Tag Archives: Cuba

Ambassador’s Ambience Kicks Off 40-Day Cruise to the Caribbean

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Ambassador’s Ambience Kicks Off 40-Day Cruise to the Caribbean

Ambassador Cruise Line’s Ambience recently kicked off one of the company’s longest cruises this year, a 40-day voyage to the Caribbean.

Sailing roundtrip from Tilbury, the “Jewels of the Caribbean Sea” itinerary is highlighted by visits to a wide range of destinations in the region.

As part of the voyage, the Ambience will become the only mainstream cruise ship to sail to Cuba in 2026, with a 13-hour visit to Havana scheduled for Feb. 16, 2026.

The cruise started with a visit to Ponta Delgada in the Azores after departing from the United Kingdom on Jan. 30, 2026.

The Ambience then crossed the Atlantic for destinations in Antigua and the British Virgin Islands, such as Antigua and Tortola.

Following its visit to Cuba, the ship is also scheduled to sail to George Town in the Cayman Islands, Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic and Fort-de-France in Martinique.

Other ports of call include Montego Bay and Ocho Rios in Jamaica, as well as Bridgetown in Barbados and Castries in St. Lucia.

Before arriving back in Tilbury in early March, the Ambience also sails to Basseterre in St. Kitts and St. Vincent.

Upon returning to the United Kingdom, the Ambience embarks on a series of spring cruises to Northern Europe, visiting Scandinavia, the Baltic, the British Isles and more.

For the summer, the 1,578-passenger ship adds visits to more destinations, including Portugal, Spain, Madeira, the Canaries and Iceland.

The vessel’s deployment is also highlighted by a 31-night cruise to the Mediterranean scheduled for early November, which sails roundtrip from Tilbury and features ports of call across North Africa, the Adriatic, Sicily and more.

In related news, Ambassador’s Ambience recently underwent a three-week drydock refurbishment in the United Kingdom.

The multi-million-dollar refurbishment included technical work, as well as improvements to public areas and staterooms.

Norwegian Cruise Line Ordered to Pay $110 Million in Cuba Court Case

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Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings has been ordered to pay approximately $110 million in damages for use of the Havana port, according to a U.S. judge who ruled in the case Friday.

The case, ongoing for some time, was ruled in favour of the Havana Docks Corp., which essentially argued that the cruise line’s use of the Havana port “constituted trafficking in confiscated property” as the port is a Cold-War asset seizure.

It is still being determined whether NCLH will or can appeal the nine-figure ruling. Havana Docks Corp. has pending cases against Carnival Corporation, Royal Caribbean Group and MSC Cruises.

Havana Docks Corp. was awarded $109,848,747.87 in damages plus Norwegian will pay $3 million in legal fees and costs.

With the Obama administration easing the Cuba embargo in 2016, cruise lines lined up to sail to Havana, including all of Norwegian Cruise Line’s brands.

In 2019, the Trump administration undid some of that with a ban on recreational travel to Cuba which put a stop to any major cruise brands calling on the island.

In 2020 a judge ruled in favour of Carnival Corporation in a similar case.

Variety Steps Up to Get MSC Crew Home to Cuba

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Cuba Crew from MSC Aboard the Variety Panorama

Variety Cruises has stepped up, using its 50-guest Variety Panorama to help repatriate 19 Cuban crew members from the MSC Preziosa, according to a statement.

Variety said it responded to call for assistance and made a 14-day diversion to bring the crew members home.

Having completed a winter season of cruising off the coast of Costa Rica and Panama, the Panorama was empty other than for the crew and en route to Europe for the summer.

Having stopped to bunker fuel in Barbados prior to crossing the Atlantic, she berthed near the MSC Preziosa. A request followed from the Cuban government, and the Panorama’s Captain, Vasilis Mazarakis, agreed to repatriate the Cuban crew members to Havana.

Captain Mazarakis

The voyage took seven days, with the ship then cruising back to Barbados for another week to refuel prior to her crossing.

Health declarations were provided by the Captain of MSC Preziosa and the Barbadian medical authorities, and the new addition of guests was thermo-scanned prior to boarding and on every subsequent day of the journey.

Upon disembarking his charges on April 4 in Havana, Captain Mazarakis said: “During these difficult times we are facing, it is important to help each other. Knowing that we were helping fellow seafarers by getting them back to their families makes us all proud. We wish and hope that all stranded crew and passengers alike manage to get home to their loved ones and that the world will return to normal soon.’’.