Carnival prices $2.4 billion notes to refinance more expensive debt

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

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Published: 22 July 2021 22 July 2021

Carnival Corporation & plc, the Anglo-American cruise shipping group, said it has priced private offering of $2,405.5 million aggregate principal amount of 4.000% first-priority senior secured notes due 2028

“The offering of the New Notes is expected to close on July 26, 2021 subject to customary closing conditions,” the company said in a statement.

The new notes notes will pay interest semi-annually on February 1 and August 1 of each year, beginning on February 1, 2022, at a rate of 4.000% per year. They will mature on August 1, 2028.

Carnival expects to use the net proceeds from the offering of the New Notes to fund its previously announced tender offer to purchase up to $2,004,000,000 aggregate principal amount of 11.500% First Priority Senior Secured Notes due 2023 and the related consent solicitation, and the payment of accrued and unpaid interest on these notes accepted for purchase and related fees and expenses.

“The New Notes' 4.000% interest rate will replace existing debt carrying an 11.500% coupon and generate $135 million of interest savings annually,” the company said.

Carnival group expects to have 75% of capacity in service by year end

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

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Published: 21 July 2021 21 July 2021

 

 

Carnival Corporation & plc, the world’s largest cruise shipping group, said it expects three quarters of its capacity to be in service by the end of the year.

Eight of the groups’s nine brands – AIDA Cruises, Carnival Cruise Line, Costa Cruises, Cunard, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, P&O Cruises (UK) and Seabourn – have announced plans to resume guest operations on 54 ships to date through the end of 2021, with nearly half of the capacity represented by ships homeported in the US.

In addition to those ships previously announced by the company's brands, Carnival Cruise Line's intent to return to full fleet service in 2021 would add another nine vessels, totaling 63 ships to date that are expected to resume guest operations this year. 

Only P&O Cruises Australia has not given a date yet to resume operations.

Further brand restart announcements are expected in coming weeks, including resumption plans for more ships and itineraries for 2021.

“Collectively, the brands are continuing to resume operations from ports around the world using a gradual, phased-in approach, including sailings in the US, Caribbean, Europe and Mediterranean, along with itineraries planned in Central America and to Antarctica, among others,” Carnival said in a statement.

The following summarises Carnival group’s brand restart announcements to date through the end of 2021.

North America Brands:

• Carnival Cruise Line resumed guest cruise operations with three ships to date sailing out of two U.S. ports, Galveston and Miami, and has announced its intent to have 15 ships in operation by the end of October and to have its entire fleet sailing by the end of the year.
• Princess Cruises will resume guest cruise operations this weekend with its first ship sailing from Seattle to Alaska, and will expand with a series of cruises around UK coastal waters in late July, as well as cruises out of Los Angeles, San Francisco and Fort Lauderdale to the Caribbean, Panama Canal, Mexico, Hawaii and California coast in the fall, with eight total ships expected to be in operation by the end of the year.
• Holland America Line will resume guest cruise operations this weekend with its first ship sailing from Seattle to Alaska, followed by sailings from Greece in August, and from Italy and Spain in September, as well as sailings to Mexico, Hawaii, the California coast and the Caribbean this fall for a total of six ships expected to be in operation by the end of the year. 
• Seabourn resumed guest cruise operations with two ships to date sailing from Greece and Barbados, and plans to begin the Antarctica season in November with a third ship.

Europe & Asia Brands:

• Costa Cruises resumed guest cruise operations in May with sailings in Italy and Greece, and the line is now offering sailings to France and Spain, to be followed by sailings to Portugal and Turkey in September for a total of seven ships expected to be sailing in the Mediterranean by the end of the year.
• AIDA Cruises resumed guest cruise operations in March sailing in the Canary Islands and in May with sailings in Greece and Germany. The line is now offering additional sailings out of Germany as well as upcoming sailings in Spain, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands and the Persian Gulf from late July to December for a total of nine ships expected to be in operation by the end of the year.
• P&O Cruises (UK) resumed guest cruise operations with a series of summer sailings around UK coastal waters that started in June, and plans to expand to the Mediterranean, the Atlantic coast and the Caribbean starting in September for a total of four ships expected to be in operation by the end of the year.
• Cunard will resume guest cruise operations in August with one ship sailing UK coastal cruises, followed by sailings to the Iberian coast and Canary Islands, and plans to expand with a second ship returning to service in November with a combination of transatlantic crossings and Caribbean cruises.

