It was another busy week in cruise news, and Cruise Hive is here to bring you the top stories on the biggest cruises.
This week’s updates include news you’ll want to read from Royal Caribbean, Carnival Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, and Nassau (Bahamas) Cruise Port.
Cruise News Update
Cruise Hive has told you all about what happened last week, including major renovations at the Nassau Cruise Port, the arrest of a tourist who allegedly planted a hidden camera on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship, Caribbean Princess deployed to home port at Port Canaveral, evacuation of Carnival Dream sailor after battery, pilot who died trying to board. Queen of Diamondsand the elimination of two Joy from Norway cruises.
Nassau Cruise Port Completes Phase One Expansion
The first phase of a multi-year, major renovation project at the Nassau Cruise Port is complete, and travelers will get their first look at it all. Bahamian port changes on opening day, May 26, 2023.
Upgrades at Prince George Wharf include new decks and renovations to all piers. Thanks to the renovation, the port can receive six ships a day, including up to three of the company’s largest ships in the Oasis and Icon classes.
New arrivals include shops and restaurants, a shopping mall, and entertainment venues such as art galleries and theaters. Green space is also featured, including an 11-acre waterfront development.
Additional upgrades are planned for Phase 2 of the project, which will cost a total of $300 million. Construction on Phase 2 will continue through 2024, adding a signature restaurant and a new family-friendly space.
The expansion completed so far will allow the port to handle more than 30,000 visitors per day, up from the 20,000 it could handle previously.
It means that the port can expect to receive 4 million people in 2023. This puts Nassau in No. 2nd busiest port, behind Cozumel, Mexico.
The redevelopment of the port is a joint project between the Bahamian government and Global Ports Holding, the world’s largest conglomerate with ports in Europe, America, and Asia.
Cruiser Called By Planting Camera In Bathroom
On April 29 while departing on Royal Caribbean’s Harmony of the Seas, a guest was arrested at the cost of installing a hidden camera in the public bathroom on Deck 16 of the ship, which was sailing the Caribbean from Miami.
The suspect, Jeremy Froias, allegedly videotaped himself setting up a camera in the bathroom, and adjusted it to look at the toilet.
The bathroom is located in the busy area, between the FlowRider surfing simulator and the Wipe Out Bar, and is where many guests change into or out of their swimwear. Froias says he used Wi-Fi to connect the camera to his iPhone.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation launched the mysterious investigation after a passenger found the camera on May 1 and alerted the ship’s crew. Authorities believe Froias installed the camera on April 30, which would have been the second day of the voyage, with the ship in international waters.
The staff reviewed the footage on the camera and questioned Froias, who said he admitted to installing it. It is believed that about 150 people are shown in the camera footage, and about a third of them are children.
Froias, who works as a cyber security officer in the Florida city of Kissimmee, is charged with video surveillance and attempted possession of child pornography. He has since been fired.
Cruises for 5,479 guests The Unity of the Seas continued without interruption and called him in St. Maarten, San Juan, and CocoCay, a private tourist island, before returning to Miami on May 6.
Caribbean Princess They will call Port Canaveral home
Check out another win at Florida’s Port Canaveral. Princess Cruises has decided to launch 3,140 guests Caribbean Princess in port from November 2024 to April 2025, and possibly longer.
Port Canaveral, which emerged this year as the busiest port in the US in terms of population, is already the port of call for Carnival Cruise Line, Disney Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean International, MSC Cruises, and Norwegian Cruise Line.
It is also a popular port of call for cruise ships on the Eastern Seaboard, mainly due to its proximity to Orlando’s theme parks.
Caribbean Princess will arrive at Cruise Terminal 6, which sister company Carnival Cruise Line uses regularly. The Grand-class cruise ship will make its maiden voyage from the port on November 27, 2024. The 4-night cruise will call at Turks and Caicos for the Thanksgiving holiday.
Eight-night Eastern Caribbean cruises will visit St. Thomas, St. Maarten, San Juan, and Grand Turk, while 6-night Eastern Caribbean cruises will call at Nassau, Grand Turk, and Amber Cove or San Juan. The 8-night Western Caribbean cruises will visit Cozumel and Costa Maya, Mexico; Belize City, Belize; and Roatan, Honduras.
