The port of Southampton welcomed Explora Journeys’ Explora I for the ship’s maiden call at the start of its nine-night voyage around the UK.
A crest exchange took place onboard the ship to celebrate its first visit to the destination. Attendees included the ship’s master Captain Serena Melani; Rebekah Keeler of Associated British Ports Southampton; and Michael Ungerer, CEO of Explora Journeys.
“Southampton is one of the UK’s major ports and one of the most significant within Europe, and it was a great pleasure and honour to present our highly anticipated and brand-new ship, Explora I We continue to work meticulously and tirelessly to showcase our new product which fuses innovation and sophisticated design, and our commitment to excellence,” said Ungerer.
Keele added: “We were delighted to welcome Explora I to Southampton which reflects the continued growth of our partnership with the MSC Group. Working with partners who share in our drive for a sustainable future, such as Explora Journeys, will make the ambition a reality and we look forward to welcoming the ship when she has the opportunity to return.”
For its current voyage, the Explora I sails from Southampton to South Queensferry for Edinburgh, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, Invergordon in the Scottish Highlands, Portree in the Isle of Skye, Greencastle in Northern Ireland, Liverpool and Greenock for Glasgow.
The ship will then spend the fall in North America and then head to the Caribbean Sea for winter. The Explora I will return to Europe in the summer of 2024 for a series of Mediterranean sailings.
P&O Britannia tired up in the Caribbean, photo credit Spacejunkie2 (Flickr account)
P&O Cruises announced three new Wellbeing and Lifestyle cruises with TV presenter and women’s health advocate, Cherry Healey and stylist Kat Farmer.
The three voyages in 2024 to Spain, Portugal and the Mediterranean will focus on overall well-being including mind, body, sleep and face.
Guests on these itineraries will get tips and tricks for health and happiness with workshop topics ranging from mind and body to skincare and more. Healey and Farmer will be joined by special guests including make-up artist to the stars, Hannah Martin, and fitness educator and presenter, Sarah Gorman.
P&O Cruises’ research reveals that everyone takes priority over looking after themselves with just one in five Brits (20 per cent) spending a brief 30 minutes a week on ‘self-care’.
Cherry Healey said: “I’m so thrilled to be bringing everything I’ve learned over the past 15 years working in the wellness space to a series of workshops curated specifically for P&O Cruises guests. From how to get great quality sleep, to the best skin of your life, to knowing which of the latest supplements to take and why, we will be sending people home refreshed, rejuvenated and feeling their absolute best!”
Sarah Gorman said, “You have one body and it is your responsibility to treat it well. Look after the vessel that takes you through this life and it will look after you. My sessions will give you some of my favourite tips and advice to aid your holistic well-being.”
MSC Euribia is 100% green-powered, the industry’s first.
MSC Group has unveiled what it said was the next phase of its shore power plan for both MSC Cruises and Explora Journeys.
At least 15 new ports between 2024 and 2026 will be added to the existing use for its vessels to plug into shoreside electricity grids to further demonstrate its commitment to, and continued progress towards, decarbonization, as well as reducing emissions from its fleet of ships while berthed in ports, the company said.
The new 2024-26 shore power plan includes at least five Italian ports; Barcelona and Valencia in Spain; Stavanger and Norfjordied, Norway; Miami, USA; Copenhagen, Denmark; Marseille, France; Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Valletta, Malta and Stockholm, Sweden.
The company intends for its ships, both MSC Cruises and Explora Journeys, to fully utilise shore power facilities at all other ports where it operates throughout Europe and the rest of the world when they are made available.
MSC Cruises ships have since February 2023 successfully used shore power at the ports of Southampton, UK and Kristiansand, Norway and later this summer the company will test the facilities at the Norwegian port of Haugesund. Other European trials this year are planned for a range of MSC Cruises’ ships at Bergen and Alesund in Norway and Warnemunde in Germany.
MSC Virtuosa taking shorepower in Alesund, Norway, photo credit Spacejunkie2(Flickr)
MSC Cruises will also use shore power in the German ports of Hamburg this winter and at Kiel in the summer of 2024.
MSC Cruises last year signed a memorandum of understanding with Cruise Baltic for shore power in the Baltic Sea area. Cruise Baltic has 32 ports and destinations in its region that are committed to increasing the number of shore power facilities, the company said.
Shore power capability has been fitted on all MSC Cruises’ new ships as standard since 2017 and together with retrofits completed on other vessels, 67 per cent of MSC Cruises’ total capacity is equipped with the technology. More ships will be retrofitted as the ports on their sailing itineraries make shore power available.
All Explora Journeys’ ships will also feature shore power capabilities. Explora I, the first ship in the new brand’s fleet, will first come into service on July 17 this year.
Linden Coppell, VP of Sustainability & ESG, MSC Cruises, said, “Shore power is an essential factor on our journey towards net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) operations. All of our newbuilds since 2017 are equipped with the ability to plug into local power grids and we are rolling out retrofits on the other vessels in our fleet.
“Our shore power plan actively demonstrates our ambition and that we are fully committed to reducing emissions from our ships, including while in ports,” she said.
“We have invested heavily in hybrid exhaust gas cleaning systems to substantially reduce local air quality emissions and we now need more ports across Europe and beyond to introduce shore power as quickly as possible. By making significant reductions to emissions in ports, we are fulfilling our responsibility to the docks and coastal communities that our ships visit and serve.
“Together with the use of LNG fuel, improving energy efficiency, utilizing innovative wastewater treatment and waste recycling, we are making positive strides in playing our part to address climate change and protect ocean biodiversity.”
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