Top Headlines

Carnival group fully draws down $3 billion revolving credit facility

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 17 March 2020 17 March 2020

Carnival Corporation & plc, the world’s largest cruise shipping group, said it had provided a notice to lenders in its multi currency revolving credit facility that it would borrow approximately $3 billion under the agreement for a period of six months. “As of this borrowing, Carnival Corporation will have fully drawn down the Facility Agreement,” the company said in a statement

The group had in August 2019 become a became party to an amended and restated five-year - with two one-year extension options- $1.7 billion, €1.0 billion and £150 million multi-currency revolving credit agreement with a syndicate of financial institutions.

“The Corporation borrowed under the Facility Agreement in order to increase its cash position and preserve financial flexibility in light of current uncertainty in the global markets resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak. The proceeds from the Facility Agreement borrowings will be available to be used for working capital, general corporate or other purposes<’ the company said.

TUI suspend cruise operations, axes financial year 2020 guidance

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 16 March 2020 16 March 2020

TUI AG, the Hannover based tour operator, has decided to suspend its cruise and the bulk of its operations and withdraw its guidance for the financial year to 30 September 2020.

“In this rapidly changing environment the safety and welfare of our guests and employees worldwide remains of paramount importance and thus TUI Group has decided, in line with government guidelines, to suspend the vast majority of all travel operations until further notice, including package travel, cruises and hotel operations,” the company said in a statement, referring to the coronavirus outbreak.

The group’s cruise operations comprise a 50% stake in TUI Cruises and Hapag-Lloyd Kreuzfahrten in Germany and fully owned Marella Cruises in the UK.

“In light of this situation, the Executive Board has decided today to withdraw the Financial Year 2020 guidance as communicated on 11 February 2020. Furthermore the Executive Board also refrains from issuing a new guidance for the Financial Year 2020 under the current circumstances,” TUI said.

Updated: More cruise ships halt operations – Monday movements

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 15 March 2020 15 March 2020

MSC Meraviglia photographed in Costa Maya in November 2019 (Photo credit: Teijo Niemela)

As we reported on Thursday, the announcement by U.S. President Donald J. Trump to halt all U.S.-focused cruises has thrown the industry into an unprecedented situation. Uneasy ports and nervous travelers as well have inspired cruise lines to literally shut down their operations, not just domestically but also globally. Canada's announcement that no ports there would be open to cruise ships through June 30, which especially throws the Alaska cruise season into chaos, hasn't helped.

And we wondered then: With cruise lines shutting down trips, where will ships sit-out the voluntary cancellation periods? Clearly, there's a lot of interest as our original feature on new ship berthing status is one of 2020's best-read stories for CruiseBusiness.com.

And since, as everything caused by the pandemic spread of the Coronavirus or Covid-19 means changes are made by the hour rather than days or longer, there's much more information available of the status of cruise ships.

As of today, Sunday, March 15 we look some of the destinations, where the ships have been docked or anchored. This situation is dynamic and changes are expected.

The information is collected from marinetraffic.com and other resources. Updates published in Italic (TBE = to be expected)

– BALTIMORE, MARYLAND: Carnival Pride (Carnival Cruise Line). TBE: Grandeur of the Seas (Royal Caribbean International).

– BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA: Seabourn Quest departed towards Barbados (Seabourn Cruise Line), Viking Jupiter (Viking).

– CIVITAVECCHIA, ITALY: MSC Grandiosa (MSC Cruises).

– COLOMBO, SRI LANKA: Viking Sun continues its World Cruise, next destination Muscat, Oman.

– COCO CAY, BAHAMAS (LITTLE STIRRUP CAY): Mariner of the Seas, Navigator of the Seas (Royal Caribbean International). To be expected: Anthem of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas, Symphony of the Seas (Royal Caribbean International)

– DUBAI, UAE: As the cruise season in the Persian Gulf is already close to its seasonal end, several cruise ships are now docked alongside in Port Rashid. These include: AIDAprima, AIDAvita (AIDA Cruises), Horizon (Pullmantur), Jewel of the Seas (Royal Caribbean International) Nautica (Oceania Cruises), Norwegian Jade (Norwegian Cruise Line), Mein Schiff 5 (TUI Cruises), MSC Belllissima and MSC Lirica (MSC Cruises).

