Cunard announces Queen Anne’s maiden visit to Australia as part of its 2024/25 Australia and New Zealand season

• Queen Elizabeth’s record 131-day residency features circumnavigation of Australia, new sailings to Queensland and the South Pacific
• Embark on an extraordinary adventure next year thanks to luxury cruise line Cunard’s new 2024/25 programme featuring Queen Elizabeth’s highly anticipated Australia and New Zealand season and Alaska sailings, Queen Anne’s maiden world voyage and a South American adventure aboard Queen Victoria.
• Queen Elizabeth – from Alaska to Australia
• Departing from Vancouver on a series of voyages between May and September 2024, Queen Elizabeth invites guests to immerse themselves in a world of skyscraper-tall glaciers and mirror-like waters. Guests can discover the vibrant cultures and local traditions. A number of voyages visit the jewel in Alaska’s crown, the Glacier Bay National Park, and Hubbard Glacier, another stunning highlight.
• Following her Alaska season, Queen Elizabeth will sail from San Francisco via Hawaii and Samoa to New Zealand and Australian shores (Q430), where she will spend a record 131 days. From early October 2024, she will embark on a series of extraordinary voyages from Sydney. Highlights include a 30-night Australian Circumnavigation (Q431B) calling into capital cities and hidden regional gems such as Broome whilst offering plenty of time to enjoy Cunard’s signature experiences on board. The sought-after Christmas and New Year’s voyage to New Zealand (Q501) is a journey of celebrations featuring a traditional Cunard Christmas and the opportunity for guests to be amongst the first in the world to welcome the new year during an overnight stay in Auckland. In addition to stunning Tasmania, Queensland and New Zealand itineraries, the 15-night South Pacific sailings (Q504) is a fantastic way to explore magnificent Fiji, Vanuatu and New Caledonia.
• Queen Elizabeth will then head to Japan, where highlights include a nine-night Golden Week voyage and a 19-night Grand Voyage to Nagasaki, Yokohama – the gateway to neon-lit Tokyo, and Osaka.
• Queen Anne’s maiden calls Down Under
• Cunard’s latest programme will also include a number of firsts for its newest ship Queen Anne, including her maiden visit to Australia and New Zealand.
• In January 2025, Queen Anne will embark on her first-ever World Voyage. Guests can experience the trip of a lifetime, spending 107 nights on board, visiting more than 30 ports in five continents (H504C). Nine overnight calls are also included, in ports such as San Francisco, Honolulu and Singapore, offering guests further opportunities to explore these destinations.
• From Honolulu, Queen Anne will make her way to Auckland via Samoa and Tonga, before crossing to Sydney (H506C, Auckland to Sydney, five nights) and sailing along Australia’s magnificent east coast to Hong Kong with maiden calls in Brisbane, the Whitsunday Islands, Cairns and Darwin (H507, Sydney to Hong Kong, 19 nights).
• All four Queens
• Inspired by the ever popular three Queens phenomenon, Cunard now offers a trip of a lifetime across all four Queens. Guests can join an extraordinary 38-night adventure starting in the European summer with a voyage around the Mediterranean on board Queen Victoria (V414C), then embarking on Cunard’s new ship Queen Anne (H414B) for a voyage from Rome to Southampton before taking an iconic Transatlantic Crossing on Cunard’s flagship Queen Mary 2 (M418). After sailing into New York as dawn breaks, guests will then fly to Vancouver to finish the final leg of the Four Queens Adventure by exploring glaciers, wildlife and the jaw dropping terrains of Alaska, with 10 nights on Queen Elizabeth (Q421).
• Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria
• Between January and May 2025, the fleet’s flagship Queen Mary 2 will combine her unique Transatlantic Crossings with visits to multiple sun-kissed destinations across Europe and the Americas, while Queen Victoria embarks on an incredible 78-night South American adventure from Southampton to the warm shores of Brazil, Chile, and Ecuador (V503B).
• The programme includes over 130 voyages to 159 destinations across Cunard’s four Queens, including 30 maiden calls for Queen Anne and five fleet maiden calls for Queen Elizabeth. Queen Elizabeth’s Australia voyages will be available to book from 9am AEDT on 15 March 2023 exclusively for Cunard World Club Members. General sale of Queen Elizabeth’s Australia residency begins at 9am AEDT on 16 March 2023. All other voyages will be available to book from 12am AEDT on 16 March exclusively for Cunard World Club Members. General sale begins at 12am AEDT on 17 March.

