Diplomacy

MSC Cruises, a cruise line with a growing presence in the U.S., is rolling out a new loyalty tier that offers more perks than ever before.

MSC Cruises is adding a fifth loyalty level called Blue Diamond to their Voyagers Club. It’s a level reserved for the cruise line’s most loyal guests.

New perks that Blue Diamond will offer include:

• Flexible check-in times with priority embarkation and dedicated luggage drop-off service via the MSC Yacht Club check-in desk
• My Choice dining, allowing guests to dine anytime within the main restaurant’s hours of service
• A free Browse Wi-Fi package for one device per member
• Free shuttle bus tickets in selected ports
• Meet and greet with ship’s captain or officer
• Priority embarkation and priority access to tender boats in port

Of course, these perks are in addition to everything that Diamond status currently offers.

If you want to have Blue Diamond status on an MSC cruise, you won’t be able to to achieve it by using the cruise line’s status match. It can only be obtained by taking cruises on MSC cruise ships.

You can obtain Blue Diamond by earning at least 25,000 points with MSC Cruises.

Points are earned per cruise and based on a few factors. They are:

• Length of the cruise
• Type of experience booked (Bella, Fantastica, Aurea, MSC Yacht Club)
• Prepaid onboard services

MSC Cruises’ loyalty levels are now as follows:

• Classic: 1 to 2,199 points
• Silver: 2,200 to 4,299 points
• Gold: 4,300 to 9,999 points
• Diamond: 10,000 to 24,999 points
• Blue Diamond: 25,000+ points

In addition, MSC Cruises extended the number of years before loyalty perks expire.  Currently, one needs to sail at least once every three years to keep their perks. Now, it will be once every five years.

Virgin Voyages’ adults only cruise ship, Resilient Lady, is arriving in Miami, Florida for the first time on Sunday, November 10, 2024.

This will not only be the first time that the cruise ship has come to Miami, but it will also be the first time that the vessel has visited the U.S.

Resilient Lady will offer adults only (18+) cruises from Miami to the Caribbean before the ship repositions to San Juan, Puerto Rico for seven to 11 night voyages. 

Ports that the ship will visit from San Juan include St. Maarten, St. Vincent, Colombia, and Dominica.

Resilient Lady sold out her season in the Mediterranean and she’s the newest ship in Virgin’s fleet. The vessel is a sister ship to Scarlet Lady and Valiant Lady.

In addition to being adults only, the cruises are nearly all-inclusive with the following included in all cruise fares:

• All dining in the 20+ eateries
• Daily gratuities
• WiFi
• Basic beverages (soda, water, coffee, tea)
• Group fitness classes

Resilient Lady offers fresh new entertainment for the cruise line. Three of these unique experiences are:

• Persephone: A cutting-edge retelling of the famous Greek myth that features a rock-n-roll underworld outfitted with lavish costumes and dramatic action.
• Lola’s Library: A cocktail party / immersive cabaret, Lola’s Library is an after-hours literary affair led by Lola who takes Sailors through the eclectic book collection of a mysterious author.
• Another Rose: This one-of-a-kind experience developed solely for Virgin Voyages is equal parts cabaret, world-class dining experience and theater spectacle. It tells the tale of doomed love and acrobatics during an unforgettable dinner party.

Resilient Lady’s first cruise from Miami on November 10, 2024 will be a five night cruise to the Western Caribbean that visits Costa Maya and Cozumel. The cruise will also have two sea days.

To read more about the adults only experience that Virgin Voyages offers on their cruises, you can read “How Virgin Perfected Cruising“. 

Carnival Cruise Line has sent a letter to guests who are booked on certain cruises about passport requirements for specific ports.

For guests who are booked on Carnival cruises to Panama, all guests who wish to get off the ship will need to have a passport book that is valid for at least six months after the cruise ends.

While guests can still take the cruise with ID and a birth certificate (as long as it’s a closed-loop sailing), they will not be permitted to get off the ship at any ports in Panama.

Carnival Cruise Line’s Brand Ambassador John Heald posted about this issue on his Facebook page. The post can be seen below.

