Norwegian Cancels Most 2025 Cruises on Norwegian Sun

Norwegian Cancels Most 2025 Cruises on Norwegian Sun

Norwegian Cruise Line has cancelled sailings on the Norwegian Sun between March and November 2025, according to a letter sent to travel advisors and booked guests.

“As a result of a fleet redeployment, Norwegian Sun’s sailings from March 28, 2025 through and including November 3, 2025 have been canceled,” the company said.

The cancellations amount to 22 sailings, and Norwegian was quick to note the Norwegian Sky will be offering similar cruises during the same timeframe.

The sailings ranged from week-long cruises to two weeks and more, in Europe and the Middle East.

The ship’s current published deployment ends in late March 2025 in Singapore.

Update:

“As part of a fleet redeployment to accommodate strong demand for longer more immersive itineraries in exotic destinations, we have canceled Norwegian Sun’s sailings from March 28, 2025 through and including November 3, 2025,” said a statement from Norwegian Cruise Line.

“We will be redeploying her, and her new enhanced itineraries will be available to book soon. All changes are being communicated to impacted guests accordingly. We understand the inconvenience this may cause and we appreciate the understanding of our loyal guests and travel partners as we navigate this fleet redeployment and optimization.”

Norwegian Cancels Six Months of Jewel Sailings

Norwegian Cruise Line has announced that all scheduled Norwegian Jewel sailings from September 25, 2020, through February 27, 2021, have been cancelled.

Norwegian cited "a result of changes to the redeployment of our fleet," but did not elaborate on new plans for the Jewel in a statement sent to travel partners.

The ship was scheduled to sail Australia and New Zealand for the 2020-2021 winter season and could be moving closer to home into the North America market.

Cruise Lines 2019 Q4 Breakdown: By the Numbers

Cruise Lines 2019 Q4 Breakdown: By the Numbers

Cruise Industry News takes a look at the financial performance of the “big three” following the final quarter of 2019.

Takeaways:

While gross revenue was up for Q4 2019 for the three publicly-traded cruise companies, increased operating expenses led to reduced operating income, net income and net income per passenger day, compared to Q4 for the previous year.

Net revenue per passenger day was also down year-over-year for Carnival Corporation, up noticeably for Royal Caribbean and up slightly for Norwegian.

Gross revenue per passenger day was significantly up for all three companies, including onboard spending, with gross ticket revenue per day also up for Royal Caribbean and Norwegian, but down for Carnival.

Carnival saw the biggest difference between gross and net onboard revenue: more than $25, making it flat with last year, while Royal had nearly a $12 drop and Norwegian a little more than $10, and up from last year.

Both Carnival and Royal Caribbean saw a decrease in fuel costs year-over-year while Norwegian saw its fuel spend to go up.

Carnival cited the regulatory change preventing travel to Cuba, geopolitical events in Arabian Gulf, Hurricane Dorian, an unscheduled drydock, and multiple shipyard delays. Royal cited the Oasis drydock mishap, Cuba and Hurricane Dorian, and Norwegian also cited Cuba and Dorian.

Because of the fleet mix, Norwegian continued to generate the highest gross and net ticket and onboard spend revenue.

Cruise Industry Financial Tracking

The Cruise Industry Financial Tracking Report provides an in-depth look into the financial metrics of the leading cruise companies. Learn more.

Included: Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, MSC, Star/Genting, Royal Olympic, P&O Princess, Regent, American Classical Voyages and Commodore.

Key metrics include revenue, operating expenses, operating income and net income, as well as those metrics on a per passenger day basis. We also look at EPS, fleets, berths and passenger cruise days. 

Royal Caribbean cancels Independence 2020 ex-UK season

Royal Caribbean cancels Independence 2020 ex-UK season

Independence of the Seas in Southampton by Dave Jones

Royal Caribbean has cancelled Independence of the Seas’ ex-UK season next summer.

The 4,560-passenger ship was due to operate cruises from Southampton to Europe, alongside Anthem of the Seas, from May 2020. It will now offer Caribbean sailings from Fort Lauderdale in Florida instead.

The line insisted the move was not a reflection of a softer UK market, but rather in response to “phenomenal demand” from North America.

The ship was understood to be “well-sold” but the line declined to reveal how many UK passengers – and the agents who booked them – are affected by the move.

