Royal Caribbean voyages to double the fun at the private island

Posted on 19 August, 2019 by Spacejunkie2

CocoCay’s waterpark opened earlier this year.

Royal Caribbean International has added nearly 40 sailings in the coming year that will feature two stops at its Perfect Day at CocoCay private island.

The four-day cruises on Navigator of the Seas from Port Canaveral and Mariner of the Seas generally sandwich a stop in Nassau between the two visits to nearby CocoCay.

Royal Caribbean will sail three Navigator cruises that stay at CocoCay late into the night.

Entertainment will include traditional Bahamian-inspired activities, including a Junkanoo Jam Up Party, an island barbecue and performances by a calypso band and fire dancers, topped off with fireworks.

Both Virgin Voyages and MSC Cruises are preparing to offer private beach attractions in the Bahamas that provide evening activities.

Cruise Companies Pursue Different Brand Growth Strategies

Posted on 7 August, 2019 by Spacejunkie2

The multi-brand cruise companies will continue to grow their largest and most popular brands, but individual brand growth may surprise, according to the 2019 Cruise Industry News Annual Report.

While Carnival Cruise Line brand will continue to be the dominant brand for Carnival Corporation over the next decade, carrying twice as many passengers as the second-largest brand, Costa Crociere will see the most capacity growth over the same time period, driven partially by its short cruises in China.

AIDA will be third in terms of capacity growth, followed by Princess Cruises.

Altogether the Carnival brands will grow their passenger capacity from an estimated 12 million (double occupancy) in 2019 to some 16 million in 2027, barring any ship withdrawals and deployment changes.

At Royal Caribbean Cruises, the Royal Caribbean brand will also continue to dominate and could be the single largest brand in the world by 2027, growing by an estimated 1.2 million passengers, twice the projected capacity growth for the Carnival brand over the same time period. TUI Cruises, which is 50 per cent owned by Royal Caribbean, will also see significant growth. However, Celebrity, which will see less growth over the same time period, will remain the second-largest brand at Royal Caribbean. The total capacity for the Royal Caribbean brands is forecast to grow to about 9 million.

MSC Cruises will move up to become the third-largest cruise company with the most capacity growth of any brand, from an estimated 2.4 million in 2019 to nearly 5 million by 2027.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings moves to fourth place, however, the Norwegian Cruise Line brand will see the second largest passenger capacity increase. Total capacity for the three Norwegian brands is estimated at 3.7 million in the nine-year forecast.

Genting will also see significant relative growth and remains the fifth largest cruise operator.

MSC Cruises More Details on Private Island Ocean Cay

Posted on 24 June, 2019 by Spacejunkie2

MSC’s Ocean Cay is set to welcome guests later this year to its private island experience in the Bahamas, with the cruise line releasing new details today.

Among the features are eight beaches; Seakers Family Cove, a shallow lagoon to play in with a beach for games, monitored by lifeguards; Seakers food court, which will be complimentary for guests; the Spa at Ocean Cay; various evening entertainment including a light show around the 98 ft. lighthouse at the centre of the island, a traditional Junkanoo parade — Bahamian festival and consisting of a feast of colourful costumes, music and dancing.; and shore excursions including stand-up paddle boarding, kayaking, snorkelling and stargazing in the evenings.

“The vision for the island is to immerse guests in the natural beauty of their surroundings in the Bahamas. Ocean Cay is founded on a deep commitment to ecological principles – beliefs that shape everything from how venues are built and how the island is run, to the kinds of activities featured on the island. Work is underway to design opportunities for guests to learn about the protection of the oceans and the importance of preserving coral reefs through dedicated edutainment programs,” MSC said, in a prepared statement.

As part of the development of Ocean Cay, MSC said it is working to establish the roadmap for the restoration of marine resources, including habitats and species present in the area. This will include the restoration of endangered corals and the implementation of other conservation and educational programs.

The island is situated within protected waters spanning 64 square miles, but the ambition is to further extend this parameter to ensure an even greater impact, MSC said.

MSC also said it had commissioned a Rapid Ecological Assessment (REA) that provided a short term overview of the waters around Ocean Cay.

“An integral part of the marine ecosystem, coral needs to be protected as they maintain biodiversity, provide a habitat for marine life and protect coastlines,” the company said. “Now that the waters around the island are protected and it is no longer an industrial site once used for sand excavation, the seabed is returning to normal. The hope is that the coral will again begin to thrive. Plans are underway to establish a coral nursery on the East side of the island with the goal of propagating even more coral, particularly the more endangered varieties.”

The recent survey established that there are three types of coral that can be found in abundance — primarily Agaricia agaricites known as lettuce coral; Porites astreoides commonly known as mustard hill coral or yellow porites; and Siderastrea also known as massive starlet coral. These species are more capable of withstanding harsh temperature conditions and siltation than other species. Also found around the island during the assessment is the critically endangered Acropora palmata known as Elkhorn Coral. Four distinct colonies of this species were observed along the rocky shoreline of these cays. Over time these corals will become candidates for restoration in the coral nursery.

The Ocean Cay team is already seeing an increase in marine life in the area, and the REA identified 88 different species of fish around the island as well as lobster, sea turtles and rays.