Guests who do not have passports but booked shore excursions in Panama with Carnival Cruise Line will receive a full refund for their excursions.

Guests who do not have passports can apply for one as long as they get it before their cruise. Current processing times are as follows:

• Routine: 4 to 6 weeks
• Expedited: 2 to 3 weeks
• Urgent: Must have an in person interview

There are also third party companies that can get you a passport in a week for less. I tried one out last year and was able to get my passport renewed in one week. You can read about that experience here.

Carnival Cruise Line follows U.S. laws in that passports are not required for closed-looped cruises.  A closed-loop cruise is a sailing that departs and returns to the same U.S. cruise port.

However, it is always recommended that if you are traveling out the country that you have a valid passport book.

Carnival Cruise Line offers cruises to Panama on the following cruise ships: Carnival Miracle, Carnival Dream, Carnival Legend, Carnival Venezia, Carnival Liberty, Carnival Spirit and Carnival Pride.

Viking christened two more new river cruise ships today in Luxor, Egypt as they expand their fleet with more custom built ships for the Nile River.

Viking Sobek and Viking Hathor were christened this evening on the banks of the Nile by Mohamed El Banna, founder of Cosmos Egypt, and the Hon. Edward Herbert, the great-great-grandson of the 5th Earl of Carnarvon whose colleague discovered the tomb of King Tutankhamun.

Alistair Miller served as the Master of Ceremonies and Norwegian soprano Sissel performed at the christening dinner at the Karnak Temple.

The new ships will sail the cruise line’s 12 day Pharaohs & Pyramids itinerary. Each trip starts off with two full days in Cairo and then guests board a charter flight to Luxor for an eight-day cruise on the Nile.

During the cruise, guests can visit the tomb of Nefertari in the Valley of the Queens and the tomb of Tutankhamen in the Valley of the Kings.

Excursions to the Temple of Khnum in Esna, the Dendera Temple complex in Qena, the temples at Abu Simbel and the High Dam in Aswan, and a visit to a colorful Nubian village are also offered.

When the cruise is over, they will fly back to Cairo for more one last day.

The ships are wider and shorter than Viking’s Longships and have floor-to-ceiling windows all around them for incredible views as you view the sights along the Nile.

However, Viking’s past guests will be enjoy the Scandinavian design along with familiar favorites like the Aquavit Terrace.

There is also a small pool in the aft of the ships by the Aquavit Terrace.

Each ship is identical and has 41 cabins that carry 82 guests. They are sister ships to Viking Osiris and Viking Aton. Viking has four more ships in this class on order with two more debuting each year in 2025 and 2026.

This will give Viking a total of 10 river ships sailing on the Nile River.

Royal Caribbean is making adjustments to the itineraries of at least four cruise ships as Hurricane Rafael intensifies.  The storm is on track to make landfall later this week and is expected to become a Category 2 before arriving in Cuba.

The four ships impacted by the storm include Radiance of the Seas, Freedom of the Seas, Vision of the Seas, and Brilliance of the Seas.

Radiance of the Seas is currently on a 7-day cruise out of Tampa, having left the port on November 2^nd.    The original itinerary had the Radiance-class vessel visiting Bimini, Freeport, and Perfect Day at CocoCay.   The adjusted schedule will now see the ship making ports of call in Cozumel, Roatan, and Belize in the western Caribbean

Freedom of the Seas is currently on a 6-day voyage out of Fort Lauderdale.  The ship will be changing the dates for two scheduled stops to avoid the hurricane.   Stops will still be made in  Labadee, Haiti and George Town in the Cayman Islands, but the dates will be swapped.

Vision of the Seas sailed out of Baltimore, Maryland on October 31 on a 9-day sailing.  The ship was scheduled to visit Nassau and Perfect Day at CocoCay after stopping in Bermuda.  Because of the storm, the ship will now spend more time in Bermuda, skipping the stops in the Bahamas.  Vision of the Seas will also be stopping in Port Canaveral as a port of call.

