Tag Archives: homeport

Discovery Princess to Homeport in Sydney in 2025-26

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Princess Cruises announced that the Discovery Princess will homeport in Sydney during the 2025-26 summer Australia season.

The Discovery Princess will be the cruise line’s biggest ship to ever homeport in Australia in its 50-year history of cruising down under. The ship will make its debut in Sydney in October 2025.

Princess Cruises’ President John Padgett said: “Nearly half a century has passed since Princess Cruises introduced the Pacific Princess ship to Sydney’s shores. In commemoration of this milestone, we are delighted to unveil the future deployment of the Discovery Princess today, further solidifying our belief in the Australian market. 

“We are confident that both our international and Australian guests will be excited about the spectacular experience aboard Discovery Princess as she sails from Sydney in late 2025.”

Padgett added the cruise line is thrilled to add the Discovery Princess to its Australian fleet for the 2025-26 summer season. The ship will join the Crown Princess and the Grand Princess as part of the summer program, which will be revealed in full next month including the longest World Cruise yet.

“Discovery Princess will continue to set new standards for premium cruising when she sails from Australia in the 2025-26 summer season. She’s an incredible ship with many wonderful features for our guests, from superb cuisine to world-class entertainment and facilities.”

MSC Euribia to Homeport in Southampton in 2023/24

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MSC Euribia will take over from the sucsesfull MSC Virtuosa

MSC Cruises has just announced a brand new ship launching in October 2023, the MSC Euribia. This ship offers sailings from October 2023 through winter 2023 and 2024 based in Southampton. Its homeport in the UK comes after huge demand for no-fly cruises on MSC Virtuosa. MSC Euribia is the second ship in the MSC fleet which will be powered by liquid natural gas fuel. It is set to be a confidently sustainable ship. 

This brand-new vessel boats incredible new features including original artwork on the decks and design aspects throughout. Alex Flämig has produced the iconic design coined #SaveTheSea. This message accurately reflects MSC Cruises’ commitment to protecting the marine environment. 

Guests will be offered a wide variety of entertainment on MSC Euribia, from theatre shows and casinos to the Coral Reef Aquapark, one of the biggest waterparks at sea. MSC Euribia boasts ultimate relaxation with five swimming pools and the MSC Aurea Spa onboard. The gastronomic escapades are endless with the option of 10 dining venues and 21 bars with global and regional-inspired menus to enjoy. 

MSC Virtuosa resumed cruising with a UK itinerary during the startup of cruising from Southampton and with a successful Summer season, she sailed to the Middle East for the winter 21/22 season and then replaced the Magnifica and Preziosa with an all-year-round summer/winter homeporting in Southampton. 

Celebrity Apex to home port in Southampton in the 2024 season

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Celebrity Cruises’ second Edge-class ship, Celebrity Apex, will homeport in Southampton for its entire 2024 season.

Apex – which will be the first Edge-class ship to sail out of Southampton – will replace Celebrity Silhouette and offer four- to-13-night sailings from May through November 2024.

Itineraries include a 12-night Norwegian Fjords and Arctic Circle cruise, as well as sailings to Ibiza and the Mediterranean.

Following feedback from its travel partners, the line has announced its UK deployment two weeks in advance of the launch date for the first time, to allow agents to pre-register interest from guests.

To support the trade in selling the vessel, the line will host 600 agents onboard Apex in 2023, across a range of ship visits and seminars.

Agents will also have access to a suite of training and marketing tools via Celebrity Central, including webinars; digital “Be the first to book” banners; fact sheets; talking points; itinerary flyers; and print adverts.

New training modules featuring Apex will also be available on Celebrity Passport. Agents selling Apex can also earn up to £20 per booking on all 2024 bookings via Celebrity Rewards.

From 1 November to 5 December 2022, agents can earn up to £50 Celebrity Rewards points per booking on all 2023 sailings, across all stateroom categories.

Lisa Lutoff Perlo, president and chief executive of Celebrity Cruises, said: “Having one of our award-winning Edge Series ships sailing from Southampton will offer an experience like no other from the UK.

“Celebrity Cruises continues to redefine cruising, taking our guests to the world’s best places on the world’s best places.”

The line’s vice president and managing director EMEA, Jo Rzymowska, said the UK “has always been integral to the success” of the company, and homeporting Apex from Southampton “underlines our commitment to this market”.

“There is a huge appetite from UK guests who share our curiosity for people, places and cultures, and our passion for opening up the world through a love of travel.

“We invest a lot in the training of our travel partners because what’s really important to us, is that they can talk about what makes Celebrity different and what makes us unique, therefore they’re not just selling a big white ship. And that is really important.

“I’m looking forward to welcoming even more of our guests onboard Celebrity Apex when she raises the bar for cruising from Southampton in 2024.”