St.Petersburg
The Russian parliament will consider a proposal to let foreign turists visit Russian port cities for 72 hours without visa. The proposal includes both cruise and ferry passengers. The motion, if carried through, will open up for ferry services between St Petersburg and Baltic ports. The latest ferry connection between St Petersburg and Helsinki/Tallinn was closed two years ago, mainly because of visa problems. HONOLULU, Oct. 30
In a series of votes, the Hawaii Legislature has approved a bill that, overturning a court order, allows a giant ferry to begin carrying cars, trucks and passengers between the islands before completion of an environmental impact assessment.Though the final reading of the bill is expected Wednesday, “it’s all over,” said one leading opponent, Gary L. Hooser, the majority leader of the overwhelmingly Democratic State Senate. Read NY.Times article
Santorini, Greece
HE Daily Express crusade to boycott Santorini’s suffering donkeys was
given a major boost last night as it emerged cruise companies were
concerned about their treatment.
Two major cruise operators, who each sail into the stunning Old Port
once a week during high season, said they do not “actively encourage”
tourists to use the donkeys.
Instead, they tell the thousands of passengers disembarking from the
vessels to use the cable car instead.
And they said any crusade to end cruelty to animals should be applauded.
Their policy will put pressure on the dozens of other cruise companies
visiting the Aegean destination to implement a similar strategy.
It means our bid to end the abuse of hundreds of donkeys who spend their
lives carrying tourists up a steep path from the port to the main resort
of Fira 800ft above has taken a major step forward.
Freeport, Grand Bahamas
FINNJET is reportedly under contract to a newly formed Bahamian
company, controlled by U.S. interests, who plan to dramatically upgrade the
vessel into the world's largest, most lavish, casino resort-at-sea catering
to 3,100 passengers plus 500 crew members.
Naval architects DeltaMarin, of Turku, Finland, have been retained and are preparing the conversion specification, while Interior Design International (IDI), of Seattle, Washington USA, is preparing the interior design package and layout of new VIP suites. IDI appears to have extensive experience with cruise & casino ships having performed work for Carnival, Holland America and Princess.
There has been no disclosure as to where FINNJET will operate however
rumors have indicated Asia, Europe and/or the United States. FINNJET
remains, as of this date, in Freeport, Grand Bahama with a crew of 27. Monaco based V Ships, is the ships Management firm.
When everyone on earth was dead and waiting to enter Paradise, God appeared
and said, "I want the men to make two lines. One line for the men who were
true heads of their household, and the other line for the men who were
dominated by their women. I want all the women to report to St. Peter."
Soon, the women were gone, and there were two lines of men. The line of the
men who were dominated by their wives was 100 miles long, and in the line of
men who truly were heads of their household, there was only one man.
God said, "You men should be ashamed of yourselves, I created you to be the
head of your household! You have been disobedient and have not fulfilled
your purpose! Of all of you, only one obeyed. Learn from him."
God turned to the one man, "How did you manage to be the only one in this
line?"
The man replied, "My wife told me to stand here." London
Budget cruise line easyCruise is to ‘add one ship per year’ said boss Stelios Haji-Ioannou. The company says that its new Greek Islands itinerary has been a major success and this is driving the fleet expansion. It is expected that the new ships will be second-hand purchases, like the recent acquisition of the ferry Farah from Jordan’s Arab Shipmanagement.