Brilliance of the Seas is on a 7-day sailing out of New Orleans that left on November 2.  The ship was scheduled to stop in George Town in the Cayman Islands today but will now visit Belize City instead.

Hurricane Rafael is expected to reach western Cuba later tonight with winds over 100 miles per hour.

Most models predict the storm will continue to move towards the Gulf of Mexico and reach the United States on Saturday or Sunday.  The storm is expected to weaken by that time, but cruise lines are on alert for any updates.

Only 63 votes decided the results of a Bar Harbor, Maine initiative that sought to do away with a hard cap on cruise visits to 1,000 passengers a day.

For months, the cruise port had been debating the issue, and a plan to repeal the cap on cruise passengers was ultimately shot down in the recent vote.

1,776 votes opposed the plan to remove the cap, and 1,713 votes were in favor of the repeal.

The cruise passenger limitation was passed in 2022, and a federal judge upheld the ordinance after pushback from local businesses in the area.

Two years ago the initiative was passed by 58%.  The recent vote to keep the ordinance in place was upheld by only 50.9%.

The Town Council had the support of cruise lines and local businesses which helped push the vote even closer this time around.

Each cruise passenger that disembarks a cruise ship in Bar Harbor must be counted and logged until the 1,000 level is hit.

This cap on cruise passengers does not include crew members who are allowed to disembark freely.

Supporters of the cruise passenger cap say that this limitation gives visitors the freedom to enjoy the port without overcrowding. 

However, business leaders are saying that the ordinance is essentially a ban on certain cruise ships, and many locally businesses rely on seasonal foot traffic to stay afloat.

The town itself benefits from cruise traffic as well.  Last year alone almost $1.3 million was brought in through port and passengers fees.

It is not yet clear if the Town Council will bring future challenges to the ordinance, but Bar Harbor is already facing a challenge to how it enforces the 1,000 passenger limit.

With Thanksgiving just three weeks away, Carnival Cruise Line has revealed what’s on the menu for ships across the fleet.

With entrees like Holiday Roasted Tom Turkey and Honey Glazed Ham, cruisers during Thanksgiving week will have plenty of familiar favorites to choose from.

An appetizer of Baked Brie with the obligatory pumpkin pie for dessert will also be served, the pie including salted caramel sauce and crème Chantilly.

In addition to the traditional Thanksgiving favorites like roasted pumpkin soup, starters like shrimp cocktail, lobster & crab soup, and short ribs will be available.

Additional entrees will include ravioli, salmon, striploin steak, and a featured Indian vegetarian option.

See the full menu below:

With 20 years of service with Princess Cruises under her belt, Caribbean Princess just completed her routine drydock at the Fincantieri shipyard in Palermo, Italy.

After a few stops along the Mediterranean Sea in Spain, Morocco, and Portugal, the newly refurbished ship will sail across the Atlantic to her new home in Florida.

The 16-night voyage on Caribbean Princess will depart Civitacvecchia (Rome) on November 10 and is scheduled to arrive in Port Everglades on November 26.

Port Canaveral will then be home to the Grand-class cruise ship with 6- to 14-night sailings offered to the Eastern and Western Caribbean.

In April of 2025, Caribbean Princess will offer two Panama Canal sailings before repositioning to Vancouver for the Alaska season.

Then in September of 2025, a 16-night Panama Canal sailing will move the ship from California to Port Everglades, Florida.  The vessel will homeport in Port Everglades until a 13-night sailing that will begin in Fort Lauderdale and culminate in Port Canaveral in May of 2026.

The 3,142-passenger vessel received routine maintenance that included new upholstery, carpets, and technical upgrades.  With the ship on blocks work was able to be done below the water line as well as above it, but specific details as to the exact work done have yet to be announced.

A sister ship, Grand Princess, had the Skywalkers nightclub and observation lounge removed to improve fuel economy and stability back in 2011. 

This iconic design of the Grand-class vessels has been a controversial topic among Princess cruise fans, but so far it looks like this “shopping cart handle”– as some call it — will remain.