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Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas performed a dramatic rescue during its transatlantic voyage, saving a stranded family and their dog off the coast of Marrakesh, Morocco.

The incident occurred on Friday, 15th November 2024. The family’s sailboat had suffered engine failure and lost its masts, leaving them powerless in the waters off West Africa.

According to passengers onboard the cruise ship, the stranded group included two adults, two children, and a black Labrador retriever. Some reports suggested there could have been as many as six people on the sailboat.

Before bringing the family onboard, engineers from the ship attempted to repair the damaged sailboat.

When the repairs proved unsuccessful, the crew transferred the family to a Royal Caribbean lifeboat in choppy seas and brought them aboard the 138,194-gross-ton ship.

Passengers cheered as the rescue operation concluded. “The rescue crew showed great skill (and bravery) in choppy seas to bring everyone safely aboard. There was a well-deserved big round of cheers and applause from all of the spectators on their balconies,” shared a passenger.

Although there was some discussion about towing the sailboat for later repairs, it was ultimately abandoned due to the challenges involved.

The family is being cared for onboard the Voyager of the Seas. The crew has provided them with food, water, and medical care as needed. The ship will transport the family to its next scheduled port of call in Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, on 17th November 2024.

From there, the family can arrange their next steps with local authorities. While it might sound appealing to continue the cruise, non-paying passengers are typically disembarked at the next available port due to documentation and logistical issues.

The Voyager of the Seas embarked on its 16-night transatlantic sailing from Barcelona, Spain, on 10th November.

It was a delayed departure after weather had held up the drydock renovations – perhaps the family would’ve been in even more trouble if the ship’s drydock had run on schedule!

After its stop in Gran Canaria, the ship will make its final port call in Tenerife, Canary Islands, on 18th November, before continuing with sea days to Port Canaveral, Florida, where it is scheduled to arrive on 26th November.

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Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.

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Carnival has listened to guest feedback about the limited snack options available late at night, and slow service times, and has announced a slew of changes.

Via Brand Ambassador John Heald on Facebook, the cruise line has confirmed that it will now offer a wider range of food options and take steps to halve wait times across the fleet.

Guests have complained about the early closure of the onboard pizzerias and delis earlier in the day on Carnival ships, and those closures won’t be impacted.

Instead, more options will now be added to the buffet, where guests will now be able to enjoy not just pizza but also chicken tenders, hot dogs, sandwiches, cookies and some other dessert items later into the night.

Guests will be able to enjoy some soups and salads, a range of cakes, as well as chips and salsa.

Other options will be available depending on the ship and night, with the menu varying based on what ingredients are available to the kitchen crew.

There will always be a selection of vegetarian and vegan options available, and guests will be able to request a gluten-free pizza to be made fresh.

To improve service, a secondary station will remain open for late night serving, so guests will be able to join either queue and access the same food options – in theory, halving the wait time for guests.

The late night snack menu was first introduced by Carnival in 2023, but guests have asked for improved options since then.

Many guests enjoy late nights on a Carnival cruise, whether in the casino, the bars or the lounges, and they often want to grab a bite to eat to sustain themselves for the ongoing festivities.

These new changes should help night-owls to find something they like every night. They’ve already rolled out to some ships in the fleet, including Carnival Celebration, Carnival Glory, and Carnival Venezia.

Carnival hasn’t confirmed the rollout times for the remainder of the fleet.

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Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.

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Two Princess cruise ships have both suffered from an outbreak of a gastrointestinal virus onboard within a few days of each other, with guests asked to vacate on several occasions for deep cleaning.

The first incident occurred on Diamond Princess during a 21-night sailing around Australia and New Zealand.

After the virus took hold, it got serious enough that guests were told they had to go ashore on three separate occasions for six hours in Melbourne, Auckland, and then Melbourne again so that the ship could be deep cleaned.

Guests who wanted to stay onboard to enjoy the amenities were not permitted – everyone had to leave the ship.

As compensation, guests were given a $50 onboard credit for each time they were asked to leave the ship for six hours.

And now, it’s been confirmed that a second outbreak has happened on Crown Princess, also sailing around the Australia and New Zealand region.

Guests on that ship were not forced to vacate, but a letter was sent asking guests to go ashore in Darwin if possible while a deep clean was carried out.