P&O Cruises announces new entertainment partner and Arvia godmother

• Nicole Scherzinger to create spectacular shows for P&O Cruises and name new ship Arvia Multi award-winning performer Nicole Scherzinger is to create spectacular music and dance extravaganzas for P&O Cruises in an exclusive entertainment partnership.
• As part of a wider collaboration, the lead singer of one of the world’s biggest girl bands, The Pussycat Dolls, will also name P&O Cruises newest ship Arvia in a world-first beachside ceremony on March 16, 2023 in Barbados.
• Arvia’s naming ceremony will be broadcast live on YouTube on Thursday March 16, 2023 at 7pm
• To watch the event live on YouTube please go to – https://bit.ly/arviasnamingceremony
• More details of the shows to be created by Nicole Scherzinger on Arvia and Iona will be revealed later this year.

Carnival adds fourth ship to Galverston

• Carnival Cruise Line announced today it is expanding its offerings in Galveston, Tex., by bringing a fourth ship, Carnival Miracle, to the port that will offer Texas-sized sailings of nine-, 10-, 11- and 12 days beginning in the fall of 2024 through spring 2025. Reservations for these departures are now open for sale.
• Carnival Miracle will reposition from San Francisco to Galveston on Oct. 1, 2024, and operate a spectacular Carnival Journeys voyage that visits Cabo San Lucas, Mexico; Puntarenas, Costa Rica; Cartagena, Colombia; and a Panama Canal transit.
• Once in Galveston, Carnival Miracle will offer a series of 19 cruises beginning on Oct. 16, 2024. A sampling of some of the new itineraries now open for sale include:
  • Nine-Day Exotic Western Caribbean Sailing departs Oct. 16, 2024, with stops in Montego Bay, Jamaica; Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands; Mahogany Bay, Isla Roatan; Belize; and Cozumel, Mexico.
  • 10-Day Panama Canal Sailing departs Nov. 15, 2024, featuring stops in Cozumel, Mexico; Limon, Costa Rica; Colon, Panama (and tours of the Panama Canal); and Mahogany Bay, Isla Roatan.
  • 11-Day Exotic Caribbean Sailing departs Nov. 25, 2024, with visits to Montego Bay, Jamaica; Amber Cove; Grand Turk; Princess Cays and Nassau, The Bahamas.
  • 12-Day Carnival Journeys Southern Caribbean Sailing departs Jan. 26, 2025, and visits Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands; Aruba; Bonaire; Curacao; Cozumel. Mexico.
• The 2,200-guest Carnival Miracle recently completed a dry dock where Carnival’s stunning new red, white and blue livery was added to the ship’s hull. The livery serves as an homage to the patriotic colors that also represent Carnival, which proudly sails as America’s Cruise Line. Carnival Miracle features many of the signature venues guests know and love – from Guy’s Burger Joint to the BlueIguana Cantina, the RedFrog and Alchemy bars, as well as WaterWorks Aqua Park and The Punchliner Comedy Club.
• Carnival Miracle will further diversify Carnival’s deployment from Galveston, joining Carnival Breeze, which offers four- and five-day cruises; Carnival Dream, which sails mostly six- and eight-day cruises, and the new Excel-Class Carnival Jubilee featuring a rollercoaster, which arrives this December to begin week-long Western Caribbean sailings.

Carnival Legend to Visit Renowned Destinations from Three European Homeports in 2024

