Cruise News Update: August 14, 2021 -

This week, news broke that Norwegian Cruise Line was suing its former CEO for $1.4 billion in damages after he attempted to sell shares of the company to a private equity firm.

The cruise line news is a blog that provides information on cruise lines. It offers updates and reviews of ships, ports, and destinations.

As more cruise ships resume service, it’s time to stay up to speed on the newest cruise news. It hasn’t all been plain sailing, however.

Update on Cruise News

Here we go with another busy week of cruise news and we’ve got updates across all the big three cruise lines. The world’s largest cruise ship restarting out of Miami, Norwegian Cruise Line has been busy in Alaska, there’s news on new cruise ships including MSC Seashore, Wonder of the Seas, Norwegian Prima, and P&O Iona. And we’ll also go into the latest situation on Carnival Vista after 27 people tested positive.

From Miami, the World’s Largest Cruise Ship Restarts

We’ll begin with the Symphony of the Seas, the world’s biggest cruise ship, which is finally resuming operations today! The Royal Caribbean ship is resuming service today from Miami, Florida, on a seven-night Western Caribbean trip that includes stops at Costa Maya, Honduras, Cozumel, Mexico, and, of course, a visit to the cruise line’s own island, Perfect Day at CocoCay in the Bahamas.

Photo credit: Shutterstock.com/Felix Mizioznikov

Symphony of the Seas will sail Eastern and Western Caribbean routes until 2022, following in the footsteps of many Royal Caribbean ships that have already resumed service from Florida, including the new Odyssey of the Seas from Fort Lauderdale and Freedom of the Seas from Miami. On Sunday, August 15, the Independence of the Seas will be the first ship in the fleet to resume operations out of Galveston, Texas.

On cruisehive.com, you can find out when each cruise ship is resuming sailings as well as the most recent protocol changes.

The Norwegian Encore Makes Their First Call

Norwegian Encore, the first cruise ship from Norwegian Cruise Line to set sail in the United States, has arrived in Alaska. On August 7, the ship departed the Port of Seattle, and on August 10, residents welcomed visitors to Icy Strait Point.

Norwegian Cruise Line has a unique place in the port since its parent company, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, has made substantial investments in Alaska, namely Icy Strait Point. The new Wilderness Landing Pier and Gondola System was first experienced by guests aboard Norwegian Encore.

Norwegian Cruise Line provided this image.

The Wilderness Landing offers visitors additional options to explore the area, while the new gondola system gives convenient access to Adventure Landing, Icy Strait Point’s first pier. By the end of the year, a second gondola system will be operational.

The Norwegian Encore also made its first visits to Juneau and Ketchikan, and the ship will return to Seattle on August 14. She’s the first ship in the fleet to restart cruise operations in the United States, and she’ll be sailing until October 16 in Alaska.

On Carnival Vista, 27 people tested positive.

Now we go on to something more serious, with 27 individuals on board the Carnival Vista testing positive for Covid during the vessel’s week-long trip, which began on August 7 in Galveston, Texas. The Belize Tourism Board verified the precise number of persons affected and what the ship did to deal with the issue, despite the cruise company confirming there were a limited number of cases on board early in the trip.

The infection was found in 26 crew members and one visitor, who were promptly quarantined on board. Those who were infected had all been properly vaccinated. The Carnival Vista was due to stop in Belize on Wednesday, and the Belizean authorities met with the ship’s leadership team. The vessel was permitted to make its planned visit.

Cruise Hive is the owner of the copyright.

Guests were still allowed to enjoy their time ashore but did have to show proof of a negative test. Those guests who couldn’t prove a negative test had to go through random testing.

Throughout the trip, Carnival Cruise Line kept the situation under control and followed procedures to ensure that everyone on board was safe. The next day, the ship made its planned stop at Cozumel, Mexico.

As cruise companies put more ships back into service, this is the new reality for the cruise industry. The guests and crew members were all vaccinated, but this will undoubtedly be a continuing problem when additional ships return. The incidents aboard Carnival Vista have already been examined by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the ship is being monitored.

We’ll keep you informed on cruisehive.com, but for now, the ship will continue to sail and everything aboard is under control. The website also has all of the pertinent information.

Sailings of the MSC Seashore have begun.

For the first time, the MSC Cruises fleet’s 19th cruise ship has begun service in Europe. On August 9, the MSC Seashore docked at Naples, Italy, as part of its maiden seven-night voyage. Barcelona in Spain, Marseille in France, and Genoa in Italy were among the extra boarding ports on the trip. After that, the ship stopped at Messina, Sicily, and then Valetta, Malta.

The new flagship has begun sailing, and excitement is building for her November debut in the United States. MSC Seashore will end its 18-night transatlantic trip in Miami, Florida, after the summer season of Mediterranean cruises.

MSC Cruises provided this image.