easyCruise still has a Letter of Intent with Greek shipyard Neorion for the construction of two 7,500 grt vessels, but price has been the stumbling block on this contract being firmed up, Meanwhile, the company is also still looking at a franchising deal with Cyprus-based Louis Cruise Lines. New York, New York Times
“It’s a revered and historic structure — but it’s wood,” said Representative James L. Oberstar, a Minnesota Democrat who refused Majestic’s request for an exemption in his position as chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. “I see no compelling case that can be made to move an exemption.” But Majestic’s owner, Ambassadors International, says the real issue is opposition from the Seafarers International Union, which represented most of the steamboat’s employees until last year. At that time, Majestic bought the Delta Queen and two other riverboats for $40 million and forced the union off the boats.Joseph McCarthy, general counsel for Ambassadors International, said the company had offered to let the union back on the Delta Queen in return for the union’s support for the exemption, but the union would not budge unless it was welcomed back onto all seven of Majestic’s boats. Gyeongsangnam-do, Korea
STX Shipbuilding, the world's seventh-largest shipyard, said Tuesday
that it has purchased a major stake in a European cruise ship builder to
make inroads into the European market. Until now, no world-class level Korean shipbuilders have been involved in the cruise ship building industry, since the construction of the high value-added "floating hotels" demands sophisticated capabilities such as refined interior design. STX said it bought a 39.2 percent stake in Oslo, Norway-based Aker Yards ASA for US$800 million. (Stock quote)
Europe's largest shipbuilder, Aker Yards is owned by several institutional investors including the Union Bank of Switzerland with 8.31 percent, BNP Paribas with 7.71 percent, Euroclear Bank with 7.0 percent and the Bank of New York Mellon with 4.32 percent. The STX purchase makes the Korean shipbuilder the largest individual shareholder.
Although STX said it won't take control of the company, calling the purchase a strategic investment to strengthen an alliance, experts predict it will gradually take over managerial rights. The Norwegian shipbuilder employs 20,000 workers at 18 yards in eight countries including Finland, France, Germany and Brazil. It is the world's largest producer of small and medium-sized ferries and thesecond largest builder of cruise liners after Italy's Fincantieri.
Industry experts predict synergy effects will be created with the combination of the European shipbuilder' s traditional shipbuilding methods and the Korean shipbuilder' s state-of-the- art technology andability to supply shipbuilding equipment. KIMCHE meets Reindeer-Balls! HCM city, Vietnam
The Star Cruises group will cooperate with the Saigon Tourist Corporation (Saigontourist) to resume weekly tours to Ha Long Bay in northern Quang Ninh province as from December this year.The group, which operates 20 cruise liners plans to use the Super Star Libra and Super Star Virgo ships to carry tourists to the UNESCO-recognised world heritage site. As scheduled, the two ships will leave Hong Kong, China, for Ha Long every seven days with around 1,000-2,200 tourists aboard. Previously, the Star Cruises group used to offer Ha Long Bay tours on its Super Star Leo and Super Star Gemini ships, carrying 80,000 tourists every year on average to Ha Long Bay.
TALLINN.
The ferry Vironia vill sail on its last voyage between Sillamäe in Estonia and Kotka in Finland on 19 October. The service will be closed down after negotiations with Russia to be allowed to pass east of Hogland have failed. The move would have reduced the voyage time by two hours to four hours. Saaremaa Shipping Company’s managing director Tõnis Rihvk says to SSG that the negotiations stranded already this spring and that any hopes of new negiotiations vanished when Russia announced that they will build a radar station on Hogland. The vessel Vironia will be sold. Due to Vironia’s capacity, the service has been more of a ro-ro than a passenger service. Kari Juvas at Finnish Stella Lines says to SSG that his company is planning to start a service between Kotka, a port in Northern Estonia, and Vyborg next year, but the new situation might speed up the planning work for an earlier traffic start. “Today, we have a different view, we are evaluating the situation to see how we will act” says Kari Juvas. SSG-TØNSBERG
Norwegian ferry company Kystlink has chartered Tallink car/passenger ferry Fantaasia for 3 months,with an option on a further 3 months, to replace the Pride of Telemark, which is undergoing repairs at Cityvarvet in Göteborg. The Fantaasia will be docked in Göteborg for the necessary paintwork to commence sailing between Langesund, Strømstad and Hirtshals in the first or second week of November. Meanwhile, the steel repairs on the Pride of Telemark have now been completed and the vessel has been set to leave the dry-dock. The steel work done involved repairing a long gash below the waterline caused when the vessel hit the breakwater at Hirtshals on 11 of September. Additional repairs of cables are also necessary and the vessel will not be ready to resume scheduled sailings for another three months.
