MSC for Me app to include new features on MSC Grandiosa

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

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Published: 17 June 2019 17 June 2019

MSC Cruises, the Geneva based cruise shipping company, said it has introduced new features for its MSC for Me multi-channel digital programme on MSC Grandiosa.

Since its introduction on board MSC Meraviglia in 2017, MSC Cruises has introduced this digital innovation programme on four more ships, MSC Seaside, MSC Seaview, MSC Splendida and MSC Bellissima, each time adding more features to improve guest experience

The new features that have been introduced this year encompass not only the onboard experience but also pre-cruise, so that guests can better plan everything they want to experience before they even set foot on board.

“These services include the option to book packages through the MSC for Me app and add them already to their persona agenda. Meanwhile on board new services such as the Friends & Family Locator and the MSC for Me Chat, help guests to stay connected with the people they are travelling with. All these innovations are designed to save valuable time for the guest that they can spend more time enjoying their holiday,” the company said in a statement.

In the latest update, guests can browse and select pre-paid packages. Drinks and specialty restaurant packages or shore excursions are all available to browse and purchase ahead of time at the very best prices.

Guests also can begin to plan their time aboard by adding selected pre-booked experiences to their pre-cruise personal agenda, whether it be excursions, specialty restaurant reservation or that exciting Cirque du Soleil at Sea show.

Pre-registering of a credit card through the app prior to the cruise is then one less thing that guests need to do when they embark, giving them more time to enjoy their holiday once on board is also a new feature.

 

Carnival Cruise Line announces senior officers for Mardi Gras

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

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Published: 16 June 2019 16 June 2019

Carnival Cruise Line has announced the appointment of the senior officers for its newest and most innovative ship, Mardi Gras, currently under construction at the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland and set to debut in summer 2020.

“For a ship as special as Mardi Gras, we’ve assembled an equally impressive team that has been hand-selected to deliver this unique expression of the Carnival vacation experience,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. “Mardi Gras’ crew will be led by some of the most talented and experienced mariners in cruising who will oversee the final stages of construction and usher in this exciting chapter of Carnival Cruise Line’s history.”

Mardi Gras’ senior officers will include:

– Captain Giuseppe Giusa: A 31-year veteran of the maritime industry, Captain Giusa joined Carnival in 1993 after serving as a sergeant in the Italian Navy. After working his way through the ranks at Carnival and serving on the start-up teams of seven of the company’s ships, Giusa was named captain of Carnival Ecstasy in 2004, making him the youngest officer ever appointed to this position. Most recently, he served as captain on Carnival Breeze. “The original Mardi Gras that debuted in 1972 set the tone for Carnival’s long history of Fun Ships. I am proud and honored to be a part of what this new Mardi Gras represents – a technologically advanced ship with exciting new ways for our guests to enjoy this truly unique vacation experience,” Giusa said.
– Chief Engineer Ferdinando Ruocco: A graduate of the Nino Bixio Nautical School in Piano di Sorrento, Italy, Ruocco joined Carnival in 1997 following a career in the tanker industry. He was named chief engineer of Carnival Triumph in 2010, and over the past nine years, has served in this capacity for six vessels, most recently Carnival Valor. He has also served as the fleet’s chief engineer working with Carnival Corporation’s Maritime Quality Assurance team to prepare the company for its two new Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)-powered vessels, which includes Mardi Gras, the first cruise ship in North America powered by this technology. “I am truly proud and honored to be a part of this groundbreaking journey which is a technological advancement for our company, as well as a professional development opportunity for our entire technical team,” Ruocco said.
– Hotel Director Pierre B. Camilleri – Now in his 16th year with Carnival, Camilleri joined the company in 2004 as hotel director after managing a variety of hotel and resort properties in his native Malta, as well as Europe and Asia. He has served as hotel director on several Carnival ships and has been part of the inaugural teams for the line’s last three newbuilds, traveling to Italy to oversee the delivery of Carnival Breeze, Carnival Vista and Carnival Horizon. “I am grateful and privileged to be selected to lead our experienced and talented hotel team onboard Mardi Gras. The features on this ship, from food offerings to entertainment venues, have been carefully chosen and are unmatched in the industry. The amazing Mardi Gras hardware, coupled with the extraordinary service for which Carnival is known, will allow us to offer an unsurpassed experience our guests will fondly remember as one of the best vacations ever,” Camilleri said.

