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NCL
took delivery of the Pride of Hawaii April 19th at a ceremony
in the Dutch port of Eemshaven after a delay due to problems with the
ship's Azipod propulsion system. NCL said the Pride of Hawaii would
arrive in Baltimore by the end of this month, and after a series of
inaugural events in San Francisco and Los Angeles in May it will
begin sailing out of Honolulu June 5. The shipbuilder, Meyer Werft,
said in a statement that it had changed the bearings in the ship's
pod system "as a measure of precaution."
The Pride
of Hawaii is the largest and most expensive U.S.-flagged
passenger ship ever built, NCL said. The 2,400-passenger, 93,500-ton
ship cost more than $500 million and will employ 1,000 crewmembers.
Two other NCL
ships are currently under construction at the Meyer Werft yard. The
Norwegian Pearl and the Norwegian Gem will be delivered
end of 2006 and fall 2007, respectively.
Welcome
The Queen!
The
Queen Mary 2 sailed into the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, its
new New York homeport, for the first time on April 15. All went
smoothly at the $56 million facility, with one snag: some people who
disembarked the QM2 from a Caribbean cruise waited more than two
hours for buses to take them on a city tour before going to the
airport. Jackie Matthews, a Cunard Line spokeswoman, said the private
bus company has "made accommodations that will ensure a smooth
operation in the future" and that "the motorcoach parking
area will be changed to accommodate more coaches and allow more
efficient loading of the coaches."
ICCL
advises members take action to help thwart balcony fires
The
International Council of Cruise Lines urged its members to take
“immediate action” in response to the fire aboard the Star
Princess last month and released a suggested plan of action to guard
against exterior fires.
Celebrity’s
'07-'08 Europe itineraries to feature several firsts for line
Celebrity
Cruises says it will deploy more ships and operate more itineraries
in Europe from 2007 to 2008 -- many of the itineraries offered
including maiden calls -- than it has since it first crossed the
Atlantic in 1999.
In April 2007,
the Galaxy will make Celebrity’s first calls in Casablanca and
Agadir, Morocco. The ship will then sail for the first time through
the Bosporus Strait, en route to its Black Sea itineraries where it
will make the line’s first stops in Limasol, Cyprus, and
Alexandria, Egypt. On the way back to Fort Lauderdale, the ship will
call in the Canary Island’s new port of Santa Cruz.
The
Constellation will make the line’s first call in Cornwall,
England, on a transatlantic sailing in April 2007 from Fort
Lauderdale to Dover, England. In April 2008 the ship will make
Celebrity’s first call in Brest, in the Bretagne region of
France, and Cherbourg, in the Normandy region of France.
The Millennium
will visit Europe in March 2007, and will include new calls in ports
such as La Rochelle, France; Bilbao, Spain; and Tangier, Morocco.
The Century,
coming off a $55 million refurbishment this May, will sail to
Northern Europe in spring 2007. The ship will operate Celebrity’s
first Scotland and Ireland cruise, sailing from Amsterdam in May.
Regent
extends Le Cordon Bleu partnership
Since 2001,
passengers have benefited from Regent Seven Seas Cruises’
partnership with Le Cordon Bleu through dinners at
‘Signatures’ restaurants and in ‘Classe Culinaire des
Croísières’ workshops.
Now, on select
sailings, Regent will offer pre- and post-cruise ‘Master
Class’ shore trips focused on the regional gastronomy of Paris,
Monte Carlo, Tokyo and Sydney
Aker
Finnyards delivers Freedom
Aker Finnyards
delivered Freedom of the Seas to Royal Caribbean International
on April 24th in Hamburg. The new world’s largest cruise ship
has been in Germany to undergo final drydock work at Blohm+Voss.
A reception for around 1,800 guests was held on board today while an
estimated 100,000 spectators went to the port to see the ship. Freedom
of the Seas will remain in Hamburg for a series of events before
sailing to Oslo for festivities. The ship will be in Southampton from
April 29 until May 3 when it departs for its Atlantic crossing.
San
Francisco commends Dawn Princess
Shipboard
programs to reduce air and water pollution while operating in San
Francisco Bay have earned recognition for Dawn Princess. The
Port of San Francisco gave the vessel its gold-level Cruise Ship
Environmental Award for 2005.
Panama
Canal plans $5.25bn expansion
The Panama
Canal Authority plans to build a new lane to double capacity and
enable post-Panamax ships to transit the 50-mile waterway. The
project is estimated at $5.25bn and will be paid by users through a
graduated toll system.
The plans were
announced last week by Panamanian President Martín Torrijos in
a televised ‘town hall’ meeting. The expansion has been
recommended by the canal’s board of directors but must be
approved by voters.
The expansion
is needed for Panama to keep up with the trend of huge new container
ships. But it also could have a dramatic impact on cruise deployment.
Currently 21 post-Panamax cruise ships are in operation with 17 more
under contract.
The project
will create a new lane of traffic through the construction of a new
set of locks. Canal entrances at the Atlantic and Pacific channels
will be widened and deepened, along with the navigational channel at
Gatun Lake. One lock complex will be located on the Pacific side to
the southwest of the existing Miraflores Locks and the other will go
east of the existing Gatun Locks.
Construction
would be completed by 2014.
Operations
will not be interrupted by the expansion, the Panama Canal Authority
said, since no current lanes will be closed and all construction
sites are outside of existing channels and operating areas.
US port
worker security checks to begin
The U.S.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the start of name-based
background checks on nearly 400,000 port workers within the United States.
The checks are
an initial measure as the department rolls out a nationwide
biometric-based Transportation Worker Identification Credential
(TWIC) in 2006. Cruise facilities like Port Canaveral have
participated in TWIC’s prototype phase.
Celebrity
trio returns to Alaska in ’07
Bookings
opened last week for Celebrity Cruises’ 2007 Alaska season when Summit,
Infinity and Mercury return to the 49th state. The
season includes two new West Coast wine cruises. Land tour
options are available in conjunction with Summit and Infinity
voyages. The 24 choices range from three to six nights. |
