Website: www.cruiseweekly.com.au | Phone: 1300 799 220 | Fax: 1300 799 221 | Email: info@cruiseweekly.com.au Page 1

Tuesday 12 March 2013

TODAY’S ISSUE OF CW Cruise Weekly today features four pagespacked full of all the latest cruise news.

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Is Titanic 2 inappropriate? CUNARD President Peter Shanks has voicedhis opinion on the creation of the Titanic 2,saying he does not think the ship is“appropriate”. “My personal view on the Titanic is that itwas a tragedy”. “During the 100th anniversary of the Titanicwe took a very low key approach to it, wetalked about the Carpathia that rescued 800people from the Titanic but we didn’t getinvolved in any of the commemorations,” he said. “From our perspective we don’t think it’sappropriate to go for a Titanic 2,” he added.

Australian holidaymakers areflocking to Princess Cruises indroves, with the companyreporting strong growth in themarket, despite the presence ofso much competition. SPEAKING to media onboard DiamondPrincess in Sydney last Friday, Princess CruisesCommercial Director Alan Stuart said “it’s avery exciting time for Australian cruising”. “The growth has been very strong, andobviously that has brought in competition, sowe’ve always got to be ahead of our game, notonly in terms of product delivery but in termsof destinations,” he said. Currently three Princess vessels homeport inregional waters, Sun Princess, Sea Princess andDawn Princess, plus the popularity of thecruise line with Aussies has also promptedregular guest appearance from the cruise line’slargest ship, Diamond Princess. “We’re really fortunate to have Diamondcome in and join Sun, Sea and Dawn, and I’ll beputting my hand up for it to come more oftenthan not in the future,” he said, adding thatPrincess Cruises is determined to build onAustralia’s burgeoning love affair with cruising. “We’ve now got our own team in Australia,with its own sales department [which cameinto effect yesterday], to take us to that nextstep,” he said. “The challenges in this market, whilst theyare challenging, are also very exciting,” headded. Meanwhile in terms of popular cruisingspots, it seems Australians are not only fallingin love with regional cruising around Australia,NZ and the Pacific, but also with voyagesfarther afield, with Stuart confirming that thecompany’s 104 night World cruise from Sydneyin 2014 has proved a big hit with locals inparticular.

The landmark voyage is the first world cruisedeparting roundtrip from Sydney to visit SouthAmerica, and will include maiden calls in Peru,Ecuador and Easter Island. Sailing onboard Dawn Princess the cruise willalso include an optional overland excursion toMachu Pichu as well as a voyage through theiconic Panama Canal. MEANWHILE, Stuart also confirmed thatconstruction of Princess’ 17th ship, RoyalPrincess, is coming along to schedule, withshipyard workers putting the final touches onthe lady before her big debut in June. The first Princess newbuild in five years,Royal will begin her life in the Mediterraneanbefore heading to the Caribbean. To learn more about Princess Cruises seeyour local travel agent, or visitwww.princess.com.

MSC’s Grand Voyages MSC Cruises has unveiled two grand voyagefly-cruise holidays including a 25-night Red SeaRenaissance Grand Voyage aboard MSC Armonia(from $4,369); and a 38-night Arabian NightsGrand Voyage aboard MSC Lirica (from $5,824pp). The fly/cruise packages begin with flightsfrom Australia on 24 Oct 2013, and once inEurope, the Red Sea Renaissance cruisedeparts roundtrip from Venice to Kotor, Corfu,Dubrovnik, Heraklion, Marmaris, Port Said, Sharmel Sheikh, Safaga, Eilat, Aqaba and Sokhna. Meanwhile the Arabian Nights Grand Voyagebegins in Genoa and calls at Civitavecchia,Messina, Marmaris, Limassol, Haifa andZakynthos before returning to Genoa. The MSC Lirica then returns to Rome, beforeventuring to Valetta, Piraeus, Port Said, Muscat,Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Al Fujayrah and Khasab. See msccruises.com.au.

Princess eyes Australian growth

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Caledonian Sky makes maiden visitAPT's newly acquired 110-passenger expedition cruiseship has arrived in Sydney forthe first time. CALEDONIAN Sky made its maiden visit toSydney Harbour on Sunday following a 25-daycruise starting in New Zealand for passengersfrom the UK. The event was marked by Sydney PortCorporation's traditional presentation of aplaque to ship operator, Australian-owned APT. APT's General Manager Marketing, Debra Foxreceived the plaque and hosted groups ofagents, media and staff on tours of inspection. “It feels like a private yacht or a fine countryclub,” she said. In June last year, APT invested in the NobleCaledonia cruise company and its specialistsships Caledonia Sky and Island Sky. Caledonia Sky is the main ship featured in

APT's Luxury Small Ship Expedition Cruises2013-14, specifically created for the Australianand New Zealand market for cruises coveringthe regions of Indonesia, Papua New Guinea,Australia's Kimberley coast, and Japan whilethe Island Sky offers a circumnavigation of Cuba. Each departure is a one-off, which thecompany says makes the APT expeditionprogram the most specialised on the seas. Caledonia Sky is equipped with a fine diningrestaurant, lounges and sun decks. It visits smaller ports where big ships cannotstop because of their need of greater facilitiesand infrastructure. Passengers can also undertake excursions atthe same time because it has 10 onboardZodiacs, with expeditions led by marinebiologists, historians, geologists,anthropologists, explorers and botanists. Five different cabin styles are offered, and eachsuite is at least 216 square feet, which is almosttwice the size of suites on standard big ships.