These talented professionals will lead a team of more than 1,700 dedicated crew members who will travel to Turku, Finland, to prepare the ship for its inaugural Aug. 31, 2020 voyage – a nine-day cruise from Copenhagen to Southampton. The ship will then reposition to New York for a series of voyages before arriving in Port Canaveral, Fla., for year-round seven-day Caribbean sailings beginning in October.

Mardi Gras will feature a number of innovations as well, including BOLT, the first roller coaster at sea; the first seagoing restaurant by legendary chef Emeril Lagasse; and a variety of new accommodation choices, including the premium Carnival Excel suites with special amenities and access to a new resort-style, open-air enclave, Loft 19.

Carnival Corporation’s brands lead cruise industry with sailings to Panama Canal

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

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Published: 13 June 2019 13 June 2019

Carnival Corporation & plc has established its position as the leader in Panama Canal cruises, with more ships sailing to and through one of the world’s greatest marvels than any other cruise provider. Six of Carnival Corporation’s global cruise line brands will sail partially or completely through the Panama Canal during its upcoming peak season, which will run from fall 2019 through spring 2020. This will be the third full cruise season since the Canal’s historic 2016 expansion.

Collectively, Carnival Corporation’s brands visiting the region – Carnival Cruise Line, Cunard, Holland America Line, P&O Cruises (UK), Princess Cruises and Seabourn – have 26 ships currently scheduled to enter the expanded locks connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, representing roughly one-quarter of the corporation’s global fleet. Just in the upcoming Panama Canal cruise season, Carnival Corporation has over 70 cruises planned to make partial or full visits.

“Cruising is all about providing our guests with extraordinary experiences at an exceptional value, and since our cruise vacations to the spectacular Panama Canal are considered the best way to appreciate such a stunning engineering phenomenon, it is no surprise we continue to earn rave reviews from our guests,” said Roger Frizzell, chief communications officer for Carnival Corporation. “We are proud to offer travelers so many options for visiting the Canal, one of the world's fastest growing tourist destinations."

Carnival Corporation and its brands have a rich history in the Panama Canal. The corporation’s Princess Cruises brand, the fastest growing international premium cruise line, was the first cruise line to take guests through the Panama Canal in 1967. Fifty years later, the brand marked another major milestone with the first large cruise ship, Caribbean Princess, to traverse the newly expanded “Neo-Panamax” Locks.

Carnival Corporation brands offer the largest selection of Panama Canal sailings with various lengths ranging from eight to 112 days, departing from more than a dozen ports throughout the U.S., Canada, South America and Europe, including Los Angeles; New York; Miami; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Rio de Janeiro; Southampton (England); Vancouver and more.

Carnival Cruise Line continues to expand its itinerary offerings with longer length Carnival Journeys cruises visiting some of the world’s most beautiful destinations. Carnival Journeys offer unique local culinary and entertainment experiences, as well as special activities, including photography, cooking, arts and crafts, and celestial navigation on the brand’s Panama Canal transits.

Following an extensive $200 million renovation that added a variety of dining and entertainment innovations as well as stateroom upgrades, Carnival Sunrise’s inaugural season from New York includes a 14-day Carnival Journeys Panama Canal cruise, highlighted by a partial transit of the canal along with local culinary and entertainment experiences and unique shipboard activities.

Carnival Cruise Line offers full and partial transits of the Panama Canal, departing from nine ports around the U.S., including Los Angeles; San Diego; Galveston, Texas; New Orleans; Mobile, Ala.; Tampa, Fla.; Miami; Baltimore; and New York. Each itinerary includes calls on a variety of ports, providing guests with unforgettable opportunities to take in architecture, landmarks and attractions, as well as shopping, dining and cultural experiences.

Carnival Corporation’s Cunard brand recently unveiled its Oceans of Discovery voyage program for November 2020 through May 2021, featuring Queen Victoria’s World Voyage – a westbound circumnavigation through the Panama Canal in 2021, which can be taken as a roundtrip from Hamburg or London, or a one-way voyage starting in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The Full World Voyage will feature scenic cruising through the Panama Canal, as well as calls to 34 ports in 24 countries, including overnight stays in San Francisco, Honolulu, Sydney, Hong Kong, Singapore and Cape Town.

