July 07, 2020
Mardi Gras to Debut in February
Carnival Radiance Delayed to Spring 2021
Carnival Breeze Moves from Fort Lauderdale to Port Canaveral
Carnival Magic is No Longer Europe-Bound
Fleet Flexibility Necessary
(11:47 a.m. EDT) -- There are indications that Blount may be shuttering its cruising arm, Blount Small Ship Adventures, after the line's three vessels were listed as being for sale on a popular commercial maritime website.
A sponsored post on the popular gCaptain website shows the three Blount vessels -- Grande Mariner, Grande Caribe and Niagara Prince -- as being "currently for sale by owner and open for viewing by appointment at the Blount Boats facility in Warren, Rhode Island."
Blount Small Ship Adventures -- an offshoot of shipbu
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(5:15 p.m. EDT) -- More cruise lines have begun cancelling their entire 2020 sailing schedule as the global COVID-19 health pandemic continues to affect travel around the world.
On Wednesday, Viking became the latest line to suspend its entire 2020 sailing schedule, cancelling all ocean and river cruises through December 31, 2020.
"On March 11, when we became the first cruise line to temporarily suspend operations at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, I would not have imagined that in Augu
(2 p.m. EDT) -- Royal Caribbean Group released its second-quarter earnings results on Monday, detailing a net loss of $1.6 billion and announcing that most newbuild projects will be delayed by approximately 10 months.
The Group, which counts Azamara, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean and Silversea among its portfolio of cruise line brands, also gave an update on its Spanish subsidiary Pullmantur and revealed that demand for bookings across the Group remains "within historic ranges" for 2021, particularly for the second quarter and beyond.
"We continue to take substantial actions to bolster our financial position," said Jason Liberty, Royal Caribbean Group executive vice president and CFO. "We
(12:30 p.m. EDT) -- Crystal Cruises has further delayed the launch of its newest vessel, Crystal Endeavor, due to construction slowdowns across Europe as the continent battles the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic.
With the timing of when shipyard work can resume uncertain, the ship, which was scheduled to debut this Augus and had been pushed back until November, has now been canceled well into 2021.
Parent company Genting has not released a delivery date for the new ship.
The line began notifying people with bookings on the 200-passenger Crystal Endeavor in March to expect delays. The expedition-style ship is currently under construction at the MV
(Updated 1:28 p.m. EDT) -- Faced with declining revenues and a lack of passengers during the global COVID-10 pandemic, some cruise lines are taking an unpopular but necessary step: Selling off older vessels for scrap.
Most modern cruise ships have service lives of 40 years or more. While it is not uncommon to see cruise ships built in the 1970's and 1980's go to the breakers, older vessels are usually transferred first to another, smaller cruise operator -- a market that is often referred to as "secondhand tonnage."
It's more unusual is to see relatively young vessels head to the breakers. Yet that is precisely what is beginning to happen, due to the coronavirus pandemic. On June 25,
CroisiEurope has resumed sailings through the French wine region of Bordeaux -- and confirmed British passengers will be welcome back onboard from next month.
Europe's largest river cruise line operates more than 50 ships and canal barges, is already offering sailings to people living in mainland Europe.
To date, other lines -- including German-based A-Rosa, Nicko and Viva -- have started operating selected itineraries that are only available to domestic passengers.
Cruise Critic is onboard this week's CroisiEurope sailing -- with 124 cruisers from France, Germany, Switzerland, Monaco and Northern Ireland --