Updated News from Orient Lines
Norwegian Cruise Line, Star Cruises and Orient Lines Announce Changes in Fleet and Deployment
MIAMI--Sept 20, 2001--The Norwegian Cruise Line/Star Cruises Group today announced details of changes to its deployment plans for 2002:
The brand new Freestyle Cruising ship, Norwegian Sun, scheduled to sail in the Mediterranean from May through October 2002, will instead spend the summer in the Caribbean where she is already more than 75% full for the Spring;
SuperStar Aries, which was due to transfer from the Star Cruises fleet into Orient Lines as Ocean Voyager in May 2002, will now remain with Star Cruises in Bangkok and her introduction into Orient Lines will be delayed until Spring 2003;
S/S Norway, which was to have been swapped into Star Cruises in exchange for SuperStar Aries, will now remain in the NCL fleet for a further year and will return to her Miami base in time for Christmas this year after a dry docking and refurbishment in Europe;
Norwegian Sky, currently scheduled to take over the Eastern Caribbean run from Norway, will instead offer an alternating Eastern/Western Caribbean itinerary between January and March 2002, as Norway moves back into her traditional Eastern deployment.
The changes have been made in response to travel agent demands for a year-round Caribbean product from NCL, as well as in anticipation of a likely shift in travel patterns of North American consumers over the coming months.
Norwegian Sun, which is one of two new purpose-built Freestyle Cruising ships being delivered to NCL this fall, has been booking extremely well in her Exotic Western Caribbean deployment and there have been internal discussions on the pros and cons of canceling her 2002 inaugural Mediterranean season in order to keep her in the Caribbean year-round.
"We returned home last week from taking delivery of Norwegian Sun and showing her off to our top travel agent partners,'' said Colin Veitch, president and CEO of NCL. "The response was extremely positive and we were pressed to put this innovative product into the Caribbean as soon as possible. The terrible events in New York and Washington the day after we returned home then tipped the balance in our internal discussions. We have decided to build on our traditional Caribbean base rather than deploying this new ship on seven-day Mediterranean cruising, in such uncertain times.''
With this addition to its North American based fleet in 2002, NCL will offer seven-day round-trip cruises on a regular basis from eight different U.S. and Canadian ports (Boston, New York, Miami, San Juan, Seattle, Vancouver, Honolulu, Maui); more than any other cruise line.
The delayed introduction of Ocean Voyager is to allow Orient Lines' management to focus on its two existing ships, Marco Polo and Crown Odyssey, which will both spend much of 2002 in Europe.
"The willingness of our North American passengers to travel overseas is something we will be watching closely over the coming months,'' Veitch said. "In the meantime, we believe we are acting prudently in postponing the introduction of a third ship to Orient Lines.''
The return of the much-loved Norway soon after her intended "farewell' transatlantic cruise, is a result of the postponement of Ocean Voyager's transfer from Star Cruises. It had been intended that Norway would either take over the Bangkok run of SuperStar Aries (Ocean Voyager) or a slot opened by one of the Singapore ships repositioning into the Bangkok slot. This will not now happen, and rather than try to develop a new home port in Asia, Star Cruises has agreed that NCL should operate the ship for another year in a market where she is known and well accepted.
"Judging from my mailbag and e-mail in-box, there are a lot of people who were very sad to see Norway leaving Miami. It's my hope that a lot of people will be happy that Norway can offer what we should call a second farewell season,'' Veitch said. "Just think of her as the cruise equivalent of Frank Sinatra!''
Norway will return to service on December 23, 2001, offering seven- day Eastern Caribbean cruises from Miami on a Sunday departure, calling at St. Thomas, St. Johns, St. Maarten, and NCL's private Bahamian island, Great Stirrup Cay.
Norwegian Sun will offer seven-day Western Caribbean cruises from Miami on a Saturday departure calling at Grand Cayman, Roatan, Belize City and Cozumel.
