News In Brief: Seatrade Cruise News Latest Headlines

 

Hannah Waddington names Sun Princess in Barcelona festivities Sun Princess festivities kicked off with an energetic medley of sun-themed songs and drumming before actress Hannah Waddington officially named the newest Princess Cruises ship. Full article

Fincantieri's Marghera shipyard floats out Norwegian Aqua Fincantieri floated out Norwegian Aqua, first of Norwegian Cruise Line's Prima Plus class, at Marghera today. Full article

Royal Caribbean, Bahamas break ground on Royal Beach Club Paradise Island Royal Caribbean and Bahamian officials broke ground Monday for Royal Beach Club Paradise Island after a heads of agreement was reached. Full article

Princess Cruises' Sanctuary Collection gives exclusive retreat access and other perks Princess Cruises opened sales for its new Sanctuary Collection, giving access to Sun Princess's top deck retreat area and other amenities. Full article

Greece cruise numbers and spending spiked in 2023 Cruise tourism shot up in Greece during 2023, to 3.3m arrivals, a 64% spike from the 2m in 2022 and 26% higher than pre-pandemic 2019. Full article

MSC Foundation, MSC Group, Mercy Ships move forward on new hospital ship MSC Group, MSC Foundation and Mercy Ships International are teaming to prepare for the construction of a new hospital ship to deliver free surgery and training to thousands of people in Africa each year. Full article

CFO Craig Felenstein is leaving Lindblad Expeditions Lindblad Expeditions Holdings announced the departure of CFO Craig Felenstein, effective May 31. Full article

Seabourn Odyssey farewell voyage bringing back original team members Seabourn Odyssey's 22-day farewell voyage in September will include tributes, appearances by the ship's original team and performing cast, local artists and commemorative gifts. Full article

Hamburg chalks up 1.2m pax, making it Germany’s top cruise port A record 1,204,089 passengers started their cruise in Hamburg last year, compared to 785,000 passengers in 2022, securing the Hanseatic city’s top spot among German cruise ports. Full article

Cruise line representatives delve into Stavanger's culture and history Cruise line representatives visited no fewer than four museums in Stavanger today as part of Cruise Norway’s familiarisation trip to the southwestern fjords. Full article

Windstar expands guest services, launches outbound consumer sales Windstar Cruises is expanding and rebranding its guest services department, including appointing Jaymi Fiveash as senior director of vacation planning and Andrew Ironstone as director of outbound consumer sales. Full article

Scenic Eclipse II makes historic visit to Newcastle, NSW, Scenic’s birthplace Monday was a milestone for the Scenic Group, with Scenic Eclipse II its first ship to visit Newcastle, New South Wales, where the company was founded 38 years ago. Full article

Carnival Paradise rescues 27 people in a boat adrift off Cuba Carnival Paradise on Sunday afternoon rescued 27 Cuban nationals adrift at sea and signaling for assistance. Full article

Calls for unity in Stavanger to combat negative press Line Murphy, cruise manager at Stavanger Visitors & Convention Bureau, today urged cruise lines to support initiatives to counteract negative publicity. Full article

Oracle Streamlines Mobile Mustering Process On Cruise Ships Upgraded Oracle Hospitality Cruise SPMS solution provides a real-time head count of passengers and crew for muster drill. Full article