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March 27, 2015 Update – Group Cruise News

Welcome to our first-time readers!  From group coordinators or group cruise marketers, I’d like to request comments, questions or “reviews” of recent shipboard experiences.  Please e-mail them to me at bobho52@aol.com, and I’ll both acknowledge your contributions, and consider including them in a future Group Cruise News Update.  I’d also like to thank those cruise lines who respond promptly to my inquiries and questions, or at least let me know (as Norwegian Cruise Line is doing at the moment) that they are “working on it.”  It is a bit disappointing when some PR professionals send me press releases to help promote their lines’ programs, which I am always (and will continue to be) happy to excerpt in GCN whenever the news is worthy, and then my own e-mails to them are ignored, when even sending a quick “no” or “we’ll get back to you” would be the courteous thing to do.  In one case, space I had reserved in my Group Travel Leader column for an interview with a marketing executive of a rapidly-expanding line has ended up in coverage of its competitors!  I’m not going to name any names here, and I realize that we are certainly not The New York Times, but I would just like to provide a gentle reminder that communications are most effective when they constitute a two-way “street.”

American Queen Steamboat Company is offering savings of up to $4,000 per stateroom on selected July and August themed voyages of American Queen.  www.aqsc.com/

Avalon Waterways christened its ninth “Suite Ship,” Avalon Tapestry II, on March 24 in Les Andelys, France.  Acting as the ship’s godmother, Diana Gabaldon, author of the New York Times-bestselling Outlander novels, led the christening ceremony.  The 361-foot, 128-passenger vessel will welcome travelers aboard for such itineraries as “Paris to Normandy’s Landing Beaches” and “Grand France.”  www.avalonwaterways.com/

Carnival Corporation & plc, the world’s largest leisure travel company, on March 26 signed two strategic memorandums of agreement that will add a total of nine new cruise ships to the industry’s largest fleet over a four-year period from 2019 to 2022.  The shipbuilding agreements, which include options for additional new builds in the coming years, are subject to several conditions, including satisfactory financing.  Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri S.p.A and German shipbuilder Meyer Werft will each produce new ships based on the company’s next-generation designs, targeted at producing the most efficient ships in its history.  The new vessels are expected to serve established cruise markets in North America and Europe, as well as emerging markets, including China.  Each new ship will be specifically designed and developed for the brand and guests it will serve, and support the company’s stated goals of exceeding guest expectations and further elevating every aspect of the guest experience.  www.carnivalcorp.com/ 

Celebrity Cruises will be unveiling a new series of 18 shows over the next 18 months, to be produced in partnership with masterminds behind some of today’s favorite recording artists and awarding-winning theatrical and television productions.  The 18 shows, created exclusively for Celebrity, will feature elements of drama, dance, comedy, musical theater and concert-style performances, all to be blended in a way that reportedly has never been seen before at sea.  Shows will include Elyria, a late-night production, where guests are to be “transported to a witty, mischievous, dreamlike world,” and will launch onboard Celebrity Constellation in April. iMagic, currently being offered onboard Celebrity Summit, is “a modern luxury interpretation of the wonder of illusions,” and utilizes such technology as holograms, lasers and iPads.  In other news, Celebrity and Bravo Media have extended their “Top Chef at Sea” program through 2016, and will offer “Top Chef” fans and food lovers the opportunity to vacation with a new lineup of “cheftestants” on the “Top Chef Signature Sailing” this November 14, onboard Celebrity Reflection in the Eastern Caribbean.  The cruise will offer guests culinary experiences with six former “Top Chef” competitors.  www.celebritycruises.com/

Cunard’s fleet is scheduled to travel more than 205,000 nautical miles in 2016, visiting ports across Europe and around the world. The liners Queen Mary 2, Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth will call at nearly 100 destinations in 34 countries, and embark on nine maiden calls between the three ships.  Thanks also to the Cunard PR folks for graciously considering my constructive criticism of technical aspects of their press releases. www.cunard.com/

Disney Cruise Line will be sailing its first British Isles itinerary in 2016.  On June 5 next year, Disney Magic will sail from Dover, England on a 12-night cruise to Invergordon, Kirkwall and Greenock (for Glasgow), Scotland; Newcastle and Liverpool, England; Dublin, Ireland; Le Havre (for Paris), France; and Guernsey; one of the Channel Islands.  Except for Kirkwall, all are first-time ports of call for the line.  Throughout the summer of 2016, Disney will also return to Norway, Iceland and ports of call in more than 15 European countries.  www.disneycruise.disney.go.com/