Not only were all public areas disinfected, but all guest staterooms were too, hence the recommendation to leave the ship and get out of the way for a couple of hours.

Guests who reported symptoms were asked not to leave the ship but instead remain quarantined within their cabins.

It hasn’t been confirmed which virus it was that hit both ships – it’s not always norovirus – nor how many guests or crew members were affected.

However, the deep cleaning, along with the request for guests to leave the ship, suggests that neither incident was isolated.

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SeaDream Yacht Club has announced plans to significantly expand its offerings in the British Isles in 2027, following the success of its “nearly sold-out” 2026 season.

In 2027, the recently renovated SeaDream I will host voyages ranging from 7 to 11 days, exploring destinations across England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.

Some itineraries will also include stops at the Shetland, Orkney, and Faroe Islands, providing passengers with a mix of iconic and off-the-beaten-path locales.

The cruises will also feature a variety of Yachting Land Adventures, giving travellers the chance to immerse themselves in local culture.

Highlights include visits to whiskey distilleries, rounds at world-class golf courses, and opportunities to engage with wildlife and local communities.

The 2027 itinerary highlights include:

• Norway & The British Isles: Sailing from Oslo to Edinburgh
• Best of Scotland & The Faroe Islands: From Edinburgh to Glasgow
• Celtic Homelands: From Glasgow to Dublin
• Irresistible Ireland: A roundtrip from Dublin
• British Isles Discovery: From Dublin to Portsmouth

SeaDream Yacht Club’s executive vice-president, Andreas Brynestad, emphasized the unique appeal of these voyages:

“We are combining incredible destinations with the distinctive SeaDream experience, creating a relaxed, unhurried experience that is a rare luxury today. There simply is no better way to explore these extraordinary places than in the comfort of a mega-yacht.

“The demand for British Isles has been beyond our expectations. We are thrilled to be back in 2027, with more destinations, more Yachting Land Adventures, and more unique ways to experience the true beauty of the region.”

Andreas Brynestad

About SeaDream Yacht Club

SeaDream Yacht Club is a luxury cruise line offering an intimate and personalised travel experience aboard its boutique mega-yachts, SeaDream I and SeaDream II.

Known for its exceptional service, gourmet cuisine, and immersive itineraries, SeaDream specialises in exploring unique and lesser-visited destinations around the globe.

With a focus on relaxation, adventure, and cultural discovery, SeaDream delivers a yachting experience that combines luxury with the thrill of exploration.

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At the CruiseWorld event, Celebrity’s brand president Laura Hodges Bethge was speaking about the future of the brand and revealed that Project Nirvana was the codename for the next ships.

It’s expected that the first ships in the new class would debut sometime in 2029 or 2030 but nothing is official.

“For those who have been doing this for a long time, you know you go from the dreaming stage to the receiving stage in five-ish years,

“We’re excited about what’s next for the brand.”

Laura Hodges Bethge, Brand President for Celebrity Cruises

While Celebrity Cruises fans can start to get excited about the next generation of ships, there’s still other exciting news too.

It’s expected that we’ll get details of Celebrity Xcel’s features in spring, with seven new products and experiences onboard the ship compared to her sister Edge-class ships.

Bethge also revealed that the Solstice-class ships would soon undergo a renovation, with Celebrity Solstice set to undergo an extended drydock in Spring 2026.

No dates have been confirmed for the rest of the class, which includes Celebrity Equinox, Celebrity Eclipse, Celebrity Silhouette and Celebrity Reflection.

“Those five beautiful ships are at what we call internally their half-life. Ships last around 30 years, and they’re about 15 years old, so right now we’re dreaming up what’s going to happen with the modernization of the Solstice ships,

“There’s three different areas of the ship where we’ll be paying a lot of attention,”

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Royal Caribbean has announced changes to the latest itinerary of the Voyager of the Seas, citing delays in drydock operations caused by adverse weather conditions.

The transatlantic cruise, originally scheduled to depart from Barcelona on 10th November 2024, was delayed by a day and instead set off on 11th November 2024.

Because of this change, the planned visit to Valencia had to be cancelled, while the rest of the itinerary remains unchanged, bar a one-day delay to the visit to Palma de Mallorca.