"With strong ongoing demand for cruising, we look forward to serving our guests with additional ships announced across eight of our brands and nearly three-quarters of our fleet capacity returning by the end of this year, marking an important milestone for our company and all those who rely on the strong economic impacts generated by the global cruise industry," said Roger Frizzell, chief communications officer for Carnival Corporation & plc.

Saga Cruises hopes to grow fleet after second ship named – report

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

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Published: 20 July 2021 20 July 2021

 

 

 

 

Saga Cruises, which is part of the listed UK based travel to financial services group Saga plc, plans to grow its fleet from the present two ships, Saga Travel CEO Nick Stace has been quoted as saying.

 “I have the ambition that we can become the obvious operator for people who want quality, safe, affordable cruising and I really would like to see us not just with two ships but with many more,” Stace said at the naming ceremony of Spirit of Adventure in Portsmouth on Monday, according to Travel Weekly.

Spirit of Discovery that was delivered by Meyer Werft in 2019 and Spirit of Adventure that was completed last year are both ships of 58,250 gross tons and both can accommodate 999 passengers.  “We have landed on a design which is beautiful, but which is also fitting with the current climate…“Our size is not off-putting to guests, to ports or to local people and so we find ourselves in a happy place where we are much more Covid-safe and pandemic-prepared than others,” he was cited as saying.

 “The challenge is the cost and we have to grow in a sensible way. But our sales are fabulous and if anything, we are struggling to cope with the demand at the moment,” he concluded.

Saga entered the cruise sector in 1996 by purchasing Sagafjord from Cunard and naming the 1965 built ship Saga Rose and until the delivery of Spirit of Discovery, Saga Cruises relied on several second hand ships. The company only sells its cruises and other products to those aged 50 or more.

Carnival Cruise Line to return seven more ships to service

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

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Published: 20 July 2021 20 July 2021

Carnival Cruise Line, the US focused contemporary market unit in Carnival Corporation & plc group, said that three more ships would resume operations in September, and another four in October – bringing the total number of ships to 15 – as the line's successful restart of operations continues to ramp up.

Based on the success of its initial resumption of service and the guest response to the onboard experience and health and safety protocols that have been implemented, Carnival will continue to operate all its ships as vaccinated cruises through at least October.

The three ships for September are Carnival Glory from New Orleans, starting Sept. 5, Carnival Pride from Baltimore, starting Sept. 12, and Carnival Dream from Galveston, starting Sept. 19.

Turning to October, the four additional ships to restart will be Carnival Conquest from Miami, effective Oct. 8, Carnival Freedom from Miami, effective Oct. 9, Carnival Elation from Port Canaveral, effective Oct. 11, and Carnival Sensation from Mobile, effective Oct. 21.

Related to this announcement, Carnival is notifying guests and travel agents of an extension in its pause of operations through Sept. 5 for Carnival Pride from Baltimore, Sept. 11 for Carnival Dream from Galveston, Oct. 4 for Carnival Conquest from Miami and Oct. 16 for Carnival Sensation from Mobile. 

Cruises on Carnival Sunshine from Charleston, Carnival Ecstasy from Jacksonville and Carnival Liberty from Port Canaveral will be cancelled through Oct. 31. In addition, a three-day cruise on Carnival Miracle from Long Beach on Sept. 24 is being cancelled, and then Carnival Miracle will begin sailing from Long Beach on Sept. 27.

"We are very excited about our restart and greatly appreciate the support of our guests, travel agents and port and destination partners," said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line, in a statement.  "By the end of July, we will have five ships in our restart plan, including the introduction of service on Mardi Gras, and we are seeing a great combination of strong demand and strong guest satisfaction scores tied to the positive guest experience on board."