– GALVESTON, TEXAS: Carnival Dream (Carnival Cruise Line), Enchantment of the Seas (Royal Caribbean International). Anchorage: Liberty of the seas (Royal Caribbean International). Waiting orders: Carnival Vista (Carnival Cruise Line).

– GENOA, ITALY: MSC Opera (MSC Cruises).

– ENSENADA, MEXICO: Celebrity Millennium (Celebrity Cruises).

– FORT LAUDERDALE: Carnival Sunrise (Carnival Cruise Line), Celebrity Edge departed to Freeport (Celebrity Cruises), Emerald Princess (Princess Cruises), Silver Wind (Silversea Cruises) At anchorage: Adventure of the Seas (Royal Caribbean International).

– FREEPORT, BAHAMAS: Carnival Conquest, Carnival Elation, Carnival Magic (Carnival Cruise Line), Grand Classica (Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line). Additionally on anchorage locations are Celebrity Equinox (Celebrity Cruises) and Sky Princess (Princess Cruises). TBE: Explorer of the Seas (Royal Caribbean International). Braemar (Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines) is heading to Cuba.

– FREMANTLE, AUSTRALIA: Queen Mary 2 (Cunard Line) departed to Southampton. At port The World (ResidenSea). TBE: Crystal Serenity (Crystal Cruises).

– HAMBURG, GERMANY: AIDAaura (AIDA Cruises)

– JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA: Carnival Ecstasy (Carnival Cruise Line), Norwegian Sky and Norwegian Pearl (Norwegian Cruise Line). TBE: Norwegian Gem (Norwegian Cruise Line).

– LANGKAWI, MALAYSIA: Genting Dream, Dream Cruises.

– LAS PALMAS, CANARY ISLANDS: AIDAstella (AIDA Cruises), Marella Explorer (Marella Cruises) and Mein Schiff 3 (TUI Cruises).

– LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA: Carnival Imagination and Carnival Panorama (Carnival Cruise Line). TBE: Carnival Inspiration (Carnival Cruise Line)

– LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Norwegian Joy (Norwegian Cruise Line), Star Princess (Princess Cruises).

– MARSEILLES, FRANCE: AIDAsol (AIDA Cruises), Costa Smeralda (Costa Cruises), Europa 2 (Hapag-Lloyd).

– MIAMI, FLORIDA: Carnival Horizon (Carnival Cruise Line), MSC Armonia and MSC Meraviglia (MSC Cruises), Norwegian Encore (Norwegian Cruise Line), Scarlet Lady (Virgin Voyages). At anchorage: MSC Seaside (MSC Cruises).

– NAGASAKI, JAPAN: Costa Atlantica, Costa Serena and Costa Venezia (Costa Cruises).

– NASSAU, BAHAMAS: Norwegian Escape (Norwegian Cruise Line), Seven Seas Explorer (Regent Seven Seas).

– NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA: Carnival Glory (Carnival Cruise Line), Norwegian Getaway (Norwegian Cruise Line).

– PIRAEUS, GREECE: AIDAbella (AIDA Cruises), Celestyal Crystal and Celestyal Olympia (Celestyal Cruises).

– PORT CANAVERAL: Carnival Breeze (Carnival Cruise Line), Disney Dream (Disney Cruise Line), Norwegian Breakaway and Norwegian Sun (Norwegian Cruise Line). In anchorage Disney Fantasy.

– SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA: Seven Seas Splendor (Regent Seven Seas Cruises).

– SHANGHAI, CHINA: Piano Land

– SINGAPORE: Majestic Princess and Sapphire Princess (Princess Cruises).

– SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA: Artania (Phoenix), MSC Magnifica (MSC Cruises) Pacific Explorer (P&O Cruises Australia).

– TAMPA, FLORIDA: Carnival Legend and Carnival Paradise (Carnival Cruise Line), Norwegian Dawn (Norwegian Cruise Line). TBE: Celebrity Infinity (Celebrity Cruises).

– TENERIFE, CANARY ISLANDS: AIDAnova (AIDA Cruises), Mein Schiff Herz (TUI Cruises).

– TILBURY, UK: Magellan (CMV), Saga Sapphire and Spirit of Discovery (Saga Cruises), Viking Star (Viking)

– YOKOHAMA, JAPAN: Diamond Princess (Princess Cruises).

We'll continue to update our list as new information becomes available.

Comment: Passenger shipping industry facing deepest disruption since Second World War

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 15 March 2020 15 March 2020

The passenger shipping industry is probably facing the greatest disruption since the Second World War as both the demand and supply sides are equally hit at the same time.