Just days after former Vice President Al Gore received the Nobel
Peace Prize for his efforts on global warming, the United States
Supreme Court handed Mr. Gore a stunning reversal, stripping him of
his Nobel and awarding it to President George W. Bush instead. In a
5-4 decision, the justices made it clear that they had taken the
unprecedented step of stripping Mr. Gore of his Nobel because
President Bush deserved it more. "It is true that Al Gore has done a
lot of talking about global warming," wrote Justice Antonin Scalia,
writing for the majority. "But President Bush has actually helped
create global warming." (Argus Hamilton) Miami
The Yachts of Seabourn is pleased to announce that the world's most luxurious cruise vessel, Seabourn Odyssey, will launch her inaugural year itinerary in Venice on June 24, 2009, and today, guests previously on a waiting list may select their choices of departures and luxury suites. As of November 5, 2007, bookings will be available to the general public. Starting in the grand cities and romantic isles of the Mediterranean and ending in the jewel-like bays of the Caribbean, Seabourn Odyssey's debut season will provide the sumptuous opulence and unparalleled service from scented Pure Pampering(R) baths drawn by the stewardess to a lavish Caviar in the Surf(R) beach party that earned Seabourn the No. 1 cruise line rating by Travel + Leisure readers
Ageing cruise ship up for sale......
With the end of the European summer season, Sale & Purchase brokers are actively touting a number of ageing cruise ships. Three such vessels are currently on the market after their charters to European operators ended recently.
Currently up for sale are Tumaco Navigation’s 1970-built Dream, which has just completed a summer charter to Israel’s Caspi Cruises, while US-based Elysian Shipmanagement has put on the market two ageing vessels, the 1972-built New Flamenco and the 1966-built Blue Monarch. New Flamenco has just completed a charter with Spain’s Travelplan (part of the Globalia Group), while Blue Monarch has just finished a charter with Greece’s Monarch Classic Cruises. No asking price has been given for these vessels.
Also up for sale is a rather unusual passenger ship, the former Italian transatlantic liner mv Philippines. Built in 1951 as Augustus, this 27,000grt vessel has been owned by Filipino billionaire Emilio Yap since 1977 and has been kept as his private toy. The vessel hasn’t made a single commercial voyage for nearly 30 years and as she isn’t SOLAS compliant, her future lies in that of a floating hotel. The asking price for Philippines is US $20m.
Have you ever used a Translator Software? the outcome can be hilarious as these Signs found around the world show. Happy weekend all!!
"Order your summers suit. Because is big rush we will execute customers in strict rotation." (At a Hong Kong tailor shop)
"A new swimming pool is rapidly taking shape since the contractors have thrown in the bulk of their workers." (In an East African newspaper)
"Please leave your values at the front desk." (At a Paris hotel)
"All visitors are expected to complain at the office between the hours of 9 and 11 a.m. daily." (In an Athens hotel)
"Teeth extracted by the latest methodists." (Advertisement of a Hong Kong dentist)
"English well talking. Here speeching American." (Signs at two Majorcan shops)
"A lot of water has been passed under the bridge since this variation has been played." (In a Russian book on chess)
"Fur coats made for the ladies from their own skin."
(In the window of a Swedish furrier)
"Stop -- Drive sideways." (Detour sign in Kyushi, Japan)
"Ladies may have a fit upstairs." (In a Hong Kong tailor shop) Cruise ferry operator DFDS Seaways has sailed away with a prestigious
award from the travel industry’s annual ‘Oscars.’ The Copenhagen-based
firm was named Europe’s Leading North Sea Ferry Operator 2007 in the
European Section of the prestigious annual World Travel Awards.
Now in their fourteenth year, the World Travel Awards were conceived to
acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence in the world's travel and
tourism industry.
The award winners are voted for by travel industry professionals from
167,000 travel agencies, tour & transport companies and tourism
organisations in over 160 countries across the globe.
The presentation event, which was held this year at the Marriott Hotel
Gosforth Park and hosted by top impressionist Jon Culshaw, attracted
more than 300 travel industry leaders from 19 countries, with other
well-known award winners included Lufthansa, Europcar and Swiss
International Airlines.
DFDS Seaways runs several routes across the North Sea – Newcastle to
Amsterdam in Holland, Newcastle to Stavanger and Bergen in Norway and
Harwich to Esbjerg in Denmark. Miami
Carnival Corporation & plc Chairman Micky Arison noted that the dividend increases reflect the company's solid top line growth and positive business trends going into fiscal 2008. "We have tremendous confidence in the future of our business. With 18 ships on order representing 27 percent capacity growth through 2011, our first priority continues to be funding our newbuilding program which is the primary platform for our brands' growth. Beyond that, we are committed to returning cash to our shareholders through both increased dividends and share repurchases as this action demonstrates, while maintaining one of the highest credit ratings in the leisure sector," he said Hamburg, Germany
Richard Vogel has been appointed managing director of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises joining fellow md’s Sebastian Ahrens and Günther Brauer on the board.
