Norwegian Set to Boost Caribbean Cruise Capacity

Norwegian Set to Boost Caribbean Cruise Capacity

“We pair our ships with destinations, sending some of our smaller ships to exotic destinations and some of our larger amenity-filled ships to our fun and sun destinations,” said Harry Sommer, president and CEO of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, speaking on Monday at an investor event held in New York.

As a result, “Fun and Sun” (Caribbean, Bermuda and Hawaii) capacity will make up 54 per cent of the deployment for the Norwegian Cruise Line brand in 2026, up from 42 per cent this year.

“It gives our guests the opportunity, on the NCL brand, to return over and over and over again, maximizing their lifetime value and driving high fields.”

Sommer said he believed Norwegian’s ships with increased amenities were perfectly suited for millennial and Generation Z guests.

The company will send its biggest ships to its core destinations in the “Fun and Sun” regions.

As a result, by 2026, the company’s average cruise length will be down to eight days from nine in 2023 with more short and week-long Caribbean sailings as a growing part of the deployment mix.

Capacity days are expected to be in the 12 million range in these “Fun and Sun” destinations by 2026, up from 8 million in 2023, according to a company presentation.

In addition, the mix of the company’s top 10 embarkation points (homeports) will be greater, representing 80 per cent of 2026 capacity, compared to 65 per cent in 2023.

“Our increased Caribbean deployment has given us the ability to invest in our private island in Great Stirrup Cay,” Sommer said, noting the coming two-ship pier for the island set to open in 2025.

Other investments will follow in Great Stirrup Cay, including a VIP area, and the company expects to host approximately 700,000 guests on the island by 2026, up from 400,000 in 2023.

NCLH Records Record-Breaking Wave Season

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NCLH) has entered 2023 with a record-booked position at a higher price, with each of its three brands experiencing "record-breaking" wave periods.

The Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), Oceania Cruise and Regent Seven Seas Cruises parent has seen "very strong" demand so far in 2023, according to a recent trading update covering the fourth quarter and full year to 31 December 2022. 

 

The company entered the year with a cumulative booked position of approximately 62% for 2023, in line with previously outlined expectations and within the firm’s optimal 60% to 65% range, and at higher prices than 2019 at a similar point in time.

 

Booking volumes have accelerated in recent months buoyed by strong wave season demand, NCLH said, with its brands achieving several booking records in recent months.

 

As a result, the full-year 2023 cumulative booked position is ahead of 2019 levels inclusive of the company’s 19% increase in capacity.

 

NCLH expects this positive momentum to continue throughout the year, with occupancy expected to average 100% for the first quarter and is on track to reach "historical levels" for the second quarter.

 

As of 31 December 2022, the company’s advance ticket sales balance, including the long-term portion, was $2.7 billion, approximately 9% higher than the prior quarter and approximately 30% greater than at year-end 2019.

Norwegian Escape Resumes Service After Drydock

Norwegian Escape Resumes Service After Drydock

Norwegian Bliss arriving in Southampton photo credit Spacejunkie2 (Flickr)

The Norwegian Escape is resuming service today in Civitavecchia, Italy. After spending most of September at a drydock in France, the vessel is welcoming guests for the final part of its 2022 season in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The program, which started in May, includes nine- to 11-night cruises to popular destinations in Greece, Malta, Italy and France.

The Oct. 12 departure, for instance, sails to Livorno, Naples, Messina, Valletta, Corfu, Piraeus and Santorini before returning to Civitavecchia.

Following an incident that took place earlier this year, the drydock period was confirmed by Norwegian Cruise Line in June.

At the time, the cruise line said that the ship required a shipyard visit but did not reveal the nature of the work being carried out onboard.

Previously, in March, the Norwegian Escape ran aground in the Dominican Republic during a cruise to the Eastern Caribbean.

After being refloated, the 163,000-ton ship was said to have suffered minor damage and spent a month undergoing repairs before resuming regular operations in mid-April.

The Norwegian Escape is set to return to North America following its European cruise program.

In November, the ship offers a trans-Atlantic crossing to New York City before kicking off a season in the Caribbean.

Highlighted by a visit to the Azores Archipelago, the 16-night voyage includes calls in Italy, France, Spain, Portugal and the United States.

Continuing its winter program, the 4,200-guest vessel launches a series of week-long Eastern Caribbean cruises on November 19.

Departing from Port Canaveral, the regular itineraries sail to the Dominican Republic and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Before returning to its Florida homeport, the vessel also visits the British Virgin Islands and the Bahamas.

Part of the Breakaway-Plus Class, the Norwegian Escape originally entered service in 2015. After nearly two years out of service due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the vessel resumed revenue operations in late 2021.

Norwegian Cruise Line Rules out UK Sailings.

Norwegian Cruise Line’s UK chief has ruled out operating round-Britain sailings this summer in favour of recently announced fly-cruise itineraries which “fit our brand better”.

NCL announced plans to restart voyages from July – with Norwegian Jade sailing from Athens, Norwegian Gem out of Punta Cana (Dominican Republic) and Norwegian Joy homeporting in Jamaica’s Montego Bay.

 

Speaking to TTG on Thursday (8 April) Eamonn Ferrin, vice-president and managing director UK, Ireland, Middle East and Africa, said the line had looked at deployment “from a global level” and felt the destinations and itineraries announced were “much more suitable” for guests across its source markets.

