Keep on prime of the main cruise information developments with Cruise Hive’s weekly recap. On this version we’ve got protection from the Turks and Caicos, Carnival Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean, Celeb Cruises, and Norwegian Cruise Line.
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Caribbean Nation Explains Elevated Degree 2 Warning
Turks and Caicos, a preferred cruise vacation spot within the Jap Caribbean, took steps to make clear the US Division of State’s not too long ago elevated Degree 2 warning. Degree 2 requires Individuals to train elevated warning in a overseas vacation spot.
Within the case of Turks and Caicos, the Ministry of Tourism identified that the island nation has been at a Degree 2 warning since mid-2023 and that the “elevated” discover is immediately tied to current unlawful firearms offenses.
The up to date alert adopted the arrest of a Royal Caribbean visitor who was discovered carrying ammunition in a bag throughout a safety checkpoint cease. The cruiser was jailed within the vacation spot for 3 weeks and fined.
Somewhat than see the up to date warning as a destructive, the Ministry of Tourism mentioned that it reveals the vacation spot’s strict firearms legal guidelines.
Many different nations at present have a Degree 2 warning in place by the State Division, together with the Bahamas, one other main cruise vacation spot, plus Costa Rica and Belize. In Europe, France, Germany, and the UK are amongst locations the place the warning exists.
Shipboard Clocks Spring Ahead, However Not All of Them
When Daylight Saving Time took impact on March 9, 2025, all however two Carnival Cruise Line ships complied with the change and set onboard clocks ahead by an hour.
Cruise administrators made bulletins the night time earlier than the change, reminding company to transfer clocks forward earlier than handing over for the night time on March 8, 2025.
Adhering to the change is especially necessary to passengers who booked shore excursions for the following day and should meet up with their shore tour group on the subsequent port of name. Ditto for cruisers whose sailings concluded on March 9, 2025, and are catching flights residence.
Sounds easy sufficient, nonetheless, the time change is usually a problem for cruisers, particularly when ships already are passing via varied time zones.
The state of affairs is sort of completely different, although, for company cruising in Australia. Two Carnival Cruise Line ships, Carnival Luminosa and Carnival Splendor, are seasonally based mostly in Brisbane and Sydney, respectively, and Daylight Saving Time doesn’t apply in Australia till April 6, 2025.
The Ins and Outs of Shared-Desk Eating
The Shared Tables possibility supplied with Carnival Cruise Line’s Your Time eating program is being requested much less and fewer usually, in accordance with Model Ambassador John Heald.
Responding to a visitor touch upon his well-liked Fb web page, the place he interacts with previous, current, and future company, Heald defined that, even when a passenger requests a shared desk, it’s not all the time doable to oblige.
One visitor complained that he had requested to share a dinner desk in his ship’s foremost eating room on three nights throughout his current voyage, and every time he ended up eating alone. It may be troublesome, Heald famous, to pair up events on the similar desk until company occur to reach on the similar time.
Selecting early or late seating, he added, will increase the chance {that a} shared desk request may be accommodated.
Heald additionally informed future company that they’ll contact him 5 days earlier than their departure date to request a shared desk throughout both the early or late seating and he’ll make the preparations for them.
Ship’s Smoke Plume Raises Alarm in Tortola
Ministry)
Native environmental officers on Tortola, British Virgin Islands, turned involved after they noticed a plume of white smoke coming from the 4,000-guest Norwegian Epic because the ship was docked for a port name.
The Norwegian Cruise Line ship was crusing a 7-night Caribbean voyage from Port Canaveral when the incident occurred. Authorities from the vacation spot’s Environmental Well being Division (EHD) evaluated the plume to find out whether or not any hazardous chemical substances have been being emitted.
It turned out that no dangerous chemical substances have been being launched and that the plume was merely water vapor from the ship’s exhaust fuel cleansing system, also referred to as scrubbers. Actually, the ship’s know-how is designed to considerably scale back sulphur oxide emissions when in port.