The former AIDA Cruises executive, who joined TUI as director of special projects in 2004, is tasked with the development of a mass-market cruise product under the TUI Cruises brand. He will reporting directly to the board of parent group TUI AG.
Last month TUI said it would stick to its plans to expand its own cruise activities, mainly within the framework of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, following the announcement that it and Carnival Corp & plc were abandoning their proposed joint venture to develop a new cruise brand.
Hapag-Lloyd operates four ships in the German market: Bremen, Columbus, Europa and Hanseatic. In the British market, TUI subsidiary TUI Travel operates five ships under the Thomson Cruises brand, as well as two ships under Island Cruises in a joint venture with Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, following the early September merger of First Choice Holidays and TUI’s tourism arm. Kiel, Germany
COLOR LINE's new baby, Color Magic, is docked in Kiel until October 19th, when she will resume her regular scheduled service between Kiel and Oslo. Until then, you can see both magnificent ferries side by side, via Live Webcam. enjoy!
(don't forget to hit refresh!)
Miami,FL,USA
COSTA announces disocunts and early booking bonuses for their 2008/09 cruises in the Caribbean as well as European sailings. What gives we wonder? Is Luigi's crytal ball cloudy, is he affraid of the fall out of a looming financial crises, or perhaps MSC woes? this round of early aggressive marketing blitz will no doubt woe competitios to follow suit. The consumer, though he has not lost his home, is the beneficiary of this trend.
NIEUWEGEIN PRNewswire-FirstCall
Ballast Nedam and the Danish company Per Aarsleff have signed a contract with the port authorities of Saint Martin for the construction of a new jetty. The deal is worth well over EUR45 million.
The number of cruise ships calling in at the port of Saint Martin is growing rapidly. The construction of the new jetty will enable the port to receive six ships per day, instead of four as at present. Furthermore, the new facility will enable the world's largest cruise ships to berth there.
For ship video clip enthusiasts the recently launched Website of Ernst Galtuschek
is a must. Sail aboard for example a Sea Cloud Windjammer through the Panama Canal
or a visit in the Engine Room or just ships sailing into or departing from Ports around the world. Immerse yourself in the 300 plus video clips already online
with more being added from time to time.
The video clips are in divX format, so you might have to install a lug-in or a divX player. However this is worth the effort as the picture quality of most clips is better than what one usually find on the web. Atlantis Events, Inc., the world's largest company specializing in all-gay and lesbian cruises and resort vacations, today announced that it will acquire RSVP Vacations, the originator of the gay and lesbian cruise concept. The company also announced that it will appoint Charlie Rounds president of RSVP.
"We're thrilled to bring Atlantis and RSVP together into the same family for the first time," said Rich Campbell, chief executive officer of Atlantis. "The two companies are stronger together than they are apart, and taken together demonstrate the strength and vitality of the gay travel market."
Atlantis charters entire cruise ships and all-inclusive resorts for the exclusive use of its gay and lesbian guests. In 2007, Atlantis has hosted approximately 20,000 guests on 11 different events. Established in 1985, RSVP Vacations was the originator of the gay and lesbian cruise concept. Destinations in 2007 have included the Caribbean, Barbados, the Mediterranean, Central Europe, and an historic trans-Atlantis crossing on the Queen Mary 2.
"We are extremely pleased that RSVP will become part of the Atlantis family," said Karen Magee, chief executive officer, PlanetOut Inc. "Preserving RSVP's distinct brand will enable Atlantis to expand the audience it serves by taking advantage of RSVP's unique positioning within the LGBT community. We believe this combination will be a real positive for RSVP's customers and business partners. It really is a perfect match and we're looking forward to expanding and extending our marketing relationship with Atlantis." Sir Richard Branson’s tour operating division Virgin Holidays is to grow its share of the cruise retailing market with the acquisition of specialist online and call centre cruise agent, Fast Track Holidays.