 

“People want to go on a fly cruise to the Med or Caribbean, and we feel that’s a better market for us to go for,” he said. “We feel it fits our brand better and our customers better. So I don’t think we’ll be looking to stand up a UK ship for this season.”

 

Ferrin said a late July restart, coupled with NCL’s global outlook, meant favouring sailings away from the UK.

 

“It got a bit late to be starting up at the end of July. You’re getting into a late-season process – so we felt [the announced itineraries] were a better fit. The three we’ve chosen on a global basis are stunning itineraries that Brits love and there’s already a lot of demand.”

However, Ferrin asserted NCL’s commitment to the UK market through its partnership with ABP Southampton on a new terminal at the port.

 

“Our long-term goal is to have a lot more capacity from Southampton – so we definitely see a bright future for more departures.”

 

Speaking alongside Ferrin, NCL president and chief executive Harry Sommer described being able to restart as “like Christmas in April”, adding how “in a typical year” the Greek Isles are NCL’s most popular destination among UK customers.

 

“We normally have three ships out of Athens, Venice and Rome that are extremely well booked by the Brits," he said.

 

Sommer shared his hopes British travellers would be able to join NCL cruises in Jamaica and the Dominican Republic once travel restrictions were relaxed later in the summer “certainly by August”.

Norwegian Will Become Employer of Choice for Theater Performers

Rock of Ages.

The long pause in theatre operation in the West End and on Broadway may lead to a shift of the theatre hotspots to cruise ships, said Senior Vice President for Entertainment and Cruise Programs at Norwegian Cruise Line, Richard Ambrose.

“The labour market for performers and those in the entertainment – musicians, technicians – are clamouring for work. They've been unemployed for almost over a year now. And there's really no end in sight right now. Broadway is looking at late summer of 2021, the West End is trying to open… And it just doesn't happen,” Ambrose said.

“The cruise industry, and especially the Norwegian Cruise Line, is going to be the employer of choice, which is great,” he added.  

According to Ambrose, speaking recently at a virtual press conference, Norwegian has around 2,300 to 2,600 people working in the entertainment department across its 17-ship fleet, which makes the cruise line “the world’s largest regional theatre.” 

“Internally, we call ourselves the world's largest regional theatre. And it really is true. Because if you look at us and what we're doing from the Broadway, West End production series, the shows that we get prior to Broadway… If you look at Six, the musical – we had two productions on our ships before even touched Broadway, which is a huge coup. Not only for Norwegian Cruise Line but for the industry,” he said.

“It really means that the entertainment industry is taking us seriously, but they also really respect what Norwegian Cruise Line is doing.”

Norwegian Cruise Line is working on compiling its health and safety regulations to ensure that its return to cruising is safe, Ambrose said. One thing he revealed about its theatre operations when cruising resumes is that theatre guests will be sat in a “checkerboard” way.

“We only have to be a meter apart right now, so it's going to be every other seat. And we also have to have space before and after a guest. You won't have somebody sitting in front of you, you won't have somebody sitting behind you. It's like a big checkerboard if you consider it that way,” he said, adding that social distancing will also be observed between the cast and the guests.

Six Norwegian Cruise Line ships to get exhaust scrubbers

By Jerry Limone

Norwegian Cruise Line has contracted with Green Tech Marine to install scrubbers on six ships.

The scrubbers enable ship operators to reduce sulfur emissions while continuing to use heavy fuel oil for power. Scrubbers are a less expensive option than switching to low-sulfur diesel fuel.

Norway-based Green Tech Marine will install the scrubbers on the Breakaway, Dawn, Jewel, Gem, Pearl and Sun, starting this spring and continuing through 2016. The scrubbers will replace the ships’ exhaust silencers.

 installed scrubbers on the Hawaii-based Pride of America last year and will supply them for Norwegian’s Breakaway Plus ships, the Escape and the Bliss, due to enter service in 2015 and 2017, respectively.

GTM R15

By using GTM scrubbers, shipowners can continue to operate on heavy fuel oil instead of more costly marine gas oil while staying below the strict IMO requirements regarding sulphur emissions. Fuel prices of marine gas oil are expected to rise even higher in 2015 when the 0,1% sulphur limit enters into force. The GTM scrubbers make it simple to meet new environmental regulations by replacing your ship’s exhaust silencer – no structural modifications required. You also benefit from:

• Proven reduction of SOx and PM, compliant with MARPOL Annex VI –MEPC 58 and 59
• Hybrid scrubber - both open and closed loop operation
• An extremely small footprint
• Low weight resulting in minimal change to stability conditions
• Energy-efficient

To see some of the innovative features of the GTM Scrubber, point at the appropriate hot-spot with your mouse.

Public to vote for names of Breakaway Plus ships

By Tom Stieghorst

Norwegian Cruise Line has narrowed the potential names for its two Breakaway Plus vessels to 10, and said fans of its Facebook pagein five countries will choose the two names.

Fans in the U.S., U.K., Spain, Germany and Canada can vote up to once a day for their two favorite names. Norwegian said it will pick the two that get the most votes.

Anyone submitting a vote and completing an entry form is eligible for a sweepstakes that includes free cruises on the two ships and invitations to their inaugural festivities.

The choice of names are Bliss, Discovery, Dreamaway, Journey, Escape, Muse, Passion, Sailaway, Treasure and Triton.

Only residents of the five named countries can enter, and in Canada residents of Quebec are excluded.