P&O Orders New LNG Ship For 2022 – Cartoon Network Brings Back Kiddie Cruising – CroisiEurope To Market Jacques Cartier In Europe

The Cruise Examiner for 29th January 2018

The Jacques Cartier, built in 1924, has carried the same name throughout her career, and will now operate as a 68-berth cruise ship

There was more news last week from P&O Cruises ordered a second 5,200-berth LNG-fuelled mega cruise ship for the UK market. Meanwhile, Oceanic Group of Singapore has announced that it will intoduce a dedicated Cartoon Network cruise ship from Singapore. And in Europe, CroisiEurope has announced that it will be packaging the 68-berth Jacques Cartier, a small cruise ship that will sail between Quebec City and Toronto.

FOR THIS WEEK’S STORY                                                                                                  (See previous columns)

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Twenty-Seven Expedition, Adventure and Small Ships On Order, Mainly From Smaller European Shipyards

The Cruise Examiner for 22nd January 2018

Hapag-Lloyd Cruises 230-berth Hanseatic Inspiration and Hanseatic Nature will have stern marinas

Today, instead of the usual column, we have decided to update earlier news on new orders for expedition, adventure and small ships. This number has now reached twenty-seven vessels, twenty-three from European shipyards and four from China. Thirteen of these ships, will be completed in Norway, seven of which are due from Fincantieri affiliate Vard and the others from Kleven and Ulstein.

FOR THIS WEEK’S STORY                                                                                                    (See previous columns)

ACL Announces New Weekly Trans-Atlantic Passenger Service, Starting in April 2018: Hamburg-Antwerp-Liverpool-Halifax-New York-Baltimore And Return

The 100,430-ton 12-passenger Atlantic Star departing Liverpool for Halifax, New York and Baltimore

The Cruise People Ltd is happy to announce a new cargo-passenger service between Europe and North America with five new ACL vessels called the G4’s. All delivered over the past two years to Grimaldi Lines subsidiary ACL, these ships will now offer a weekly fixed day of the week passenger service between Hamburg, Antwerp and Liverpool in Europe and Halifax, New York and Baltimore in North America.

Sample transit times are 9 nights Liverpool to Halifax and 11 nights Liverpool to New York, while in the reverse New York to Liverpool is 14 nights and Halifax to Liverpool 7 nights.

To book, you will need to act quickly as all sailings from Europe in April and May and from North America in September and October are now fully booked. Bookings are now open for departures from from April on the following rotation:-

PORT OF CALL                           DAY

HAMBURG                                        0

ANTWERP                                        3

LIVERPOOL                                      6

HALIFAX                                           15

NEWARK                                          17

BALTIMORE                                      19

PORTSMOUTH                                 21

HALIFAX                                              24

LIVERPOOL                                       31

Passenger meals are taken with the officers in a large airy mess

There will be three fare codes for booking this service: CU1, CU2, CUR, and a €70 per person booking fee. Fares effective January 1, 2019, are as follows:

CU1: departures from Hamburg/Antwerp/Liverpool to Halifax and v.v.

Outside Cabins: €937.50 per passenger, double occupancy, €1,312.50 single occupancy

Owners Cabin: €1,625 per passenger, double occupancy, €2,250 single occupancy

CU2: departures from Hamburg/Antwerp/Liverpool to New York and Baltimore only and v.v.

Outside Cabins: €1,225 per passenger, double occupancy, €1,625 single occupancy

Owners Cabin: €1,875 per passenger, double occupancy, €2,625 single occupancy

CUR: round voyages, Hamburg/Hamburg, Antwerp/Antwerp, Liverpool/Liverpool only

Outside Cabins: €2,625 per passenger, double occupancy, €3,062.50 single occupancy

Owners Cabin: €3,875 per passenger, double occupancy, €4,750 single occupancy

A standard twin cabin on ACL can be booked from €750 per person for two.

ACL Owners Cabin lounge. Separate bedroom with double bed. Fares from €1,050 per person for two.

The five newly-built vessels operating on this Line are the Atlantic Sail, Atlantic Sea, Atlantic Sky, Atlantic Star and Atlantic Sun. All are registered in Liverpool.

Facilities on each vessel include a gym, TV, movies (DVD), laundry, books, karaoke machine, PlayStation. There is also a sauna on each vessel but not a swimming pool.

ACL is a signatory to the US Visa Waiver Program (VWP) so passengers will be eligible to enter the USA on an ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization) – see notes below *

For further details on booking a voyage with ACL please call Miri Lopusna at The Cruise People Ltd in London on +44 (0)20 7723 2450 or e-mail PassageEnquiry@aol.com.