Ben Bouldin, associate vice president and managing director, Royal Caribbean International UK & Ireland, said guests affected by the itinerary change will be offered full refunds, and a ‘Future Cruise Credit’ for use on alternative sailings – valued at 25% of the cruise fare paid on their cancelled sailing.

Guests booked on the transatlantic sailings will be offered an alternative sailing on Anthem of the Seas, which is also sailing ex-UK to Europe in summer 2020, along with onboard credit based on their stateroom category and sailing length.

Non-refundable airline charges will be reimbursed, and full refunds given to those who wish to cancel.

Bouldin stressed: “This is not a reflection on the UK market but rather a response to the phenomenal demand we’re seeing in North America.  Ex-UK 2020 sales have been buoyant since our ‘on sale now’ campaign back in November 2018 and we are also seeing strong demand from UK guests for sailings outside of Europe, particularly in the Caribbean and Asia-Pacific regions.

“The UK continues to be an important market for Royal Caribbean.”

President and chief executive Michael Bayley had expressed nervousness around the UK market because of the Brexit situation, before confirming the deployment of Anthem to Southampton, which would more than double the line’s ex-UK capacity.

Last year, he said: “The big thing for us is the value of sterling. We are an American company. All of our revenues have to come back to us in dollars. When Brexit hit, that was a 15% cut. The UK is a big side of our business.”

But he later confirmed Anthem would indeed join Independence, saying: “We experience volatility in all the markets that we operate in. Our strategy has been a continuation, protect, optimise and carry on the journey; that is why we announced that Anthem is coming to the UK in 2020.

“By the time we have got through 2019, we will be in a far more stable environment. A lot of the choppiness will have stabilised. We are hoping but we don’t know. This kind of uncertainty is not good for business.”

This was before the Brexit deadline was delayed another six months to October 31, 2019.

Bouldin added: “The benefit of our global business model is that we are able to reposition ships to satisfy the demand of our guests.  In this case, demand is high in the Caribbean, especially for itineraries to Perfect Day at CocoCay in the Bahamas, and keeping Independence of the Seas in Florida allows us to meet the demand.”

Independence of the Seas, which came back into service after a multi-million-pound refit in May 2018, is the most popular of all Royal Caribbean ships among UK agents and their customers. A Royal Caribbean spokeswoman confirmed that agents with customers booked on Independence of the Seas for summer 2020 sailings will keep the commission they have earned.

She added that the line is hoping that many affected passengers will transfer to Anthem of the Seas, which it pointed out was a larger and newer vessel.

Royal Caribbean will be sending letters to all affected passengers this morning (Thurs) to let them know of the decision and to outline their alternative options. It will also be contacting trade partners.

Norwegian Breakaway to homeport in New Orleans

Norwegian Breakaway

Norwegian Cruise Line said its 4,000-passenger Norwegian Breakaway will move its homeport to New Orleans starting in the fall of 2018.

The ship, which has a large painting of the New York skyline on its hull, has been sailing from New York since its 2013 debut and has a number of New York-themed features. 

The Breakaway will make the move after completing a summer season in the Baltics in 2018. It will arrive in New Orleans on November 11, 2018 and will sail a variety of cruises to the Caribbean through April 7, 2019.

Norwegian said the Norwegian Gem, which had been scheduled to sail from New Orleans in 2018/19 will instead go to New York and sail a series of cruises to the Caribbean, Canada & New England and the Bahamas & Florida. In the summer of 2018, the Norwegian Escape will be repositioned to New York from Miami for the first time to do seven-day sailings to Bermuda.

Crystal redeploying mega-yacht to Caribbean

Crystal Esprit

Crystal Cruises said its 62-passenger mega-yacht, the Crystal Esprit, will be redeployed to the Caribbean in November 2017.

The yacht has been sailing in the Adriatic in the summer and in the Seychelles in the winter.

"The decision to reposition Crystal Esprit to the West Indies is one that was made with our guests' expressed wishes in mind," Crystal CEO Edie Rodriguez said. She said gusts particularly wanted closer proximity to major travel hubs.

The Esprit will sail roundtrip on Sundays from Marigot Bay, St. Martin, on two alternating seven-day routes. One itinerary will feature calls in St. Barthelemy and four locations in the British Virgin Islands.

A second itinerary will take the Esprit to Anguilla, Saba, Nevis, St. Barthelemy and St. Martin.

