After five months of extensive refurbishment at the Croatian shipyard Viktor Lenac in Rijeka, the cruise ship Ambience, operated by the start-up British company Ambassador Cruise Line, is finally ready for its inaugural season. Ambience departed the shipyard last week and is expected to arrive at it’s homeport Tilbury ahead of its 4 Night Maiden Voyage To Hamburg scheduled for April 20.

Royal Caribbean International has held a keel-laying ceremony for the highly anticipated cruise ship, Icon of the Seas at Finnish shipyard Meyer Turku. The traditional ceremony marks the start of construction of the Icon of the Seas, and involved a 3,000-ton crane lifting the first massive steel block that is placed into the new ship's building dock placing a newly minted coin under the keel for good luck. 

Oceania Cruises’ full fleet of 6 ships has now returned to operation, following the departure of the Nautica on April 1, 2022. The ship’s officers, staff and crew were thrilled to welcome back guests on board in Civitavecchia, Rome for a 10 Night Western Mediterranean cruise. 

The return of the cruise industry faced many hurdles along the way to full recovery, which is expected to happen this year. The cruise lines and especially the crew has shown great resilience reinforcing their ongoing efforts to a full return to service. Last year was especially challenging for the crew facing many restrictions, quarantines, and requirements which affected the crew rotation and the length of contracts.

The moment that many loyal Mein Schiff guests and crew have been waiting for after two years of uncertainty and setbacks has finally arrived. Today TUI Cruises celebrated an important milestone as the company marked the return to service of the final ship in the fleet. 

Silversea Cruises officially named its 10th ship, Silver Dawn, in Lisbon on March 31. Executives from Royal Caribbean Group, Silversea Cruises, and Fincantieri, as well as local dignitaries and esteemed guests, celebrated the milestone with a formal ceremony and gala dinner. 

MSC Cruises has revealed the hull design and Inaugural Itineraries of its newest ship MSC Euribia, under construction at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard in France. The second liquified natural gas-powered (LNG) ship set to join the MSC Cruises fleet in June 2023, will be the most environmentally-advanced vessel to date. 

Due to technical issues, MSC Seaside has made adjustments to the current transatlantic voyage to Europe from Brazil, canceling two ports in the Canary Islands. The cruise ship canceled the arrivals to Santa Cruz de la Palma on March 28 and Santa Cruz de Tenerife on March 30, replacing them with an overnight stay in Las Palmas Gran Canaria.

Disney Wish, Disney Cruise Line’s brand-new ship under construction at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany has left the shipyard this morning and is heading off for technical and nautical sea trials in the North Sea.