Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) today announced that it has redeployed Norwegian Sun for the summer of 2010, moving the ship from Alaska to Europe. The 1,936-passenger Norwegian Sun is assuming the summer 2010 itinerary previously announced for Norwegian Jewel and will sail a 12-day Baltic Capitals itinerary from London (Dover) beginning May 11, 2010 through September 8, 2010. In addition, the 2,376-passenger Norwegian Jewel will move from Europe to New York, sailing a combination of seven-day Bahamas & Florida, 10-day Canada & New England and 10-day Eastern Caribbean sailings from April 24, 2010 through April 24, 2011.
“After carefully weighing the rising costs of deploying three ships in Alaska and taking into account the recently enacted legislation, in particular the $50 head tax, we felt it was necessary to redeploy Norwegian Sun,” said Kevin Sheehan, Norwegian Cruise Line’s chief executive officer. “Alaska is an incredible destination, but we are clearly seeing the impact of these changes in 2009, emphasized even more by this challenging economic environment.”
Norwegian Sun had been scheduled to sail a seven-day itinerary between Vancouver, British Columbia and Whittier, Alaska. The ship’s new European deployment now includes a 15-day Panama Canal sailing from Santiago (Valparaiso), Chile, to Miami, Florida on April 11, 2010. Norwegian Sun will then reposition to Europe on a 15-day transatlantic voyage from Miami to London (Dover) on April 26, 2010, and begins her series of eleven 12-day Baltic Capitals cruises with stops in Copenhagen, Denmark; Berlin (Warnemünde), Germany; Tallinn, Estonia; overnight in St. Petersburg, Russia; Helsinki, Finland and Stockholm (Nynäshamn), Sweden.
Following her winter season in Miami, Norwegian Jewel repositions to New York on a 13-day Circle the Caribbean voyage on April 11, 2010. Once in New York, the ship will sail a series of 20 seven-day Bahamas & Florida cruises with stops in Orlando (Port Canaveral), Great Stirrup Cay and Nassau, Bahamas.
Norwegian Pearl and Norwegian Star will continue their deployment in Alaska next summer, sailing seven-day Sawyer Glacier and Glacier Bay cruises from Seattle.
Norwegian Cruise Line is contacting travel partners and guests with reservations on Norwegian Sun and Norwegian Jewel’s previously scheduled sailings. The company is offering the option to transfer their reservation to a comparable sailing with their fare protected or re-priced if the fare is lower, along with an on-board credit. Transfers must be completed by Monday, May 11, 2009. To assist impacted guests and travel partners, the company has established a dedicated support line at 877-461-1160, open weekdays beginning this Wednesday from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. EDT.
Starting Wednesday, April 29, 2009, the company is also accepting reservations on Norwegian Sun and Norwegian Jewel’s new itineraries. To book one of these new itineraries, guests should contact a travel professional or Norwegian Cruise Line at 866-234-0292. Further itinerary information can be found online at www.ncl.com.
