They Like It - They Really Like It

Last month, Carnival Cruise Line announced plans for a further expanded presence on the West Coast in 2020 with Carnival Miracle sailing from San Francisco from March through August in a varied series of cruises to Mexico, Alaska and Hawaii.

Demand for San Francisco sailings has been so strong, Carnival has added five sailings from the City by the Bay in August and September 2020. That will bring the total to 27 cruises from the city in 2020.

The complete story appeared in the January 25 issue of Cruise News Daily. 

Flora Floats

It may be tiny, but it floats. Last Saturday, Celebrity Cruises' newest ship, Celebrity Flora, took to the water for the first time when it was launched at the Shipyard De Hoop in the Netherlands.

Because it's so small, just 5,739 gross-tons, the ship was built on land (instead of in a drydock) and slid down rails into the water, affording us what is a rather unusual sight these days. Ironically, it's one of the largest vessels De Hoop has built in the last decade.

The complete story appeared in the January 25 edition of Cruise News Daily. 

Video courtesy of Shipyard De Hoop. All rights reserved.

Search Suspended

The Coast Guard reports they suspended their search the morning at approximately 7:20am for the crew member from Royal Caribbean's Majesty of the Seas.

Details appeared in the January 25 issue of Cruise News Daily. 

Insignia Fails

The Centers for Disease Control released a report this week of Oceania Insignia's latest public health inspection as part of the Vessel Sanitation Program, and the ship scored a failing grade of 80 points (out of 100). A score of 86 is considered passing.

Details appeared in the January 25 edition of Cruise News Daily. 

Food & Wine Goes Hawaiian

Holland America's unique series of shore excursions in conjunction with Food & Wine magazine is expanding to Hawaii and Tahiti, bringing the total of the special class of excursions to nearly a hundred.

The complete story appeared in the January 24 edition of Cruise News Daily. 

Overboard from Majesty of the Seas

The Coast Guard is searching for a 26-year-old man who went overboard from Royal Caribbean's Majesty of the Seas in the early morning hours today as it was returning to Port Everglades at the end of a five-night cruise to the Bahamas.

The crew member was witnessed going overboard approximately 2:30am when it was approximately 37 miles east of the Hillsboro Inlet.

Details were in the January 24 issue of Cruise News Daily.

Other Things You'll Want to Know - January 24, 2019

CND subscribers also read about:

• MSC details the notable celebrities who will be at the christening of MSC Bellissima in Southampton in March. Can you guess who the godmother will be?
• Now there's something you don't see every day: a cat in a hat in a blimp. Carnival's resident "big cat" took to the skies over Southern California in the Carnival AirShip. (Photo below)

Details appeared in the January 24 issue of Cruise News Daily. 

Photo courtesy of Carnival Cruise Line. All rights reserved. May not be copeied or used without express permission. 

Every Summer Since '69

What were you doing in the summer of 1969? If you were Neil Armstrong you were walking on the moon, but fifty years ago in 1969 Princess Cruises was taking their first 525 passengers to Alaska aboard Princess Italia. They haven't missed a summer since (can Neil Armstrong say that?), and they've taken more than five million people to Alaska.

To celebrate their fifty years in the Great Land, Princess has a number of new enhancements to the passenger experience that will await their customers this summer.

The complete story appeared in the January 23 edition of Cruise News Daily. 

Other Things You'll Want to Know - January 23, 2019

CND subscribers also read about:

• Holland America own premium brand of coffee
• The Russians have come to NCL and Celebrity
• The US Coast Guard medevaced a 40-year-old woman from Carnival Pride on Monday when it was 50 miles southeast of Cape Hatteras, NC. Video is below.

Mein Schiff 2 Handed Over

Meyer Turku delivered Mein Schiff 2 to TUI Cruises today at Kiel (Germany).

The complete story appeared in the January 22 edition of Cruise News Daily. 

Photos courtesy of Meyer Turku. All rights reserved. May not be copied or used without permission.

Medallion Marches On

Princess announced today that three more ships have been scheduled to become Medallion Class this year, setting things up so that next fall all Princess ships in the Caribbean will have the Ocean Medallion capability activated. Royal Princess will also be the first Medallion Class ship on the West Coast sailing in Alaska and Mexico.

Details appeared in the January 22 issue of Cruise News Daily. 

Flying to Your Cruise

The national news media continues to fret over a growing number of TSA screeners not showing for work. The last few days they have practically beside themselves worried that so many won't show up the government will need to shut down the national air transportation system.

If you're worried about getting to your cruise in this “horrible” mess and wondering how many hours in advance you'll have to check in, don't.

Each day the TSA issues a press release with figures from the day before, and honestly, things don't look that bad.

Details appeared in the January 22 issue of Cruise News Daily. 

One Time Only (for Now)

Add Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line to the list of lines going to Cuba. The line which normally only sails two-night cruises to Freeport has scheduled a four-night cruise to Havana next month.

The best part is that when you return home, you can honestly say you've been to Havana twice.

The complete story appeared in the January 21 edition of Cruise News Daily. 

Overboard from Golden Princess

A 22-year-old male passenger was reported missing from Golden Princess Monday night (Sunday US time) as the ship sailed between Auckland and Melbourne.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority's Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Canberra was notified, and a shipwide search was instituted.

Video now confirmed that the man went overboard.

Details can be found in the January 21 edition of Cruise News Daily.  

Who Says There's No Such Thing as a Free Lunch?

The news media doesn't seem to want to cover it, but lots of companies are offering concessions and assistance to federal workers who aren't receiving paychecks due to the partial shutdown of the government. One of those companies is Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line.

Federal workers (and their families) can have a free buffet lunch on either of the line's ships in Palm Beach beginning today.

Details appeared in the January 21 issue of Cruise News Daily.