Marella Launches Second Country Rhythms Themed Cruise

Posted on 22 June, 2026 by Spacejunkie2

Marella Launches Second Country Rhythms Themed Cruise

Marella Cruises has announced the return of its adult-only country music-themed cruise, “Country Rhythms,” aboard the Marella Explorer in November 2027.

Chris Hackney, CEO at Marella Cruises, said: “Following strong demand for our first Country Rhythms themed cruise in February 2026 and successful booking results in its first year, we’re excited to bring it back for a second season in winter 2027.”

“These impressive stats from our first country-themed cruise, alongside our market research, have shown that our new and existing customers are keen to explore new themed cruises involving beloved country music combined with our all-inclusive and end-to-end cruise offering,” added Hackney.

“We’re excited to announce more news in the future for Country Rhythms 2027, so stay tuned.”

The themed cruise will include a country music lineup of live singers and acts, which will be announced at a later date. The themed cruise will go on sale from July 2, 2026.

TUI’s UK cruise line said in a press release that the sailing will feature country-themed activities including a Barn Dance bash, production shows and line dancing classes.

There will be two sailings for customers to experience the cruises:

The first is a four-night sailing from Thursday, November 11, 2027, to Monday, November 15, 2027.

The cruise embarks from Malaga, Spain and sails through Gibraltar; day at sea; Puerto del Rosario, Fuerteventura and finishing in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria.

The second will be a five-night cruise from Thursday, November 11, 2027, to Tuesday, November 16, 2027.

The cruise sails from Malaga through Gibraltar; day at sea; Puerto del Rosario, Fuerteventura; Las Palmas, Gran Canaria and ending in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

All sailings will have TUI Airways flights across six regional airports including London Gatwick, Bristol, Manchester, Newcastle, Glasgow and Belfast.

Cruise Ships Celebrate New Year in Funchal

Posted on 1 January, 2023 by Spacejunkie2

Various cruise ships were welcomed in 2023 in Funchal as guests were onboard dockside and in the harbour for the city’s spectacular fireworks display.

Ship Line Up

Marella Cruises: Marella Explorer
Nicko Cruises: Vasco Da Gama
AIDA: AIDAsella
Fred. Olsen: Borealis
TUI: Mein Schiff Herz
Cunard: Queen Victoria

The city’s New Years’ eve celebration has quickly become a cruise tradition for European brands, which often time their itineraries with an overnight call to Funchal on New Year’s Eve. It’s among a handful of ports around the world already in a key cruise region at the right time of the year where guests can stay on the ship and have a front-row seat to a fireworks show.

Will Marella Cruises Be Handed Over To TUI Cruises?

Posted on 15 January, 2022 by Spacejunkie2

TUI Cruises is set to grow in size and reach, according to the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine.

The newspaper reported that British cruise line Marella Cruises, which is currently owned by TUI Group, will be integrated into TUI Cruises – a joint venture between TUI Group and Royal Caribbean Group.

The handover of Marella will grow TUI Cruises, which currently operates in the German market, into a European cruise line. Earlier, in 2020, another cruise line, Hapag Lloyd Cruises, was integrated into the TUI Cruises brand in a similar fashion.

Marella Cruises currently has a fleet of four ships – the Marella Explorer, Marella Explorer 2, Marella Discovery and Marella Discovery 2. The cruise line recently confirmed to Cruise Industry News that it would be growing its fleet to five ships in 2023 but did not disclose which ship those plans would involve.