Tag Archives: British Isles

Holland America Line to cruise from Dover for the first time in 10 years

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Dover photoed from a leaving cruise line photo credit Spacejunkie2 (Flickr)

Holland America Line will sail a full season of round-trip itineraries from Dover for the first time in more than 10 years.

The line will base Pinnacle-class ship Nieuw Statendam out of the UK port for 10 departures in the summer of 2025.
 
From Dover, the vessel will sail itineraries ranging from 14 to 42 days to the Canary Islands, British Isles, Norway, Iceland, Greenland, Iberia and the eastern Mediterranean.
 
In addition to Dover, HAL will depart from nine homeports throughout Europe, with an increase in cruises over 10 days, more sailings to Iceland and a combined 62 overnight calls or late-night departures in leading cities.
 
“We’re really excited about Nieuw Statendam homeporting in Dover for a whole season in 2025 and the additional opportunities this provides to the trade, as well as our guests,” said Karen Farndell, director of UK sales and marketing.
 
“The itineraries look incredible and varied, offering something for everyone – beyond Dover, our 10 homeports span Europe, and in 2025 we’re offering the most diverse range of itineraries that include everything from week-long holidays to the Med to month-long explorations to the Arctic.”
She praised the line’s travel agent partners for their continued support and commitment throughout the company’s milestone 150th year.
 
Other highlights of HAL’s 2025 Europe cruising season include seven-day Norway and Denmark and Norwegian Fjords itineraries onboard Rotterdam, while Oosterdam will sail its entire season in the Mediterranean on cruises from Piraeus, Barcelona, Civitavecchia and Trieste.
 
Nieuw Statendam visits the Canary Islands on a 14-day Canary Island Enchantment with Morocco and Portugal cruise departing on 20 April 2025, and the Voyage of the Vikings itinerary returns in 2025 onboard Zuiderdam.

Royal Caribbean extends Anthem of the Seas Season.

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Anthem of the Seas entering the river Mersey, Photo credit Dave Jones
Royal Caribbean International has extended Anthem of the Seas’ UK-based season until October and announced plans to welcome international guests onboard from next month.

The ship returned to the UK for the first time in six years in July to restart Royal’s domestic cruise programme.

In September “eligible international guests” will also be able to sail from Southampton, subject to the latest UK government travel advice and their country of residence.

Fully vaccinated travellers from the US and EU were granted exemption from UK quarantine requirements this week.

Anthem’s British Isles sailings feature calls to Liverpool, Belfast and Kirkwall and Glasgow. All adults must be fully vaccinated and all passengers must provide a negative Covid test result before boarding.

Anthem’s extended season opened for bookings on Wednesday (4 August).

Ben Bouldin, Royal’s vice-president EMEA, said the line was “thrilled” with the response to its UK programme since restarting, with cruises achieving “peak guest satisfaction levels”.

“We welcome the recent update from the UK government, which lifted advice against international cruise travel. While this marks a positive step forward in the global return of cruise, there are still complexities to navigate when calling at multiple European ports of call from the UK,” he added.

“This, coupled with the popularity of our British Isles sailings to date, has led to our decision to extend our sailings around the British Isles, and I’m delighted to welcome international guests to experience these itineraries, starting in September.”

ROYAL CARIBBEAN EXTENDS ANTHEM’S UK SEASON

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The ship returned to the UK for the first time in six years in July to restart Royal’s domestic cruise programme.

In September “eligible international guests” will also be able to sail from Southampton, subject to the latest UK government travel advice and their country of residence.

Fully vaccinated travellers from the US and EU were granted exemption from UK quarantine requirements this week.

Anthem’s British Isles sailings feature calls to Liverpool, Belfast and Kirkwall and Glasgow. All adults must be fully vaccinated and all passengers must provide a negative Covid test result before boarding.

Anthem’s extended season opened for bookings on Wednesday (4 August).

Ben Bouldin, Royal’s vice-president EMEA, said the line was “thrilled” with the response to its UK programme since restarting, with cruises achieving “peak guest satisfaction levels”.

“We welcome the recent update from the UK government, which lifted advice against international cruise travel. While this marks a positive step forward in the global return of cruise, there are still complexities to navigate when calling at multiple European ports of call from the UK,” he added.

“This, coupled with the popularity of our British Isles sailings to date, has led to our decision to extend our sailings around the British Isles, and I’m delighted to welcome international guests to experience these itineraries, starting in September.”