MSC Cruises ups its game in China with MSC Splendida

MSC Cruises ups its game in China with MSC Splendida

MSC Splendida in Tunis, Photo Credit Dave Jones

In a substantial boost to its China capacity, MSC Cruises is going to deploy one of its biggest ships there in May 2018. MSC Splendida joins the smaller MSC Lirica, adding the MSC Yacht Club concept and butler service to its China offerings.

The 2009-built MSC Splendida, at 137,936gt, will become one of the largest ships operating in the region. The vessel can carry up to 4,363 passengers in 1,637 staterooms. Some 76% of accommodations have balconies.

MSC Splendida will join MSC Lirica, which has been serving—to great success, MSC Cruises said—the Chinese market since May. The ship recently moved to Tianjin to capture the North China market during the winter season.

Announcing the news in Beijing on Wednesday, MSC Cruises ceo Gianni Onorato said the ship has been one of the most popular in the fleet with Chinese and other Asian passengers cruising the Mediterranean with MSC.

MSC Splendida will undergo significant drydock enhancement in late 2017, ahead of the China deployment, to further improve and customize it for the market.

MSC Splendida also introduces the MSC Yacht Club to the Chinese market. This exclusive 'ship-within-a-ship' concept offers privacy, 24-hour butler service, a dedicated concierge reception and priority boarding and disembarkation.

The move would appear to be a direct competitive response to Dream Cruises' new Genting Dream, which also offers a luxury ship-within-a ship concept, Dream Mansion, served by butlers. That vessel is scheduled to be delivered next month. It will operate from Guangzhou (Nansha) in southern China.

MSC Splendida's itinerary details are to come, but MSC Cruises said the ship will visit destinations in China, Japan and Korea.

The news closely follows the opening of MSC Cruises' Shanghai office with its new management and operations team.

Carnival Breeze and Liberty will sail from Galveston

To make way for the new Carnival Vista when it is deployed in Miami in November 2016, Carnival Cruise Line will shift the Carnival Breeze to Galveston, Texas.

Also, Carnival will position the Carnival Liberty in Galveston in 2016. It has just repositioned Carnival Freedom to Galveston, where it is aggressively courting new business.

“Miami and Galveston are among our most popular points of embarkation, and deploying our newest, most innovative ships to these home ports speaks volumes about our confidence in growing these markets,” said Christine Duffy, Carnival’s president.

The Carnival Triumph and Magic, currently sailing from Galveston, will be redeployed with details to be announced at a later date. 

Prior to the start-up of year-round service from Miami, Carnival Vista will operate a pair of voyages round trip from New York, beginning with a three-day cruise Nov. 4-7, 2016, followed by an 11-day voyage departing Nov. 7 and visiting Grand Turk, San Juan, St. Thomas, Antigua and St. Maarten.  

Carnival Vista will then offer an 11-day transit cruise from New York to Miami from Nov. 18-29, with calls at Grand Turk, Bonaire, Aruba and St. Maarten.

Its first cruise from Miami will be a four-day cruise to Grand Turk, departing Nov. 29. Thereafter it will do alternating six- and eight-day Caribbean itineraries, mixed with a few one-time, one-off voyages, Carnival said.

Quantum’s China deployment reflects a new economic reality

By Tom Stieghorst

The decision to make Shanghai the home for Royal Caribbean’s Quantum of the Seas has immediate implications for U.S. travel agents who had been looking forward to selling the ship’s originally scheduled cruises from South Florida and New Jersey.

The Shanghai deployment is the clearest sign yet that the U.S. and Europe will have to compete for the future attention of a cruise industry they’ve grown accustomed to thinking of as their own.

“We were in a two-theaters-of-operation mode for the last 20 years,” said Adam Goldstein, president of Royal’s parent company, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. “Now, its North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific.”

In addition to China, Australia is getting strong support from North American cruise companies.

Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, Royal Caribbean’s senior vice president for operations, said the plan had always been an Asia deployment for one of its upcoming ships.

“We have clearly accelerated that with the decision to send Quantum to Asia,” she said.

In its announcement, Royal Caribbean said Quantum would sail year-round from Shanghai on three- to eight-day cruises to Korea and Japan.

Details about the itineraries will be available in a month or two, said Christopher Allen, Royal Caribbean’s assistant vice president of global deployment and itinerary planning.

