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Louis Cruises introduces Greek fusion a la carte dining option on two ships

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 19 August 2011 19 August 2011

Louis Cruises, the Cyprus based cruise shipping company, has announced a new a la carte dining option aboard two of its ships, the Louis Majesty and Louis Cristal that features Greek fusion cuisine. The new “Thalassa” restaurants are owned and operated by Christoforos Peskias, a renowned Greek Celebrity TV Chef & Restaurateur, and feature traditional Greek and Cypriot dishes that have been masterfully prepared with a modern twist.

Open for dinner only, cruise passengers onboard the Louis Majesty and Louis Cristal can experience this new alternative dining option for the price of $29.00 per person, per mea, the company said in a statement.

In collaboration with Greek Celebrity Chef Christoforos Peskias, the sophisticated recipes on this new dinner menu showcase the very best of contemporary Mediterranean gourmet cuisine. By combining authentic Greek dishes with modern culinary techniques, Peskias has created a fusion menu that features fresh, local and exotic Greek and Cypriot ingredients.

A sampling of the dishes offered at Thalassa includes the following: “Fava Santorinis” which is a yellow split pea puree from the island of Santorini that has been enhanced with caramelized onions, truffle oil and grilled octopus; braised lamb shank with an Olive Oil emulsion; marinated chicken souvlaki which is marinated with Limnos muscat wine, lemon, Greek yoghurt and mint sauce and much more, Louis Cruises said.

NCL teams up with renewable energy project company

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 17 August 2011 17 August 2011

Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) has announced a partnership with NextEra Energy Resources, North America's largest producer of wind and solar power, which provides the opportunity for Norwegian guests' to help build new renewable energy projects and offset their carbon footprint. This innovative program, a first within the cruise industry, is just one initiative amongst the many environmentally conscious efforts Norwegian is committed to through its award-winning Eco-Smart Cruising practices, NCL said in a statement.

"Guests sailing on Norwegian Cruise Line are able to voluntarily contribute $10 per person, per cruise through NextEra Energy Resources' EarthEra(r) Renewable Energy Trust via Norwegian's website at www.ncl.com/environment. The EarthEra Renewable Energy Trust will direct 100 percent of the funds received from Norwegian's North American guests to build new renewable energy facilities across the United States. "

"Across our fleet, we have implemented many of the most innovative environmental policies and technologies in the cruise industry. Our partnership with NextEra Energy Resources represents a first for the industry and furthers our commitment to the environment,"
said Kevin Sheehan, Norwegian's chief executive officer. "We are pleased to offer the opportunity for our guests to offset their carbon
footprint and help build renewable energy."

Oceania, Regent appoint vp charter and incentive sales

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 17 August 2011 17 August 2011

Katina Athanasiou has been appointed to the newly created position of vice president of charter and incentive sales for Regent Seven Seas Cruises and Oceania Cruises. In her new post, she will be tasked with broadening the charter and incentive sales business and building and maintaining group relationships for both lines. Athanasiou reports to Mark Conroy, president of Regent Seven Seas, and Bruce J. Himelstein, president of Oceania Cruises. Both companies are part of Prestige Cruise Holdings.

Athanasiou brings a wealth of industry knowledge and over 10 years in the charter and incentive group market. Most recently, she was in charter sales with Royal Caribbean International, where she was responsible for business development and marketing efforts to expand the customer base, as well as overseeing the planning and operations team that fulfilled full-ship charters.

Previously, Athanasiou was director of sales for 3D Destinations, where she was responsible for sourcing group incentive cruises and full-ship charters to corporate and incentive clientele. Prior to that, she worked at Regent Seven Seas Cruises, beginning as a sales coordinator and advancing to senior sales manager for charter and incentive sales.

"Katina's experience in sales and the planning and implementation of cruise programs worldwide will be a huge asset to both brands," said Conroy. "Both Regent Seven Seas and Oceania Cruises ships are an ideal fit for charter and incentive groups."