*****

• An ESTA will allow a passenger to stay in the US for 90 days. Fingerprinting is required at the first US port of call. A full visa will allow a passenger to remain in the US until the date designated on the Visa. Again, fingerprinting is required at the first US port of call. Any individuals that are citizens of a VWP country who have traveled to or been present in Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Syria, Libya, Somalia and Yemen on or after March 1, 2011 (with limited exceptions for travel for diplomatic or military purposes in the service of a VWP country) are no longer eligible to travel to the US under VWP and other restrictions apply based on the current government. Authorization by ESTA does not determine whether a traveler is admissible to the United States. US Customs & Border Protection officers determine admissibility upon travellers’ arrival.

 

Roald Amundsen To Transit Northwest Passage – Azamara Pursuit Maiden Voyage From Southampton – Uljanik Shipyard In Difficulties

The Cruise Examiner for 15th January 2018

The 684-berth Azamara Pursuit joins sister ships Azamara Journey and Azamara Quest in August

Announced before Christmas, Norway’s Hurtigruten is to join the cast of lines transitting Canada’s Northwest Passage, following in the steps of the Crystal Serenity, The World of Residensea and a number of smaller ships doing the full passage in recent years. The 530-berth Roald Amundsen will be the third largest passenger ship to do so when she sails through in August 2019. Meanwhile, Azamara Club Cruises’ new 684-berth Azamara Pursuit is being refitted at the historic Harland & Wolff shipyard in Belfast before departing on her maiden voyage from Southampton on August 1. And finally, Croatia’s Uljanik shipyard in Pula is looking to restructure. Uljanik is building the 228-berth Polar 6 expedition ship Scenic Eclipse.

FOR THIS WEEK’S STORY                                                                                                    (See previous columns)

Hamburg-Süd Withdraws From The US/Australian Passenger Trades; CMA CGM Offers Substitute Service Via Singapore

Another shoe dropped this Friday following the December 1 acquisition of Hamburg-Süd by AP Moller (Maersk Line), with Hamburg-Süd announcing the end of its passenger services between North America and Australasia. These services have been offered since 1971, when Hamburg-Süd division Columbus Line became one of the first container lines to carry passengers.

The Spirit of Sydney and sister ships will no longer carry passengers

Four ships, the 3,630 TEU Spirit of Auckland, Spirit of Hamburg, Spirit of Singapore and Spirit of Sydney (above), will no longer carry passengers from Philadelphia and Charleston, while the 3,675 TEU Cap Capricorn will cease carrying passengers from Los Angeles and Oakland. Existing bookings on all ships will be honoured but no new bookings will be accepted.

The 10-passenger CMA CGM Thames and fleetmates will connect with Australia via Singapore

In their stead, CMA CGM’s Columbus JAX service will now offer an indirect service from Los Angeles and Oakland via Singapore, where passengers can transfer to the AAX service to Fremantle, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide. The voyage from Oakland to Singapore takes 25 days via Hong Kong and Vung Tau, while transit times from Singapore are 9 days to Fremantle, 15 to Sydney, 18 to Melbourne and 21 to Adelaide. A stopover is needed in Singapore between ships.

In the reverse direction, transit times are 20 days from Sydney, 17 from Melbourne, 14 from Adelaide and 9 from Fremantle to Singapore. From Singapore it is then 27 days to Los Angeles via Jakarta, Laem Chebang and Vung Tau.

East Coast connections are also available to Singapore, with services from Halifax, New York, Norfolk, Savannah and Charleston, sailing via Port Kelang. Charleston to Singapore takes 32 days. In the opposite direction it is Singapore to Halifax, New York and the same ports via Port Kelang and Colombo. Singapore to Halifax is 25 days and Singapore to New York 28 days.

Fares for all these voyages are in the range of €100-110 per person per person per day in double occupancy and €110-120 per day for single travellers, plus a €45 management fee and €70 booking fee.

For further details on Australian voyages via CMA CGM please call Miri Lopusna at The Cruise People Ltd in London on +44 (0)20 7723 2450 or e-mail PassageEnquiry@aol.com.

China Cruise Market Could Shrink 15% In 2018 – Two Megaships Now Planned For Alaska – Caspian Sea Cruise Ship Agreement

The Cruise Examiner for 1st January 2018

The 300-berth cruise ship Peter the Great is being built in Astrakhan to cruise the Caspian Sea

Observers of cruising in China have been speculating that the market is becoming overtonnaged and these observations have been followed more recently by announcements of ship transfers to other markets. Last Thursday, Tom Hancock gave probably the best summary to date of elements that are affecting the China market in The Financial Times. Meanwhile, as a result of the softness in the China market, two fairly new megaships that weer noit planned for Alaska will be finding their way there over the next year or two. Elsewhere, Russian and Azerbaijani cruise companies have come to an agreement to operate the 300-berth Peter the Great as the first of a number of ships to cruise the Caspian Sea and adjoining waterways

FOR THIS WEEK’S STORY                                                                                                 (See previous columns)