Goldstein said the Chinese market has evolved from being in research-and-development mode to one that is contributing to the company’s profitability.

He said that even without the ability to sail to Japan from China, due to political tensions between the two countries, 2013 was a profitable year for China-sourced business.

Royal Caribbean has been sailing the Voyager of the Seas and Mariner of the Seas from China. Although the addition of the 4,200-passenger Quantum will increase Royal Caribbean’s capacity in the market by 66%, Goldstein said he’s confident it will sell.

“This year, there’s more of a desire by [Chinese] travel agents and tour operators to go to Japan,” he said.

China has grown at a blistering pace, as has its outbound tourism, Goldstein said. “The Chinese have a very strong belief that they have emerged as an economic powerhouse,” he said, adding that the feeling they should be at the forefront of every industry comes along with that.

Goldstein said that the tourist experience in Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau and Shanghai is world-class, so the positioning of a top-of-the-line ship there is seen as only natural.

Although he has said several times that Caribbean countries need to take heed of the global competition for ship calls, Goldstein said the Quantum announcement was less a reflection on the Caribbean market than a sign of the new world economic order.
That order might not be good news for U.S. travel agents, who typically profited from the power of a line’s newest ship to fill fast and command premium prices.

U.S. agents, particularly those in South Florida, benefited from that effect when Royal Caribbean introduced its last new Oasis-class vessels, the Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas, based in Fort Lauderdale.

The move of the Quantum to Asia means a new lineup of Royal Caribbean ships in important East Coast ports.

After the Quantum leaves New Jersey in May 2015, it will be succeeded by the Liberty of the Seas until November.

The Anthem of the Seas, which will debut in the summer of 2015 doing European cruises from Southampton, England, will then take up the New Jersey routes to Bermuda and the Caribbean.

Vicki Freed, senior vice president of sales, trade support and service, said she had already heard from some agents in the Northeast U.S. who want to have clients sail on all three New Jersey-based ships in one year.

“They feel like they’re getting the trifecta,” Freed said.

But Fort Lauderdale, which had announced itself as the winter home of the Anthem, will have to make do with the Navigator of the Seas, along with its monopoly on the Oasis-class ships.

Royal Caribbean officials took pains to say that New York, South Florida and China are all important markets. As Royal Caribbean becomes more global in its deployment, the key will be to strike the proper balance, said Lutoff-Perlo.

“North America is always at the forefront of everything we think about because it is such an important market for us now. Always has been and always will be,” Lutoff-Perlo said.

One area that has lagged in Royal Caribbean’s deployment is the U.S. West Coast, particularly Los Angeles. Freed said that the line hoped to be back one day, but noted that itinerary options were somewhat limited.

Allen added: “I think that that’s a market we will continue to review and continue to look at the opportunities, and when the time is right we’ll be excited to come back to the West Coast.”

The decision to move the Quantum to China shed new light on the announcement of “Dynamic Dining,” which eliminates the main dining room on the Quantum for five smaller, alternate dining venues, a style more in tune with Asian preferences.

Lutoff-Perlo said that during a 50-day repositioning cruise from New Jersey to Shanghai in 2015, workers would modify the retail, gaming and galley areas of the ship to adjust for Chinese tastes.

She said that a press conference in Shanghai to announce the Quantum’s commitment to China was heavily attended and lasted a long time.

“The world is changing. How our ships are sourced is changing,” Lutoff-Perlo said. “The fact that these ships are popular all over the world is much different now than it has been in the past.”

Royal Caribbean to put third ship in Australia

By Tom Stieghorst

Royal Caribbean International said it will station three ships in Australia/New Zealand for the winter of 2015-16, adding Explorer of the Seas to a lineup that already includes the Radiance and Voyager.

From November 2015 through April 2016, Explorer will primarily sail from Sydney on 11- and 14-day New Zealand cruises, with up to seven ports of call in the South Pacific country.

During its inaugural Australia season, Explorer also will offer three- and four-day cruises in November 2015 and in February and March 2016.

Voyager of the Seas will sail eight- to 12-day South Pacific and Fiji cruises, all roundtrip from Sydney, while Radiance of the Seas will sail a variety of South Pacific itineraries.

Explorer is cruising in the Bahamas and southern and western Caribbean this winter.