The stars come out to shine in Sydney onboard Celebrity Solstice LAST week Celebrity Solstice played host tocelebrities and philanthropists alike at aglittering McGrath Foundation event to raisemoney for McGrath Breast Care Nurses incommunities right across Australia. The evening began with pre-dinner drinks atthe ship's Lawn Club, and was followed upwith dinner in the ship's specialty diningrestaurant, Tuscan Grille, where Foundation

Friend and TV personality, Johanna Griggs, emceed as guests ate a sumptuous dinner, while ‘TheVoice’ finalist Darren Percival crooned soulful tunes and entertained guests with skills not seenon TV, from beat-boxing to Louis Armstrong impersonations. Pictured (from left) is: Adam Armstrong (Commercial Director, Celebrity Cruises Australia), KyleaTink (CEO, McGrath Foundation), Sara McGrath, Glenn McGrath AM (Chairman McGrath Foundation),Clare Sellers, Basil Sellers AM, Ken Moran (Board Director, McGrath Foundation), Tracy Bevan(Foundation Ambassador & Director), and Terry Brown (Board Director, McGrath Foundation).

Cruise Weekly’s cruise calendar detailsupcoming port calls of passenger cruiseships at various destinations in Australia.

DARWINSea Princess Wed 13 MarRadiance of the Seas Thu 14 MarDiamond Princess Fri 15 Mar

BRISBANEPacific Jewel Sat 16 MarSun Princess Mon 18 Mar

CruiseCalendar

MELBOURNECarnival Spirit Thu 14 MarDawn Princess Sat 16 MarMarina Sun 17 MarOosterdam Mon 18 Mar

SYDNEYMarina Wed 13 MarPacific Jewel Thu 14 MarOosterdam Sat 16 MarPacific Jewel Mon 18 MarQueen Mary 2 Tue 19 Mar

HOBARTCarnival Spirit Sun 17 MarCarnival Spirit Tue 19 MarMarina Tue 19 Mar

BURNIECarnival Spirit Sat 16 Mar

CAIRNSCaledonian Sky Thu 14 Mar

Still time for Uniworld deals CRUISERS still have some time to make useof Uniworld’s program offering discounts of upto $1500 per couple off select departuresacross Europe and up to $650 per couple onselect Asia departures, with the cruise lineextending the deal until 31 March. As such, to take advantage of the deal, cruisers need to book and pay their deposit by 31 March,on itineraries ranging from eight to 27 days. Reduced prices start from $3,265pp for aneight-day Venice and the Po River voyage. See your travel agent for details.

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Tuesday 12 March 2013

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Dreaming in the Caribbean CARNIVAL Dream has had her 2014/15Caribbean line-up out of Port Canaveral spicedup with new five, seven and eight nightitineraries. Marking the first “short” Caribbeanitineraries sported by one of Carnival’s Dream-class ships, the two five-day voyages willdepart between May 2014 and March 2015,and will call into ports including Key West,Nassau, Freeport and Grand Turk; whilst thenew once-a-month four-port seven-day cruiseswill include stops at Grand Turk, San Juan, St.Thomas and Nassau. Meanwhile the eight-day itineraries includea three-port Southern Caribbean voyage whichstops at Aruba, Curacao and Grand Turk; aswell as an eastern Caribbean itineraryfeaturing visitsto St. Maarten,Tortola, St.Thomas andGrand Turk. Pictured right:Carnival Dream

Regional ports prepare for futureGeelong, Cairns, Newcastleand Hobart are among thecities stepping up ship access,facilities and activities forcruise passengers. SMALLER cities around Australia are jumpingon the cruise bandwagon with new ways toentice world-class ships, according to CruiseDown Under, an organisation representingregional ports and tourism bodies. Geelong, in Victoria, has committed $5m tothe redevelopment of Yarra Street Pier to makethe arrival and docking process safer and easier. At present, visiting ships use a swing mooringand have to tender passengers ashore. The proposal provides adequate berthing forlarge ships and involves dredging an approachchannel to enable access to the new pier. The Royal Geelong Yacht Club has alsopledged $2.5 million for the project, while thecity's council is lobbying the State and FederalGovernment to fund the balance. The City of Greater Geelong anticipates thenumber of cruise ships visiting the region togrow to 25 annually by 2025. Cairns has also commenced a shippingchannel expansion project, which will seeshipping access to the port expanded to cater