Guests who cannot wait to sail through the Panama Canal on the iconic brand can set out this summer on a 19-night voyage aboard Queen Elizabeth, departing Los Angeles on July 5. The itinerary features ports of call in Mexico and the Caribbean before visiting Fort Lauderdale, and then arriving in New York.

Anticipating another robust Panama Canal season, Holland America Line is looking to build on the success of its previous season when the brand carried 40,500 guests through the Panama Canal. Seven ships and 32 cruise voyages are set to welcome another record-breaking season, with full transits ranging from 14 to 23 days and 10- or 11-day partial explorations. Each cruise provides more ways for guests to experience the Panama Canal.

Throughout the cruises, EXC programming brings the Panama Canal region’s local traditions, culinary tastes and cultural experiences to life onboard. Guests who want to learn more about the region can attend an EXC Talk or head to an EXC Port to Table cooking demonstration or wine pairing event. The Dining Room and Lido Market also will showcase the flavors of the region. During the transit, a local expert is on board providing commentary on the history and building of the Canal. Exclusive culinary-themed Shore EXCursions in partnership with FOOD & WINE magazine showcase the regions' food scenes from a local perspective.

P&O Cruises (UK) offers a 99-night world tour in January 2020 that includes a Panama Canal complete transit aboard Arcadia, one of its adults-only ships, as it takes guests to 26 destinations in the Caribbean, Central America, Hawaii, South Pacific, Southeast Asia and Australia before returning to Southampton in April 2020.

Princess Cruises carries more guests across this engineering marvel than any other cruise line. This year the line offers three ways to experience the Panama Canal – roundtrip from Fort Lauderdale, roundtrip from Los Angeles, or full transit options that sail between Fort Lauderdale and Los Angeles or San Francisco and Vancouver. The 2019-20 lineup – the cruise line’s largest deployment ever to the Panama Canal – features five ships, with 10- to 21-day options, also visiting culturally rich ports in the Caribbean, Mexico, Central and South America.

Each Princess Cruises transit of the Panama Canal includes live narration from the bridge offering a glimpse into the history and insight that went into its engineering feat, as well as a day of scenic cruising through Gatun Lake. Beyond the Canal, guests can enjoy the diverse cultures of Central and South America, the rainforests and wildlife of Panama and Costa Rica, and some of the top-rated beaches of the Caribbean.

For the upcoming 2020-21 season, five Princess Cruises ships will sail the waters of the Panama Canal, with 28 departures and nine unique itineraries. New for this season, two 15-day ocean-to-ocean voyages are offered sailing between Fort Lauderdale and the new homeport of San Diego, and Crown Princess sails on 10-day cruises roundtrip from Fort Lauderdale, bringing the Princess MedallionClass vacation experience to the region.

In July, Crown Princess will have the Medallion Class experience and in 2020 the experience will expand to Emerald Princess (August 2020) and Coral Princess (October 2020), enabling three MedallionClass ship to sail in the Panama Canal next year. Powered by OceanMedallion, the most advanced wearable device in the global hospitality industry, MedallionClass ships deliver a hassle-free, personalized vacation that gives guests more time to enjoy their precious vacation time. It also features MedallionNet, the best Wi-Fi at sea offering fast, affordable, reliable and unlimited internet service to stream shows, post photos and video chat.

Carnival Corporation’s ultra-luxury Seabourn brand offers two sailings through the Panama Canal for the 2019-20 season. Seabourn Sojourn’s October itinerary departs Los Angeles and calls in Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and Jamaica, before concluding in Miami, all centered around the daylight transit of the Panama Canal.

Additionally, during fall 2019, Seabourn Quest offers a 22-day voyage of the Panama Canal and Inca Coast from Miami to Santiago, Chile – sailing south along the western side of South American ports with overnight stays in Manta (Quito), Ecuador and Callao (Lima), Peru.

Posidonia Sea Tourism Forum sets new attendance records 
as East Med takes centre stage in global cruise itineraries

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: More News More News

Published: 12 June 2019 12 June 2019

More than 830 participants from 21 countries and 35 exhibitors from every facet of sea tourism framed the 5th Posidonia Sea Tourism Forum, setting new attendance records for the biennial Athens Confex event that is fast becoming the bellwether for the state of the cruise and yachting sectors in the East Med and Black sea regions.

