Keel Laid For Crystal Endeavor – Other Cruise News: The Crystal Diamond Class – AIDANova Floated Out At Papenburg

THE CRUISE EXAMINER AT CYBERCRUISES.COM BY KEVIN GRIFFIN

The Cruise Examiner for 27th August 2018

The 200-berth 600-foot Crystal Endeavor will join ships making the Northwest Passage

Last week saw three pieces of news from Germany, first with the keel-laying ceremony for the 200-berth Crystal Endeavor at Stralsund, and second with a reveal of the rendering of the new downsized 65,000-ton (as opposed to 100,000-ton) Crystal Diamond class ships. Elsewhere in Germany, the LNG-powered AIDANova was floated out at Meyer Werft in Papenburg.

FOR THIS WEEK’S STORY                                                                                                            (See previous columns)

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Arctic Cruise Line – Other Cruise News: Churchill Cruises – Solomon Islands Discovery Cruises

THE CRUISE EXAMINER AT CYBERCRUISES.COM BY KEVIN GRIFFIN

The Cruise Examiner for 20th August 2018

A design for a 200-berth 348-foot Ice Class cruiser is in the purview of Greenland’s Arctic Cruise Line 

This week features a trio of “newbies” to expedition and adventure cruising. First up, with plans (but not yet orders) for newbuildings, is Arctic Cruise Line of Greenland, with a pair of 200-berth vessels that seem similar in appearance to some of those being built now by Vard in Norway. Second is Churchill Cruises of Winnipeg, who have an agreement with Albatros Travel of Denmark that will see them offer a cruise in each direction between Greenland and Churchill in September 2019. And third is the start-up of Solomon Islands Discovery Cruises out of Honiara.

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Seabourn Sojourn To Begin Crusing To Cuba – Celebrity’s New Celebrity Edge – Silversea To Revamp Its Fleet

THE CRUISE EXAMINER AT CYBERCRUISES.COM BY KEVIN GRIFFIN

The Cruise Examiner for 13th August 2018

The 458-berth Seabourn Sojourn will begin her cruise program to Cuba in November 2019

Last week saw more news from Cuba, with Seabourn becoming the third member of the Carnival Corp & plc group to serve Cuban ports, when it joins Carnival Cruise Line and Holland America Line next November. The Sojourn will sail from Miami and also offer cruises from San Juan. Meanwhile,  the first ship of the new Celebrity Edge class will be in service by the end of this year, and will be based in Europe next summer. Elsewhere, subsequent to joining the Royal Caribbean Cruises group, Silversea has announced a fleet-wide revamp of its ships, based on the line’s flagship, the 596-berth Silver Muse.

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With Two Ships, Victory Is Now The Largest Great Lakes Operator

THE CRUISE EXAMINER AT CYBERCRUISES.COM BY KEVIN GRIFFIN

The Cruise Examiner for 6th August 2018

The Victory II, seen last week near Montreal, has had her open air dining area in the stern glassed in

Miami-based Victory Cruise Lines, the most recent specialist in luxury cruises on the Great Lakes and St Lawrence River, today welcomed the inaugural voyage of its new vessel, the 202-berth Victory II, to Detroit. Not quite completed in 2001, when parent company American Classic Voyages went out of business, she was ordered as the Cape Cod Light, the second ship for Delta Queen Coastal Voyages.

Although the vessel was finally completed in 2004, she was not placed into passenger service, meaning that this cruise was in fact the ship’s first revenue passenger voyage.

In fourteen years since completion she has spent much of her time either laid up in fresh water or employed as an accommodation ship in UK and European waters. She was finally completed as a fully-fledged cruise ship this spring in Sweden. The most noticeable change to the ship is the glass enclosure that now surrounds the former Hot Rock Grill on her stern.

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Viking Cruises Orders Two Ships From Vard – Fincantieri To Build Two Princess LNG Ships – Celestyal Majesty To Go To Mano Cruises

THE CRUISE EXAMINER AT CYBERCRUISES.COM BY KEVIN GRIFFIN

The Cruise Examiner for 30th July 2018

The no-balcony Celestyal Majesty will now sail the Eastern Mediterranean as Mano Maritime’s Princess Iris

Last week saw more news on several fronts. Viking Cruises has confirmed its order for two ships of a new design with Vard, while Fincantieri will build two LNG-powered vessels for Princess Cruises. In the realm of older non-balcony ships, Louis Group of Cyprus has sold its Celesytal Majesty to new owners Mano Maritime, for whom she will operate as the Princess Iris.

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Virgin Voyages Names Scarlet Lady – Norwegian Joy To Join Norwegian Bliss To Alaska – Second New Polar Ship For Lindblad

THE CRUISE EXAMINER AT CYBERCRUISES.COM BY KEVIN GRIFFIN

The Cruise Examiner for 23rd July 2018

The Scarlet Lady serves as a logo and the name of Virgin Voyages’ first ship

Last week saw the floating out at Genoa of Virgin Voyages’ first ship, and the announcement of Scarlet Lady as her name. The name was used before by one of Virgin Atlantic’s original 747 jumbo jets, an aircraft that has only recently been retired after a long career with Virgin. Also last week it was announced that Norwegian Cruise Line would move its Norwegian Joy, a “Breakaway Plus” class vessel initially tasked for the China market, to work with sister ship Norwegian Bliss between Seattle and Alaska. Meanwhile, in news from New York, Lindblad Expeditions has announced an order for a second newbuilding polar expedition ship to join the National Geographic Endurance.

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Icebreaker Le Commandant Charcot – Norwegian Cruise Line And TUI Cruises Each Order Two Ships, All From Fincantieri

THE CRUISE EXAMINER AT CYBERCRUISES.COM BY KEVIN GRIFFIN

The Cruise Examiner for 16th July 2018

Ponant’s icebreaker is to be named Le Commandant Charcot

Last week saw the christening of Ponant’s latest expedition ship Le Lapérouse in Reyjkjavik, along with the announcement that the line’s new Polar Class 2 icebreaker would be called Le Commandant Charcot. Also announced were two more ships of the “Leonardo” class for Norwegian Cruise Line and two ships of a new class for TUI Cruises, all to be built by Fincantieri.

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