CRUISE NEWS
IN BRIEF
Princess Cruises to
go digital from March
Princess Cruises is switching
to digital documents from
March 1 for all cruises
departing after May 22.
As well as receiving e-tickets,
passengers will be sent
information to download about
their itinerary, ship, dining
options and shore excursions,
as well as personalised luggage
labels to print out.
Silversea highlights
Middle East offers
Silversea is offering free
flights and transfers on three
of its Middle East cruises this
spring. They include sevenday
Arabian Gulf cruises
from Dubai departing on
March 30 and April 6, and a
15-day voyage from Dubai to
Piraeus, the port for Athens,
departing on April 13. Prices
start from £2,538 per person
all-inclusive.
Agents to gain from
Fred Olsen referrals
Fred Olsen has launched a
scheme to ensure agents
receive commission if their
clients book another cruise
while on board the cruiseline’s
ships. Under the referral
system, the travel agent
who made the client’s initial
booking will take over the
new reservation and be paid
full commission.
MSC highlights free
flights and spa deals
MSC Cruises is offering free
flights and four spa treatments
to passengers who book a 2010
cruise in the Mediterranean on
MSC Fantasia or MSC Splendida
with accommodation in the
Yacht Club. Yacht Club
passengers receive 24-hour
butler service. Bookings must
be made by February 28.
Longer opening
hours pay off at CMV
Cruise and Maritime Voyages
sold more cruises in one
day last week than in any
one day since the cruiseline
was formed last summer. Its
reservations department is
staying open later during the
week and also opening on
Sundays. The new opening
hours are 9am to 8pm
Monday to Friday, 9am to
4pm Saturday and 10am to
2pm Sundays.
26 | Travel Weekly | January 29 2009
Celebrity Eclipse to
adapt for UK market
Jane Archer
Celebrity Cruises is changing
the food and entertainment on
Celebrity Eclipse to appeal to
the British market.
There will be more vegetarian
and Indian-style options in
the main dining room, as well
as British favourites such as
Yorkshire pudding and gravy,
beef stew and mushy peas.
Bistro on Five will serve
Indian-style crêpes, soups and
paninis, while the Oceanview
self-service restaurant will
have a choice of Indian dishes
as well as steak and kidney
pies, pasties and pork pies.
A new West End tribute
show, Ovations, will feature
songs from We Will Rock You
and Les Miserables; there will
be a Union Jack party with
darts games; and the Sky
Lounge will become the Sky
Pub on selected nights and
serve British beers.
British chefs will offer
on-board demonstrations,
kettles in all cabins and BBC
Prime and Sky News will be
available on the TVs.
President and chief executive
officer Dan Hanrahan said
the British-style food will be
served in addition to the usual
menu items and is designed to
give the ship a British feel.
He said: “We are not taking
anything away, but we wanted
to offer some British additions
so our UK passengers feel at
home on board.”
Celebrity Eclipse is the
third in a series of 2,850-
passenger Solstice-class ships
to be launched by Celebrity.
The vessel will be based in
Southampton this summer
and will be the cruiseline’s
first ship dedicated to the
British market.
The ship will be sailing a
two-night round trip inaugural
cruise from Hamburg
for the German trade from
April 16-18. It will relocate to
“We wanted to
offer some British
additions so our
UK passengers
feel at home”
Southampton between April
18-20 and will be sailing two,
two-night inaugural cruises
for the British trade before its
first revenue cruise, a fournight
mini-break to Le Havre,
for excursions to Paris, departing
on April 26.
Royal Caribbean Cruise
Line associate vice-president
and general manager UK and
Ireland Jo Rzymowska said
travel agents who are interested
in joining the cruise from
Hamburg to Southampton
should contact Celebrity.
Millennium upgrade costs $200m
Celebrity Cruises is celebrating
its 20th anniversary by
spending $200 million dollars
adding features from its
Solstice-class ships to its four
Millennium vessels.
The total investment
includes money spent last
year upgrading the
cruiseline’s Captain’s Club
loyalty programme and
introducing new on-board
product under the Celebrity
Life banner, including
wine-tasting, and language
and well-being classes.
On the Millennium ships,
the existing Martini and
Champagne bars will be
replaced with the Bistro on
Five crêperie and a wine bar,
while the Grand Foyers will
become an ice-topped
Martini Bar.
The Cova Cafes are to be
turned into Cafe al Bacio and
Martini and
Champagne
bars on
Millennium
ships will be
replaced by
the Bistro
on Five
Gelateria, and the conservatories
on deck 11 will be
transformed into the Tuscan
Grille Italian-style steakhouse.
Cabins will have new
furniture, bedding and
carpets, and also be
The Sky Lounge
will be the Sky
Pub on selected
nights and serve
British beers
fitted with flatscreen TVs.
Celebrity president and
chief executive officer Dan
Hanrahan said the aim was to
avoid having two classes of
ship in the fleet.
He said: “The Solstice
ships have been a ‘gamechanger’
for us so we wanted
some of their features on the
Millennium vessels.
“I want to be offering the
same experience on both
classes of ship.”
Celebrity Constellation
will be fitted with the Solstice
features in April this year. The
other three will be upgraded
over the next three years.
www.travelweekly.co.uk
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