The Greek Ministers for Maritime Affairs and Tourism, officials from major port destination authorities, senior decision-makers from the world’s biggest cruise lines and representatives of marina and yacht owners associations shaped the forum’s agenda which comprised 20 hours of lively panel debates and informative presentations on the stage of Domotel Kastri Conference Centre, in Athens’ historical suburb.

“We are delighted with the positive response the Forum has received since making its debut in the international sea tourism agenda in 2011, and we are confident that it will continue to steer developments in the sector for years to come,” said Theodore Vokos, Managing Director, Posidonia Exhibitions S.A., the event’s organiser.

Delegates, panelists and key note speakers agree that the agenda-setting event has much to offer to sea tourism stakeholders with commercial interests harboured in East Med and the wider region.

Paul Britton, Manager, Marine Operations, Ports and Itinerary Planning, Disney Cruise Line, said: “It was my first time at the Posidonia Sea Tourism Forum, and it was great to meet and exchange views with old and new colleagues in a relaxed, quite intimate and very professionally run event. I look forward to attending again in the future.”

At the Forum, Britton announced the return of Disney Cruise Line to Greece this summer with port calls in Piraeus, Santorini, Mykonos and Katakolo and 12-night itineraries connecting marquee Aegean ports with Venice and the Adriatic.

Another company strengthening its presence in the region is MSC adding a fifth ship in East Med increasing its available capacity by 26.4%. Another ship will be deployed by MSC in 2020 to fuel capacity by a further 25%.

On the side lines of the 5th Posidonia Sea Tourism Forum, Angelo Capurro, Executive Director, MSC Cruises S.A., said: “As we are always looking for alternative solutions for embarkation in the Eastern Mediterranean, it was great to meet key players of the industry and the region in the Forum and examine possibilities of new collaborations and opportunities. We are looking at the overall plans of MSC around the world until 2026, also in the number of ships that will come, so for us it is important to understand
if there is a possibility to have embarkation or use partner-embarkation in this part of the East Med.”

The extra capacity by Disney Cruise Line, MSC Cruises and other cruise lines will boost the number of Greece’s cruise passengers this season by 7%, according to the Greek Minister of Tourism, Thanasis Theocharopoulos, who opened the second day of the Forum, where he pledged the government’s aim to make Greece’s ports more attractive to cruise operators from an infrastructure point of view.

The Greek government’s stated commitment to the sector received positive reaction from international cruise industry players attending the 5th Posidonia Sea Tourism Forum.

Claire Levitt, Destination Experience Deputy Manager, Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, said: “I am pleased to see that Greece, and the East Med in general, is so passionate about encouraging cruise calls to the region; and willing to take on board the feedback from cruise lines in how this can be achieved. As ever, these events are so important for networking and making contacts, in order to be able to work together to make our itineraries attractive to guests – not only generating future cruise calls, but also hopefully encouraging an increase in land-based holidays.”

Representing Royal Caribbean’s Technical Procurement department, Carla Douaihi, Global Procurement Manager, Royal Caribbean Cruises said: “We had the opportunity to work with the attendees to better explain the requirements to engage in business with us and provide recommendations to potential suppliers on developing their business with us. It was especially interesting to learn about well-established fabrics that are producing quality products that we could source through directly. I will go back home with an interest of potentially growing our business with the Greek manufacturers, and taking advantage of their direct business in its strategic location.”

The 5th Posidonia Sea Tourism Forum was organised under the auspices of the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Maritime Affairs & Insular Policy and was supported by the Hellenic Chamber of Shipping, CLIA Europe, the Association of Mediterranean Cruise Ports (MEDCRUISE), the Hellenic Professional Yacht Owners Association, the Greek Marinas Association, the Association of Passenger Shipping Companies, the Union of Cruise Ship Owners & Associated Members, the Federation of Hellenic Associations of Tourist and Travel Agencies (fedHATTA). Gold Sponsor was the Greek National Tourism Organisation. Silver sponsors were the Piraeus Port Authority, HEMEXPO and the Thessaloniki Port Authority, Bronze Sponsors were Air France – KLM, Aktina Travel Group, Celestyal Cruises, Global Ports Holding and Intercruises Shoreside and Port Services and Supporters were the Athens International Airport and FBIS Security.