Celebrity Cruises plans to upgrade its four Millennium class ships. With the new “Designed for You” program, it is expected that they will be investing $200 million.
Crystal Cruises reported record bookings for its week ending Jan. 11, 2010, primarily due to Baltic, Mediterranean and World Cruise segment bookings. For same year bookings, this has been the highest January sales in more than five years.
Norwegian Cruise Line has teamed up with Nickelodeon at Sea. SpongeBob SquarePants, Dora the Explorer and other characters will be sailing on the Norwegian Epic & Norwegian Jewel.
Disney Dream, the 3rd ship to join the fleet is due to come out in 2011. In addition to the water coaster called AquaDuck, which was announced back in Nov 2009, Goofy’s Sports Deck will feature Goofy and his son, Max. The sports deck leads guests through nine themed holes of wacky fun. Each hole offers special golf instructions with a goofy twist. To make it even more challenging and fun, some of the golf clubs are crooked and bent.
There are also two digital sports simulators which will provide a variety of virtual game experiences such as soccer, tennis, basketball, golf and more. With the simulators, guests can kick, swing and throw, in some high-action sports without the hassle of chasing the ball. The sports deck will also have table tennis and foosball tables, surrounded by a walking track.
Nemo’s Reef is water-play area featuring water jets, a small water slide filled with Disney friends like Nemo, Dory & Marlin within a glass enclosure. There will be a Mickey Mouse shaped pool for small children and a family pool called the Donald Pool.
The ship will have an adults-only decktop pool area with a swim-up bar. The pool will be fresh water, as all pools on the Dream will be. The adult only area is called Quiet Cove.
Norwegian Epic, launching this July, 2010 introduces “Studios” which are staterooms designed and priced for single occupancy, starting from $799 on the ship’s seven-day alternating Eastern and Western Caribbean. The Studios are a private key-card access complex on two decks consisting of 128 staterooms and the Studio Lounge.
Each Studio is approximately 100 sq ft with a full-size bed and separate areas for the bathroom, sink and shower. In addition, Studios passengers have private access to the exclusive Studio Lounge where they can meet up with fellow cruisers and plan their day or relax with a drink in the evening. Since many of the Studio staterooms are connecting, there is also an opportunity for friends to travel together while giving each their own private space.
Kevin Sheehan, Norwegian Cruise Line’s chief executive officer said, “Historically, the cruise industry has not embraced the large number of people who enjoy traveling solo. We are breaking the mold of traditional cruising once again by offering a stateroom designed and priced specifically for solo travelers, making cruising a more attractive travel option. We invite all solo travelers – whether they are first-time cruisers or cruising veterans to sail on our incredible new Freestyle Cruising ship, Norwegian Epic.”
