Viking River Cruises names six new Longships in Amsterdam
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- Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä
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- Published: 02 March 2016 02 March 2016
Viking River Cruises yesterday welcomed the latest additions to its fleet with the christening of six new Viking Longships during a waterfront celebration in Amsterdam. Recognizing the contribution the travel trade has made to the growth of the river cruise industry, Viking honored six of its key partners by naming them as ceremonial godmothers for the six new ships.
This christening event marks another year of impressive expansion for Viking, occurring just two years after the company set a second Guinness World Record for the most new ships launched in a single day, and just one month before Viking Ocean Cruises launches its second ship, Viking Sea. Of the six new Longships, four will be deployed on Viking’s most popular itineraries on the Rhine, Main and Danube Rivers; the remaining two will sail the Seine River on Viking’s Paris and the Heart of Normandy itinerary. Later this month, Viking will also debut a seventh new river ship for 2016, Viking Osfrid, which is inspired by the Longships design and specifically built for the Douro River, bringing the company’s total number of ships in Portugal to three.
“River cruising remains one of the fastest-growing segments of travel, and we would not be the leading river cruise line without the help of travel agents,” said Torstein Hagen, chairman of Viking Cruises. “The naming of ships by ceremonial godmothers is a naval tradition that dates back thousands of years. The partners we have chosen to name our newest ships are experts in their field, and as Viking has marketed the concept of river cruises over the last two decades, they have always recognized our value in the industry. We are honored to have their support and their participation in this year’s celebration.”
Norwegian names China based Norwegian Joy, launches logo and name for Chinese market
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- Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen
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- Published: 29 February 2016 29 February 2016
Norwegian Cruise Line, the contemporary market unit in the Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, Ltd. group, has unveiled the English and Chinese names for the world’s first purpose-built cruise liner for the China market.
“The most innovative ship ever styled exclusively for Chinese guests has been named ‘Norwegian Joy’ – translating into Chinese as 喜悦号 (Xǐ Yuè Hào).The name Norwegian Joy emphasizes the experience that the ship will offer -- 尽享喜悦海上乐园, a promise that guests will ‘Experience Paradise on the Sea,” the company said in a statement.
“After closely studying the Chinese cruise market for several years, we wanted to be clear about what we will deliver to our guests on this spectacular vessel,” said Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Chief Executive Officer Frank Del Rio. “Norwegian Joy will provide the same sense of freedom and flexibility found on all Norwegian Cruise Line ships, but with resort-style vacation experiences and amenities designed specifically with the Chinese guest in mind.”
With a capacity of 3,900 guests, the Breakaway Plus-class vessel will debut in China in Summer 2017. Norwegian Joy is designed specifically for the Chinese traveler, with cuisine and onboard experiences that cater to the unique vacation preferences of Chinese guests the subtleties of Chinese culture and preferences.
“Chinese guests will discover an unmatched quality of service, cuisine, entertainment and retail experience onboard Norwegian Joy that is simply not available in the China market today,” said Senior Vice President and Managing Director of China, David Herrera. “With Norwegian Joy, we will unquestionably offer our Chinese guests a superior product and introduce a new standard of innovation and excellence into what will soon be the world’s second largest cruise market.” Additional details, including the ship’s homeport, accommodations, dining and entertainment will be shared in the coming months.
In addition to the ship name, Norwegian has also revealed a new Chinese name and logo exclusively for the mainland China market. The company’s name will be represented by characters 诺唯真 (Nuò Wéi Zhēn), translating as a ‘Promising, Exclusive and Authentic’ cruise line.
Former Sun Princess of 1972 capsized at Laem Chabang
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- Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen
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- Published: 29 February 2016 29 February 2016
Ocean Dream, which was built as Spirit of London in 1972 and renamed Sun Princess two years later, has capsized and partially sunk at the port of Laem Chabang in Thailand, a local media report says.
The vessel was last owned by undisclosed Chinese principals.
Originally ordered by Norwegian Caribbean Lines –as the company then was called – as a sister vessel to their 1971 built Southward – it was sold to P&O Cruises in the UK after the Norwegian company had refused to accept a higher price the Italian yard demanded for the second ship.
Introduced in 1972 as Spirit of London, the 17,370 gross ton ship was renamed Sun Princess in 1974 after P&O had acquired Princess Cruises. After it left the Princess fleet in 1988, it went through several changes of name and ownership.
The ship should not be confused with the current Sun Princess that was built in 1995 and which remains in service.
AIDAprima to be named in Hamburg 7 May
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- Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen
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- Published: 29 February 2016 29 February 2016
AIDAPrima, the first of two 124,500 gross ton newbuildings of AIDA Cruises from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Japan, will be named at Hamburg on 7 May, the company said in a statement.
The event will be part of the annual Hamburg Port Anniversary – the one this year will be the 827th – that will run from 5 to 8 May.
AIDA Cruises, which is part of Carnival Corporation & plc, said the much delayed ship would enter service on its seven day northern European itinerary on 30 April.
Carnival Maritime collaborates with the Hamburg Vessel Coordination Center
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- Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä
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- Published: 26 February 2016 26 February 2016
As of end of February, Carnival Maritime collaborates with the Hamburg Vessel Coordination Center (HVCC) in order to optimally plan the movements of the AIDA and Costa cruise ships in the Port of Hamburg and the narrow river Elbe. For this purpose, Carnival Maritime is sharing the expected arrival and departure times of the ships with the "Nautische Terminal Koordination” (nautical terminal coordination, NTK), a department of the HVCC. The department constantly matches this information with the current traffic situation and keeps Carnival Maritime informed. Should it for instance be predictable that there will be waiting time involved if the ship maintains the speed, because a Costa Group ship interferes with another large vessel, the NTK can recommend to speed up a little bit. Vice versa, an obstruction can be avoided by slightly reducing the speed. Carnival Maritime shares this information with the respective ship’s command so that they can optimize their speed. "This saves on fuel, because it reduces waiting times," explains Jörgen Strandberg, Director Fleet Operations Center at Carnival Maritime. "Being even more punctual is a great advantage to us, because the cruise ship will generally have to make up for lost time afterwards. To do so, it will increase its speed and thus its fuel consumption and emissions."
Predictability doesn't just mean saving on fuel and emissions, it also provides advantages for cruise guests. They find out in good time about any adjustments to the travel schedule, and can therefore adapt their activities and enjoy their journey to the fullest.
The HVCC is a central, port-wide coordination center for mega-ship, feeder and inland vessel traffic in the Port of Hamburg.
Within the HVCC the NTK department supports port authorities and companies as well as ocean carriers on a smooth traffic of the increasing number of large ships in the Port of Hamburg. "We are very pleased that Carnival Maritime is collaborating with us," states Heinrich Goller, the CEO of HVCC. "The more partners we win for our services, the better we can coordinate the large vessels. It is our goal to recognize potential conflict situations at the river Elbe at an early stage and to make early suggestions to our partners how to avoid the situation.”
The HVCC is a joint venture of the Port of Hamburg's two container-terminal operators, Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA) and EUROGATE Container Terminal Hamburg GmbH (CTH).