Year: 2015

Cruise News 

Crystal Yacht Cruises Opens Bookings to All Travelers

Liam Cusack ,

LOS ANGELES, August 25, 2015 – Starting next month, travelers can book their luxury yachting vacation with Crystal Yacht Cruises, the most recent innovation from the world’s most awarded cruise line. As Crystal Esprit charts new waters with its maiden voyage this winter, Crystal Cruises is unveiling the complete itineraries and fares for 2016 through the beginning of 2018. The routes were first made available for booking exclusively for Crystal Society members – Crystal’s repeat guest program – and will be open to all travelers September 1. The new routes mark Crystal’s first-ever offering of immersive itineraries focused in warm

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Cruise News Industry News 

HAL Breaks Ground on New Base Camp Complex

Liam Cusack

Holland America Line Breaks Ground on New Base Camp Complex at the McKinley Chalet Resort at Denali National Park New area at the Alaska hotel to feature a restaurant, bar, entertainment and more   Seattle, Wash., June 25, 2015 — Holland America Line has broken ground on a new “Base Camp” complex at the company’s McKinley Chalet Resort near the entrance to Alaska’s Denali National Park. Expected to be complete for the 2016 Alaska cruise season, Base Camp is part of Holland America Line’s ongoing enhancement program at the property that also includes room updates, upgrades to soft goods and

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Cruise News 

Carnival Introduces Internet Packages – $5/Day

Liam Cusack 0 Comments ,

MIAMI (August 10, 2015) – Carnival Cruise Line’s new social media Internet packages – which offer access to a variety of popular Web sites for just $5 a day – are now available on more than half of the line’s ships with fleetwide implementation scheduled by the first quarter of 2016. New Mobile App Available on Carnival Breeze Being Met With Tremendous Response; Fleetwide Implementation Scheduled for Next Year Additionally, the line’s new mobile app – currently available on Carnival Breeze and offering an innovative “chat” feature – has been very well received with a third of the ship’s guests

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Cruise News 

BREAKING NEWS: Carnival is Cuba Bound – New Brand ‘fathom’ Sailing to Cuba

Liam Cusack

07/07/2015 – NEW YORK – Carnival Corporation’s new brand ‘fathom’ will soon be sailing regularly to Cuba. This announcement will be made later today by Carnival Corporation CEO Arnold Donald. ‘fathom,’ is the company’s new social impact-focused fathom brand, and will debut in April 2016 with volunteer vacations to the Dominican Republic. The new brand will launch seven-night “people-to-people” tours to the island via ship beginning in May 2016, contingent on approval by Cuban authorities. When Carnival Corporation announced their new brand on June 4th, many industry insiders saw this as a strategic move to make sailings to Cuba possible.

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Cruise News Industry News Press Releases 

BREAKING NEWS: Carnival Corporation Launches New Brand

Liam P. Cusack

Carnival Corporation Launches New Brand Creates New Travel Category fathom pioneers social impact travel on a scale the world has never seen, with a focus on transformative, holistic impact and long-term sustainable development WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, N.Y. (June 4, 2015) – Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), the world’s largest travel and leisure company, today launched a new brand called fathom™, defining a new travel category it is calling “social impact travel,” that will offer consumers authentic, meaningful impact travel experiences to work alongside locals as they tackle community needs. What sets fathom apart is the long-term, systematic partnership approach

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Cruise News 

BREAKING UPDATE: Norwegian Dawn Runs Aground in Bermuda

Liam Cusack ,

See breaking updates below. “The ship is now alongside at Heritage Cay, while being inspected, and guests have the opportunity to go ashore.” 19 May 2015 – Miami – Norwegian Cruise Line issued a statement this evening regarding the reported grounding of its ship the Norwegian Dawn which is on a roundtrip cruise from Boston to Bermuda. NCL states: “On Tuesday, May 19th at approximately 5:00 pm ET, Norwegian Dawn temporarily lost power as the ship was departing King’s Wharf, Bermuda. The ship’s propulsion was affected and, at which time, the vessel made contact with the channel bed. All guests

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Cruise News Travel Tips 

Cruise & Travel Report on the High Seas! The Veendam’s Triumphant Return to Bermuda

Liam Cusack ,

EDITORIAL: Cruise & Travel Report’s Managing Editor, Liam P. Cusack, reports on his recent voyage aboard the ms Veendam from Boston to Bermuda — Part 1 of 3 articles.     By Liam P. Cusack, Managing Editor   18 May 2015 -New York City – On May 2nd, a chilly but sunny Boston Saturday, I boarded the ms Veendam as she prepared to sail to Hamilton, Bermuda. This was her first cruise this season to Bermuda and it marked Holland America Line’s return to regularly scheduled cruises to the island of pink sand. Holland America Line had stopped regular calls

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Cruise News 

Avalon Waterways Presents Wellness & Golf Cruises in 2016

Liam Cusack ,

Avalon is inviting travelers to exercise their passion for health with wellness & golf cruises in 2016.     14 May 2015 — Littleton, Colorado – In 2016, Avalon Waterways is inviting travelers to cruise into healthy living with two “special interest” departures for those passionate about exercise.  One focuses on wellness and healthy living; the other provides golf enthusiasts the chance to swing their clubs along the Danube. “Our special interest cruises sell out early year-over-year.  It’s easy to understand why,” said Patrick Clark, managing director of Avalon Waterways.  “On these special departures, our guests – in the company

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Cruise News 

A Special Message from the New President and CEO of Crystal Cruises

Liam Cusack ,

  Welcome Aboard a New and Exciting Era at Crystal Cruises From: Edie Rodriguez, President and CEO of Crystal Cruises Today is thrilling, yet bittersweet, for Crystal Cruises. As we celebrate our official acquisition by Genting Hong Kong (GHK), we also say farewell to a long, prosperous and mutually supportive relationship with our former owners, Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK). It’s important to reflect and appreciate the past as we move into this innovative new era for Crystal, as the developments and expansion of our brand would not be possible without our 25-year history of setting the bar in luxury

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Cruise News 

BREAKING: Genting Hong Kong Completes Acquisition of Crystal Cruises

Liam Cusack ,

  Genting Hong Kong Completes Acquisition of Crystal Cruises — Announces New Chairman and Management Promotions 15 May 2015 – Hong Kong – Genting Hong Kong (GHK) today announced that it has completed the acquisition of “The World’s Most Awarded and Best Luxury Cruise Line,” Crystal Cruises (Crystal), from Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK), for a total transaction of US$550 million. GHK also announced a new Chairman of Crystal and promotions for Crystal’s current senior management team, guaranteeing a streamlined transition and virtually no interruption in operations and ensuring award-winning service. Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay, Executive Chairman of the

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