The ship will depart from PortMiami on seven-night excursions to the Bahamas and the Caribbean. In the Eastern and Western Caribbean, two itineraries will alternate.

Calls to Ocho Rios, Jamaica, George Town, Cayman Islands, and Cozumel, Mexico are included in the Western Caribbean schedule. San Juan, Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands, and Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic will all be visited on the Eastern Caribbean itinerary.

The MSC Seashore will stop at the cruise line’s own island of Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve in the Bahamas as part of both itineraries. The ship will be the third in the fleet to sail in the United States. MSC Meraviliga cruises have already begun, while MSC Divina cruises will begin in September.

The MSC Seashore is the first ship of the fleet’s Seaside EVO class, which is an evolution of the popular Seaside-class ships.

95 percent of the Wonder of the Seas has been completed.

With roughly 95 percent of the ship completed, Royal Caribbean gives an update on the building of its fifth Oasis-class cruise ship, Wonder of the Seas. She will also become the world’s biggest cruise ship, a distinction that every ship in the class previously held.

The massive Oasis-class tanker is presently under construction in Saint-Nazaire, France, at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard. The vessel has been coming together block by block since April 2019, when the first piece of steel was cut. Interior areas with outfitting, such as the promenade, bars, lounges, and restaurants, have become the focus of recent development.

Royal Caribbean provided the rendering.

Mounting of the three waterslides and the Ultimate Abyss 10-story slide in the rear of the ship has started, according to the latest update from Royal Caribbean. The cruise company also claims that the last 5% of building is among of the most difficult. The pressure is also building to ensure that Wonder of the Seas is finished in time for the first visitors in March 2022.

From March 2022, the Wonder of the Seas will be stationed in China. The massive new ship will depart from Shanghai and Hong Kong on four- to nine-night voyages.

Symphony of the Seas, part of the Oasis-class, is the world’s biggest cruise ship at little over 228,000 gross tonnage. But she’ll have to hand up the throne to her sister, since Wonder of the Seas will be much bigger, with a gross tonnage of 236,857. The passenger capacity of the Wonder of the Seas will be 5,734 at double occupancy, with 2,300 foreign crew members.

P&O Iona Begins Sailing

P&O UK’s newest cruise ship, the stunning LNG-powered Iona left the Port of Southampton on her first voyage at 9 PM, Saturday evening, August 7, and has returned back home today to complete the maiden voyage.

Iona’s maiden season consists of several cruises to the Scottish isles on the West coast of the United Kingdom. Iona’s maiden voyage cruised around Cornwall and anchored at the vessel’s namesake island for a firework display. After this, the vessel did some scenic cruising.

Photo Courtesy: P&O Cruises

Iona is more than simply a well-publicized mega-cruise ship. In reality, she is one of the world’s most technologically sophisticated cruise ships. The yacht was built by the Meyer Werft in Papenburg, Germany, and is completely powered by liquefied natural gas.

The 5,200 passengers aboard the 184,000 gross ton Iona may dine in 17 different eateries. Eight specialized dining restaurants and 12 bars are located on board, including the first gin distillery at sea, which was created in collaboration with Salcombe Gin.

Meanwhile, Iona will travel to the Scottish Isles and cruise on a more southerly route known as the Southern Short Break, where she will enjoy some sunlight until the end of September. Following that, she will go to Spain and Portugal, the Canary Islands, and Northern Europe on a variety of cruises.

Norwegian Prime Minister Prime Minister Prime Minister Prime Minister Prime Minister Prime Minister Prime Minister Prime Minister Prime Minister Prime Minister

The building of Norwegian Cruise Line’s newest cruise ship, Norwegian Prima, reached a major milestone. The cruise ship, which has a distinctive straight hull shape that gives her a distinct appearance, was floated out of her drydock at the Fincantieri shipyard in Marghera, Northern Italy, for the first time.

Prima from Norway (Image courtesy of NCL)

The float-out marks the completion of all work on the hull, including the creation of the hull artwork. Before the first Project Leonardo Prima class cruise ship is formally delivered to the Cruise Line and begins operations in summer 2022, the interior fittings and guest rooms must be finished.

From Northern Europe to the North Atlantic and the Caribbean, the Norwegian Prima will be cruising. Norwegian Prima will begin operating from Amsterdam in August 2022, after numerous maiden voyages. Norwegian Prima will sail from the United Kingdom in September, New York in October, and Miami in November. Galveston and Port Canaveral are two more US departure points.

Additional Cruise News

It’s been a busy week for cruise news, and we’ve got even more major stories on cruisehive.com, including the Carnival Valor getting a new livery, the Mardi Gras making its first stops in the Caribbean, Disney Cruise Line resuming sailings from Port Canaveral, Florida, and more.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will cruises set sail in 2021?

Yes, the cruise industry is growing at an exponential rate. Its estimated that by 2021 there will be over one million passengers on board.

Cruise News Update: August 14, 2021