Norwegian Sky, currently scheduled to fill the Eastern Caribbean slot on Saturday from Miami left open by Norway, will instead move to an alternating Eastern/Western Caribbean rotation of seven-day cruises combinable to 14 days. This change will occur January 26, 2002 and continue through the March 30, 2002 departure.
Details of prices and itineraries for these new deployments will be communicated to travel agents within the next few days, and will be included in the 2002/2003 Caribbean brochure due out shortly. All new itineraries will be on sale beginning Monday, Sept. 24, 2001.
Groups and individuals booked on those Norwegian Sky alternating Eastern Caribbean cruises, which will now become Western, will be offered the opportunity to remain booked on the new itinerary or to switch to the Norway's eastern cruise the following day, or Norwegian Sky's Eastern Caribbean itinerary the previous or following week.
Miami-based Norwegian Cruise Line is an international cruise company and industry innovator that currently operates a fleet of nine ships sailing to more than 200 ports around the world. NCL is currently building two new ships: Norwegian Star, a 2,200-passenger ship that will be NCL's largest (delivered in October); and Norwegian Dawn, a 2,200-passenger sister ship to Norwegian Star (delivery in December 2002). For further information on NCL, contact a travel agent or NCL in the U.S. and Canada at (800) 327-7030; in Miami-Dade County, Florida, (305) 436-0866; visit NCL's web site at www.ncl.com or on AOL at keyword: NCL.
Orient Lines' U.S. headquarters is located in Fort Lauderdale, Fl., while its operation center is based in London. A global network of sales agents sells Orient Lines to local markets. For information about CruiseTours aboard Marco Polo and Crown Odyssey, contact a travel agent, Orient Lines at (800) 333-7300 or visit their web site at www.orientlines.com
ORIENT LINES TO OPERATE AS PLANNED
Needless to say, we at Orient Lines are all deeply saddened by the recent events which have tragically unfolded in New York, Washington and Pittsburgh and extend our deepest sympathies to those affected by these acts of terrorism. As a result, Orient Lines has elevated security on board our ships to their highest levels.
Throughout this ordeal, passengers aboard Marco Polo and Crown Odyssey are monitoring the news in the U.S. via CNN. Orient Lines provided free on board telephone and e-mail service so that American and Canadian passengers can keep in touch with family members and friends.
Passengers who were originally scheduled to depart the United States this week for European CruiseTours have been offered a choice of either a new sailing in October or future cruise credit. We will continue to review our itineraries in the coming weeks, as warranted, to ensure the safety and comfort of our passengers.
The safety of our passengers has always been our highest priority. It is not the policy of Orient Lines to discuss security practices taken on board our ships, however, in view of the incidents in the U.S., the following steps were taken and will continue to be followed as part of the company's overall security effort:
- Guest visitors are not permitted on board.
- Passengers are required to carry proper photo identification to board our ships.
- Carry-on luggage/bags are hand-searched.
- Luggage, packages and provisions brought on board are checked.
- Security personnel are stationed at all points of entry to our ships.
- While in port, our ships are reviewed by Zodiac craft in the harbor.
These are truly somber times but it is extremely important for all of us to not let the actions of terrorists completely disrupt the American way of life, our economic system, or our personal freedom of choice.
And, as air travel resumes around the nation, Orient Lines will be working closely with its passengers, air partners and ground operators to resume our CruiseTours as planned. Passengers booked from the U.S. for European cruises departing through Monday, September 17, may postpone their cruise to an October departure or receive full credit toward a future cruise. Existing company policies, terms and conditions will apply to CruiseTour passengers departing the U.S on or after September 17, 2001. For more information, call 800-333-7300.