Holland America Line’s new Koningsdam will introduce a new main theater design that will surround the audience with a two-story-high, 250-foot-long, 270-degree LED screen. Breaking from the line’s traditionally styled theaters, “The World Stage” will be a flexible space that can have multiple stage configurations, ranging from in-the-round to the more conventional proscenium staging.  The theater will initially host five new productions performed in repertory by a cast sourced from around the world.  And the line’s reputation for excellent cleanliness has taken another step forward with perfect scores of 100 registered in recent unannounced United States Public Health inspections of Statendam (in Hilo, Hawaii), Nieuw Amsterdam (in Fort Lauderdale) and Ryndam (in Tampa).  www.hollandamerica.com/

Mayflower Tours is waiving the single supplement charge for solo travelers on its 11-day “South of France and Provence” river cruise featuring seven nights aboard the chartered Bellefleur.  This solo traveler offer is available on the October 1 departure when booked by April 30, and represents a savings up to $2,534, based on the stateroom reserved.  www.mayflowertours.com/

Norwegian Cruise Line welcomed Norwegian Star back into service on March 17, following a two-week dry dock in which the ship received numerous enhancements as well as new dining and entertainment venues, in advance of her summer season sailing the Baltic Sea and Norwegian fjords from Copenhagen.  Norwegian Star follows Norwegian Jewel as the third ship in the fleet to receive updates since the program launched in 2014.  New features include two complimentary dining outlets and the line’s first “Five o’Clock Somewhere Bar.”  www.ncl.com/

Princess Cruisesguests aboard Crown Princess have voted and selected comedic magician Ben Seidman as the line’s “Entertainer of the Year.”  Seidman emerged as the favorite among four finalists chosen from the hundreds of comedians, magicians, vocalists, tribute bands and novelty performers who have appeared on Princess’ stages during the past year.  A Wisconsin native and Los Angeles resident, he is “Resident Magician” at Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas and also stars in Magic Outlaws on Travel Channel.  www.princesscruises.com/

Scenic Cruiseshas unveiled its 2016 season offerings, detailed in an 84-page preview brochure.  Rewarding those who plan ahead is the company’s philosophy, so early bookers will pay 2015 fares on 2016 sailings, receive best fare guarantees and special savings consisting of free flights or up to $2,000 off per couple, depending on dates and chosen itinerary.  Scenic is launching two new, third-generation “Space-Ships” this spring, featuring a “Royal Panorama Suite” design that is reportedly the largest on Europe’s rivers at 474 square feet.  Other features include a vitality pool on the Sun Deck, which has a plunge pool on one side and a jet pool on the other, an outdoor bow promenade that is completely enclosed with a glass wall for use during evenings and inclement weather, plus new interior designs elements and larger public spaces.  www.sceniccruises.com

SeaDream Yacht Club has announced reduced fares as low as $1,799 on the May 16 to 21 sailing of the 112-guest Sea Dream I, from Athens to Istanbul.  www.seadream.com

Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection’s newest luxury vessel, S.S. Maria Theresa, was christened on March 26 by her Godmother, Princess Anita von Hohenberg, during a ceremony in Amsterdam.  Princess Anita, a direct descendent of Maria Theresa, was joined by Guy Young, President and CEO of Uniworld, the Tollman family, who have owned and operated Uniworld for more than 10 years, as well as approximately 120 guests.  The ship will cruise the Rhine, Main and Danube Rivers, plus an inaugural nine-day voyage in Belgium and the Netherlands on a “Tulips & Windmills” itinerary.  www.uniworld.com/

Windstar Cruises has announced the appointment of Wendy Perrin as Godmother of the fleet’s newest vessel, Star Breeze.  The company is welcoming two additions to its fleet in May, including the 212-passenger Star Breeze and Star Legend.  The addition of the two ships make the company the largest operator in small-ship cruising with 300 or fewer passengers, with a total of 1,242 berths.  Star Breeze will depart from Nice to Rome on May 6 with stops in Monte Carlo, Portofino, and Portoferraio.  Wendy Perrin is the founder of an innovative website focused on travel solutions and planning, and previously spent two decades at Condé Nast Traveler as its Director of Consumer News and Digital Community.  www.windstarcruises.com/