£300 Off The Best Of Vietnam & Cambodia On The 60-Passenger Cruiseco Adventurer – October/November 2017 Departures

For further information on any of these specials please contact The Cruise People Ltd, 88 York Street, London W1H 1QT +44 (0)20 7723 2450, UK Freephone: 0800 526 313 or email PassageEnquiry@aol.com

Hurtigruten’s Fram Now Offers Atlantic Canada and New England Cruises, With Calls In Newfoundland And The Gulf of St Lawrence

Hurtigruten, which has been running the legendary Norwegian coastal voyage since 1893, will add Atlantic Canada, Newfoundland, the Gulf of St Lawrence and New England to its itineraries starting in April 2018.

Following the 2017-18 winter season in Antarctica, the 318-berth Fram will depart Miami in early April and sail up the East Coast to offer April and May sailings between New York and Halifax. Key ports include New York, Boston, Newport, St John’s NF and Halifax.

One of the more interesting itineraries will be round trip from New York on April 15, a 15-night voyage calling at Newport, Boston, three ports in Maine, Halifax, St John’s NF, St Pierre, Louisbourg, Portland and New York. This voyage can also be booked as a 7-night voyage from New York to Halifax or as an 8-night voyage from Halifax to New York on April 22.

On April 30, the Fram will depart New York on a 10-night cruise to Yarmouth, Charlottetown PEI, Bonaventure Island, Percé and Havre St Pierre in Quebec, Bonne Bay NF, the Magdalen Islands and Halifax.

The Fram, which was built in 2007 at Fincantieri, will offer six Atlantic Canada and New England cruises before returning to her usual Iceland, Greenland and Northern Europe itineraries for the summer.

She will return to Halifax in October after her usual expedition voyages to northern waters. On October 8, she will offer a 12-night cruise from Halifax to Miami with calls in five New England ports including Boston, an overnight in New York City and a call in Charleston before arriving at Miami.

A century ago the Red Cross Line offered similar cruises between New York, Halifax and St John’s NF.

For more details of Hurtigruten’s Atlantic Canada and New England cruises please apply to The Cruise People Ltd in London on +44 (0)20 7723 2450 or email PassageEnquiry@aol.com.

Seeing Cuba The Small Ship Way – The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection – Newbuilding Magellan Explorer For Antarctica XXI

The Cruise Examiner for 26th June 2017

Victory Cruise Line’s Victory I, seen here as Saint Laurent at Montreal in 2015

Last week, we received word from Victory Cruise Lines of Miami that it had received approval to cruise to Cuba and that president and ceo Bruce Nierenberg is now in Cuba making arrangements. Victory operate the 210-berth Victory I, which is presently sailing the Great Lakes. Victory’s Nierenberg advises us of the relatively new line’s plans for Cuba. Elsewhere, Ritz-Carlton has announced that it will enter the yacht cruise business with three new 298-berth cruising yachts of 623 feet each. Meanwhile, Chile’s Antarctica XXI has announced a 70-berth 298-foot newbuilding, the Magellan Explorer, for its Antarctic fly and sail business.

FOR THIS WEEK’S STORY                                                                                               (See previous columns)

Cruise Lines Escape US-Cuba Travel Ban – The Flying Clipper Is Launched – Ex-Russian Ship Converted To Expedition Vessel

The Cruise Examiner for 19th June 2017

Royal Caribbean International’s Empress of the Seas arriving in Havana for the first time, on April 23, 2017

On Friday, in the “Little Havana” neighbourhood of Miami, surrounded by Cuban Americans, President Donald Trump’s words for Cuba were “we will enforce the ban on tourism.” However, his edict will have very little effect on the cruise lines that have been able to return to Cuba in the last year thanks to a loosening of regulations by former president Barack Obama. In Croatia, meanwhile, the world’s largest sailing ship, the 300-passenger Flying Clipper, was launched for Star Clippers. Finally, Sunstone Ships’ 230-berth Ocean Atlantic has recently re-entered service as an expedtion ship.

