Cruise
Remastered Queen Mary 2 Makes Boston Debut
Queen Mary 2 gave a royal welcome to Boston’s top Instagram dogs, Nacho (@NachoDogg) and Bear (@KnoxandBear), who recently enjoyed the new kennels on the remastered ship at Boston’s Black Falcon Cruse Terminal. Cunard’s flagship ocean liner sailed into Boston to debut its significant refit costing in the region of US$132 million. The luxury liner has been remastered with new contemporary interior designs and guest experiences, many of which take their design inspiration from the original Queen Mary, which debuted into service 80 years ago. As the only passenger vessel to carry...
Agents Big Winners With GLP Worldwide
GLP Worldwide has completed a series of “Travel Insider” events in Vancouver, Cambridge, Ont. and Toronto with one lucky agent in each city winning a grand prize of a cruise. Attending agents learned about GLP Worldwide’s new and completely revamped lineup of customized programs, as well as GLP’s new website and agent portal. Prize winners were: Vancouver, Rita Telford, Travel Best Bets, Treasures of Panama & Costa Rica; Cambridge, Sandy Matthews (pictured), Expedia Cruiseshipcenters, Jewels of the Cyclades; and Toronto, Jamal Nasir, Canadian Globetrotters, Canary...
Tauck Boosts Travel Agent Support
Tauck is helping travel agents navigate the crowded and sometimes confusing European river cruising market with new sales materials that spell out the differences between its river cruises and those offered by other lines. In addition, the company is encouraging agents to gain first-hand experience on its river cruises (and land tours) by enhancing its “Agent Rewards” travel incentive program. The Tauck sales materials are contained in a three-piece mailing comprised of a River Cruising Sales Guide, a poster highlighting Tauck's cruise innovations and exclusive-to-Tauck onshore...
Carnival Corporation Reports Record Q3 Earnings
Carnival Corporation & plc has reported a net income of US$1.4 billion, or $1.93 diluted EPS, for the third quarter of 2016, the strongest quarterly earnings in the company's history. Revenues for the third quarter of 2016 were US$5.1 billion, US$0.2 billion higher than the US$4.9 billion in the prior year. Carnival Corporation president and chief executive officer Arnold Donald noted, “We delivered the strongest quarterly earnings in our company’s history affirming our ongoing efforts to expand consumer demand in excess of measured capacity increases and leverage our...
ACV Partners With Celestyal Cruises
Air Canada Vacations (ACV) has teamed up with Celestyal Cruises to offer seven-night air-inclusive packages out of Montego Bay. The program, run onboard the Celestyal Crystal, starts on Nov. 18 and runs until the end of December 2017 with sailings taking place every Friday. Travel agents’ clients will have a chance to experience a true Cuban vacation as the itinerary includes two days in Havana, a day in Punta Frances, a day in Cienfuegos, a day in Santiago de Cuba and a day at sea. All packages include flights, seven-day cruise, three included shore excursions, onboard meals,...
Savoury Sailings
Holland America Line's (HAL) culinary programming is heating up with the introduction of new shipboard cooking shows produced in partnership with the long-running public television show America’s Test Kitchen (ATK), arguably the most popular and well-respected how-to-cook show on TV, reports Michael Baginski in this week's digital edition of Canadian Travel Press. Announced at a press conference at the New York's Institute of Culinary Education on Sept. 20, the new culinary program is part of a US$300-million fleet-wide investment that is “only just beginning,” says Holland...
Fleet Expansion
The American Queen Steamboat Company – which is the owner and operator of the American Queen and American Empress – has announced that the new American Duchess will join the U.S.-flagged fleet in June 2017. Construction begins soon on a recently purchased American-made hull that will become the third vessel of the Memphis-based company. The all-suite American Duchess will be the first purpose-built boutique paddlewheeler offering the river cruiser an intimate experience through America’s heartland. The 166-guest American Duchess follows in the pedigree of the line’s...
HAL Gets Cooking
Holland America Line (HAL) is turning up the heat on its culinary programming with the introduction of new shipboard cooking shows produced in partnership with the television show “America’s Test Kitchen.” HAL's shipboard Culinary Arts Center will be transformed to replicate the television set. Designed specifically for the cruise line, the shipboard shows will be hosted by Holland America chefs trained by America’s Test Kitchen culinary experts. Shipboard cooking demonstrations and hands-on workshops – with topics ranging from shaping Asian dumplings to making the perfect...