Holland America Line’s ms Ryndam comes out of dry dock

Holland America Line’s ms Ryndam recently sailed with several new enhancements on its seven-day western Caribbean cruises sailing from Tampa, Florida.

The premium ship just completed a 17-day dry dock in Freeport, Bahamas, and now features the new, stylish lounge called Mix, a sophisticated Showroom at Sea with several new productions, the complimentary Italian eatery Canaletto, and a complete new stateroom and bath design.

“We are in the midst of an extensive and exciting phase of our Signature of Excellence enhancements program,” said Richard Meadows, CTC, executive vice president, marketing, sales and guest programs at Holland America Line. “As the most recent ship to receive the new public areas and soft goods, the Ryndam looks wonderful and our guests will feel like they are sailing on a new ship.

The industry-leading Signature of Excellence initiative is an ongoing and comprehensive program that touches every aspect of the Holland America Line experience and the investment now exceeds $525 million.

Signature of Excellence features and amenities offer guests more luxurious accommodations, enhanced dining experiences, more enriching activities and exceptional levels of service.

Some of these improvements include new carpeting, soft goods and completely renovated bathrooms with new vanities and cabinetry in all staterooms, more experts and expanded education and entertainment options, a new Italian restaurant called Canaletto,

For more about Holland America Line visit Prow's Edge Cruise Magazine for the profile of the cruise line at www.prowsedge.com/cruise-lines-holland-america-line.html

For a cruise brochure or for more information, consult a professional travel agent, call 1-877-SAIL-HAL (877-724-5425) or visit www.hollandamerica.com.

Around the World in 335 days

Just three days ago, Cruise West’s maiden world voyage aboard the 60-suite Spirit of Oceanus set sail from Singapore on March 6, 2010, with 71 guests (including two solo travelers who are participating on the entire 335-day circumnavigation) and 72 crew.

Not quite around the world in 80 days - but the facilities are a lot more spendid!

At the start of the cruise, guests were welcomed to a special gala at the legendary Raffles Hotel on March 5 that included the hotel’s signature Singapore Sling cocktail, entertainment by a traditional Chinese orchestra, a mystical fortuneteller accompanied by a parrot with ‘divination’ capabilities, a warm welcome by Captains Reidulf Maalen, Malcolm Scanlan and Boris Tsvetkov and a sumptuous dinner featuring Singaporean and Malaysian cuisine. In addition, each guest received a monogrammed fan with hand painted Chinese calligraphy of his or her name, ending the evening with a city tour by night via Trishaws. Concluding the festivities on embarkation day, March 6, was a champagne toast and a colorful, raucous Lions Dance, said to be an auspicious way to begin such an extraordinary series of voyages.

Captain Maalen remarked, “This is truly a grand moment for the Spirit of Oceanus, her guests and her crew. No other line, big or small, has endeavored to circumnavigate the world in 335 days. I am thrilled to be at the helm of five of the 24 voyages and be a part of making history.”

The first of 24 distinct voyages, a Southeast Asian journey, will travel for 15 nights from Singapore to Chennai, India, making stops at Malacca, Malaysia; Georgetown, Penang; Langkawi; Phuket and Kho Yao, Thailand; Similan Islands; Rangoon, Myanmar; and the Andaman Islands en route to Chennai. This is not an ordinary voyage – guests will enjoy exclusive and fascinating included excursions, further exploration of remote islands via Zodiac and presentations by expert guest lecturers.

There’s still time to book one or multiple segments of the 2010 or 2011 world voyages that range from 9 – 18 nights. Each meticulously crafted itinerary from Asia to the Mediterranean, Europe to the Americas and throughout the South Pacific offer the most discerning and well-traveled guests an array of distinctive choices and authentic experiences. Savings are still available. To book a Cruise West voyage for your client or for more information call 1-800-689-1783.

For more information about Cruise West take a look at the Cruise West profile at Prow's Edge Cruise Magazine at www.prowsedge.com/cruise-lines-cruise-west.html or take a look at the official Cruise West web site at www.cruisewest.com/

When is a cruise brochure not just a cruise brochure?

New brochures come and they go – they inspire potential passengers and fuel their dreams – and then they find their way to the trash can! Few of them really stick out from the crowd.

Until now - that is.

The recently revamped Azamara Club Cruises brochure does indeed stand out from the crowd.

“Our new destination guide (brochure) was designed to break through the clutter and say, ‘We’re something different,’ particularly through photography,” said Azamara Club Cruises President & CEO Larry Pimentel.

“Upmarket retailers – particularly during the holidays – tend to produce materials in unique sizes, with dramatic photography and design schemes,” said Pimentel. “We concluded that having a unique size was one of the key reasons something got noticed first. So, we opted to follow suit.”

