Diplomacy

Crystal, one of the world’s leading ultra-luxury cruise lines, has announced that the name of their first new ocean cruise ship in 25 years will be called Crystal Grace.

Crystal Grace is scheduled to be delivered to the cruise line in May 2028 and sail its maiden voyage on June 11, 2028, after a series of preview sailings.

The cruise ship will represent a bold and industry-leading evolution of Crystal’s celebrated heritage, blending innovation, sophistication and timeless style.

Crystal Grace will signal the next chapter in Crystal’s journey to redefine luxury at sea.

Why was the name Crystal Grace chosen? The name Grace was chosen to reflect the ship’s refined aesthetic, seamless onboard experience and the graceful way in which Crystal ships navigate the world’s most breathtaking destinations.

The ship will be 61,800 gross tons in size, carry 650 passengers, and every cabin on the vessel will be a suite.

Additional details about the suite categories that will be available on the ship will be announced in December.

Other details that include preview cruises, design features and onboard offerings will be announced in the coming months.

Cristina Levis, CEO of A&K Travel Group, gave the following statement:

“Crystal Grace is more than a name; it’s a promise. It reflects the effortless elegance, generous spirit, and sense of tranquility that define the Crystal experience. Crystal Grace is the embodiment of why we were awarded the World’s Best Cruise Line by Travel + Leisure, combining the best food, service, space, entertainment and shore experiences (by Abercrombie & Kent).

“With this ship, we are honoring our heritage while continuing to evolve for a new generation of guests.”

Cruises on Crystal Grace are scheduled to open for bookings in April 2026. A waitlist is expected to open soon.

One of the world’s largest cruise ships is officially headed to the Lone Star State. Royal Caribbean announced that Icon of the Seas (technically tied with Star of the Seas in terms of size) will rotate from Miami to Galveston, Texas, starting in August 2027.

Galveston, Texas is on a roll right now.  The cruise port is growing by leaps and bounds, signaling a strong demand for cruising out of the Texas port.  And with this news, local residents have even more options for cruising.

This deployment is a massive strategic move. Announced just days after a competitor (MSC Cruises) debuted its new vessel in Texas, Royal Caribbean is making the move as well.   Many had been anticipating or at least speculating this would happen, but now it’s official.

Royal Caribbean already has a couple Oasis-class vessels sailing out of the Texas port with Harmony of the Seas there now, and Symphony of the Seas coming in May 2026.   Allure of the Seas will also be coming to Galveston in the spring of 2026 for a handful of sailings.

Icon of the Seas will be the largest ship in port at 250,800 in gross tonnage and a maximum capacity of 7,600 passengers (5,610 at double capacity).  

Itineraries and Price

Icon will sail from Galveston on cruises of either 6- or 8-nights in duration.

Itinerary stops will include popular Western Caribbean ports like Roatan and Cozumel. Itineraries will also feature a stop at Royal Caribbean’s private destination, Perfect Day at CocoCay in the Bahamas.

The cruises will also call at the future Royal Beach Club Cozumel in Mexico, scheduled to debut in 2026.  The location for this new private destination is a perfect fit for cruising out of Texas, so it looks like this has been in the works for a while.

Port of Galveston

The Port of Galveston has been preparing for this move for a while now. The zero-energy Royal Caribbean terminal at Pier 10, which opened in November 2022, was specifically designed with the wider berth and accommodations needed to handle Icon-class ships.  So, it’s not a huge surprise this move was announced.

When the new terminal partnership was announced, Royal Caribbean anticipated the facility would generate a $100 million economic impact and increase guest traffic by 50% within the first year of operation.

Given the premium price and size of Icon of the Seas, the actual economic benefit generated for the Galveston area could be even higher.

To handle the traffic from 6,000 to 7,000+ passengers per sailing, the city is updating its 20-Year Strategic Master Plan with things like adding more lanes at terminals and leveraging traffic data from Waze to manage congestion on cruise days.

Other Ships in Galveston

Just last week MSC Cruises held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for their newly arrived ship at the brand new 165,000 square foot Terminal 16.  MSC Seascape is a ship built in 2022, and it is currently offering 7-night, year-round voyages out of the port.

Before this announcement from Royal Caribbean, the largest ship sailing from Texas was Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Jubilee, which is a183,521 gross ton vessel and accommodates a maximum capacity of 6,631 passengers.

