This week we’ve seen another flurry of new cruise ship developments.
As we were getting a chance to check out the Carnival Vista’s new Havana Staterooms and Suites, we got word that Carnival Cruise Line is planning to launch the third vessel in the Vista class in 2019.
The ship, under contract with Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri, was originally designated for the P&O Cruises Australia brand. In conjunction with this change, Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Splendor will be transferred to P&O Cruises Australia in late 2019. Carnival Horizon, the second ship in the Vista class, is slated for delivery in March 2018.
In river cruise news, this week Pandaw announced the acquisition of a new ship to be deployed to West Kalimantan, Borneo. The 12-cabin river cruise ship, originally called L’Amant, was built in Saigon in 2006 and has since sailed the Mekong Delta. It will be renamed the Kapuas Pandaw, refitted in the Pandaw style, and delivered to Borneo later this month in time for its inaugural sailing on the Kapuas starting in February 2017. Pandaw said that it had planned to send the larger Tonle Pandaw, but that concerns over the vessel’s air draft under two key bridges prompted a change of plan.
In terms of construction updates, this week Viking Ocean Cruises celebrated the float out of its fourth new cruise ship, the Viking Sun. The major construction milestone marks the first time the vessel has touched water. Viking Sun is the fourth of six ocean cruise ships on order and will be delivered in late 2017. Viking will launch Viking Spirit in 2018 and the remaining, yet-to-be-named ship in 2020.
Finally, in small ship news, this week Scenic marked the official start of production on its new Discovery Yacht, the Scenic Eclipse, with a steel cutting ceremony at the Uljanik Shipyard JSC in Pula, Croatia. The 228-passenger mega yacht, designed especially for polar expedition cruising conditions, is scheduled for its inaugural voyage in August 2018.
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In other cruise news this week, Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) released the 2017 State of the Cruise Industry Outlook, which predicts a steady pace of cruise travel interest and significant investment for the coming year.
Cruise travel is expected to continue to increase next year, according to CLIA, with an estimated 25.3 million passengers expected to sail, up from 15.8 million 10 years prior (2007). More ships will set sail in 2017 as well. CLIA reports that cruise lines are scheduled to debut 26 new ocean, river and specialty ships in 2017 for a total investment of more than $6.8 billion in new vessels. From 2017-2026 the industry is expected to introduce a total of 97 new cruise ships totaling an estimated investment of $53 billion through 2026.
In another update from Carnival, Cruise Critic reported the cruise line is testing a slightly tweaked set of dining times on the Carnival Glory and Carnival Conquest. Dining times on both ships will now be 6 p.m. and 8 p.m., instead of 6 p.m. and 8:15 p.m.. Additionally, passengers who show up more than 30 minutes late to set seating will be asked to eat in the buffet. Pending the outcome of the test, the changes could be rolled out to the other ships in Carnival’s fleet.
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