Port Canaveral recently dethroned PortMiami as the busiest port in the US, based on 2022 passenger numbers, receiving 4,072,396 visitors. Last month the port announced that it would build another marina, due to be completed in 2026, to match its popularity.
Suspicion of Battery Causes Guest to Leave
The worst and most unusual accident happened on Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival dreams on May 6, when an elderly tourist was suspected of battery. It happened just after 6,630 visitors Carnival dreams departed the Port of Galveston on an 8 night Eastern Caribbean cruise.
A medical call to be dispatched to the US Coast Guard after the ship’s medical team determined that the 86-year-old man had stomach problems and other complications from battery ingestion.
The ship was about 50 miles from Galveston when crews of an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station Houston were dispatched to evacuate the passenger. The chopper took him to the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston.
It is not known whether a battery was inserted, or suspected, and no additional information about the guest, including his name, has been released.
There are different types and sizes of batteries, some as small as buttons, such as those used in watches or hearing aids, for example. But they can do harmful things in the human body, especially if they contain mercury, cadmium, or other toxic substances.
After transfer, Carnival dreams He continued his journey, with calls scheduled at Key West, Freeport, Half Moon Cay, and Nassau, Bahamas. The 128,250 ton ship is scheduled to return to Galveston on May 14.
Maritime Pilot Dies Trying to Board Diamond Princess
A tragic accident resulted in the death of a cruise ship pilot while trying to board Princess Cruises’. Queen of Diamonds and guided her to the port of Nagasaki, Japan, on May 5.
The pilot, Yoshihiro Osuga, 69, fell into the sea while moving from the pilot boat to the ship. The ship’s crew boarded a lifeboat and pulled the pilot out of the water, but he was already dead.
At sea, or in port, pilots are often called upon to steer ships to port, and can face challenges when climbing the ropes. Father. Osuga was a 15-year-old participant, was wearing a life jacket, and the sea was calm at the time.
The Japanese Coast Guard is investigating whether the pilot boat capsized or collided Queen of Diamonds, which caused the pilot to crash. The ship was less than three kilometers from the port when the accident happened.
Pilots and flight attendants are trained and regularly reviewed to ensure the necessary skills. The “Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping” (STCW) serves as the standard for training and certification for seafarers worldwide.
2,670 guests Queen of Diamonds He continued his journey, stopped at Nagasaki and left the same day for Yokohama. The ship travels throughout Asia throughout the year, offering a variety of itineraries to Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea.
Two Norwegian Joy Cruises End
Norwegian Cruise Line articles Joy from Norway It was expected to stop at the port in January 2024 to be refreshed, but now it seems that the lifting of the ship will take longer than we expected since the ship has stopped the two departures of the ship in February 2024.
Guests booked on the affected tours have been notified of the cancellation by email, and are being served refunds and other payments.
An email to guests and travel agents said, “As part of our commitment to continue to deliver extraordinary vacation experiences around the world to our guests, and to maintain a globally sustainable portfolio across our entire fleet, Norwegian Joy will be refreshed in early 2024. To complete these enhancements, Norwegian Joy’s cruises on February 5, 2024, and February 17, 2024, are suspended.
The February 5 voyage is scheduled to be a 12-night transatlantic voyage from Southampton to Miami, with calls at Le Havre (Paris), France; Vigo, Spain; and Ponda Delgada in the Azores.
Also canceled is the February 17 departure of a 7-night Caribbean cruise roundtrip from Miami, scheduled to call in Roatan, Honduras; Harvest Caye, Belize; and Costa Maya, and Cozumel, Mexico.
Full refunds for canceled trips will be refunded to the original payment method, and guests who used future travel credit (FCC) to book the trip will see the credit returned to their Latitudes loyalty account.
In addition, guests will receive a future discount of 10%, which can be used on any Norwegian Cruise Line sailing through December 31, 2024. These FCCs will be reflected in the passenger’s account by May 15, 2023. The Breakaway-class ship holds 3,804 foreigners.
Many Cruise Themes
There were many other interesting travel stories last week that we learned about on Cruise Hive, including Explora Journeys’ trial in court. multi-ethnic family groupsVoyages of the Virgin minus one additional charge on tour in Europe this summer, updates on Carnival Pride dry dock Project, Holland America Line fundraiser for the Alaska Conservation Corpsand the famous Queen Mary and also welcomes guests to his residence in Long Beach, California.