By comparison, Icon of the Seas (nearly 250,000 gross tons and 7,600 max guests) is approximately 36% larger and can carry 41% more passengers than Carnival Jubilee.

Other ships currently sailing out of Galveston include Harmony of the Seas, Mariner of the Seas, Carnival Breeze, Carnival Legend, Carnival Dream, Regal Princess, and Disney Magic.

Norwegian Viva is also coming to the port at Terminal 16 in December 2025.

MSC Cruises has officially confirmed an order for two new World Class ships with the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard in France.  The ships will temporarily be named World Class 7 and World Class 8 until their official names are announced.

The order was announced today, and it’s a pretty big deal.  MSC Cruises has been called the fastest growing cruise line, and it seems the company is not slowing down any time soon.

This new and popular series is the largest class in MSC Cruises’ fleet and will put the cruise line at 29 ships when the vessels are delivered.  This not only rivals but matches the total ship count for Carnival Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean currently.

Ship Delivery Schedule

World Class 7 and 8 are scheduled to launch in 2030 and 2031. Construction of these ships is scheduled to begin in 2029. This addition of two more ships builds upon recent orders of World Class 5 and 6, which will enter service in 2029 and 2030.

MSC Cruises currently operates two World Class vessels, which are MSC World Europa (launched in 2022) and MSC World America (launched in 2025).

MSC World Asia (coming in 2026) and MSC World Atlantic (coming in 2027) are currently under construction.

About the Ships

These World Class ships are some of the largest cruise ships in the industry.  In fact, Royal Caribbean’s Icon class and Oasis class are the only ships larger in terms of volume with gross tonnage numbers of 248,000 and about 236,000 gross tons respectively.

MSC World Europa and MSC World America have a gross tonnage of around 216,000 and can accommodate up to 6,700 passengers along with about 2,100 crew members on each vessel.

When all eight World Class ships are operating, they will be able to carry over 54,000 passengers at maximum capacity.  Of course, most ships operate closer to double-capacity which is around 5,231 passengers on this class.

A key feature of all MSC World Class ships is their LNG propulsion system, which is designed to reduce CO2 emissions and minimize environmental impact.

Recent Milestones

The announcement was made during major construction milestones for MSC World Asia, which had her float out today, and MSC World Atlantic, which celebrated a traditional maritime coin ceremony as part of its hull construction.

Executive Chairman of MSC Group, Pierfrancesco Vago, stated that the World Class ships are to set the future standards for the company.

“We mark a proud moment today for MSC Cruises and Chantiers de l’Atlantique as we celebrate important milestones for our future – the float out of MSC World Asia, the coin ceremony of MSC World Atlantic and the order of two new ships. The World Class platform is a symbol of our vision to set new standards for the future of cruising. These are some of the most energy efficient ships in the world and we continue our commitment to LNG, ensuring we are ready for future renewable fuels. We look forward to continuing with our innovative and successful collaboration with Chantiers de L’Atlantique – our long-term partner for more than 20 years,”  Vago said.

Investments

With these two new ship orders, MSC Cruises has invested a total of €10.5 billion (about $12 billion USD) in the World Class series.  This shows a lot of confidence in the company’s flagship series, based on positive feedback from cruisers worldwide.

Lynn Torrent, President of MSC Cruises North America, said it was an “honor to bring MSC World Atlantic to life.”

“This ship will build on everything our guests and travel partners love about MSC World America, which has been sailing from Miami since April. We are already planning new spaces and experiences on board that are designed to elevate our blend of European style and American comfort, and we can’t wait to reveal them,” she stated.

Yesterday, Celebrity Cruises announced new itineraries for 2027 and 2028. The newly revealed schedule covers the Caribbean, Asia, and South America, with sailings to 131 destinations across 42 countries.

Caribbean Itineraries

8 ships will sail to 65 destinations in the Caribbean from four Florida cruise ports. The new season also includes the first dedicated itinerary to Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos.

Celebrity Beyond will offer year-round 7-night sailings from PortMiami and Fort Lauderdale, with stops at Grand Turk, Perfect Day at CocoCay, and the ABC Islands (Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao).

Celebrity Ascent will offer 10- to 14-night Southern Caribbean sailings, including Panama Canal itineraries and visits to Antigua, St. Lucia, and Barbados.

Other ships, such as Celebrity Xcel, Celebrity Silhouette, Celebrity Eclipse, Celebrity Reflection, Celebrity Apex, and Celebrity Constellation, will also offer a variety of Caribbean sailings.