Virgin Holidays claims it will take at least 10% cruise market share over the next 24 months as a result of the acquisition.
The deal, for an undisclosed sum, will allow Virgin Holidays to significantly increase sales of cruise-and-stay holidays, not just in its dominant long-haul markets such as the Caribbean, which are served by sister airline Virgin Atlantic, but also in the Mediterranean and cruises from UK ports.
The Virgin Holidays cruise product range will be available to trade partners and it will be further differentiated with product “extras” currently in development, according to Virgin Holidays managing director Amanda Wills.
Wills said: “We have seen impressive and consistent growth in our cruise programme and have been assessing companies in the sector that would be suitable for integration into our business.
"Fast Track fitted our criteria, particularly in terms of its level of specialisation and standing within the cruise sector. We look forward to bringing this proposition to our customers and adding the “Virgin touches” to the cruising choices available to them.”
SSG-TØNSBERG.
Hurtigruten, which includes the Coastal Express service from Bergen to Kirkenes, is to carry out several harsh measures to reduce losses, and layoffs among the 2,400 staff are not unlikely. The group had losses of NOK 62 million last year and is in the red to the tune of NOK 33.7 million so far this year. The new group-managing director Olav Fjeld, formerly of Statoil, says that among the measures are developments of winter tourism and that Coastal Express passengers spend more money onboard. He also underlines that he will leave no stone unturned in an effort to cut cost. 
MIAMI, Oct. 12 PRNewswire
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. announced today that Royal Caribbean International's Sovereign of the Seas will be reassigned to the company's Pullmantur fleet, and the Los Angeles- based Monarch of the Seas will assume Sovereign of the Seas' sailings out of Port Canaveral. These changes will take place in October and November 2008.
Sovereign of the Seas' last scheduled sailing for Royal Caribbean International will be on October 31, 2008. Two subsequent cruises, scheduled for November 3 and 7, will be canceled, and guests booked on those cruises will receive a full refund and an onboard credit for rebooking an earlier Sovereign of the Seas sailing during 2008 (excluding holidays). All rebookings must be made by December 31, 2007. All guests currently booked on Sovereign of the Seas on or after November 10, 2008, will be re-accommodated onboard Monarch of the Seas.
Monarch of the Seas will make its last regularly scheduled sailing out of Los Angeles on October 13, 2008. All guests currently booked on a subsequent sailing will receive a full refund and an onboard credit for rebooking a three, four or five-night Caribbean sailing, or a seven-night Mexican Riviera sailing, onboard Royal Caribbean International in 2008 (excluding holidays). All rebookings must be made by December 31, 2007.
On October 17, 2008, Monarch of the Seas will reposition to the East Coast when it departs Los Angeles on a 16-night Panama Canal cruise to Miami. The ship will then undergo a scheduled, weeklong dry-dock before welcoming its first Port Canaveral guests for three and four-night Bahamas sailings starting November 10, 2008.
Additional information can be found on www.royalcaribbean.com - www.celebrity.com - www.pullmantur.es - www.azamaracruises.com The latest edition of the ‘Cruise Bible’ the 2008 edition of the ‘Berlitz Complete Guide of Cruising and Cruise Ships’ will cause some red faces within a couple of upmarket cruise lines who won’t be too happy to see the latest ship rating from cruise industry guru Douglas Ward.
Seven Seas Mariner, Seven Seas Voyager, Silver Cloud and Silver Wind have been relegated from 5 Star ratings to 4+ Stars, while three Celebrity and three Seabourn vessels also loose points in the Guide’s valuable ratings. Meanwhile, Hapag Lloyd’s Europa retains its position as the world’s leading cruise ship as the only 5 + Star vessel in the Guide.
According to the Guide’s author, Douglas Ward, as standards slip in the major cruise cruising market, the gap is widening between those cruise ships that belong to the 10 major cruise lines and the generally smaller, upscale ships. However, says Ward, there are signs that quality is also declining at the top end with fewer ships reaching the coveted 5 Star category in 2008.
With cruise ships and their facilities changing rapidly, Berlitz is introducing free quarterly updates from Douglas Ward to help prevent cruise goers from making an expensive mistake. By visiting www.berlitzpublishing.com and signing up, readers can learn of recent developments.