Azamara recruited five students obtaining their Master of Fine Arts degrees in photography at the esteemed San Francisco Art Institute and booked each to sail on Azamara Journey to conduct an extensive shoot in photojournalistic style.

“The results were nothing short of stunning,” said Pimentel.

The front cover exhibits a series of die-cut holes revealing brand-inspired phrases, while the back of the book features a pocket for insertion of itinerary summaries, deck plans, and other materials produced in a variety of languages for tailored use around the world.

Already, the popular cruise-trade publication, Cruise Week, has produced a column focused on Azamara’s new destination guide, as has the respected Seatrade Insider. Travel Professionals also have expressed enthusiasm.

At 11”x17” the new Azamara Club Cruises’ destination guide initially seemed a little too big for some travel professionals, but in almost every case, they soon realized why, and appreciated what it’s designed to do! “This brochure was intended not as a mass market piece, but a ‘class market’ piece, to strongly convey our brand’s upmarket position,” said Pimentel. “We designed this piece to help Travel Professionals convey what Azamara Club Cruises is all about. ”

To obtain a printed copy of the new Azamara Club Cruises destination guide, consumers are invited to call 1-877-999-9553. Travel Professionals are encouraged to dial 1-877-222-2526. Or, to download an electronic version of the guide, visit the Azamara Club Cruises web site at www.azamaraclubcruises.com, and click “brochure.”

For more information about Azamara Club Cruises take a look at the recently updated Prow's Edge Cruise Magazine profile about the cruise line at http://www.prowsedge.com/cruise-lines-azamara-cruises.html

Unusual "Concierge Collection" Shore Excursions from Windstar

For a long time, here at Prow's Edge, we've been vocal about some of the shore excursion "rip-offs" – like the Sitka, Alaska bus tour for $100 in which you spend more time loading on the coach (and off again) than you do on the tour itself which you can do just as easily on foot from the cruise ship gangway.

This is why it's good to see new innovations in the shore excursions on offer these days, like the 33 Concierge Collection excursions Windstar is showcasing in Croatia, France, Monaco, Greece, Italy, Spain and Turkey. Due to the intimate style of these excursions, they are limited to small parties. Some of the really unusual New Concierge Collection excursions include:
• Roman Ferrari Adventure in Rome, Italy: Drive a Ferrari F430 Spider F1 along the legendary Mille Miglia
• Watercolors with Antonia Ruskovic in Dubrovnik, Croatia: A painting lesson with a well-known Croatian watercolorist
• Galimard Perfumery in Monte Carlo, Monaco: Guided tour of perfume museum and exclusive workshop to create a unique fragrance presented in a 100ml decorative bottle
• Bike Ride on Lucca’s City Walls in Lucca, Italy: A bike ride around the city, high atop the city walls with a guide viewing Lucca’s famous monuments, gardens and highlights
• Bodrum Castle with Underwater Archaeology Expert in Bodrum, Turkey: Tour the Castle of Bodrum with an underwater archaeology expert to view the castle’s Underwater Archaeology Museum and 1000-year-old Glass Shipwreck exhibit
• Sailing on Caldera Lake in Santorini, Greece: Board a traditional sailing vessel to explore the volcanic crater islands of Nea Kameni, Palea Kameni and Thirassia.

For full details on all the new shore excursions on offer from Windstar Cruises visit the latest news page at Prow's Edge at www.prowsedge.com/cruises-news-050310-windstar-cruises.html

For more information about Windstar Cruises visit the recently updated profile at Prow's Edge Cruise Magazine at http://www.prowsedge.com/cruise-lines-windstar-cruises.html

Reduced airfare for cruises throughout in Europe with MSC

MSC’s newly released airfare program features reduced airfare for cruises throughout the Mediterranean onboard MSC Magnifica, the latest fleet addition, MSC Splendida, MSC Fantasia, and MSC Musica. Airfare prices start from just $369.

Cruise itineraries include:

• MSC Magnifica, “Turkish Treasures and Croatian coasts” from Venice; calling in Bari, Italy; Katakolon (Olympia), Greece; Izmir, Turkey; Istanbul, Turkey; and Dubrovnik, Croatia. Departures July 3 - November 13, 2010.

• MSC Splendida, “The Splendid Mediterranean” Western Mediterranean cruise from Genoa and Rome, Italy; calling in Marseille, France; Barcelona, Spain; La Goulette (Tunis), Tunisia; Valletta, Malta; Messina (Taormina), Sicily, Italy; and Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy. Departures May 15 – November 6, 2010.

