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Carnival working with CDC to determine cause of virus outbreak
Carnival Cruise Lines has determined that several guests on the
Carnival Liberty were ill with norovirus-like symptoms just prior to
boarding the ship in Rome on Nov. 3. The line revealed its findings
Nov. 19 when the cruise ended in Port Everglades, Fla.
A suspected norovirus outbreak on the transatlantic sailing from Rome
to Fort Lauderdale infected 536 passengers and 143 crew members, the
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Carnival
reported. The Carnival Liberty was carrying 2,804 guests and 1,166
crew members total on the Rome-Fort Lauderdale cruise.
Carnival said that of the nearly 700 infected guests and crewmembers
on the Nov. 3 cruise, only 14 guests and five crewmembers still
exhibited symptoms and were in isolation at the end of the voyage.
UPDATE: A Florida County Medical Examiner is
investigating the deaths of two passengers on the Carnival Liberty's
Nov. 3 transatlantic sailing, during which a suspected norovirus
outbreak affected 536 passengers and 143 crew members. Carnival
Cruise Lines said that the passengers who died on the cruise had
heart-related issues which, in the opinion of Carnival's medical
staff, were a primary factor in their deaths, not norovirus. A
medical examiner from Broward County, Fla., is investigating the
deaths. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is still
trying to determine the cause of the outbreak on the voyage, which
sailed from Rome to Fort Lauderdale.
Analyst notes continued hike in demand for Caribbean cruises
Cruise pricing and booking trends are improving and demand for Royal
Caribbean International is the strongest among the major cruise
brands, according to a monthly survey conducted by Bank of America
(BofA) leisure analyst Michael Savner.
In its third Monthly Cruise Line Survey, Savner said that Caribbean
demand was on the rise for the third consecutive month in October,
with the Caribbean demand index rising to 46.8 points during the
month from 39.5 points in August
Princess adds scrapbooking
Princess Cruises launched a Scrapbooking@Sea program that offers
classes and a $24.95 scrapbooking kit with themed pages designed
exclusively for the line. The program begins rolling out to select
ships this month, and is expected to be available across the fleet by
early 2007.
Barcelona on track for 1.4m passengers
The Port of Barcelona handled 1.29m passengers in the first 10 months
of 2006, an increase of 14.6% over the same period of 2005, and
slightly more than the total for all 12 months of last year or 2004.
Costa Maya prepares for ‘historic’ call
Puerto Costa Maya is preparing for a maiden call from Queen Mary 2 on
Nov. 29. The Cunard liner’s arrival will be an historic
occasion, said César Lizárraga, director of sales and
marketing for the port.
QM2 will visit as part of a seven-day ‘Dreamer’s Western
Caribbean’ voyage roundtrip from Fort Lauderdale. Other stops on
the route are Montego Bay, Grand Cayman and Cozumel.
Fast growing Costa Maya last February celebrated the arrival of its
two millionth passenger.
Celebrity cooks up culinary series
Celebrity Cruises will serve its fourth annual ‘Savor the
Caribbean’ series, featuring noted chefs and restaurateurs, on
Millennium’s weekly Eastern Caribbean sailings from Jan. 7
through March 4.
Guest chefs will include, for example, Allen Susser, creator of
‘Palm Tree Cuisine’ (Jan. 7); Cindy Hutson, owner of
Ortanique and known for her South American, Asian, Caribbean and
American fusion influences (Jan. 14); and ‘Caribbean cowboy’
Johnny Vinczencz, owner of Johnny V (Jan. 21).
Passengers will be able to take part in cooking classes, with two
courses per cruise limited to eight people. Each two-hour class is
$59. Bacardi will also sponsor a class on how to make the perfect mojito.
In addition, culinary-inspired excursions are on tap. In San Juan,
for example, passengers can attend a cooking demonstration with chef
Robert Trevino at The Parrot Club, with lunch that includes
traditional Puerto Rican fare and The Parrot Club’s ‘Parrot
Passions’ rum drink.
Singapore Cruise Centre to celebrate
A gala dinner to celebrate Singapore Cruise Centre’s 15th
anniversary takes place at the terminal on November 25. SCC president
Cheong Teow Cheng and chairman George Huang will welcome guests
including Guest of Honour S Iswaran, Singapore’s Minister of
State, Ministry of Trade & industry.
Earlier this year the Singapore Cruise Centre received its 10
millionth cruise passenger - one of more than 500 passengers who
arrived on Star Cruises’ SuperStar Gemini.
MSC scores varied music themes
MSC Cruises plans a number of music theme sailings in 2007, ranging
from Big Band to dance to classical.
Big Band themes are set for MSC Opera’s 11-night roundtrip
cruises from Fort Lauderdale on Jan. 14, Feb. 5 and 27, and March 21.
The 15-piece Tommy Dorsey Orchestra will perform under the direction
of trombonist Buddy Morrow. Other guests include featured vocalists
and emcee and original New York City ‘Morning Mayor’ Herb
Oscar Anderson.
Fifth cruise terminal planned at Venice
Venice is investing heavily in additional cruise infrastructure to
cater for increasing traffic which is projected to reach 447 ships
and 885,058 passengers by the end of this year. This represents an
8.5% increase in passengers compared to 2005 and a 28% jump in the
past three years.
Last Friday saw the inauguration of new 4,300sq mtr Terminal 117, the
port’s fourth dedicated cruise ship facility. Roberto Perocchio,
managing director of Venice Passenger Terminal (VTP), said work on a
fifth terminal is already underway.
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