In response to the cost-cutting that has taken its toll on the provision of crew, food, service and training, there is a newly expanded section – ‘Who Does What Best’ is a user-friendly summary of the world’s largest 10 cruise lines. Cunard comes out on top overall, with both the Best Overall Food Score and the Best Overall Service Score, toppling Celebrity Cruises from the number one spot. However, Celebrity gets credited for having the most elegant ships and the most under-priced cruises, while Holland America Line is regarded as best for retired passengers. Sydney, Australia
RCI’s 2,435 passenger capacity Rhapsody of the Seas has been chartered by the Australian cruise consortium Cruiseco for a series of cruises out of Sydney in the latter part of 2007. The vessel will reposition from Honolulu on 28 September to Sydney and then undertake a 12-night cruise to New Caledonia and Fiji as well as two 14-night round voyages to New Zealand, before leaving Sydney on 24 November for Singapore.
Vancouver, B.C.
The Vancouver Organising Committee (VANOC) of the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympics is looking to charter a cruise ship to accommodate 1,600 members of the press and broadcast media. The vessel would be moored at Squamish, British Columbia, half-way between the two major Olympic sites in Vancouver and Whistler. However, the International Olympic Committees’ Press Commission is against this move.
The 2010 Winter Olympics will be spread over a wide geographic area known as the ‘Sea to Sky’ corridor and the VANOC is responsible for providing accommodation for press attending the event. VANOC believes that the cruise ship accommodation option is the best way of meeting its commitment – it being a flexible option, it reduces the complexity and expense of building permanent or temporary accommodation and is environmentally friendly.
The XXI Olympic Winter Games take place in Vancouver and Whistler between 12-28 February 2010, while the X Paralympic Games takes places between 12-21 March 2010.
The VNOC is currently in discussions with a number of cruise lines on chartering a vessel. Tórshavn
Faroese ferry operator Smyril Lines has caused uproar in the Shetland Islands after to unexpectedly announced last week that it was dropping its regular passenger/car ferry service to Lerwick in the Shetland Islands. The 36,000grt Norröna, which operated the run, sailed from Lerwick for the last time last week. HamburgPhoto taken at Blohm & Voss, Hamburg, the ms Azamera Quest shown in her new livery. Originally build for Renaissance Cruises as R-7 entered service in 2000, she has lived through several owner and name changes: RCI/R-7, Delphin Seereisen/Delphin Renaissance, Pullmatur/Blue Moon. Now Azamera’s Quest for a healthy future.
Miami
New liner to enter service in 2010
Cunard Line announces that it has ordered a new 92,000-ton liner, to be named "Queen Elizabeth," scheduled to enter service in the autumn of 2010. Cunard, a unit of Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK) signed an agreement with Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri for the construction of the new 2092-passenger ocean liner, which will be built at Fincantieri's Monfalcone yard at an all-in cost of approximately $700 million. The vessel will be the second largest Cunarder the company has ever built.
Miami
(11:45 p.m.) -- The silence is broken. After remaining tight-lipped amid recent canceled cruises and an ensuing media storm, Windjammer Barefoot Cruises released a statement late today addressing its financial difficulties and its future.
According to the statement, the 60-year-old line intends to resume cruises in the Caribbean and Costa Rica -- though voyages scheduled for the weeks of October 14 and 21 will definitely not sail. Otherwise, the statement, entitled "Windjammer's Heart is Still Beating -- Better Sailing Ahead," is pretty vague. Here's what we know so far:
Displaced passengers can be rescheduled on future cruises, though at this point we don't have specific details, terms or conditions.
"Critical payments" were made Friday to shipboard staff and "immediate debt obligations" will be handled shortly.
A communications plan is being developed to update future customers on the status of their cruises; the Windjammer Web site is expected to be back up "shortly" -- and should offer advisories on upcoming sailings.
Essential crew and staff are working to continue "vital operations" on all ships in the Windjammer fleet.
Danny Walsh, the grandson of founder Captain Burke, is quoted as saying: "We are actively working with several investor groups on a viable plan to continue the Windjammer tradition."
DUBAI, Oct (Bernama)
Dubai, which has managed to establish itself as the leading cruise destination between Europe and Asia within the last few years, is targeting 200,000 cruise tourists for the 2007/08 winter season.
