New Ships: Ships For the Future
“What we are looking at here are ships of the future, for the next 40 years or so,” said Tom Strang, senior vice president of marine for Costa Crociere. He was commenting on Carnival Corporation’s recent order for four 180,000-ton, 5,200-passengers vessels for Costa and AIDA. “Basically, the intention is that these ships will run…
Genting World Opens New Era for Star
Two new ships being built for Star Cruises in Germany will have 3,370 lower berths and be 151,300 tons each, scheduled for delivery in October 2016 and October 2017 respectively. “This is a very generous and premium ton-to-lower berth and crew-to-passenger ratio that will allow us to differentiate ourselves from other operators entering the Asian…
Crystal: A Massive Expansion Plan
With new owners aboard, Crystal Cruises is pushing a massive product expansion to the tune of three new ships, a Boeing 787 for land tours, a yacht, and two riverboats. Three new ocean-going ships will be built at Lloyd Werft in Germany, and be over 100,000 tons and carry 1,000 passengers – an attractive space-to-guest…
F&B: Oceanic Catering’s New Manila Training Center
Oceanic Catering recently opened its new catering and hospitality training facility in Manila. A division of V.Ships, the 1,300 square meter facility is located in the company’s new office building. “We train V.Ships crew and Oceanic Catering crew for cruise and cargo ships,” Patrick Fourtanet, director of operations and business development, told Cruise Industry News….
Royal Caribbean: Australian Ambitions
This coming season Royal Caribbean will see a 20 percent capacity increase in Australia, Gavin Smith, regional vice president, Asia-Pacific told Cruise Industry News. “We will have more than 90 departures,” he said. “The Explorer will replace the Rhapsody and we will sail the Voyager, Radiance, Legend and Celebrity Solstice. The Azamara Quest will also…
Executive Profile: Scientific Approach
“I think Virgin Cruises will be very good for the industry,” said Tom McAlpin, president and CEO of the start-up cruise line by the British Virgin Group, founded and led by entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson. Speaking to Cruise Industry News, McAlpin said: “We will bring new people (passengers) into the industry. We will develop the…
Procurement: Driving Value
In the newly created position of chief procurement officer (CPO) at Carnival Corporation, Julia Brown is overseeing everything Carnival spends money on from products to services. “The goal is to drive value that can be reinvested in the brands,” she explained. “And to take out costs of things that guests do not want, while at…
MSC: Outside the Box
By year’s end, MSC Cruises plans to launch a global campaign presenting its new market positioning, according o CEO Gianni Onorato. In an exclusive interview with Cruise Industry News, Onorato said that work was ongoing internally to better clarify the position of the brand and the company in the marketplace. Not only will the campaign…
Costa: Pushing Italian Lifestyle
“We have to make sure that our product is different than our competition,” said Neil Palomba, president of Costa Crociere. “We have to differentiate ourselves from the competition and this is the key, it is linked to our Italy’s Finest positioning. “We meet and exceed our customers expectations and they feel like they are in…
Ponant: Adding International Touch
The fastest-growing source markets for Ponant are Australia, France and the United States, according to Herve Bellaiche, executive vice president of sales. The company has recently seen a significant expansion in the U.S. market with the purchase of assets from Travel Dynamics. The office has grown from a few workers in Miami to a staff…
Working at Sea: Nautical Careers
Once facing a shortage of future officers, economic factors in Italy and poor employment opportunities shoreside have led to an increase in the number of applications to nautical schools. The training has become more demanding, with new criteria targeting a quality labor force aboard ships. “Due to the type of school we are, we have…
Food+Beverage: Koningsdam Offers More Choices
When Holland America Line’s new Koningsdam enters service next March she will have some familiar and some new dining venues and eateries, Michael Smith, senior vice president, guest experience and product development, told Cruise Industry News. “It comes down to offering our guests more choices,” he said. Among the new venues will be Sel de…
Food+Beverage: Oceania’s Chef Kelly
At Oceania Cruises, Executive Chef and Culinary Enrichment Director Kathryn Kelly is responsible for developing the curriculum for the classes aboard the Marina and the Riviera and the line’s culinary discovery shore excursion tours. “I also serve as one of the instructors onboard and lead culinary tours ashore,” Kelly told Cruise Industry News. “We visit…
Editorial No. 100: With Our Thanks
This marks the 100th issue of the Cruise Industry News Quarterly Magazine and the 30th year for Cruise Industry News. We started out with a printed newsletter, which for all intents and purposes now is part of our website news. The newsletter was followed by an annual industry report – with the 28th edition available…
Executive Profile: ‘Think Big, Start Small and Move Fast’
“I believe in the collective intelligence of people and will invest in processes that will allow it to prosper,” Orlando Ashford, president of Holland America Line, told Cruise Industry News. “A group will always outsmart individuals. A group can be more innovative and come up with better solutions.” Named president of the cruise line only…