MSC Grandiosa Completes Drydock Ahead of Winter Season in Brazil

MSC Grandiosa Completes Drydock Ahead of Winter Season in Brazil

The MSC Grandiosa recently set sail from the Palumbo Shipyard Malta after spending three weeks in drydock at the facility.

Set to spend the upcoming winter season in South America, the ship arrived in Genoa, Italy, to kick off a repositioning cruise on Nov. 16, 2024.

Following visits to destinations in France, Spain and Portugal, the trans-Atlantic crossing is set to end at the Brazilian port of Santos in early December.

Among the ports of call set to be visited by the Grandiosa during the 21-night itinerary are Barcelona in Spain’s Catalonia region and Funchal on Portugal’s Madeira Island.

Upon arriving in Santos, the 2019-built vessel is poised to kick off a five-month deployment that features a series of seven-night cruises to Brazilian destinations.

Set to be offered through early April, the ship’s regular itinerary includes visits to Búzios, Santos, Maceió and Salvador.

Except for Búzios, passengers can start the cruise, which also features three days at sea, at any of the ports of call.

Leading a six-ship winter season in the region, the MSC Grandiosa is the largest ship ever to sail in South America.

Before starting its repositioning cruise, the 4,888-guest ship underwent routine maintenance and class work as part of its three-week drydock in Valletta.

The work also included technical updates, as well as the upkeep of public areas and staterooms with the replacement of tiles, carpets, upholstery and more.

After completing its winter season in Brazil, the 177,100-ton vessel is set to kick off a summer deployment in the Western Mediterranean in late April 2025.

The ship continues to operate week-long cruises to Italy, Spain and France through late December, when it’s set to embark on a repositioning cruise to the United States.

Debuting in the country, the MSC Grandiosa offers cruises to the Bahamas and the Caribbean from Port Canaveral during the 2025-26 winter season.

Silversea Opens Pre-Sale on Winter 2025-26 Sailings

Silversea Opens Pre-Sale on Winter 

2025-26 Sailings

Silversea has opened an exclusive pre-sale on its winter 2025-26 winter season, with over 150 new sailings to more than 200 destinations.

Departing between September 2025 and April 2026, also include nine maiden calls and two new grand voyages.

 “Broadening the most diverse and immersive destination offering in ultra-luxury cruise travel, we are pleased to open this exclusive pre-sale on over 150 new voyages for winter 2025-26,” said Barbara Muckermann, president of Silversea. “We are continuing to innovate for our guests’ enjoyment. Complementing opportunities for deep travel to iconic destinations with new calls to remote shores, the varied range of experiences offered with our latest voyage collection is simply unmatched. Our well-traveled guests will find inspiration, self-enrichment, and memories that will last a lifetime as they journey to the ends of the earth in Silversea’s trademark level of comfort.”  

Highlights of Silversea’s winter 2025-26 voyage collection include:

• The 75-day Grand South Pacific Expedition 2025 sailing from August 20-November 2, 2025, from Fremantle (Perth) to Valparaiso;
• The 47-day Grand Australia 2025 voyage sailing roundtrip from Melbourne from October 14-November 30, 2025;
• 17 new voyages in Australia aboard the Silver Nova and Silver Moon:
• The brand’s first-ever circumnavigation of Australia onboard the Silver Nova;
• Maiden calls in Robe, on Australia’s Limestone Coast, and North Port, Marsden Point, in New Zealand;
• 38 expeditions to Antarctica onboard three ships;
• 43 sailings in the Caribbean and Central America
• 25 voyages aboard the Silver Origin in the Galapagos with two seven-day holiday sailings;
• Seven voyages to South America, including three scenic cruises to Antarctica aboard the Silver Whisper;
• Six voyages to Africa and the Indian Ocean, including safari opportunities in South Africa.

Jamaica Experiences Its Biggest Winter Season Ever

Jamaica Experiences Its Biggest Winter Season Ever

Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett has stated that Jamaica is experiencing its biggest winter season in the history of tourism, adding that the tourism boom is set to continue, according to a press release.

“For the January to March 2023 period, it is estimated that Jamaica welcomed 1.18 million visitors, which represents a growth of 94.4 per cent when compared to the same period in 2022. This represents earnings of $1.15 billion, 46.4 per cent above the $786.8 million earned for the same period in 2022,” said Bartlett.

“If there was ever an industry that has the potential to transform our nation, our communities and the lives and livelihoods of the Jamaican people for the better, it is tourism.

Bartlett added that gross domestic product (GDP) for the economy is projected to grow by up to 3.0 per cent to 5.0 per cent during January – March 2023 compared to the same period in 2022.

Speaking at the Sectoral Debate in Parliament, Bartlett said that arrivals for 2022 were up by 117 per cent while earnings were up by 71.4 per cent compared to 2021. In 2022, Jamaica welcomed 3.3 million visitors and earned about $3.7 billion. Projections earnings in 2024 go up to $4.1 billion.

“Never before in the history of Jamaica has tourism made such a great contribution to the national economy and we are willing to contribute to that process and to make even greater contributions,” added Bartlett.

“Investments continue to boom to drive the industry’s recovery (and) over the last five years tourism investment contributed 20 per cent of the island’s total foreign direct investments (FDI) and over the next 5 to 10 years, there are multiple upcoming investment projects which will see the addition of 15,000 to 20,000 new rooms with an investment of $4 billion to $5 billion.”

