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Oceania Cruises plans to completely revamp two of its ships, Riviera and Marina
Oceania Cruises plans to completely revamp two of its ships, Riviera and Marina, and give them a full "stem-to-stern" overhaul.
The undertaking, which will be completed over the course of this year and next, is the next step in its ongoing OceaniaNEXT programme.
Once completed, Oceania said it would proudly deploy a fully refreshed fleet comprising brand new or "better-than-new" ships in every destination.
Oceania expects Riviera to re-enter service in December 2022 and Marina in November 2023. Each ship will accommodate 1,210 guests.
Every suite and stateroom will be renovated, while public spaces will feature a refreshed colour palette, new fabrics, furnishings and light fittings.
“At Oceania Cruises, we continue to raise the bar and elevate the guest experience at every opportunity," said president and chief executive Howard Sherman.
He added the work would extend to new culinary concepts and "immersive new destination experiences".
Riviera will debut on 7 December sailing a 16-day Mediterranean, Atlantic and Caribbean cruise from Rome to Miami.
It will then resume sailing seven- to 14-day trips from Miami to the Caribbean, Mexico and Central America before returning to Europe in late March 2023. An inaugural Far East season will follow in late 2023 and early 2024.
Marina, meanwhile, will return to service on 13 November 2023 sailing a seven-day cruise from Barcelona to Lisbon. From Lisbon, Marina will sail to Miami to sail its annual South America season, starting 3 December 2023. Details of Oceania’s 2024 itineraries will follow in the coming weeks.
Oceania’s other ships – Insignia, Regatta, Sirena and latterly Nautica – have all been refreshed, with Nautica returning to service on 1 April.
Royal Caribbean unveils overhauled Independence of the Seas
The Observatorium, an escape room game, is part of the Royal Amplified package that was added to Independence of the Seas. Photo Credit: Tom Stieghorst
ABOARD THE INDEPENDENCE OF THE SEAS -- In a two-day preview cruise for British, Irish and European travel agents, Royal Caribbean International unveiled changes from a 30-day, $110 million renovations of the Independence of the Seas that eliminated a half dozen venues and functions.
Among the venues that were axed, moved or drastically altered were the ship's chapel, mini-golf course, photo gallery, a juice bar, the disco and the Sabor restaurant.
The Independence is the first ship to gain Royal Caribbean's new Royal Amplified package of amenities, the most prominent of which is the bungee trampoline attraction Sky Pad.
The overhaul, which included $16 million in marine and technical work, is believed to be the most Royal Caribbean has ever spent in a single ship renovation.
The Sky Pad, a bungee trampoline apparatus used with virtual reality goggles, adds a new dimension to the profile of the Independence of the Seas. Photo Credit: Tom Stieghorst
A favourite in the U.K. market, the 10-year-old Independence will sail summers from Southampton and winters in the Caribbean.
The biggest change to the 152,000-gross-ton ship is the addition of a package of activities on the upper rear deck, including the Sky Pad, two tubular water slides and some lesser items, such as the Sky Climber apparatus and some hammocks and swings. The ship's FlowRider is also in the area.
To make room, the mini-golf course was relocated to the upper deck on the bow, and a bar and some storage lockers for sports equipment were eliminated.
The multi-coloured perforated dome of the Sky Pad alters the profile of the Independence and gives guests a chance to bounce on one of four personal-sized trampolines while watching programs on virtual-reality goggles. It cost roughly $5 million to develop and install.
Royal Caribbean officials aboard were excited about the reception for the Playmakers Bar & Arcade, an expansive sports bar that attracted an overflow crowd for a soccer match. Playmakers were built out of the old photo gallery on Deck 4, which has been relocated and downsized as a digital outlet.
High atop the ship on Deck 15, in a hidden space where the chapel used to be, Royal Caribbean has created a puzzle room attraction called the Observatorium, in which game players have a limited time to figure out how to escape from the room.