The outbreak of the coronavirus has led to a sharp fall in the demand for cruises, as it has done for any other kind of travel.

At the same time, many governments have closed borders and imposed other kinds of restrictions on travel and movement.

Airlines that also provide connections to and from ports of embarkation and disembarkation for many passengers have been forced to suspend services as a result of the restrictions.

Consequently, many cruise operators have come to the conclusion that they are unable to operate their programmes as scheduled for the immediate future.

This means that the affected passengers will have to be compensated for their canceled holidays. This puts cash flow under strain, even if lines did not offer a cash refund, but an option to book a cruise some time in the future.

Previous challenges the industry has faced have principally affected mainly one side of the supply - demand equation, with the demand being the more frequent part affected.

This was the case with the sinking of Costa Concordia in 2013, the financial crisis five years earlier and e.g. the events of 911 in 2001.

The last named affected the supply side to a degree as well as American passengers did not want to fly abroad to join a cruise and ships had to be repositioned so that they could based in US ports.

The oil crises of 1973 and 1980 hit the supply side very hard as the cost of fuel rocketed. The first one in particular resulted in the removal from service many ships that had been built for liner trades rather than for cruising and had fuel hungry steam turbine machinery. Some ships that never resumed commercial trading were just 10 years old.

Together with a rapid inflation that followed, it also put and end to deliveries of purpose built cruise tonnage, which would only resume early in the following decade.

The present crisis has not affected the cruise industry alone. Many ferry services have been suspended, ranging from ones between Japan and China to several in the Baltic as well.

The last time passenger ship operators faced a similar situation was probably at the start of the Second World War.

But the effects of the coronavirus crisis have, perhaps, been more immediate than that of the war: it reached global scale in a matter of some two months. This made it impossible for the cruise industry to redeploy its mobile assets, as had been the case in several, more limited regional challenges in the past.

As the war started in Europe in the autumn of 1939, among major maritime nations it affected mostly Germany, France and Britain and commercial liner services of passenger ships flying their flags quickly came to an end. Cruising was only an offshoot of liner operations at this time and would remain so until the late 1960s.

However, Italy only joined the war in 1940 and the US and Japan in the following year. Some commercial services of these nations continued until they themselves became involved in the conflict.

The war resulted in massive losses of life and ships. The vessels that survived required major refits, often lasting years rather than months due to the amount of work needed plus material and labour shortages.

This will not be the case with the present coronavirus crisis.

Also, the current predictions indicate that the epidemic would last months, not years. The economic and perhaps even political consequences may be another matter.

CLIA announces voluntary suspension in U.S. cruise operations

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 13 March 2020 13 March 2020

CLIA ocean-going cruise lines will be voluntarily and temporarily suspending cruise ship operations from and to U.S. ports of call for 30 days as public health officials and the U.S. Government continue to address COVID-19.

“CLIA cruise line members are voluntarily and temporarily suspending operations from the U.S. as we work to address this public health crisis,” said Kelly Craighead, President and CEO, CLIA. “This is an unprecedented situation. Our industry has taken responsibility for protecting public health for more than 50 years, working under the guidance of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and prides itself on its ability to deliver exceptional vacation experiences for guests, as well as meaningful employment opportunities for crew. This has been a challenging time, but we hope that this decision will enable us to focus on the future and a return to normal as soon as possible.”

The temporary suspension will take effect at 12:00AM EST on 14 March 2020. CLIA ocean-going cruise lines are focused on the safe and smooth return of those currently at sea onboard ships that will be affected by this decision.

“We do not take this decision lightly, and we want the traveling public to know in no uncertain terms the commitment of this industry to putting people first,” said Adam Goldstein, CLIA Global Chairman. “During this time, we will continue to work with the CDC and others to prepare for resumption of sailings when it is appropriate. We know the travel industry is a huge economic engine for the United States and when our ships once again sail, our industry will be a significant contributor to fueling the economic recovery.”

The cruise industry is a vital artery for the U.S. economy, supporting over 421,000 American jobs, with every 30 cruisers supporting one U.S. job, and annually contributes nearly $53 billion to the U.S. economy. Cruise activity supports travel agencies, airlines, hotels and a broad supply chain of industries that stretches across the United States.

Guests who are booked on cruise itineraries which will be impacted by this decision are encouraged to contact their travel advisors or reach out to their cruise lines directly.