Asia Itineraries

Celebrity Solstice (the ship’s 2^nd season in Asia) and Celebrity Millennium will sail to 49 destinations across 7 countries in Asia.  These will include Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia.

The schedule features 123 port days with more than 10 hours ashore and overnight stays in Bangkok, Bali, Hanoi, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, and Phuket.

An overnight stay in Hong Kong is scheduled for New Year’s Eve 2027, which will allow passengers to celebrate in Victoria Harbour.

South America and Antarctica Itineraries

From November 2027 to February 2028, Celebrity Equinox will offer 14-night itineraries.  These sailings will visit a total of 17 destinations across 7 South American countries.

Ports of call for these sailings include Punta Arenas, Ushuaia, Puerto Madryn, and Montevideo, with some scenic cruising through the Chilean Fjords and around Cape Horn.

The itineraries also include visits to Iguazu Falls, Patagonia, and Tierra del Fuego National Park.

Booking Information

Caribbean itineraries went on sale November 11, 2025. Bookings for Asia and South America sailings open December 10, 2025.

Disney Destiny is the newest cruise ship in Disney Cruise Line’s fleet. The ship was christened two days ago at Port Everglades in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

Disney Cruise Line invited Cruise Fever to attend the christening and the first three-day preview cruise on the ship. After spending a day and a half on board the vessel, here are my first impressions of Disney Destiny.

I’ve taken around 90 cruises and this is the best cruise ship for families I’ve ever sailed on.

Ship

This is the first Disney cruise I’ve taken in nine years. I forgot how well Disney does everything, down to the smallest little details on the ship.

From The Haunted Mansion to the Sanctum to the Oceaneer Club, I am loving the themed spaces all around the vessel. But more on those places later.

I love how they play Disney music all around the ship, from the stateroom hallways to the Grand Hall where I am sitting right now.

You can take a photo tour of the ship that we posted on our Facebook page below.

Cabin

We are staying in a Family Balcony Cabin on Deck 11. Since this is my first Disney cruise in nine years, I forgot how nice it is to have a split bathroom when traveling with my family.

The room is extremely spacious and love how it has a curtain to separate the bed from where the kids sleep. The extra privacy is much appreciated.

There is also an abundance of storage space and the best stateroom for families we’ve ever stayed in.

Oceaneer Club

Since I am traveling with my wife and five-year old son, I will focus both on what the ship offers for adults and the amazing activities and spaces for kids.

I have never seen such a large space dedicated for children on a cruise ship. During the open house, I was able to tour the kids club and was blown away. I love the Star Wars Cargo Hold and the Avengers rooms.

Since my son is five, he has yet to watch Star Wars, but I can’t wait to watch my favorite movies with him when he gets a bit older. He LOVES the Star Wars room in the Oceaneer Club.

We went to pick him up from the club one day and the workers told us that they were trying to pry him away from the Star Wars room, he loved it that much.

Also, the slide kids can use to enter the club straight from the Grand Hall is absolutely genius. It’s the only way my son wants to enter it.

You can see 15 photos of this incredible space in the embed below.

Before I wrap up this quick first impressions of the ship, I wanted to briefly mention a few other things about this ship.

Last night, we had dinner at Pride Lands, Feast of the Lion King. This new dinner concept from Disney was incredible and really made dinner go by so fast. They sang all of the songs we love from Lion King and everyone enjoyed it. Tonight we dine at Worlds of Marvel and we can’t wait!

We also attended Disney’s new show Hercules and it’s a must see when sailing on the ship. Tonight is Frozen and we are so excited to see it after Hercules last night.

For those who know me and have been following Cruise Fever for the past 14 years, you probably know I’m not the biggest fan of cruise shows. They generally just don’t interest me much.

However, I love the shows on Disney cruise ships. They are so well done with great storylines that we all know and love.

Also, the crew members have been absolutely incredible so far and have gone above and beyond everyone on the ship.

I am going to go and explore more of this amazing new ship from Disney Cruise Line. We have 24 hours left and I want to make sure I see everything this ship has to offer.

I will have more on Disney Destiny when I get home from this inaugural cruise on Disney Destiny so stay tuned for that.

You can follow along on my cruise on all of Cruise Fever’s social media accounts, we are @CruiseFever on Facebook, Instagram, X and TikTok.