Nevertheless, the native EHD requested that the ship not use the scrubber know-how whereas docked and as a substitute change to utilizing a low-sulphur gas.
Norwegian Epic’s environmental officer mentioned he would think about the request and within the meantime the ship will use marine fuel oil inside an hour of docking on the island, reverting to conventional gas after leaving the vacation spot.
Joyful Ending to Misplaced Baggage at PortMiami Terminal
Disembarkation day may be complicated, as cruise passengers hurry off their ship to catch flights residence or make different journey connections. For one Royal Caribbean visitor, the expertise turned much more difficult after she arrived at Miami Worldwide Airport and realized she left a suitcase on the PortMiami cruise terminal.
The visitor instantly notified the cruise line and was informed to count on a response in 7 to 10 days. So it was a really nice shock when, simply two days later, Royal Caribbean notified her that the misplaced bag had been recovered and could be returned to her in one other two days’ time.
The suitcase arrived as promised, undamaged and with nothing lacking. Happy with the end result, the visitor posted on Reddit that the transport payment of $73 was in all probability what she would have spent had she returned to the cruise terminal to seek for the bag on debarkation day.
The important thing to her completely satisfied ending was not solely Royal Caribbean’s quick motion to find the bag, however the presence of an Apple AirTag packed contained in the bag. She suggested others who discover themselves in the same state of affairs to rapidly fill out a lost-and-found doc utilizing the chargeback.com app.
No Extra Spring-Break Cruises For This Visitor
A middle-aged Celeb Cruises’ visitor discovered the arduous approach {that a} so-called Faculty Get together Cruise (CPC) shouldn’t be supreme for cruisers trying to calm down.
The dissatisfied visitor, who had booked a 4-night getaway on the three,000-guest Celeb Silhouette from Fort Lauderdale to mark his forty fifth birthday, posted on Reddit that the $2,000 trip turned out to be a waste of cash.
Spring-break partiers, he mentioned, made up half of the company onboard, and have been routinely noisy via the early hours of the mornings. The cruiser even upgraded his cabin to a balcony stateroom, hoping to place distance between himself and the faculty youngsters, nevertheless it was to no avail.
Commenters famous that March and April are prime occasions for college kids to guide quick cruises from Florida and that the visitor ought to have generally known as a lot.
CPC holidays have been launched in 2015 by graduates of the College of Central Florida, who sought an alternative choice to conventional, land-based spring break getaway choices.
Cruise Line Takes Supply of Norwegian Aqua
Italy’s Fincantieri shipyard has delivered Norwegian Cruise Line’s first Prima Plus-class ship, Norwegian Aqua.
The handover ceremony was held on the firm’s Marghera, Italy, shipyard, with some 4,000 staff who helped construct the vessel in attendance.
The brand new-build is about 10% bigger than the road’s Prima-class ships, Norwegian Prima and Norwegian Viva, coming in at 156,300-gross tons with capability for 3,571 company in double occupancy.
Norwegian Aqua will sail her maiden voyage on March 28, 2025, a 7-night transatlantic crossing from Southampton to Boston.
The ship will deploy to PortMiami for her naming ceremony and two quick cruises to the Caribbean and Bahamas earlier than starting a sequence of 7-night Caribbean voyages from Port Canaveral on April 26, 2025.
Actor Eric Stonestreet, recognized for his position as Cameron Tucker within the hit TV present “Trendy Household,” will christen the ship at PortMiami on April 13, 2025.
Among the many ship’s new options is the Aqua Slidecoaster, a rollercoaster/waterslide combo thrill trip with tracks on the highest three decks, and the biggest out of doors promenade space within the Norwegian fleet.
Extra Cruise Headlines
Hungry for extra cruise information? Try much more protection from Cruise Hive together with Carnival Cruise Line formally welcoming two former P&O Cruises Australia ships to its fleet; building beginning on a new cruise port within the Dominican Republic; Royal Caribbean taking steps to ease visitors round PortMiami; Virgin Voyages unveiling new leisure choices; and Oceania Cruises taking the wraps off of its 2027 world cruise.