A new casual restaurant, Fish & Ships, serving deep-fried seafood, was added where a juice bar used to be on the pool deck. Another new restaurant, the sushi and teppanyaki concept Izumi, has been added, replacing Sabor, a Mexican restaurant that wasn't doing very well, said Royal Caribbean president Michael Bayley. Izumi was carved out of the top floor of a two-level disco, while the bottom floor was rebuilt as new accommodations.
The children's water play area on the Independence, formerly the H20 Zone, has been enlarged and improved as the Splashaway Bay.
A former cigar lounge outside the Star Lounge has been repurposed as the library, which was formerly located near the Atrium Bar.
Another component of Royal Amplified will be the Sugar Beach candy store, launched on the Symphony of the Seas last month and now open on the Independence.
New swing chairs on the Independence of the Seas were part of a $110 million overhaul. Photo Credit: Tom Stieghorst
Bayley said a total of 107 new cabins have been added to the Independence, mostly by building a new cabin block at the front of the ship above the gym, but also from squeezing space in the refurbishment to add a cabin or two here and there.
Royal Caribbean's next ship to receive the Royal Amplified treatment, the Mariner of the Seas, is already in drydock and will emerge to serve the short-cruise market from South Florida this summer. It will be followed by Navigator of the Seas.
Bayley said Royal Amplified will touch 10 Voyager-, Freedom- and Oasis-class ships over the next three years at a budgeted cost of $900 million.
Norwegian Cruise Line has set out on a major overhaul of its fleet, which will see the giant investing a quarter of a billion dollars over the next year.
The company is investing $250 million in a fleetwide renovation project called Norwegian Next that will see many of the entertainments and dining venues from its newer Breakaway-class ships rolled out across the rest of its fleet in the coming months.
A number of ships have already been refurbished recently including Norwegian Jewel and Norwegian Spirit. Norwegian Gem is set to get a makeover this year, while Norwegian Star and Norwegian Epic will go into the dry dock in 2015.
The Norwegian Next programme features a large number of changes including entertainment, children's activities and onboard connectivity. In terms of the dining establishments found on Getaway and Breakaway, Norwegian will be bringing O'Sheehan's Bar & Grill and Carlo's Bake Shop to all of its ships, along with the Sugarcane Mojito bar.
It will also be bringing the main dining room on the other ships in line with its newest vessels and introducing Garden Cafes. There will also be new wine and cocktail menus, while bartenders and wine stewards across the rest of the fleet are set to receive additional training.
Among the new children's activities will be more Nickelodeon entertainments and a special area at the cruise line's private island Great Stirrup Cay. It is also introducing new bars on the island and ensuring that passengers calling here have access to larger beach areas and more cabanas.
"The youngest fleet at sea continues to get even better with our robust enhancement program taking place over the next two years," said Kevin Sheehan, Norwegian Cruise Line's chief executive.
"We want to continue to provide fresh and relevant experiences to our guests every time they sail with us. We are investing significantly in making sure that our guests have the vacation of a lifetime and fully experience what it means to Cruise like a Norwegian."
Carnival Sunshine has finally been officially renamed following its major renovation and unofficial rebranding earlier this year.
Back in May, the vessel - formerly known as the Carnival Destiny - underwent a complete overhaul worth $155 million (£96 million), with the creation of new entertainments including a huge waterpark, new dining venues and improved cabins.
Although it has been sailing on Mediterranean itineraries during the summer, the Sunshine arrived in New Orleans this weekend to be officially renamed in a ceremony that included jazz music and godmother Lin Arison; arts patron, philanthropist and widow of the late Carnival Corporation founder Ted Arison.
Cruise Critic reports that she said: "I think one of the most exciting things that happened today, for me, was going around the ship and seeing the transformation.
"I know that it's going to continue being lucky, which is the most important thing for a ship."
At the ceremony itself, there was a marching band, as well as an assortment of singers and dancers, with performers hailing from the National YoungArts Foundation, which was established by the Arisons.
When the ship was christened the first time as the Destiny, it was the world's largest vessel.
