BOAT CRUISES TRIPS NEWS

Passengers aboard Viking Ocean’s Viking Vela are still docked in Ålesund after a 3-day unscheduled visit to the Norwegian city located on the Norwegian Sea. The ship, which experienced severe weather and subsequent propulsion problems during its fourth-ever voyage, was expected to resume sailing on January 16, 2025, at 6 p.m. local time. However, passengers reported … [Read more...]

Trip log, day two. At Sea.7-Night Western Caribbean Cruise on Disney TreasureDecember 29, 2024Personal Navigator – Day 2 <img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" width="1024" height="576" data-attachment-id="70596" … [Read more...]

Bremerhaven Cruise Port, operated by Global Ports Holding (GPH), the world’s largest cruise port operator, has officially commenced its 2025 cruise season with great success. The inaugural week featured calls from Mein Schiff 3 of TUI Cruises and Amera of Phoenix Reisen, marking the start of a promising year ahead. With over 5,900 cruise passengers welcomed, Bremerhaven Cruise Port successfully … [Read more...]

Carnival Cruise Line has once again earned top honors in USA Today’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards 2025, being named Best Ocean Cruise Line for the third consecutive year. Carnival was also voted the Best Cruise Line for Shore Excursions and Carnival Spirit received the distinction of Best Alaska Cruise. “Winning ‘Best Ocean Cruise Line’ for three consecutive years is a remarkable achievement … [Read more...]

I go on a Royal Caribbean cruise about once a month, and I always seem to forget to pack something minor that could have made my trip so much better.Most of the time, I think I do a good job remembering to bring the essentials with me, but it's the small things that seem to elude me from time to time.It might be because they're not critical elements that I cannot cruise without. Rather, they're … [Read more...]

Sarah Bretz, ContributorSarah has been writing about the cruise industry since 2015, and in that time has taken a dozen cruises and counting. Her favorite onboard activities include trying the casual dining options, spending time in the spa’s thermal suite, and attending the love & marriage show. You can keep up with her on Instagram at @IAmSarahJaneB.See all author posts Source: … [Read more...]

Royal Caribbean is once again looking for Caribbean-based artists to paint murals on one of its largest ships, the new-build Star of the Seas, due to launch in August 2025. The cruise line’s “Artist Discovery Program” was introduced onboard Icon of the Seas, the first in the Icon class, and is now being expanded to Star of the Seas, the second in the class. Starting January 16, 2025 and … [Read more...]

Sarah Bretz, ContributorSarah has been writing about the cruise industry since 2015, and in that time has taken a dozen cruises and counting. Her favorite onboard activities include trying the casual dining options, spending time in the spa’s thermal suite, and attending the love & marriage show. You can keep up with her on Instagram at @IAmSarahJaneB.See all author posts Source: … [Read more...]

Passengers sailing with Carnival Cruise Line from its homeports in Dover, England; Barcelona, Spain; and Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy, are being advised to prepare for new electronic visa requirements in the UK and EU, which come with hefty fees. In a video and Facebook post, the cruise line’s Brand Ambassador John Heald shared the new requirements are now detailed on Carnival Cruise Line’s … [Read more...]

More than 40 people got sick in a gastrointestinal illness outbreak on a Silversea Cruises ship. Among 681 guests onboard, 38 reported being ill during Silver Ray’s current voyage, along with five crew members, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. Their main symptoms were diarrhea and abdominal cramps. The health agency listed the causative agent as unknown. Silver Ray departed … [Read more...]

Royal Caribbean has a new ship coming out in 2025 and they want feature the work of aspiring artists on it.Star of the Seas will enter service later this year and it's one of the biggest cruise ships in the world, which includes a large art collection.Royal Caribbean is no stranger to art, as all of their ships have rather large collections featured onboard. The art is more than just paintings, in … [Read more...]

The string of viral outbreaks recently reported on various cruise ships continues to impact ship operations, including aboard luxury line Silversea Cruises’ Silver Ray, which is on a return leg to Fort Lauderdale. The 728-guest ship is coping with an outbreak of a gastrointestinal illness that affected 5.5% of guests, and will undergo a “super-sanitizing” upon return to Port Everglades. As a … [Read more...]

Regent Seven Seas Cruises has announced a new lineup of onboard entertainment set to launch in 2025. These offerings include high-energy performances, immersive storytelling, and innovative concepts based on guest feedback, reflecting Regent’s commitment to luxury experiences. Continuing their tradition of exceptional entertainment, the upcoming productions will present fresh creativity with a … [Read more...]

Not sure which ports to sail to on your cruise? For a vacation that’s supposed to be easy, sometimes cruising can mean having to make a lot of decisions. Which cruise line do you sail? Which ship do you book? What type of room do you book? And right near the top of the list… which itinerary do you choose? The ports of call you visit aren’t always up to you, but there are some … [Read more...]

Stateroom attendants on a cruise ship are kept pretty busy.  Besides tidying up your cabin and creating a few towel animals (depending on the cruise line), your steward can also help supply a few things that you might not even know about. Most regular cruisers know they can request extra towels, robes, and pillows.   Even pillows of varying firmness can be supplied.  These … [Read more...]

Construction officially started on new cruise ship from Emerald Cruises when the keel was laid at a shipyard in Ha Long Bay, Vietnam. Emerald Kaia will be a new 128 passenger luxury ship from Emerald Cruises that will debut in April 2026. The vessel is promising to redefine yacht cruising through world-class service, thoughtful amenities and contemporary elegance. 88% of cabins will have a … [Read more...]

Waterfront views aboard P&O Cruises’ Azura took on a whole new meaning for several passengers when they were woken in the middle of the night by alarms and flooding in their cabin. Marcus and Melissa, a UK couple currently sailing a Canary Islands voyage that departed Tenerife on January 10, 2025, caught the evacuations on their phones. After enjoying a day at sea, the couple … [Read more...]

With the newest Oasis-class ship, Utopia of the Seas, immensely popular for her short getaways from Port Canaveral, Royal Caribbean has been issuing reminders to guests about protocols during refueling operations. Notification letters are delivered to guests’ staterooms when refueling is imminent, with instructions on several key points of the process. Refueling typically starts early in the … [Read more...]

Royal Caribbean is reviving its Artist Discovery Program to connect with the Caribbean’s culture and beauty! The program will debut on Star of the Seas in August 2025 in Port Canaveral, Florida, and will feature a platform for emerging artists to share their work with travelers. Artists from the region can submit their work from today until February 15th to participate in this program. The … [Read more...]

You're going to have to wait a little bit longer for new Royal Caribbean cruises to be released for 2026-2027.The deployment schedule has been quietly updated this week and the cruise line has added new offerings, while pushing everything back.The deployment schedule refers to when Royal Caribbean will put new sailings on sale for the first time, and each release is tied to a region of the world … [Read more...]