Turning 20

The Port of Seattle celebrated the start of its twentieth cruise season earlier this week with the arrival of Celebrity Eclipse at the Bell Street Pier Cruise Terminal at Pier 66.

This year promises to be a record-breaking year. The port estimates 1,208,590 passengers will pass through the port this year on cruises, breaking last year's record by more than 93 thousand.

The complete story appeared in the April 19 edition of Cruise News Daily. 

Minnie Gets Promoted

Somewhere along the line recently aboard Disney Cruise Line, Minnie has received her fourth stripe, because she's now Captain Minnie Mouse, and encouraging girls to be like her and pursue maritime careers aboard the Disney ships. Disney is counting on the power of the Mouse - Minnie Mouse - to do it.

The complete story appears in the April 18 edition of Cruise News Daily. 

Photo courtesy of Disney Cruise Line. All rights reserved. Photo may not be copied or used without express permission.

Other Things You'll Want to Know - April 18, 2019

CND subscribers also read about:

• An update on the situation with cruises to Cuba with relation to the latest Trump administration announcement.
• Carnival declares a dividend

Details appeared in the April 18 issue of Cruise News Daily. 

New Rules Could Halt US Cruises to Cuba

Details regarding travel are still not clear, but an announcement by the Trump administration on Wednesday said they were imposing restrictions on trade with Cuba which, among other things, would limit travel. The announcement in separate speeches by both Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Advisor John Bolton did not specifically mention cruises, but from what was said, it seems passengers on cruises are definitely the type of tourism they want to prohibit.

It was enough of an indication that the stock of all three major US-based cruise companies closed down slightly on Wednesday. All, though, have said in the past that cruises to Cuba are a small part of their total business.

The complete story appeared in the April 17 issue of Cruise News Daily. 

Other Things You'll Want to Know - April 17, 2019

CND subscribers also read about:

• Oasis of the Seas safe arrival at the shipyard in Cadiz for repair after its transatlantic crossing
• Mobile working to keep Carnival there when its contract expires

Details appeared in the April 17 edition of Cruise News Daily. 

AIDAluna Now Has More to Smile About

AIDAluna returned to service today after a two-week stay in Blohm+Voss' floating dry dock at Hamburg.

The 69,000-ton ship had a number of routine maintenance and technical projects completed while in the yard, but a couple of items on the list added new features, including a unique new one that passengers aboard Carnival's German brand will especially enjoy.

The complete story appeared in the April 16 issue of Cruise News Daily. 

Photos courtesy of AIDA Cruises. All rights reserved. May not be copied or used without express permission.

Royal Caribbean Plans New Headquarters Building

The Miami Herald is reporting that Royal Caribbean is planning to expand its headquarters at the Port of Miami with a new building adjacent to its current buildings on the southwest corner of Dodge Island.

The new building would boost space to enough room for 4,200 employees compared to the current 2,200. Yes, a parking garage will also be included in the project.

Details appeared in the April 16 issue of Cruise News Daily. 

Princess Returns - Five Years Later

After a five-year absence, Princess is going back to Tahiti in the fall of 2020, and they're doing it as it was meant to be done with a small ship - Pacific Princess.

It won't be a permanent stay, however. It will be a “limited run” of five, 10-night cruises in October and November 2020.

The complete story appeared in the April 15 issue of Cruise News Daily. 

Back for a Second Season

Norwegian Sun is back at Port Canaveral beginning a second season of cruises to Cuba from the port. Beginning today they include four-, five- and seven-night cruises to Havana.

Details appeared in the April 15 edition of Cruise News Daily.