Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) today announced that for the first time in more than 11 years, the company will homeport a ship seasonally at Port Canaveral, Florida beginning October 2010. The 1,936-passenger Norwegian Sun, purpose-built for Freestyle Cruising, will sail alternating seven-day Eastern and Western Caribbean cruises from Port Canaveral, departing every Saturday from October 9, 2010 through April 16, 2011.
“As part of our homeland cruising initiative, we are always looking for attractive ports in which to base our ships,” said Kevin Sheehan, NCL’s president and CEO. “By bringing Norwegian Sun to Port Canaveral, we are offering cruisers in Central Florida and to those vacationing in Orlando quick and easy access to Freestyle Cruising. In addition, Port Canaveral offers our guests a wide range of pre- and post-cruise packages with the ability to visit a number of family attractions.”
Norwegian Sun’s seven-day Eastern Caribbean cruise will stop in Nassau, Bahamas; St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands; and Philipsburg, St. Maarten. The ship’s seven-day Western Caribbean will call in Cozumel, Mexico; Santo Tomás de Castilla, Guatemala; Belize City, Belize and Key West, Florida. Since there is no port repetition between the two itineraries, they can be easily combined to create a port-rich 14-day Caribbean tour.
NCL will also offer seven-day Eastern and Western Caribbean sailings from Miami on Norwegian Pearl from October 10, 2010 through April 10, 2011. Ports of call on the Western Caribbean itinerary include: Roatán, Bay Islands, Honduras; Belize City, Belize; Costa Maya, Mexico; and Key West, Florida. Norwegian Pearl’s Eastern Caribbean itinerary includes stops in: Samaná, Dominican Republic; St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands; Tortola, British Virgin Islands; and Great Stirrup Cay, NCL’s private island in the Bahamas. For guests seeking a full Caribbean escape, these two Norwegian Pearl itineraries can be combined into a 14-day Eastern and Western Caribbean cruise. Norwegian Dawn will sail alternating five-day Western Caribbean and nine-day Southern Caribbean cruises from November 14, 2010 through April 22, 2011. Ports of call on the Western Caribbean sailing include: George Town, Grand Cayman and Cozumel, Mexico. Norwegian Dawn’s Southern Caribbean itinerary includes: Samaná, Dominican Republic; Tortola, British Virgin Islands; St. John’s, Antigua; Bridgetown, Barbados; and Basseterre, St. Kitts. Norwegian Dawn’s five- and nine-day sailings can be combined to create a 14-day Caribbean cruise with no port repetition.
Also from Miami, NCL has extended Norwegian Sky’s three and four day cruises to the Bahamas through April 18, 2011. The 2,002-passenger Norwegian Sky sails four-day Bahamas cruises on Mondays with full-day stops in Grand Bahama Island, Nassau and Great Stirrup Cay, NCL’s private island in the Bahamas. On Fridays, the ship sails a weekend getaway, three-day Bahamas itinerary, departing Miami at 5 p.m. with all-day stops in Nassau and Great Stirrup Cay, returning to Miami at 7 a.m. on Monday mornings.
For foliage seekers, NCL will offer a variety of Canada & New England sailings from New York and Boston. In the fall of 2010, Norwegian Dawn will sail four seven-day Canada & New England cruises from New York, along with Norwegian Jewel sailing three 10-day Canada & New England cruises from New York. Norwegian Dawn’s ports of call include Halifax, Nova Scotia; Saint John, Bay of Fundy, New Brunswick; Bar Harbor, Maine; Boston, Massachusetts; and Newport, Rhode Island. Norwegian Jewel’s 10-day Canada & New England itinerary includes: Newport, Rhode Island; Halifax, Nova Scotia; Quebec City, Quebec; Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island; and Sydney, Nova Scotia.
From Boston, Norwegian Spirit will sail a series of four seven-day Canada & New England itineraries from September 25, 2010 through October 16, 2010, with alternating departures from Boston and Quebec. Ports of call from Boston include: Bar Harbor, Maine; Saint John, Bay of Fundy, New Brunswick; Halifax and Sydney, Nova Scotia; and Corner Brook, Newfoundland. Ports of call from Quebec include: Sept-Iles, Quebec; Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island; Halifax, Nova Scotia; and Portland, Maine, along with a cruise of the Saguenay Fjord. These sailings can also be combined into a port-rich 14-day cruise for the ultimate fall foliage experience.
Guests looking for a taste of Freestyle Cruising can sample one of NCL’s one-, two-, or three-night getaways in 2010-2011 on Norwegian Gem, Norwegian Pearl, Norwegian Jewel and Norwegian Spirit from London, New York, Miami and Boston.
