in total revenue in 2012 came from the increase from shops and restaurants sales by nearly EUR 30 million. The ticket sales have been under pressure throughout the 2012 year due to bad weather and tight competition. The positive development on shop and restaurant sales continued also in the fourth quarter showing 6% increase on absolute terms and 5% increase per passenger basis when compared to the fourth quarter of the previous year.

Significant fuel price increase in the first half of 2012 has had impact to the Group’s profit margins. In the fourth quarter of 2012 the prices were at the previous year levels. Despite the high fuel price movement in 2012 the Group has been able to make good sales performance and to increase the earnings for 2012 financial year. Noticeable impact to the year’s net profit came from the earlier closure of Finland-Germany route and the following profitable charter of the related vessels.

During the 2012 the Group has focused to upgrade and improve the visibility and appearance in the electronic sales channels. The new consumer marketing web pages were upgraded. Throughout the year the new version of online booking engine has been developed and is currently in the testing phase. The easiness, usability, convenience and price transparency of online booking have been the main focus areas. Tallink’s mobile booking application became available for Android and Apple mobile platforms.

In December 2012 the Group signed a new five-year loan agreement in amount of EUR 440 million to refinance several of its older loans. In result of the refinancing the Group’s total loan repayment schedule for the next few years was reduced to ensure stronger liquidity position. Due to early repayment of the loans the arrangement fees of these loans were written off as they were initially amortized over the period of the loan. The write off expense of EUR 3.2 million was recorded in Q4 2012.

In 2012 financial year the interest bearing bank debt reduced by EUR 119.2 million or 12.4%. The net debt at the end of 2012 was EUR 774 million and the net debt ratio to EBITDA was 4.68. At the end of December 2012 the Group had nearly EUR 66 million in cash and equivalents and the total of unused credit lines were EUR 50 million. The total liquidity, cash and unused credit facilities at the end of the fourth quarter were EUR 116 million providing a strong position for sustainable operations.

Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines consolidates special offers under Anchor Fares banner

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 01 March 2013 01 March 2013

Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines says it is bringing its various special offers under a single banner, entitled ‘Anchor Fares’. From 1st March 2013, ‘Anchor Fares’ will replace the existing ‘Specialsaver’ and ‘Latesaver’ fares, although fares currently in circulation in these two categories will remain until they expire.

The move is intended to make it easier for consumers and travel agents alike to identify Fred. Olsen’s promotional ‘best buys’. A special logo has been developed to assist in this respect.

Nathan Philpot, Sales and Marketing Director for Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, said: “In a sometimes confusing market place, with a plethora of promotional cruise offers and prices, we hope that the introduction of ‘Anchor Fares’ will help our customers and trade partners by giving them a simplified pricing structure and an even clearer update on the latest Fred. Olsen cruise bargains available.”

As ‘Anchor Fares’ offer specially-reduced prices, certain Terms and Conditions apply:

-Full payment required at the time of booking

-100% cancellation charges

-Non-transferrable to any other cruise

-No cabin number and/or cabin grade provided at the time of booking

-Not able to be combined with ‘Oceans Cruise Club’ discounts

-Dining sitting allocated at Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines’ discretion*

However, Anchor Fare guests can choose to book a dining sitting (at the time of booking) for a supplement of £2.00 per person, per night, the company said in a statement.

Carnival Dream's itineraries expanded to include new five- and eight-night cruises, along with unique four-port, seven-night option

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: More News More News; Published: 28 February 2013 28 February 2013

Carnival Cruise Lines has expanded Carnival Dream's year-round schedule from Port Canaveral, Fla., to include never-before-offered eight-day Caribbean departures along with two new five-day options, and a one-of-a-kind four-port, seven-day eastern Caribbean itinerary.

With these new options, Carnival Dream will offer six distinctly different five- to eight-day cruise programs from Port Canaveral - the widest variety of itinerary choices from this highly popular Central Florida homeport. Additionally, the expansion further bolsters the line's position as the Caribbean cruise leader, operating approximately 1,250 voyages and carrying more than 3.6 million passengers within the region each year.

Carnival Dream's two new eight-day schedules include a three-port Southern Caribbean itinerary with extended stops at the islands of Aruba, Curacao and Grand Turk, and an eastern Caribbean itinerary featuring visits to four tropical destinations: St. Maarten, Tortola, St. Thomas and Grand Turk. Seven southern Caribbean voyages will be offered, departing May 2 and 30, Aug. 23, Oct. 4, and Dec. 6, 2014, and Feb. 7 and March 7, 2015, while six eastern Caribbean cruises depart May 17, Sept. 5, Oct. 17, and Dec. 19, 2014, and Feb. 20 and March 20, 2015.

The two new five-day departures mark the first time that Carnival has offered short-cruise itineraries on a Dream-class ship. One five-day program features the popular ports of Key West, Nassau and Freeport departing May 25 and Oct. 12, 2014, and March 15, 2015, while the other offers day-long visits to Nassau and Grand Turk departing Aug. 31 and Dec. 14, 2014, and Feb. 15, 2015.

The line has also created a new four-port, seven-day eastern Caribbean itinerary - unique to Port Canaveral - that includes stops at Grand Turk, San Juan, St. Thomas and Nassau. These attractive week-long cruises are being offered roughly once a month and complement Carnival Dream's existing seven-day western Caribbean cruises calling at Cozumel, Belize, Mahogany Bay, and Costa Maya that sail throughout the year.

The 3,646-passenger, 130,000-ton Carnival Dream launched year-round Caribbean service from Port Canaveral in 2009, ushering in a number of innovations for the line. These include a half-mile wraparound outdoor promenade called The Lanai, along with Ocean Plaza, a stunning indoor/outdoor café and entertainment venue, and Carnival WaterWorks featuring a 303-foot-long Twister water slide and other splash-tastic features.

The ship also features a wide variety of accommodation choices, including more than 1,000 balcony and ocean view staterooms - perfect for viewing the spectacular Caribbean scenery, as well as two-bath, five-berth staterooms that hold particular appeal with families. Expansive children's facilities, along with a Serenity adults-only retreat and a 23,750-square-foot Cloud 9 Spa, are also offered.