Tag Archives: Rhapsody of the seas

Rhapsody of the Seas and Silver Moon Make Inaugural Calls to Dominica

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Royal Caribbean International’s Rhapsody of the Seas and Silversea’s Silver Moon made their inaugural calls to Dominica on Friday, December 2, 2022.

To mark the occasion, traditional plaque exchange ceremonies were held aboard each of the two ships, attended by government officials and captains.

The Rhapsody of the Seas and the Silver Moon thus become the third and fourth ship to make their inaugural calls in Dominica this season. The first ship to do so was The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Evrima on November 24, 2022.

The Rhapsody of the Seas is scheduled to make a total of twelve calls to Dominica in the 2022/2023 season. The ship is currently on its 14-night Ultimate Caribbean Cruise which departed from Bridgetown, Barbados on December 4.

The Silver Moon, the sister ship of the Silver Muse, made its only call scheduled for Dominica in the 2022/2023 season.

After a call in Roseau, Dominica, the Silver Moon set sail to St Georges, Grenada and Bequia, Grenadines before arriving in Bridgetown, Barbados.

The Silver Moon is currently on its 16-night Bridgetown to Lima voyage which departed on December 5 and will make stops at St Vincent, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Cartagena, Colombia and Oranjestad, Aruba among other destinations.

As of November 25, the port of Dominica has received a total of 13 cruise calls carrying a total of 18,980 cruise passengers. Dominica will welcome 51 cruise calls in December 2022.

14 Cruise Ships Received a Perfect 100 Health Score

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Disney Fantasy by Disney Cruise Line
PHOTO: Disney Fantasy by Disney Cruise Line. (photo via Marina113 / iStock Editorial / Getty Images Plus)

According to the CDC, 14 cruise ships earned a perfect health score during their surprise inspections in the last year.

The ships can be found among 10 different cruise lines and include Celebrity Summit, Rhapsody of the Seas, Norwegian Gem, Disney Wonder, Seabourn Quest, Viking Star, Auroa, Disney Fantasy, Noordam, Sea Princess, Disney Dream, Amsterdam, AIDAVITA and Emerald Princess.

All cruise ships that sail to or from the U.S. must undergo a surprise health inspection by the VSP or Vessel Sanitation Program.

Everything from the medical facilities to the swimming pools, portable water systems, child centres, rooms, ventilation systems and common areas of the ship are inspected.

There are 44 items on the VSP’s checklist, so to get a score of 100, the cruise ship had to receive perfect scores on every single item.

Alternatively, a score of 85 or below is considered failing which occurred with the following ships: Ocean Insignia, Ocean Dream, Silver Spirit, Safari Endeavor and Le Boreal.

Cuba cruises on Empress of the Seas to sail mainly from Tampa

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After first April 19 cruise from Miami, Empress of the Seas will reposition to Tampa

After first April 19 cruise from Miami, Empress of the Seas will reposition to Tampa

Ater a first Cuba cruise from Miami on April 19, Royal Caribbean International’s Empress of the Seas will sail to the island from its new homeport, Tampa. Bookings opened today.

The April 19 cruise from Port Miami lasts five nights.

The ship will then reposition to Port Tampa Bay, offering two itineraries with calls at Havana on April 30, a seven-night sailing, and May 20, a five-night sailing.

Empress of the Seas will remain in Tampa for the 2017 summer season in the line’s first summer program from there, with a series of four- and five-night cruises, including calls in Cuba.

Details of the summer itineraries will be released at a later date.

Royal Caribbean spokeswoman Cynthia Martinez told Seatrade Cruise News the company has a framework for a long-term agreement with Cuba, and is working on the details of future sailings.

The line’s people-to-people experiences for passengers include exploring Old Havana and some of its most notable squares, historic neighborhoods and an artisan market, Havana’s rum museum and Hemingway’s former residence and favorite haunts.

Cuban culture will extend to Empress of the Seas, from cortaditos and café con leche in Café Royal to salsa music and other activities developed to bring the island to life during the entire journey.

Two other Royal Caribbean ships, Rhapsody of the Seas and Brilliance of the Seas, will cruise from Tampa during the winter.

‘The Tampa Bay market has always been important to us, and the entire family at Royal Caribbean is excited to give our guests great year-round options to travel on one of our beautiful ships from a world-class port like Port Tampa Bay,’ RCI president and ceo Michael Bayley said. ‘We are thrilled to introduce culture-seeking travelers to Cuba from Tampa and we look forward to continuing to grow our business in Tampa for years to come.’

Port president and ceo Paul Anderson welcomed the news as ‘truly historic for Port Tampa Bay to have cruises to Cuba, and we are thrilled that Royal Caribbean has chosen Port Tampa Bay to offer the largest ship to sail to Cuba from the United States.’

The 48,563gt Empress of the Seas underwent a $50m refurbishment earlier in the year after coming back to the Royal Caribbean fleet following several years of service for Pullmantur. It has double-occupancy capacity for 1,602 passengers.