.FOR THIS WEEK’S STORY                                                                                                           (See previous columns)

Just Released! Cruiseco’s New Back To The 80’s 7-Night Music Cruise On Navigator of the Seas, Departing Southampton May 6, 2018

For further information please contact The Cruise People Ltd at 88 York Street, London W1H 1QT on +44 (0)20 7723 2450, UK Freephone: 0800 526 313 Or click here to email us: PassageEnquiry@aol.com

MSC Orders Two “World” Class Cruise Ships – Ups & Downs In World Cruise Markets – Southampton Sets Cruise Ship Record

The Cruise Examiner for 12th June 2017

MSC Meraviglia arriving at Le Havre for her recent naming by Sophia Loren

Last week came confirmation from MSC Cruises that it had ordered two new “World” class cruise ships, among the largest in the world, with an option for two more, from STX France. Seeing that there will soon be 120 cruise ships in the world measuring over 100,000 gross tons,This news is not shocking, but the order will bring the number of ships over 200,000 tons to eight, including five operated by Royal Caribbean International and one by Star Cruises. While vessels grow in size, we also have a look at rising (and in some cases falling) markets in the cruise industry. And finally we note that Southampton last week received a record fifteen cruise ships in three days.

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FOR THIS WEEK’S STORY                                                                                               (See previous columns)

CMA CGM Reinstates French West Indies Line Cargo-Passenger Service, Now Between Belgium, France, Martinique and Guadeloupe

This spring we announced that CMA CGM had moved its four 12-passenger “Fort” class cargo ships from the French West Indies Line to the Eastern Caribbean Service. Now, however, the same ships are being moved back to the original service for which they were built.

The first to return is the CMA CGM Fort Ste Marie, leaving Antwerp today, June 6, followed by Dunkirk, Le Havre and Montoir, from where the CMA CGM Fort St Louis (seen above in Montoir) will sail on June 24. The other two ships will move over from the Eastern Caribbean Service in September and October.

CMA CGM operate the French West Indies Line as successors to Compagnie Générale Transatlantique, otherwise known as the French Line, which began serving the route 150 years ago – in 1862.

Until about forty years ago, a full passenger service was maintained by ocean liners such as the 19,828-ton Antilles (right), the last to be built for the route, in 1952. Note the electric cranes forward, for handling cargo. Ships built for the service in subsequent years were at first cargo liners and then container ships, but have continued to carry passengers.

The  second generation of  four container ships (right) was built for the French West Indies Line to maintain a weekly service connecting the French ports of Dunkirk, Le Havre and Montoir with Fort-de-France in Martinique and Pointe-â-Pitre in Guadeloupe. To this has now been added the Belgian port of Antwerp. The full round voyage takes 28 days, but one-way and stopover fares are also available.

The four ships in question, the CMA CGM Fort St Georges, Fort St Louis, Fort St Pierre and Fort Ste Marie, are 28,000 tons deadweight carrying capacity, built in 2003, and accommodate twelve passengers each, the maximum that can be carried by a cargo ship without a doctor. Accommodations include an Owners cabin and four twin cabins, each of about 195 sq ft, plus two single cabins of about 155 sq ft. Each ship also has a passenger lounge, a gymnasium and an outdoor swimming pool.

The one-way Transatlantic fare is €1,200 per person double or €1,300 single (€1,300 pp or €1,800 in the Owners cabin) and the full round voyage is €2,300 per person double or €2,400 single (€2,400 pp or €2,700 in the Owners cabin)

For more details of passenger voyages in CMA CGM container ships please call Miri Lopusna at The Cruise People Ltd in London on 020 7723 2450 or e-mail PassageEnquiry@aol.com.

Ulstein Letter Of Intent For New Expedition Ships – Brodosplit May Build Two 1,200-berth Cruise Ships – Porto & Douro Cruise Forum

The Cruise Examiner for 5th June 2017

The Ulstein Group design for the Type CX104 X-bow expedition cruise ship

Last week came an announcement from Ulstein Group in Norway that it had signed a letter of intent to build one or more new X-Bow design expedition cruise vessels for an unidentified owner. These vessels follow closely on the framework agreement signed in March for up to ten slightly smaller X-Bow ships for SunStone ships of Miami. Also unidentified for now is a German owner who is negotiating for two new 820-foot 1,200-berth cruise ships to be built by the Brodosplit shipyard in Croatia. Finally, we have a look this week at the recent Porto & Douro Cruise Forum.

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FOR THIS WEEK’S STORY                                                                                                    (See previous columns)