Public Announcement--Worldwide Travel Caution
Coast Guard Port Updates
Full News: September 10-15, 2001:
-
Carnival Cruises Scheduling Update 9/15
-
Crystal Cruises Update 9/14
-
Orient Lines Statement: to Operate as Planned
-
P & O and Princess Cruises United States Update 9/14
-
Operational Update from American Classic Voyages
-
Cunard Announces Altered Schedules for QE2 & Caronia
-
Royal Caribbean Moves Back Departure Times for all Weekend Sailings
-
CELEBRITY CRUISES Moves Back Departure Times for Some Weekend Sailings
-
Renaissance Cruises Official Statement - 9/14/01
-
NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE OFFERS TRI-STATE RESIDENTS OPPORTUNITY TO POSTPONE CRUISES - 9/14
-
Renaissance Announces Cruise Cancellations
-
Pacific Princess Update 9/14
- Golden Princess Update 9/14
-
Black Falcon (Boston) Cruise Terminal Travel Advisory
-
HAL Makes Alternative Arrangements for Ryndam Passengers
-
Crystal Substitutes Baltimore for September New York Turnaround
-
Carnival Operations Update - 9/13/01
-
Carnival Cancellation Policy
-
NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE VOYAGES WILL SAIL AS PLANNED
-
NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE ALTERS NORWEGIAN SEA ITINERARY
-
ROYAL CARIBBEAN INTL & CELEBRITY CRUISES PROVIDE SPECIAL CANCELLATION POLICY
-
CELEBRITY CRUISES' ZENITH TO USE THE PORT OF BALTIMORE FOR ARRIVAL & DEPARTURE OF BERMUDA CRUISE
-
Free Travel Information At SmarterLiving.com For Travelers
-
Golden Princess Update
-
Renaissance Cruises Update for Booked Passengers
-
HOLLAND AMERICA LINE CANCELS 9/13 SAILING OF WESTERDAM
-
RADISSON SEVEN SEAS STAYS THE COURSE & OPERATES AS SCHEDULED
-
Costa Cruises Statement
-
CELEBRITY CRUISES TO USE MID ATLANTIC PORTS FOR ARRIVAL & DEPARTURE OF BERMUDA CRUISES
-
ROYAL CARIBBEAN INTERNATIONAL AND CELEBRITY CRUISES PLANNING NORMAL CRUISING SCHEDULES-Update 9/12/01 9:00 pm
-
ROYAL CARIBBEAN INTERNATIONAL TO USE PORT OF PHILADELPHIA FOR ARRIVAL & DEPARTURE OF BERMUDA CRUISES
-
P&O Cruises, Princess Cruises & Swan Hellenic Issue Statement
-
Royal Caribbean Intl & Celebrity Cruises Plan Normal Cruise Schedules
-
FAA Issues Flight Information Update
-
Carnival Cruise Lines Operations & Spirit Itinerary Updates
-
Princess Cruises Update Confirming the Safety of All Ships & Golden Princess Itinerary Change
-
Renaissance Cruises Official Security Statement
-
Radisson Seven Seas Tightens On Board & Port Security
-
Disney Cruise Line Sailings To Continue As Scheduled
-
Crystal Cruises Security Bulletin
-
Carnival Cruise Line Update
-
Celebrity Cruises Cancels Summit Pre-Inaugural Events
-
Royal Caribbean & Celebrity Expect to Remain on Schedule
-
Update from Princess Confirming Safety of All Ships
-
CSA Travel Insurance Update Regarding Coverage
-
Holland America Line & Windstar Cruises Ships Heighten Security
-
Security On Royal Caribbean Intl & Celebrity Cruises Vessels
-
Orient Lines' OCEAN VOYAGER Sets Planned Itineraries
-
Seabourn's "Pure Pampering" Program adds Molton Brown Therapeutic Bath Menu & Amenities to their all-suite Yachts
-
United States Lines Unveils New Early Booking Bonus Program for Hawaii Cruises
-
Notes From the SS Norway at Sea--Updated 9/12/01
Please Note: CruiseDiva.com is a non-commercial web site in that it receives no advertising support from cruise lines or travel suppliers.