The 16-night voyage (which is now a 15-night voyage) concluding in Port Canaveral, was set to include seven European destinations before reaching North America.

Royal Caribbean has assured guests that any pre-paid shore excursions for the cancelled port will be automatically reimbursed.

As well as this, the cruise line is offering a pro-rated refund of one day of the cruise fare, which will be paid as onboard credit to use on the cruise. Any other purchases such as WiFi or drinks packages will also get the pro-rated refund.

And for any guests who were forced to change their travel plans, up to $200 could be claimed for domestic flights or $400 for international flights.

While these refunds are typical, the cruise line also announced that, due to the nature of the late cancellation from Barcelona, it would cover up to $250 of hotel costs per stateroom for guests who needed to stay in the city for the night before the cruise.

The delay in drydock operations was primarily due to adverse weather conditions, which hindered the timely completion of necessary maintenance and preparations for the ship.

Following the transatlantic crossing, Voyager of the Seas is scheduled to offer a series of four- and five-night cruises to the Caribbean and the Bahamas, departing from Port Canaveral.

Several other cruise ships have suffered delays to drydock renovations or essential repairs in the past few months.

Perhaps most notably, Regal Princess was forced to cancel three cruises after repairs were continuously delayed.

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Bodrum Cruise Port and Marella Cruises have launched a joint social responsibility project aimed at promoting environmental conservation and maritime education.

The initiative began with a beach clean-up at Giritli Teyze Beach, where secondary school students collaborated with the crew of the Marella Discovery to improve the local environment.

This event marked the beginning of a series of activities designed to engage the community and raise environmental awareness.

After the clean-up, students participated in an educational tour at Bodrum Cruise Port. The tour offered insights into the operations of the marina, customs-controlled areas, and the functions of passport and customs authorities.

Students also learnt about the role of Pilot Captains, and they were lucky enough to be given a tour of the Marella Discovery, gaining firsthand experience of maritime life.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Bodrum Cruise Port as Marella Discovery joins local students in a beach cleanup at Giritli Teyze Beach. This event not only supports the coastal environment but also provides students with insight into various roles and a tour of Marella Discovery. We look forward to many more community activities like this in Bodrum in the future.”

Olivia Wells, Sustainability Manager at Marella Cruises

In collaboration with the Coast Guard Command and Atilla Suyolcu, president of Bodrum Sea Rescue, participants received a presentation on the “Yaşam” sea ambulance and emergency response operations at sea.

This session provided an in-depth understanding of maritime rescue operations within Bodrum, highlighting the essential role of emergency services in ensuring safety at sea.

This initiative demonstrates a commitment to fostering a sustainable future and enhancing awareness of maritime operations and conservation among young people.

Bodrum Cruise Port and Marella Cruises plan to continue their collaboration, with future community activities and educational initiatives aimed at furthering environmental stewardship and maritime education.

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Disney Cruise Line will feature seven new cruise horn melodies when she starts sailing for the cruise line from December 2024.

Disney Cruise Line ships have long been renowned for their cruise horns, with even the oldest ships in the fleet known for playing “When You Wish Upon A Star”.

Newer ships have introduced more songs, but it’s been announced that Disney Treasure will get seven completely new ones for the cruise fleet.

Only three have been announced so far, including “A Whole New World” from Aladdin and “Remember Me” from Coco.

The other song announced is “Grim Grinning Ghosts”, the popular song from the Haunted Mansion rides at Disney theme parks. The ship will have a Haunted Mansion Parlor onboard too.

It also seems like existing songs will be enhanced with new chords as part of the new horn array.

You can hear a little teaser in this video:

Excitement building for new ship

Disney Treasure will offer way more than just some new cruise horn melodies when she officially joins the fleet in December.

Dining highlights will include an immersive Coco-themed restaurant and Worlds of Marvel, including two distinct nights of “heroic dining”.

Guests can look forward to Broadway-style shows based on Moana and Beauty and the Beast, and an original stage production named Disney Seas the Adventure.

The AquaMouse water coaster returns with brand-new theming, based on a short called Curse of the Golden Egg.

Plus guests will be able to splash around in 10 pools, take part in gameshow-style competitions as a family, and so much more.

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Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.

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