Carnival Cruise Line has once again shown its charitable side by donating $250,000 to aid organizations in support of their efforts on behalf of victims of the recent floods in Louisiana. Carnival Cruise Line will donate $125,000 and its parent company Carnival Corporation is matching that amount through its Carnival Foundation charitable arm. Recipients include the Save the Children, American Red Cross, and Louisiana Association of United Ways.

Royal Caribbean passenger sailing on Grandeur of the Seas was found dead in his cabin yesterday afternoon while the cruise ship was in Bermuda. According to Bernews, police authorities received a report of a death of 45-year-old US citizen.

A unique and creative work by the Carnival Magic crew members from the housekeeping department has created one of a kind people constructed from beach towels. The first ever “towel people” at sea are presented on the cruise ship Lido Deck relaxing on the sun.

Celebrity Cruises bartender, Andrej Malic has been named Diageo Global Travel’s best bartender for 2016. This global bartender competition was held on 17 August in the Diageo 396 Bar in Miami. Andrej Malic, from Bosnia and Herzegovina, topped the competition from hundreds of cruise line bartenders representing Holland America Line, Norwegian Cruise Line and Celebrity Cruises. The Celebrity Cruises bartender won this prestigious award with his ‘Old Spice Fashion’ cocktail, featuring Bulleit Bourbon.

The Regional Secretariat for Tourism and Transport in Madeira announced that the arrival of two cruise ships in Funchal was canceled due to the situation with the wildfires that occurred last week on the island. The cruise ship operated by AIDA cruises, AIDACara scheduled to arrive on 15 of August, and the Italian cruise ship Costa Magica scheduled to stop on 16 of August are canceled. First to divert the cruise schedule was the British cruise ship P&O Azura on August 11, when the wildfires were most intense. Instead the arrival in Funchal, Azura spend a day at sea.

A Chinese woman sailing on the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Mariner of the Seas has been rescued by a fishing vessel after she fell overboard. The accident happened on August 10, when the ship was returning back to its homeport in Shanghai. First to notice her disappearance was her family who informed the ships officers. All crew were engaged in an on board search operation, but they could not find the 32 year-old woman. Ship’s captain notified the Coast Guard, and search and rescue operation was initiated.

The owner of the funeral company Costa, Natalino Costa, wanted to "fool around" with the similar names between his firm and the name of the Italian cruise company Costa Cruises. As a sponsor of local festival in Italy, Natalino printed the slogan “Costa Cruises One way trips” on the aprons worn by the waiters. Many people offended by this slogan with bad sense of humor reacted to the message reminding them of the terrible tragedy of Costa Concordia where 32 people lost their lives. Evidently, the owner of the funeral firm has not come to terms with the sensitivity of his action.

On Wednesday, August 10, Italian authorities raised the security threat level in all major ports where cruise ships and ferries transit. Coastguard Admiral Vincenzo Melone sent an order to all passenger and cruise-ship ports to raise their alert level from MARSEC 1 to MARSEC 2. The Coast Guard said that the raising of the security measures is not, connected to a specific terror threat, but the need for prevention following the latest developments in Europe. The order to raise the level of Security issued yesterday refers to the SOLAS Convention on maritime safety.

Due to safety concerns of the Wildfires in Madeira, P&O Cruises decided to skip the arrival of P&O Azura in Funchal. The Portuguese island in the Atlantic Ocean faces major catastrophe with the fire closing dangerously to Funchal. So far four people have died since the fire broke out however the authorities fear the numbers of the victims will rise. Currently there are 132 active fires on the island leaving thousands of tourists stranded to the island. There are reports of tourists who had to flee the hotels and spend the night awake or sleeping on the floor.

As of August 1 Holland America Line has updated the Restaurant price list paid for the entire fleet. Holland America Line says that their alternative restaurants, winners of three awards, are more affordable than those of other competing cruise companies. The company also said that many years had passed since the last price update.