• MSC Musica, “Greek Islands in the Sun” Eastern Mediterranean cruise from Venice; calling in Bari, Italy; Katakolon, Greece; Santorini, Greece; Mykonos, Greece; Piraeus/Athens, Greece; Corfu, Greece; and Dubrovnik, Croatia. Departures May 9 – October 3, 2010.

• MSC Fantasia “Mediterranean Fantasy” Western Mediterranean cruise from Genoa, Italy, and Barcelona, Spain; calling in Naples (Capri), Italy; Palermo, Italy; La Departures May 9 – November 8, 2010.

Cruises can be combined with airfare only or airfare and hotel. Airline departures are from Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) in New Jersey. Overnight hotel stay is recommended due to cruise arrival times, and can be booked through MSC or on your own.

For more information, visit www.MSCCruisesUSA.com, or visit the newly updated Prow's Edge Cruise Magazine profile for MSC Cruises at www.prowsedge.com/cruise-lines-msc-italian-cruises.html

Celebrity Eclipse Comes Out Into The Open

A lot of people are excited about the next eclipse of the sun due to stun everyone on July 11 this year, but this month, there's another eclipse to excited about – the Celebrity Eclipse!

The third in Celebrity Cruises' stylish, $3.7-billion Solstice Class fleet, Celebrity Eclipse showed off her sleek profile Sunday as she emerged for the first time from the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany.

Celebrity Eclipse will enter service April 26 and, following two "short break" cruises, will offer a series of Canary Islands, Scandinavia/Russia and Spanish Mediterranean sailings roundtrip from Southampton, England. The new vessel will present Caribbean cruises roundtrip from Miami beginning in November.

For more information about Celebrity Cruises visit the updated profile of Celebrity Cruises at Prow's Edge Cruise Magazine at http://www.prowsedge.com/cruise-lines-celebrity-cruises.html

More News About New Cruise Ships for MSC As MSC Signs Letter of Intent For Yet Another Cruise Ship

Just three days after the MSC Magnifica flag ceremony at the STX Europe shipyard in Saint-Nazaire (France), MSC Cruises signed a letter of intent for the delivery of yet another new ship in June 2012, to join the eleven new vessels built over the past seven years.

MSC Cruises’ worldwide CEO, Pierfrancesco Vago, said, “We are immensely proud to announce the signature of a letter of intent for the building of a new ship, MSC Favolosa.”

The general manager of STX Europe, Jacques Hardelay, said, “We look forward to implementing our expertise to again fulfill the promise of exceptional quality, deliverability, and design for MSC Cruises."

Measuring 1,094 feet in length and 125 feet wide, MSC Favolosa will have 1,751 staterooms and be able to travel at speeds of up nearly 24 knots.

Award-winning naval architects De Jorio Design International is once again designing the newest addition to the Fantasia class, technically called V32. The ship will herald a state-of-the-art concept in space management. Two additional lifts to improve flow of the guests and a total redesign of decks and restaurants to offer guests on board unprecedented comfort and the highest space ratio per guest.

For more information about MSC Cruises visit the newly updated Prow's Edge Cruise Magazine profile for MSC Cruises at www.prowsedge.com/cruise-lines-msc-italian-cruises.html

Another New Cruise Ship for MSC Cruises

MSC Cruises has officially taken ownership of its newest ship, MSC Magnifica, from the STX Europe shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France.

MSC Cruises’ worldwide CEO Pierfrancesco Vago, said, “MSC Magnifica’s delivery brings the fleet to 11; our capacity has increased 10 times in just seven years to reach 1.2 million passengers this year – an unprecedented rate of growth.”

Although the numbers are important, MSC Cruises has earned worldwide recognition for its industry-leading innovations in ship design.

STX Europe’s general manager, Jacques Hardelay, said, “We are honored that STX France has once again contributed to the growth of the most modern cruise fleet. This new cruise ship illustrates the excellent and exceptional collaboration between Saint-Nazaire and MSC Crociere teams.”

After an inaugural visit to Southampton dedicated to England next weekend, MSC Magnifica will begin her pre-christening cruise from Saint-Nazaire on Monday, March 1 calling at Cherbourg, Dover, and Amsterdam before reaching the port of Hamburg for the official christening ceremony on Saturday, March 6.

Screen legend Sophia Loren once again serves as the ship’s godmother, and participates in the ribbon cutting.

When the new ‘Musica’ class vessel comes into service in March 2010, the MSC Magnifica will carry 2,518 passengers, most of them enjoying the luxury of a sea-facing cabin with private balcony. Lucky guests on MSC Magnifica will be expertly looked after by a crew of over 1,000.

For more information about MSC Cruises, visit www.msccruisesusa.com, call 877-665-4655, or contact a local travel professional.