• Carnival Cruise Line announced today it will expand its offering of seasonal European sailings in 2024 and opened reservations for a series of 17 cruises that will take guests to some of the world’s most picturesque seaports aboard Carnival Legend. Once the 2024 Europe season is completed, Carnival Legend will mark its return to the U.S. at a new homeport in Tampa, Florida.
• Carnival Legend’s European series begins with a 12-day Transatlantic cruise from Baltimore, Md, on April 15, 2024. This sailing will include visits to Ponta Delgada, Azores, Portugal; Malaga and Valencia, Spain.
• From Europe, the ship will operate a wide range of itineraries for guests who want to explore the distinctive beauty and rich culture of the region from three homeports in three different countries: Barcelona, Spain, Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy; and Dover (London), United Kingdom. Among the many sensational itineraries to choose from are:
  • Eight-Day Mediterranean Sailing departs Barcelona, Spain on May 30, 2024, and visits Malta; Messina (Sicily), Italy; Naples (Capri/Pompeii), Italy; Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy; Livorno (Florence/Pisa), Italy; and Toulon (Provence), France.
  • Nine-Day Western Europe Sailing departs Barcelona, Spain on June 7, 2024, and visits Malaga, Sevilla (Cadiz), and La Coruña, Spain; Lisbon and Leixões (Porto), Portugal; and Le Havre (Paris), France.
  • Nine-Day British Isles Sailing departs Dover, UK on June 28, 2024, and visits Holyhead, Wales, UK; Glasgow (Greenock), Scotland; Belfast, Northern Ireland; Liverpool, England; Dublin (Dun Laoghaire) Ireland; and Cork (Cobh), Ireland.
  • 12-Day Iceland Sailing departs Dover, UK on July 7, 2024, and visits Dublin (Dun Laoghaire) Ireland; Belfast, Northern Ireland; Reykjavik, Iceland; Grundarfjordur, Iceland; Akureyri, Iceland; Seydisfjordur, Iceland; and Invergordon, Scotland.
  • 10-Day Greek Isles Sailing departs Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy on Aug. 27, 2024, and visits Mykonos, Greece; Kusadasi (Ephesus), Turkey; Santorini, Greece; Athens, Greece; Katakolon, Greece; Messina (Sicily) and Naples (Capri/Pompeii), Italy.
• Carnival Legend will sail Europe throughout the summer season and into the fall, departing Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy on Oct. 26, 2024, and visiting Cartagena, Spain; Funchal (Madeira) and Ponta Delgada (Azores), Portugal before crossing the Atlantic and stopping in Nassau, The Bahamas before arriving at the ship’s new homeport of Tampa, Fla.
• The 2,200-guest Carnival Legend features several accommodation options, including 50 suites and more than 630 balcony staterooms. Guests will find many of the signature venues they know and love on board – from Guy’s Burger Joint to the BlueIguana Cantina, the RedFrog and Alchemy bars, as well as WaterWorks Aqua Park and The Punchliner Comedy Club.
• In addition, Carnival Glory will sail a 14-day Transatlantic voyage on April 18, 2024, that features several popular European destinations, including Valencia, and Las Palmas (Canary Islands), Spain, before arriving to its new homeport of Port Canaveral, Fla.

AIDA call in St. Johns / Antigua

• It’s not something you see every day: on February 27, 2023, not one but three AIDA cruise ships moored in the port of St Johns on the Caribbean island of Antigua.
• The voyages of the three sister ships AIDAdiva, AIDAluna and AIDAperla, which all spend the winter months in Caribbean waters, intersected with each other for once last Monday. The spectacle was not only an exciting event for the guests, the captains also enjoyed the encounter very much: Captain Panagiotis Mantzavinos of AIDAdiva, Captain Sven Gärtner of AIDAluna and Captain Pedro Ziegler of AIDAperla took the opportunity for a meeting among colleagues. The ships’ crew organized a party for the guests on the pier with music, drinks and even a FitforDrums workshop.

Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines unveils brand new 106-night ‘Voyage of Exploration

• Departing from Southampton on 6th January 2025, flagship Bolette will follow a similar route to the first world circumnavigation by explorers Magellan and Elcano in 1519.
• The cruise, which will take guests to destinations including Brazil, Argentina, French Polynesia, Mauritius and South Africa, will also cruise the south coast of Australia as British navigator Matthew Flinders did in 1801, and will call into places visited by the likes of Captain James Cook and Alexander Selkirk – the Scottish Sailor who was the inspiration for the Robinson Crusoe novel.
• Itinerary: Southampton, England – Funchal, Madeira – Mindelo, São Vicente, Cape Verde – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – Montevideo, Uruguay – Buenos Aires, Argentina – Cruising Magellan Strait – Punta Arenas, Chile – Cruising by Cape Deseado – Cruising Chilean Fjords – Castro, Chile – Valparaiso, Chile – Robinson Crusoe Island, Chile – Cruising by Alejandro Selkirk Island – Hanga Roa (Easter Island), Chile – Cruising by Pitcairn Island – Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia – Bora Bora, Society Islands, French Polynesia – Rarotonga, Cook Islands – Crossing the International Date Line – Nuku’alofa, Tonga – Sydney, Australia  – Hobart, Tasmania, Australia – Melbourne, Australia – Albany, Australia – Fremantle (Perth), Australia – Port Louis, Mauritius – Port Réunion, Réunion Island – Gqeberha, South Africa – Cape Town, South Africa – Walvis Bay, Namibia – Jamestown, St Helena – Cruising by Ascension Island – Dakar, Senegal – Arrecife, Lanzarote – Lisbon, Portugal – Southampton, England