Norwegian Pearl Kicks Off Summer Program in Boston

Norwegian Pearl Kicks Off Summer Program in Boston

The Norwegian Pearl is in Boston today to kick off its 2023 summer program in the U.S. Northeast.

Following a winter season in the Caribbean, the Norwegian Cruise Line vessel is set to offer different itineraries to Bermuda, Canada and New England departing from the Massachusetts homeport.

Extending through mid-October, the program begins with a series of week-long cruises to Bermuda. In addition to two or three overnights in King’s Wharf, some of the itineraries also include a visit to Bar Harbor, in Maine.

Continuing its Boston-based season, the Norwegian Pearl offers itineraries to Canada and New England starting in mid-August.

The fall and foliage program comprises both roundtrip and open-jaw departures and continues through late October.

Also sailing from Quebec City, the ship’s week-long itineraries in the region feature visits to destinations such as Halifax, Saguenay, Sydney, Charlottetown and Portland.

Upon completing its schedule in the Northeast, the Norwegian Pearl is set to return to Florida for a winter season sailing from PortMiami.

Following the Norwegian Jewel and the Norwegian Jade, the Norwegian Pearl debuted in 2006 as the third ship in the Norwegian Cruise Line’s Jewel Class.

Built by the Meyer Werft shipyard in Germany, the vessel has 93,000 tons and a capacity for nearly 2,400 guests.

In 2016, the Pearl was included in the Norwegian Edge program and underwent a major revitalization that included the modernization of both its guest-facing and technical areas.

While a new scrubber system was added to reduce the ship’s emissions, for instance, the design of all of the public rooms and staterooms was updated.

According to Norwegian, the refit aimed at giving the Pearl a fresh and modern look, which included new art pieces, new carpets, new upholstery and more.

Another area that went through a complete refurbishment was The Haven, the vessel’s ship-within-a-ship luxury suite complex, with got new furniture and finishings.

MSC Meraviglia Returns to Port Canaveral for Winter Season

MSC Meraviglia Returns to Port Canaveral for Winter Season

The MSC Meraviglia recently returned to North America for its 2022-2023 cruise program. Following a trans-Atlantic crossing, the MSC Cruises vessel arrived in Port Canaveral on October 13. 

The 2017-built ship is now offering a series of cruises to the Bahamas and the Caribbean departing from the Central Florida homeport.

Ranging from two to seven nights, the ship’s itineraries feature visits to popular destinations in the region, including Cozumel, Costa Maya and Belize City.

Most of the cruises also include a stop in Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve, the company’s private island in the Bahamas.

Ahead of MSC’s first complete season in the Northeast, the MSC Meraviglia concludes its winter program with a repositioning cruise to New York City.

The 11-night voyage departs Port Canaveral on April 9, 2023, and includes calls in five ports in the Eastern and Southern Caribbean.

Upon arriving at its new homeport, the 167,600-ton vessel kicks off a year-round operation in the region.  

Sailing from Manhattan Cruise Terminal, the program features itineraries are six- to 11-night voyages visiting the Caribbean and the Bahamas, as well as Bermuda and Canada & New England.

Boasting 19 decks and a capacity for over 4,500 guests in double occupancy, the MSC Meraviglia was built in France by the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyards.

The lead of the five-ship Meraviglia Class, the vessel offers several unique features, including the Galleria Meraviglia, a 96-meter-long central promenade equipped with an 80-meter LED dome and an expansive shopping area.

Other features include a complete waterpark and 12 international dining venues, as well as 20 different bars and lounges. 

After entering service in Europe in 2017, the MSC Meraviglia originally debuted in North America two years later. At the time, the vessel arrived in Miami as MSC’s largest U.S.-based ship.

MSC Preziosa will sail a winter season of northern European cruises from Southampton

MSC Preziosa will sail a winter season of northern European cruises from Southampton

MSC Preziosa in Southampton

Preziosa will arrive in early October offering itineraries visiting five European cities, with its 2022/23 winter season due to run through to April 2023.

Sales will open in the coming days, said MSC. Preziosa will replace MSC Virtuosa, which will sail in summer 2022 from Southampton.

Virtuosa’s season will get underway with a Guernsey mini-cruise departing 29 April and will wrap up with a final Mediterranean sailing scheduled to depart on 4 November.

MSC managing director the UK and Ireland, Antonio Paradiso, said Preziosa’s deployment from Southampton underlined MSC’s commitment to the UK market and travel trade.

"We are proud that we are providing agents with such a variety of products to sell in the ex-UK space this year," said Paradiso. "Sailing MSC Virtuosa from Southampton last year allowed us a great opportunity to access the new-to-cruise market, which made up 50% of our sales for summer 2021."

Preziosa will offer a seven-night winter itinerary featuring five European city destinations, with calls in Hamburg, Zeebrugge (for Bruges and Brussels), Rotterdam (for Amsterdam) and Le Havre (for Paris).

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.

Viking ocean liner to winter in Mediterranean

By Tom Stieghorst

Viking Cruises said its first ocean-cruising ship, Viking Star, will stay in the Mediterranean for the winter season of 2015-16.

Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri is constructing the ship, which is scheduled to enter service in May 2015. Viking had announced a limited number of maiden voyages, which are nearly sold out, according to the company.

The winter cruises will be eight-day sailings between Barcelona and Rome, or 15-day roundtrip cruises from Barcelona.