Much-traveled Cristal chartered to new venture Cuba Cruise

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 16 August 2011 16 August 2011

Cuba Cruise, a new company set up in Toronto, Canada, will employ Louis Cruises’ 25,611 gross ton Cristal on seven night cruises from Havana, with calls at Bahia Nipe, Cayo Guillermo, Santiago de Cuba, Cayo Caguama (a private island), Cienfuegos, Trinidad and Isla de la Juventud. In addition, it will feature six UNESCO World Heritage Sites and four national parks, Cruise Critic reports on its website.

A Cuba Cruise spokesman told Cruise Critic that Cristal will have fresh Canadian food shipped in weekly as well as Canadian beer and Cuban/international beverages, thus alleviating the problem of unreliable food provisioning that any cruise line in Cuba could face. Entertainment and front-office crew will, however, be Cuban, the report said.

The first cruise is scheduled to sail on 4 December.

Cristal was built in Finland in 1980 as cruise ferry Viking Saga and converted for short cruise service in the Baltic in 1985. A major fire devastated the ship five years later and it was completely rebuilt. The ship re-entered service in 1992 after the rebuilding had been completed as Sally Albatross, but only two years later it ran hard aground and was beached to prevent it from sinking. The ship again required extensive repairs.

Since the mid-1990s, it has traded as Leeward (NCL), SuperStar Taurus (Star cruises) and Silja Opera (Silja Line) before being sold to Louis Cruises in Cyprus in 2008 as replacement of their 22,090 gross ton Sea Diamond that sank after grounding off Santorini in Greece.

Costa Cruises resumes Japan itineraries

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: More News More News; Published: 13 August 2011 13 August 2011

Costa Cruises has announced the resumption of its Japan itineraries. On August 26th, 2011 Costa Classica will be leaving Shanghai for a 4-night cruise calling at Fukuoka (Japan), Cheju (South Korea) before returning to Shanghai.

This decision demonstrates Costa’s confidence in Japan’s tourism market and its support to the revitalization of the local tourism industry. Costa Classica cruises to Japan are very much appreciated especially by Costa Chinese guests. As the first international cruise company to enter the Chinese market, Costa Cruises has been operating cruise itineraries from China to Japan for more than five years. From August to October this year Costa Classica, home-ported in Shanghai, will operate a total of 12 cruises to Japan and South Korea. The wide selection of itineraries includes 3 very appealing Japanese destinations: Fukuoka, Nagasaki and Kagoshima: 4-night cruises to Fukuoka and Cheju (South Korea); a 6-day cruise to Pusan (South Korea), Fukuoka, Kagoshima; a 5-night cruise to Fukuoka, Nagasaki, Cheju (South Korea). Also on these Japan itineraries Costa Cruises will continue to offer its guests its extraordinary Italian style cruise experience.

In 2012, Costa is further expanding its operations in Asia and the Far East, with the deployment for the first time of the Costa Victoria (75,200 gross tonnage and 2,394 total passenger capacity), which will replace the Costa Classica (53,000 gross tonnage and 1,680 passengers). For the first time on these cruises the Costa Victoria will offer Guests the chance to book 246 veranda cabins and enjoy the splendid scenery of the Far East, including Japan, from the privacy of their own cabins. Thanks to the Costa Victoria positioning, Costa Cruises will increase its offer in the area by about 40%. In 2012 Costa Victoria will sail to an array of new destinations in Japan, including: the tropical paradise Hososhima/Miyazaki; Wakayama, which boasts the largest hot spring resort; Osaka, Japan’s second largest city; the popular sightseeing cities in the Kanto Area, Yokohama and Tokyo, the capital city.

According to the Japan National Tourism Organization (www.jnto.go.jp), a joint statement from the World Health Organization, the International Atomic Energy Agency, the World Meteorological Organization, the International Maritime Organization and the International Civil Aviation Organization has reaffirmed that operations can continue normally into and out of Japan's major airports and sea ports.