A catamaran carrying about 50 cruise passengers sank in the waters of Samaná Bay in the Dominican Republic on Sunday, November 9, after it collided with an object in the ocean.

All passengers and crew were rescued safely, according to local news reports of the incident.

The Dominican Republic Navy confirmed that the 40-foot vessel, named Boca de Yuma, began taking on water after the collision and sank after a few minutes.

Navy personnel acted quickly and worked with nearby boats to pull passengers from the water. Photos shared by the Navy show rescuers assisting passengers and bringing them to safety.

Most of those on board were passengers from the TUI Cruises ship Mein Schiff 1. In a statement provided to PEOPLE, the company said the incident happened during a shore excursion operated by an independent provider.

 “All guests are safe and were returned to Mein Schiff 1 immediately after the rescue,” the cruise line confirmed. It added that the catamaran’s captain had contacted nearby vessels for help as soon as the problem began.

“The rescue of the guests was the top priority and was successful,” the TUI Cruises statement went on to say. The company said the vessel was approved to carry up to 80 passengers and that affected guests were offered support and compensation before choosing to continue their voyage.

TUI Cruises also said it is cooperating with local authorities and the excursion provider to review the cause of the accident.

In a translated statement posted on Facebook, the Dominican Navy explained that after receiving the emergency alert, it provided support to ensure the safe return of all passengers to port.

Local media outlets reported that several passengers sustained minor injuries, but no serious injuries were sustained.

Authorities have not yet revealed what object the catamaran struck, but investigations are ongoing. Despite the situation, every person on board was accounted for thanks to the actions of the crew, nearby boat operators, and the Dominican Navy.

I am currently on the first cruise on Star Princess from Port Everglades, a three-day cruise to the Bahamas. The ship has been in service for a month but is now sailing from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida for the winter 2025-2026 season.

Princess Cruises invited me on board for the christening and this short preview cruise. I am traveling with my wife and five year old son. We plan on experiencing everything this new ship has to offer including the kids club and family options.

After spending a little more than 48 hours on the ship, here are my first impressions of Star Princess.

Ship

Star Princess is the second Sphere class ship from Princess Cruises. While the ship is extremely similar to sister ship Sun Princess, there are a few differences.

The ship has all of the great features as Sun Princess including the Dome, Spellbound, the Arena (new theater) and large Piazza.

New additions to Star Princess include a large enclosed sports court for basketball, pickleball, soccer, cornhole and more.

They also added a non-smoking casino that is completely separate from the main casino that replaces one of the shops on board.

I posted a photo tour of the cruise ship the first day we got on board on our Facebook page. It’s already has over one million views and you can see it below:

Families

As I said previously, I am traveling with my wife and five year old son. He is having the time of his life in Firefly Park. Firefly Park is kids club for children three to seven years old and he loves it so much.

He wants to go every single time it’s open. Even though Princess Cruises doesn’t carry as many kids as other cruise lines, this ship is a great option for families.

I will have a lot more on Firefly Park and other options for kids/families after I get home from my cruise.

Cabin

I am staying in cabin 10116, a deluxe balcony cabin. It’s extremely roomy and has a couch that turns into a bed (where my son sleeps).

It has a large balcony and more power outlets than you could possibly use, and that’s a good thing. There are several (110, USB, USB-C) on each side of the bed and at least 4-6 on the desk. 

Crew

The crew on board have been absolutely fantastic so far. I wasn’t on the ship more than 15 minutes before a crew member came up to me to say hello. He remembered me from when I sailed on Sun Princess last year.

Even when we stopped at Princess Cays, a crew member came up to my son and called him by name to say hello. It’s the little things like that which mean so much.

The crew really is the star of Star Princess, and that goes for Firefly Park too!

Ocean Medallion

Here is one advantage that Princess Cruises has over every other cruise line. I love using the Ocean Medallion over standard cruise cards.

It’s also so handy to look up on the Princess app to see the location on the ship where my family is.

We attended the christening ceremony for Star Princess and put my son in Firefly Park during it. My wife asked me right before it started wondering if they were going to take him to dinner.

I opened up the Princess app, saw he was in the Americana Diner, and knew they took him to dinner. It’s such a great feature for families and comes at no extra charge. Only one other cruise ship (outside of Princess) offers this and you have to pay extra for it.

I will have more on Star Princess after I get home from the cruise. You can follow along on our journey on Cruise Fever’s social media accounts (@CruiseFever on Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok).