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Costa Crociere postpones restart to May

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 22 March 2021 22 March 2021

Costa Crociere the Italian company of Carnival Corporation & plc, said it has revised its plans moving its restart to May.

‘The decision has been taken in consideration of the restrictions still in place in Italy and other European countries to contain Covid-19. Such measures do not allow the Company to offer the best cruise vacations to its guests, especially for what concerns the experience ashore,’ the company said in a statement.

It had intended to resume cruising from Italian ports on 2& March.

In line with the new plan, Costa Smeralda's departure in Italy is planned for May 1, with an unchanged itinerary, sailing guests to beautiful Italian locations, with three and four day mini-cruises or alternatively a seven-day cruise, calling at Savona, La Spezia, Civitavecchia, Naples, Messina and Cagliari.

From June 12, Costa Smeralda will return to sailing one-week cruises in the western Mediterranean, with visits to Italy (Savona, Civitavecchia and Palermo), France (Marseille) and Spain (Barcelona and Palma de Mallorca).

The departure date of Costa Luminosa, the second Costa ship scheduled to resume service, is postponed to May 16. It will sail from Trieste, and the following day from Bari, confirming its program of one-week cruises in Greece and Croatia, in accordance with recent roadmap for the resumption of international tourism in Greece.

MSC Cruises plans to board passengers at three UK ports

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 22 March 2021 22 March 2021

MSC Cruises, which said last week that it would start UK domestic cruises on 20 May, plans to board passengers at three different ports.

These would be Southampton, Liverpool and Glasgow, CEO Gianni Onorato said in a webcast interview. Until 21 June, the maximum number of passengers would be limited to 1,000 and normal levels boarded after that, in line with UK government rules, he said in the interview with Travel Weekly.

The current plan is to use the 92,000 gross ton MSC Magnifica on this itinerary, but Onorato said the decision would be made in the near future as part of the company’s other restart plans.

It is also possible that a larger ship or two ships might be used, he added.

Royal Caribbean's Adventure of the Seas to sail from the Bahamas this summer

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: More News More News; Published: 19 March 2021 19 March 2021

Royal Caribbean International has announced a summer lineup of 7-night cruises on board Adventure of the Seas, setting sail this June from new homeport Nassau, The Bahamas. Vacationers now have the chance to island-hop and relish the adventures they have missed, including the first series of two back-to-back days on Perfect Day at CocoCay, Royal Caribbean’s game-changing private island destination in The Bahamas, and quality time exploring Grand Bahama Island, The Bahamas and Cozumel, Mexico.

Travelers looking ahead to their summer vacations can book their roundtrip cruise as soon as Wednesday, March 24 and set sail starting June 12. The new itineraries departing through August, which will sail with vaccinated crew, will be available to adult guests who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and those under the age of 18 with negative test results.

“We are excited to get back to delivering memorable vacations in the Caribbean, gradually and safely. The vaccines are clearly a game changer for all of us, and with the number of vaccinations and their impact growing rapidly, we believe starting with cruises for vaccinated adult guests and crew is the right choice. As we move forward, we expect this requirement and other measures will inevitably evolve over time,” said Michael Bayley, president and CEO, Royal Caribbean International. “The opportunity to homeport in The Bahamas is a testament to the tremendous partners the government and the people of the island nation have been to us for more than 50 years. We are grateful for the confidence that they have in us and our commitment to a healthy and happy return to sailing.”

Star Cruises re-starts cruise operations in Malaysia

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: More News More News; Published: 19 March 2021 19 March 2021

Genting Cruise Lines and Penang Port Sdn. Bhd (PPSB) have announced their plans to restart cruises in Penang with Star Cruises, offering Langkawi itineraries beginning May 13, 2021 at the start of the Hari Raya Aidilfitri Holidays on Star Cruises’ 40,053 gross ton Star Pisces cruise ship, which can accommodate up to 1,600 passengers.

The proposed Langkawi cruises will comprise of 2-Night Langkawi Escape and a series of 1-night Straits of Malacca Cruises. Star Pisces will become the first ship to resume sailings in Malaysia and one of the few in the world, contributing to the growth of tourism in Penang and Pulau Langkawi.

“Like all Malaysians, we have been eagerly looking forward to another vacation alternative during this period when overseas travel is not permitted,” said Cynthia Lee, VP for Genting Cruise Lines in Malaysia. “The new Langkawi itineraries will provide Malaysians the opportunity to enjoy the pleasures of cruising again and will bring much-needed benefits to the local workforce, airlines, restaurants, retailers and hotels for pre- and post-cruise stays in Penang and Langkawi.”

“The cruise services have always been the cornerstone in Penang, and what gave Penang its distinctiveness. With the persistent issue of the COVID-19 pandemic that has curbed domestic tourism, supporting the Genting Cruise Lines on ensuring safe and comfortable cruise trips is important to jumpstart the local cruise sector. As such, we will work closely with Genting Cruise Lines to relaunch the cruise trips with safety in mind and without sacrificing safety and quality,” Said Dato’ Sasedharan Vasudevan, CEO of Penang Port Sdn. Bhd. “We hope with this synergy we can witness higher standards of quality for the cruise services sector and revitalise the domestic tourism industry.”

Importantly, the resumption of cruises will revitalize the ailing travel agent sector which has been adversely affected by the pandemic and provide employment opportunities for more citizens.

Cruise resumption will benefit the whole value chain related to goods, services and materials associated with cruise operations, which Genting Cruise Lines has been advocating as part of its guiding principle in rebuilding the cruise economy for each of the homeports where cruise operations can re-start.

Cruise analyst raises price targets for three industry majors - report

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 19 March 2021 19 March 2021

A leading cruise industry analyst has increased price targets for the three listed major cruise shipping groups, a media report said

Robin Farley, analyst at UBS Securities in New York raised its price target for Carnival Corporation by 110% from $20 to $42 per share, which represents an approximate 45% upside from its actual current share price, a report on The Motley Fool, the investor website, said.

“UBS kept its ratings the same for Royal Caribbean (Cruises Limited) at buy and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings at neutral. However, it upped its price target for both companies, bumping its Norwegian price target upward 52.4% from $21 to $32 per share, and raising Royal Caribbean 46.8% from $79 to $116,” the report stated.