During the last season from October to May, Dubai received about 85,000 of such tourists, 20,000 more than expected, the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) said.
It said that to handle the expected surge in the number of tourists by ship, the DTCM is also studying the construction of a new cruise terminal.
Recently, the DTCM signed an agreement with cruise operator Costa Crociere which marked the creation of a full-fledged partnership between the two parties.
The partnership will provide for joint marketing initiatives in the next five years to promote both brands worldwide.
DTCM said that to further strengthen Dubai's position as the destination of choice, it also took part in Cruise Fair Seatrade Europe in Hamburg which ran from Sept 25 to 27.
DTCM executive director, convention and heritage, Awadh Al Ketbi, and Jamal Saif Humaid, manager, cruise terminal, led the delegation to the event which saw more than 3,250 visitors from 62 countries and more than 270 exhibitors from 50 countries participating.
Al Ketbi said the German market has significant relevance for Dubai and in 2008, many well-known German cruise operators are expected to use Dubai, including Aida Cruises, Hapag Lloyd, Peter Deilmann with ships like "AIDA Cara", "MS Europa" and "MS Deutschland." ATHENS, Greece:
A diver was killed while examining the hull of the sunken Sea Diamond cruise ship off the island of Santorini, authorities said Sunday.
The 44-year-old man, who died Saturday, was part of a diving team gathering video and other evidence for a judicial investigation into what caused the ship to sink, the Merchant Marine Ministry said.
The Sea Diamond hit rocks off Santorini on April 5 and sank hours later. Nearly 1,600 people, mostly American tourists, were evacuated from ship, but two French passengers never were found and are presumed drowned.
An autopsy will be conducted to determine the cause of death, officials said.
In June, the government fined the cruise ship's operators — Cypriot-owned Louis Hellenic Cruises — €1.17 million (US$1.65 million) for polluting the Aegean Sea. Miami, Miami Herald
Financially strapped Windjammer Barefoot Cruises has stranded passengers, struggled to pay and feed its crew and canceled voyages in recent weeks.
Now a deal to prop up the ailing cruise line has fallen through. The purported rescuer has sued Windjammer and the family trust that owns the business, alleging they've negotiated with other investors behind his back.
Whether the trust has found someone else to provide a lifeline to Windjammer couldn't be determined. Stephen Pallister, a U.K. lawyer who controls the family trust, didn't respond to phone calls and an e-mail.
Windjammer cruises set for this week were canceled, though it provided no reason. But at least two of its four tall sailing ships have not sailed in several weeks.
Nancy Kock, an employee of Admiral Shipping Agency, Windjammer's shipping agent in Aruba, said her company has had to supply crew members of the Polynesia with three cases of drinking water. Barcelona
Althought the ms Jules Verne is returnd to the Owner Club Cruises and a replacement is not shown on the Website. Shown are several new itineraries of up to 16 days lenght. Rumours in Spain indicates that Grand Voyager will be the replacement for Jules Vernes. At Vision they simply keep quiet, and at Iberojet now renamed Iberocruceros, they keep mum. Our understanding is however, thatVvision is looking for a smaller vessel, even smaller than JV, so Grand Voyager may not be suitable. On the other hand we have in our posession a business plan from a North Eiropean Tour Operattor, which is based on GV....so there are movements behind closed doors.
SouthamptonA woman has died after falling overboard from a cruise liner just before it docked at the port of Southampton, British police said on Sunday.The 67-year-old woman was reported missing from the Oceana liner by her husband early on Sunday morning and soon afterwards her body was recovered from the Solent by a Maritime and Coastguard Agency."The body of a female has been recovered and she is dead. That person has not yet been formally identified and inquiries are ongoing."The Oceana was returning to Southampton following a two-day cruise to Zeebrugge in Belgium said a P&O Cruises spokeswoman.
Hamburg
Seatrade held in Hamburg’s CCH Convention Center 25-27th September was a quiet and as some participants stated „rather boring affair". Yes, several German Operators didn’t attend, no both nor representatives. The usual panelists gave the usual speakers, heard many times before. Only reason left is an excuse to leave the office for a few days and stroll over famous Reeperbahn.
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