for mega cruise ships up to Voyager Class by 2016. The project will widen the existing 90mchannel to 140m and increase its depth from8.3m to 9.4m, while also improving the wharfstructure. In NSW, Newcastle Port Corporation recentlycompleted a dredging program that hasincreased the depth of the cruise berth to9.7m, which will allow the berth to be moreaccessible to the larger cruise ships nowdeployed to the Australian region. A new 'meet & greet' initiative this cruiseseason has also seen the introduction of an ArtBazaar held at Newcastle Museum specificallyfor cruise ship visits. In NT, Darwin has doubled its capacity toreceive cruise ships, with a $21minfrastructure upgrade to the Stokes HillWharf, which is now able to accommodateships up to 30,000GT and 200 metres long. Stokes Hill Wharf housed the original DarwinCruise Ship Terminal until Fort Hill Wharf wasopened in 2008. Passengers arriving at Stokes Hill Wharf canuse a coach rank, shuttle bus pick-up anddrop-off as well as the local restaurants andcafes. Tourism Victoria has also put together newitineraries in the Yarra Valley aimed at familiesand in Mornington Peninsula and Daylesfordfor high-end passengers.

IF you love B.B King then Eurodam’s for you! The smooth sounds of the legendary B.B.King will soon be heard aboard HollandAmerica Lines’ Eurodam, with the launch ofthe vessel’s new B.B. King's Blues Club. Between now and 20 June, the Club willtransform Eurodam’s Queen's Lounge into avibrant blues musical experience five nightseach week, with guests entertained by aneight-piece band backed by a drummer,bassist, guitarist, sax player, trumpet playerand Hammond B-3 organ player. The Club will also be decorated withportraits of King and other musical legends.

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Cruise Weekly is Australia’s favourite online cruising publication.In production since 2007, Cruise Weekly is published each Tuesday,with a further travel industry update each Thursday.Cruise Weekly is free and is sent to subscribers via email as an AdobeAcrobat PDF document.Sign up for a free subscription at www.cruiseweekly.com.au.PO Box 1010, Epping, NSW 1710Phone: 1300 799 220 Fax: 1300 799 221

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APT MS Caledonian Sky- Transportation to Van Diemans Landby: Roderick Eime

Caledonian Sky in Coles Bay, Tasmania Guests explore Maria Island Zodiac operations at Flinders Island

“Sit down now!” “Don't step onto the boat until you are told to doso!” “Give me both hands first!” Such are our stern orders as weprepare to go ashore at Maria Island, one of Tasmania's gruesomepenal sites off the east coast of the 'apple isle'. Whoa-betide anyclumsy lubber who should fail to observe these directions. No, we are not re-enacting a chapter from “For the term of hisnatural life” and our instructions are not being delivered by somesavage cat-o-nine-tails wielding overseer, but rather our diminutiveZodiac driver keen to ensure her self-loading cargo is stowedpromptly without incident. I shouldn't wince at the directness, as I'msure the guests making this short journey 150 years ago received farless polite requests. I am aboard MS Caledonian Sky, formerly Hebridean Spirit, arecently refurbished expedition vessel and one of the eight compactRenaissance class ships that include the former Orion II, Island Skyand Sea Spirit. Most have had numerous names and lives with atleast as many masters but they have proven themselves perfectlycapable in delivering at the soft end of expedition cruising. Several of the expedition team I have met on previous ships,reinforcing the 'small world' of adventure cruising but my biggestsurprise is to find Australian Capt Frank Allica back at the helm afterlast sailing under his charge on Orion II. “She's been much better maintained than Orion II,” Capt Frank tellsme candidly as we sit for a coffee out on the sun-drenched LidoDeck, “and not had such a hard life.” His relaxed demeanour speaksvolumes. The MS Caledonian Sky accommodates a maximum of 114passengers in 57 spacious outside suites across seven categories, 23

with private balconies. Many have walk-in wardrobes and somefeature bathtubs, making them deserving of the 'luxury' title. Thereare two restaurants, a Club, small gym, library, clinic, salon andlounge/lecture room across five decks. The significance of this vessel's arrival in Australian waters is itsnew position in the Noble Caledonia fleet and the 85th anniversaryof APT, the Australian family-owned business which bought astrategic stake in Noble Caledonia this year. Formed in 1991, Noble Caledonia operates river cruises, expeditioncruises, small ship cruises and land tours in 15 world regions,including Antarctica and the Arctic with seven vessels hostingbetween 50 to 160 passengers. Noble Caledonia owns two vesselsand operates the others on long-term charters, marketing itsholidays to a predominantly UK clientèle. A point made clear by themake up of passengers aboard this itinerary, the AntipodeanOdyssey, a journey beginning in Wellington NZ, crossing the Tasmanand culminating in Sydney after visits to Hobart, Port Arthur, WineGlass Bay, Maria Island, Flinders Island and Melbourne. FromSydney, she continues to Cairns, West Papua, Indonesia, Borneo, thePhilippines, Taiwan, Japan, Kamchatka, Alaska and Vancouverwhere she arrives in July. For comparative purposes, these itineraries are approx AU$750 perperson, per night twin share (without airfares) and includes wine,beer and soft drinks with meals, all excursions, taxes and gratuities.Extras include premium drinks and minibar outside meal times,espresso coffee and Internet (GBP12 for 100mins). For details of future sailings see your ICCA agent, contact 1300 278278 or see www.aptouring.com.au.