Tag Archives: cruises

World’s Largest Cruise Ships Meet in CocoCay

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Royal Caribbean International’s Icon of the Seas and the Wonder of the Seas met in the Bahamas earlier this week.

Currently serving as the world’s largest cruise ships, the vessels docked simultaneously at the company’s private island destination Perfect Day at CocoCay.

After assuming the title in 2023, the Icon of the Seas is currently the largest cruise ship in the world at over 250,000 tons.

Part of a new ship class, the vessel was delivered to Royal Caribbean last November. Visiting CocoCay during one of its short preview cruises, the Icon is being prepared to kick off its maiden season later this month.

Starting on Jan. 27, the 365-meter-long ship is scheduled to offer a series of week-long sailings to the Caribbean departing from PortMiami.

In addition to weekly visits to Perfect Day at CocoCay, Icon’s schedule includes many popular ports in the region, including St. Maarten, St. Thomas, and St. Kitts.

At 250,800 tons, the Icon of the Seas was built by the Meyer Turku in Finland, and can accommodate over 5,610 guests at double occupancy, in addition to 2,350 crew members.

Previously serving as the largest cruise ship of the world until 2023, the Wonder of the Seas is offering week-long cruises departing from Port Canaveral.

Slightly bigger than its sister ships, the 227,627-ton vessel is part of the Oasis Class and entered service in early 2022.

Sailing from its Florida homeport every Sunday, the 5,448-guest vessel offers different itineraries to the Western and the Eastern Caribbean.

The recent arrival in CocoCay was part of a seven-night cruise to the Western Caribbean that also features visits to Cozumel and Costa Maya, in Mexico, as well as Isla de Roatán, in Honduras.

During its year-round program in the region, the Wonder of the Seas also sails to Puerto Rico, St. Maarten, Labadee, and more.

https://cruiseindustrynews.com/

Carnival Vista Crosses the Atlantic for Drydock in Spain

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The Carnival Vista just arrived in Europe for its upcoming routine drydock.

After leaving Port Canaveral on Jan. 8, the Carnival Cruise Line ship crossed the Atlantic on its way to Spain.

The 2016-built vessel is now set to undergo a two-week drydock at the Navantia shipyard in the Bay of Cádiz.

Work expected to be carried out onboard the Carnival Vista includes the addition of Carnival’s new hull livery, in addition to scheduled maintenance, class surveys and technical work.

The 135,000-ton vessel is also poised to see upkeep of its common areas and staterooms, as well as updates to facilities and venues.

Following the work, the Carnival Vista is set to cross the Atlantic on its back to North America before resuming service on Feb. 15.

On that day, the vessel sails from Port Canaveral for a three-night cruise to the Bahamas that features a visit to Nassau, in addition to a full day at sea.

After repositioning from Galveston in late 2023, the Carnival Vista kicked off a year-round program out of its new Central Florida homeport.

The ship’s regular schedule features six- and eight-night cruises to the Southern and the Eastern Caribbean.

Itineraries include popular ports of call in both regions, such as Half Moon Cay, Princess Cays, Aruba, Curaçao, San Juan, St. Thomas, St. Maarten and Nassau.

First in a series of three ships known as Vista Class, the Carnival Vista offers a series of features, including SkyRide, a suspended open-air cycling experience, and the Dreamscape, a three-deck-high LED sculpture located its main atrium.

The 4,000-guest cruise ship was later followed by the 2018-built Carnival Horizon, and the 2019-built Carnival Panorama.

Originally built for Costa Cruises, the 2019-built Carnival Venezia and the 2020-built Carnival Firenze are also considered part of the Vista Class.

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Ambassador’s Ambience Resumes Service Ahead of World Cruise

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Ambassador Cruise Line’s Ambience is resuming service today at the Port of Tilbury, in the United Kingdom.

After seeing several of its cruises transferred to a different ship due to a delayed drydock stay, the 1991-built vessel is returning for a 120-night world cruise.

Sailing roundtrip from its British homeport, the “2024 Grand Around the World Cruise” features visits to a total of 34 destinations across the globe.

After sailing to ports of call in Europe, the global itinerary is set to cross the Atlantic before arriving in the Caribbean and Central America.

The Ambience then transits the Panama Canal before continuing its way to the South Pacific, New Zealand and Australia.

The worldwide adventure also features a series of destinations in the Indian Ocean, Africa and South America on its way back to the UK.

Before resuming service, the Ambience underwent maintenance at a shipyard in Bremerhaven, Germany.

Originally set to be completed in early December, the job was delayed due to metal damage on the ship’s propellor shaft and stern bearings.

According to Ambassador, the problem was found during a routine inspection and required essential repair work, which led to additional time in the German drydock.

The two propeller shafts, each 20 meters long and weighing over 30 tons, together with their bearings had to be transported by sea to a specialist metal repair shop in Denmark, the company explained.

As a result, several cruises previously scheduled to sail onboard the Ambience were transferred to the Ambition – which saw the cancellation of a 38-night cruise to the Caribbean.