Tag Archives: Italy

A Look at the Maiden Season of the Norwegian Aura

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A Look at the Maiden Season of the Norwegian Aura

Set to become the largest ship in Norwegian Cruise Line’s fleet, the Norwegian Aura will offer cruises in the Mediterranean and the Caribbean starting in mid-2027.

Cruise Industry News takes a closer look at the inaugural deployment of the new vessel, which is currently being built at the Fincantieri shipyard in Italy.

Inaugural Cruise in the Mediterranean
Dates: May 21, 2027
Length: 7 nights
Homeports: Trieste (Italy) to Barcelona (Spain)
Itinerary: Valletta (Malta); Salerno and Civitavecchia (Italy)

The Norwegian Aura will make its debut in the Mediterranean as part of a seven-night cruise departing from the Italian port of Trieste.

Sailing to Barcelona, the open-jaw itinerary features visits to destinations in Italy, Spain and Malta, such as Valletta, Salerno and Civitavecchia.

First Trans-Atlantic Crossing
Date: May 28, 2027
Length: 13 nights
Homeports: Barcelona (Spain) to Miami (United States)
Itinerary: Gibraltar (United Kingdom); Motril and Cádiz (Spain)

Following its inaugural cruise in the Mediterranean, the Norwegian Aura kicks off a trans-Atlantic cruise to Miami.

The 13-night cruise sails to three ports before crossing the Atlantic: Cádiz, Motril and Gibraltar. The itinerary also includes eight days of cruising.

U.S. Debut
Date: June 14, 2027
Length: 5 nights
Homeport: Miami (United States)
Itinerary: Puerto Plata (Dominican Republic); and Great Stirrup Cay (Bahamas)

For its U.S. debut, the Prima Plus-class ship offers a short cruise to the Bahamas and the Caribbean sailing from PortMiami.

In addition to a day at sea, the five-night itinerary features visits to Puerto Plata and Norwegian’s private island destination of Great Stirrup Cay.

Eastern Caribbean
Date: Weekly departures starting on June 19, 2027
Length: 8 nights
Homeport: Miami (United States)
Itinerary: Puerto Plata (Dominican Republic); St. Thomas (U.S. Virgin Islands); Tortola (British Virgin Islands); Great Stirrup Cay (Bahamas)

After its first short cruise, the Norwegian Aura kicks off a series of regular seven-night cruises to the Eastern Caribbean for the summer of 2027.

Sailing from PortMiami every Saturday, the ship offers an itinerary that features visits to Puerto Plata, St. Thomas, Tortola and Great Stirrup Cay.

Western Caribbean
Date: Weekly departures starting on October 30, 2027
Length: 7 nights
Homeport: Miami (United States)
Itinerary: Roatán (Honduras); Harvest Caye (Belize); Costa Maya and Cozumel (Mexico)

The new ship will move to the Western Caribbean for the 2027-28 season, offering weeklong cruises to the region starting in late October.

Also sailing from Miami, the itineraries include visits to Honduras, Belize and Mexico with planned stops at Roatán, Harvest Caye, Costa Maya and Cozumel.

Regent Seven Seas Breaks Record for New Ship Bookings

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Regent Seven Seas Breaks Record for New Ship Bookings

Seven Seas Prestige

Regent Seven Seas Cruises enjoyed its biggest single booking day for the launch of a new ship, the company announced in a press release.

The record was achieved on June 25, 2025, when the luxury brand opened reservations for the new Seven Seas Prestige.

Bookings exceeded Regent’s previous record for a new ship launch day, when the Seven Seas Splendor went on sale in 2018, by 26%.

In addition, the Skyview Regent Suite, which was available at $25,000 per night, sold out on six out of the 13 available sailings.

According to Regent, the result is the best performance of a top-tier product the cruise line has ever experienced on an opening day.

“I’m absolutely thrilled, but not surprised, by the phenomenal results that the Seven Seas Prestige has produced – we knew that luxury travellers were extremely eager to reserve their suite on this incredible ship,” said Jason Montague, chief luxury officer for Regent Seven Seas Cruises.

“The Seven Seas Prestige promises to begin a new legacy for the entire ultra-luxury cruise sector, and we cannot wait until she joins the fleet in December 2026. I’d like to thank our valued guests and Travel Partners, as well as Regent’s highly talented and professional teams around the world, who all contributed to this fantastic achievement,” he added.

Set to be delivered in late 2026, the Seven Seas Prestige will be the first in a new class of ships developed by the company.

The 77,000-ton vessel will be 40 per cent larger than Regent’s previous ships, yet it will accommodate just ten per cent more guests, the company said.

Built at the Fincantieri shipyard in Italy, the ship will host 822 guests in all-balcony suites, as well as 630 crew members.

During its maiden season, the ship offers 13 voyages across the Caribbean and Europe, visiting boutique ports and offering multiple overnight stays.

Three Princess Ships to Undergo Drydocks in April

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Three Princess Cruises ships are set to undergo drydocks in April: the Emerald Princess, the Grand Princess and the Regal Princess.

The first ship to enter dry dock was the Emerald Princess, which recently arrived at the Fincantieri shipyard in Palermo, Italy.

After repositioning to Europe earlier this month, the 2007-built vessel arrived at the facility for scheduled maintenance, in addition to class inspections and technical work.

Set to spend the upcoming summer season sailing from Southampton, the Emerald Princess will resume service on April 29, 2025.

Before kicking off a summer deployment in Alaska and Canada, the Grand Princess is also undergoing a dry dock.

The 1998-built ship arrived at the Vigor Shipyard in Portland in mid-April and is now going through regular maintenance.

Before welcoming guests back in early May, the Grand Princess is also scheduled to undergo class inspections, as well as upkeep and minor updates to public areas and staterooms.

A third Princess ship is undergoing a dry dock later this month, the Regal Princess.

Currently sailing in Northern Europe, the vessel is set to arrive at the Damen Shiprepair Yard in Rotterdam on April 25, 2025.

The 3,600-guest ship is expected to undergo technical work and general maintenance before resuming service in early May.

Sailing from Southampton, the Regal Princess is set to offer 12-night cruises to the British Isles during the summer of 2025.

Earlier this year, the Majestic Princess also visited a shipyard in Europe, emerging from dry dock with new venues and reimagined spaces.

According to Princess, the 2017-built vessel saw the addition of new bars and restaurants, including O’Malley’s Irish Pub, Sabatini’s Italian Trattoria and Good Spirits at Sea.

Sailing in Europe for the first time in eight years, the ship is currently offering itineraries in the Mediterranean.