P&O Cruises to upgrade Arcadia and Aurora

P&O and Cunard to Drydock at Harland & Wolff

P&O and Cunard to Drydock at Harland & Wolff

Harland & Wolff has been awarded a drydock contract for two cruise ships from P&O Cruises and Cunard.

The two Carnival Corporation ships will drydock for a total of 33 days as the Aurora and Queen Victoria will both visit the Belfast facility.

They are two of a projected 24 Carnival Corporation ships to drydock in the second quarter.

The work due to being undertaken on both ships are standard drydocking operations that will give Harland & Wolff the opportunity to demonstrate to the wider cruise industry, its skills, capabilities and expertise in these types of projects, the company said, in a press release

Queen Victoria will drydock from May 2 to 19 and will be the largest cruise ship ever to have drydocked in a UK shipyard and the only Cunard ship to have ever drydocked in Belfast.

The Aurora will visit from June 9 to 23.

Harland & Wolff, group CEO John Wood, commented: “When acquiring the assets of Harland and Wolff (Belfast) in December 2019 and in a pre-pandemic period, the cruise industry was one of our key target markets.

“Our facilities are ideally placed to capitalize on these types of large projects whilst we continue servicing our smaller but regular clients. We have now secured contracts in four out of our five markets; commercial, cruise & ferry, renewables and energy – we now look forward to completing the final milestone of securing a defence contract in the near future.”

Carnival UK, vice-president maritime David Varty said: “We are delighted to be able to have these two ships at a UK shipyard with such a long heritage and reputation and we very much look forward to supporting the UK maritime industry and working closely with the Harland & Wolff team on this project.”

P&O Cruises extends cancellation of sailings into 2021

All P&O Cruises sailings have been cancelled until early 2021, the line confirmed today.

All Caribbean cruises are cancelled until the end of January 2021 and departures from and to Southampton will not operate until February.

The ships Arcadia and Aurora have already seen cancellations through to the end of their spring world cruises.

Passengers with bookings on a cancelled cruise will be notified and automatically receive an enhanced 125% future cruise credit or a 100% refund by filling out a web form, according to the line.

P&O Cruises had extended its pause in operations until November 12 and cancelled two extended itineraries due to depart in January 2021.

The line’s previous pause was in June until October 15 due to Covid-19 restrictions on cruise operations.

P&O Cruises president Paul Ludlow said: “With evolving restrictions on travel from the UK, unfortunately, it is necessary to cancel these itineraries.

“These further cancellations vary according to ship as well as complexity and length of itineraries, advice and guidance regarding ports of call and current air availability for fly/cruises.

“We are continuing to monitor the overall situation closely and will certainly reintroduce cruises should the opportunity arise and it is feasible to do so.”

Ludlow confirmed that the Carnival Corporation company is working with several of the “most brilliant minds in science as well as government at the highest level” on approved and enhanced health protocols, which will be in place once the company resumes sailing.

He added: “Whilst adherence to the protocols on board and ongoing vigilance will be critical, this will always be coupled with providing the well-deserved and memorable holidays for which we are known, with all the standout moments on board and experiences onshore. This is what we have always done and will continue to do.

“We cannot wait for restrictions to ease, borders to open and for us to once again be able to set sail for a new beginning.”

P&O Cruises extends cancellation of sailings into November

P&O Cruises extends cancellation of sailings into November

P&O Brittania

P&O Cruises has further extended its pause in operations until November 12 and cancelled two extended itineraries due to depart in January 2021.

The line’s last pause was in June until October 15.

The company said the extended pause in operations was “an acknowledgement of Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) guidance” against taking ocean cruises.

Passengers booked on the cancelled cruises will receive an enhanced 125% future cruise credit or can fill in the website form for a refund.

P&O Cruises president Paul Ludlow said: “It is clear that whilst the guidance is in place it is not advisable for us to resume operations.

“As well as cancelling all cruises up until November 12, 2020, we will, sadly, also be cancelling Aurora’s Caribbean and South America Adventure and Arcadia’s world cruise.

“Given long-term planning, combined with the complexity and length of these long-haul itineraries and evolving border restrictions, we need to ensure that we adhere to the guidance as it stands. I know that these January cruises, in particular, are holidays of a lifetime and we are so sorry for the disappointment that these cancellations will cause.

“We continue to work in partnership with public health agencies at the highest level as well as Department for Transport; EU Healthy Gateways and Cruise Lines International Association (Clia), the world’s largest cruise industry association.

“We will follow all applicable guidelines to enhance our already stringent measures to keep our guests and crew healthy and well and we will not resume sailing until this approved framework is in place. Fundamentally, we will be adopting the best practice within the travel industry.”

He added: “The good news is that confidence in cruising is strong and we are seeing increasing and significant demand from our guests.

“We know that the FCO guidance is under constant review and we are hopeful that, as they are aware of the work the industry is doing, this will change before too long.

“We have invested significantly in new systems and technology to speed up the refund process and to date, we have refunded tens of thousands of guests, although it is heartening to see that the majority of our guests have opted for the FCC so they have a holiday to look forward to in the future.”

He also confirmed that the line will take delivery of new ship Iona “before the autumn”.

Cruise Ships Dock and Anchor in Funchal for New Year's Fireworks

Cruise ships are stacked in Funchal (Madeira) for the city's landmark midnight fireworks display to mark the start of a new decade.

At Anchor:

• CMV Columbus
• CMV Marco Polo
• Saga Sapphire
• Pullmantur Zenith
• TUI Mein Schiff 3
• Fred. Olsen Balmoral
• Marella Explorer
• Phoenix Reisen Amera

Docked:

• Cunard Queen Victoria
• Ocean Majesty
• AIDAstella
• P&O Aurora

P&O Cruises unveils itineraries to mark 180th anniversary

P&O Cruises unveils itineraries to mark 180th anniversary

By Phil Davies, Travel Weekly

P&O Cruises is to run two full world cruises in 2017 to mark its 180th anniversary.

Aurora’s 104-night eastern circumnavigation from Southampton echoes the trade routes of the British Empire, calling at 35 destinations in 21 countries and sailing almost 30,000 nautical miles.

Departing on January 9, 2017, the cruise features 23 new ports of call, overnight stays in Dubai, Singapore, Sydney and San Francisco, seven evening calls and transits of both the Panama and Suez canals.

Arcadia’s 114-night western circumnavigation from Southampton calls at 37 destinations in 21 countries, sailing more than 36,000 nautical miles. 

The voyage, departing on January 2, 2017, includes 22 new ports, overnight stays in San Francisco, Auckland, Sydney, Hong Kong and Singapore and nine evening calls.

Prices lead in at £10,299 per person on a Select Price rate for Aurora’s world cruise, including onboard spending money of between £350 and £1,000, depending on cabin grade.

The sailings feature in a 2017 World Cruise Collection brochure which goes on general sale on September 9.

The programme also includes a 50-night Oriana cruise to the Caribbean and Amazon departing from the UK on January 3, 2017 and a 12-night Northern Lights itinerary including an overnight stay Alta and a late evening in Tromso. Prices start at £3,999pp and £899pp respectively.

The line’s marketing director, Christopher Edgington, said: “P&O Cruises has a reputation for offering original and appealing world cruise itineraries which we spend a lot of time planning, based on extensive research and trends.

“Our round the world cruises are not a once-in-a-lifetime dream but a truly affordable and realistic holiday for empty nesters looking for long haul adventure and ‘this is the life’ memories.”