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Tag Archives: Norwegian Jewel

Norwegian Star to sail Asia and Australia cruises

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Norwegian Star in Cabo San Lucas, by Dave Jones

By Jerry Limone

Norwegian Cruise Line will sail to destinations in Asia and Australia for the first time since 2002, operating voyages from six ports in fall/winter 2016-17 on the Norwegian Star.

Itineraries will depart from Istanbul, Dubai, Singapore, Hong Kong, Sydney and Auckland, New Zealand. Highlights include the line’s first visits to India and the Persian Gulf, a series of Southeast Asia cruises and two Australia/New Zealand voyages (one 12-day and one 19-day cruise). The Southeast Asia cruises feature overnight stays in Bangkok.

Also in winter 2016-17, the Norwegian Epic will return to Florida after more than a year in Europe, sailing eastern and western Caribbean itineraries from Port Canaveral. The Norwegian Jade will replace Norwegian Star in Tampa, mainly sailing an itinerary that visits the Mexican Caribbean; Roatan in Honduras’ Bay Islands; and Harvest Caye, Norwegian’s new private destination in Belize.

Starting next summer, the Norwegian Spirit will replace the Epic as the line’s year-round European ship, sailing Mediterranean cruises from Barcelona, Venice and Istanbul.

In addition to Norwegian’s previously scheduled Panama Canal cruises in February, the line has added two 14-day Panama Canal sailings from Los Angeles and Miami on the Norwegian Jewel, on Feb. 5, 2017, and Feb. 19, 2017. The Caribbean cruises go on sale Aug. 24.

Caribbean sailings for fall/winter 2016-17 will go on sale Aug. 19, and all other destinations go on sale Aug. 24.

 

Norwegian Jewel first big ship for new port in Honduras

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By Tom Stieghorst
Banana Coast tramSeveral new cruise ports have sprung up south of the traditional ports of call in the Western Caribbean, bringing that area onto more cruise itineraries, especially from homeports in Texas and Louisiana.

The latest entrant is Banana Coast, which welcomed its first large ship when the Norwegian Jewel called on Oct. 15. Situated in the port town of Trujillo, it is the first cruise port on the mainland of Honduras.

Two other Honduran cruise ports, Coxen Hole and Mahogany Bay, opened in 2008 and 2010, respectively, on the island of Roatan, about 30 miles offshore of the country’s north coast.

Honduran dignitaries turned out to greet the 2,376-passenger Jewel on arrival last week. Six lines are expected to make 29 calls from now until April 20.

They are expected to bring more than 50,000 passengers to the port, said Randy Jorgensen, general manager of Grande Trujillo Autoridad, developer of the 10-acre property.

The Jewel’s Oct. 12 departure from Houston marked Norwegian Cruise Line’s return to that port after seven years away. Banana Coast will be a regular stop on itineraries that also include Cozumel and Belize City.

“It’s key to attract a cruise line of Norwegian’s size and prestige,” Jorgensen said. “It’s extremely powerful in terms of opening the doors to get things done.”

Other lines expected to call this year are Holland America Line, Silversea Cruises, Oceania Cruises, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, P&O Cruises and Crystal Cruises, Jorgensen said.

Banana Coast was announced in 2011. It opened even though a $35 million pier envisioned as part of the project has not been built. The port has a beach and a shopping village, which includes about half of the 50,000 square feet in original plans.

Jorgensen said further development hinges on attracting more passengers, “when we start getting higher volumes or an actual need for the dock.”

One factor that clouds future plans is the announcement by Norwegian Cruise Line that it plans its own port in the area on Harvest Caye in southern Belize, about 75 miles away.

Jorgensen said 20 to 30 calls are booked for 2015-16, even without Norwegian. “If Norwegian continues to have confidence in us, we’ll probably get another 20 to 30 calls from them, I would think.”

Jorgensen said he believes cruise passengers will want to come to Banana Coast because it is fresh and authentic. The town of Trujillo is a short walk and is rich with Spanish colonial history, he said.

“We haven’t tried to duplicate southern Florida,” he said. “We’ve kept the local culture and the local institutions in place so they can be part of the experience for the passengers.”

Excursions from Banana Coast include horseback riding, kayaking through a wildlife preserve, tours of an animal rescue center focused on scarlet macaws and a snorkel tour of a starfish bay. The project has about 200 direct employees, Jorgensen said.

Grande Trujillo Autoridad includes Jorgensen’s real estate company in Honduras, Life Vision Development, Canadian equity investors and the municipality of Trujillo, which owns 20%. Miami-based Global Destinations Development, headed by Michael Greve, is a development partner.

Norwegian spending big on fleet upgrade

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Norwegian Cruise Line has set out on a major overhaul of its fleet, which will see the giant investing a quarter of a billion dollars over the next year.

The company is investing $250 million in a fleetwide renovation project called Norwegian Next that will see many of the entertainments and dining venues from its newer Breakaway-class ships rolled out across the rest of its fleet in the coming months.

A number of ships have already been refurbished recently including Norwegian Jewel and Norwegian Spirit. Norwegian Gem is set to get a makeover this year, while Norwegian Star and Norwegian Epic will go into the dry dock in 2015.

The Norwegian Next programme features a large number of changes including entertainment, children’s activities and onboard connectivity. In terms of the dining establishments found on Getaway and Breakaway, Norwegian will be bringing O’Sheehan’s Bar & Grill and Carlo’s Bake Shop to all of its ships, along with the Sugarcane Mojito bar.

It will also be bringing the main dining room on the other ships in line with its newest vessels and introducing Garden Cafes. There will also be new wine and cocktail menus, while bartenders and wine stewards across the rest of the fleet are set to receive additional training.

Among the new children’s activities will be more Nickelodeon entertainments and a special area at the cruise line’s private island Great Stirrup Cay. It is also introducing new bars on the island and ensuring that passengers calling here have access to larger beach areas and more cabanas.

“The youngest fleet at sea continues to get even better with our robust enhancement program taking place over the next two years,” said Kevin Sheehan, Norwegian Cruise Line’s chief executive.

“We want to continue to provide fresh and relevant experiences to our guests every time they sail with us. We are investing significantly in making sure that our guests have the vacation of a lifetime and fully experience what it means to Cruise like a Norwegian.”