TUI Cruises to introduce Green & Fair shore excursions

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

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Published: 04 July 2013 04 July 2013

TUI Cruises, the Hamburg based premium market cruise shipping company, says it is introducing Grün & Fair – Green & Fair- shore excursions from the start of the 2013/14 winter season.

 Passengers who book these excursions will participate in efforts to protect and maintain cultural and natural treasures in the destination. And the company will donate €5 per each booking made in this category towards a local environmental organisation to support its work.

The company has two ships at the moment, which will cruise in the Canaries and the Caribbean, respectively, in the forthcoming winter season. A third ship is due to be delivered from the STX Finland shipyard in the spring.

 

Thomson Cruises to base Thomson Majesty in Malaga in March 2014

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

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Published: 04 July 2013 04 July 2013

Thomson Cruises, which is part of the London based TUI travel plc group, says Malaga in Spain will be a new winter home port for Thomson Majesty as of March 2014; a first for Thomson Cruises.

“Along with four enticing new itineraries, a new destination, new cruise-and-stay combinations and an exciting shore excursions programme, customers booking a cruise sailing from Malaga will receive a free all inclusive upgrade,” the company said in a statement.

It will offer a series of seven and 14 night cruises from the Spanish port on the 42,746 gross ton ship that was built in 1992.

Bimini SuperFast fails U.S.Coast Guard inspection

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

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Published: 04 July 2013 04 July 2013

Bimini SuperFast, a fast ropax ferry that the Malaysia based Genting group had planned to operrate between Miami and its Bimini casino in the Bahamas, has failed to meet to meet U.S. Coast Guard requirements. “Originally scheduled to set sail last Friday, it is now unclear when the ship will begin carrying passengers to the Resorts World Bimini casino,” the Miami erald reports.

The 32,000 gross ton vessel that was bult in Germany in 2001 and its operators failed tests gauging performance in emergency situations, said Janet Espino-Young, chief of the inspection division at the U.S. Coast Guard. The crew couldn’t meet the requirement that passengers must be off the ship and in lifeboats within 30 minutes, she said. Emergency sources of power and the mechanism that allows lifeboats to drop from the ship malfunctioned, she said. There was an “overall lack of proficiency by the crew to respond to an emergency situation,” she said.

On Saturday, Espino-Young said, the Genting ship crew successfully lowered the lifeboats and performed an evacuation drill. However, the Coast Guard will continue working with the crew because outstanding discrepancies still remain.

Bimini SuperFast received safety inspections overseas after it was built in 2001. Panama then certified the ship to carry passengers. Before Miami, the cruise ship operated out of the Greek isles. The Genting ship had never entered U.S. waters until two weeks ago, Espino-Young said. The company was under the impression that the ship’s previous certification from Panama meant simpler safety inspections in U.S. waters.

But since it docked in Miami and will carry passengers from American ports to the Bimini casino, the SuperFast faces much stricter safety standards that are enforced by the Coast Guard, Espino-Young said. “Even if it is a two- to three-hour trip to Bimini, we need to make sure passengers are not put in high-stress, threatening situations,” she said according to Miami Herald.

Bimini SuperFast is one of 12 fast ropax ferrriers that the Athens based SuperFast ferries built at the turn of the millennium for use on a number of domestic and international services. It has a cruising speed of 30 knots and it can carry 1,500 passengers.

Fred. Olsen’s Balmoral to star in six part BBC documentary

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

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Published: 03 July 2013 03 July 2013

Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines says it was proud to work with the BBC this year to film a six-part documentary series aboard its flagship Balmoral, called 'The Cruise: A Life at Sea', which will be broadcast on BBC2 from Tuesday 9 July 2013, at 8.30pm.

This gentle, heart-warming observational documentary, produced by the BBC's Religion and Ethics Department, is based on The Mission to Seafarers' Anglican Chaplain, Reverend Colin Still, as he travels around the globe aboard Balmoral's 112-night 'World Cruise', giving advice, support and solace to his floating 'parish at sea'.

Viewers will be able to join the ship as she departs from Southampton on 5th January 2013 and visits 33 exotic destinations, taking in 20 countries and crossing three oceans, before returning to the UK on 27th April 2013.

With over 1,700 guests and crew on board, Reverend Still is very much in demand; during this epic 'Grand Voyage', we see him conducting services, renewing wedding vows, escorting shore tours, giving spiritual advice and guidance to guests and crew, whatever their religion, and taking part in all the fun aboard this sunshine cruise - Fred. Olsen's longest ever.

 Nathan Philpot, Sales and Marketing Director for Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, said: "We were very excited to undertake our most ambitious filming project with the BBC earlier this year, which we hope will give viewers a real flavour of life on board with Fred. Olsen, and the valuable role that the Chaplain plays during a cruise.

"Our thanks go to Reverend Still for his hard work during his four months aboard Balmoral, and we hope that viewers enjoy this engaging look 'behind the scenes' at what we do and where we can take you."

Reverend Still, from Brighton, has cruised with Fred. Olsen several times, including to the Amazon and on a previous 'World Cruise'. He is a long-standing Chaplain with The Mission to Seafarers, which provides counselling and support services to seafarers around the world.

Reverend Still said: “I am delighted to have been a part of this new BBC programme and work with Fred. Olsen and The Mission to Seafarers. This job is a valuable piece of Christian ministry, listening to and supporting those who wanted to talk to me. I most enjoyed building a bond of trust with passengers and the crew on the long voyage, and I particularly enjoyed the marriage renewal ceremonies, as they are such happy occasions. In terms of the challenges I faced, the work takes a lot of creative energy, being on duty all the time. That said, this important work has given me the opportunity to see so much of the world; we passed through both the Panama and Suez canals, visited New Zealand and Australia, Singapore, and Sri Lanka. The Mission to Seafarers has seafarers’ rest and support centres in all of these places, so I valued meeting new faces in the global Mission family.”