West Coast cruising suffers another blow with Mariner pullout

 

By: Johanna Jainchill

May 03, 2010

When Royal Caribbean International said last week that it was pulling the Mariner of the Seas off its Mexican Riviera itinerary, the blow was painful but familiar to the ports along Mexico’s Pacific coast and in Southern California.

The region will see a major reduction in cruise traffic over the next year.

 

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New Ship Celebrity Eclipse Swaps Launch Celebrations to Support UK Holidaymaker Repatriation Mission

New cruise ship Celebrity Eclipse has cancelled the first leg of her launch celebrations - scheduled to begin on April 22 - in order to assist U.K. travelers whose return from their Easter break has been halted due to the impact of ash clouds from the eruption of the Eyjafjallajoekull volcano in Iceland. Celebrity Cruises is working with U.K. tour operators to collect these stranded vacationers affected by the airport closures and subsequent flight cancellations that have affected travelers in Northern Europe. 

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GET THE ORDERS ROLLING; ‘NEW GETS OLD'

Angela Reale Mathisen & Oivind Mathisen

The Maasdam calls in Saguenay This is a time of contrasts. The industry is introducing ever more amazing ships while raising standards and the bar on product delivery. At the same time, ticket prices are dropping lower than ever due to the economic downturn. We are seeing seven-day Caribbean cruises being offered as low as $399 per person this coming winter; year-end sales; and two-for-one pricing for 2010.

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Terri Burke Joins Cruise Planners

Terri Burke has joined Cruise Planners/American Express as its new senior vice president of relationship marketing. She recently left Norwegian Cruise Line after serving as vice president of business development and industry relations for five years.

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CLIA Committed To The Environment

Fort Lauderdale July 14, 2008 —

Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), the world’s largest cruise industry group, today reaffirmed the industry’s continued commitment to the environment and advanced wastewater treatment management, in response to public statements concerning member cruise line operations in the Baltic Sea. 

In a recent public statement, Mats Abrahamsson, Program Director of the World Wildlife Fund Baltic Ecoregion Program said, “It should be the responsibility of anyone operating a ship in the Baltic Sea to take care of their own wastes in a responsible manner.”

In response, Terry Dale, President and CEO of CLIA, said:

“A recent study conducted by the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland reported that cruise ships contribute only a tiny fraction of the nutrients released into the sea – less than 1 percent.

“CLIA member companies adopted stringent wastewater treatment practices nearly a decade ago, and have operated in accordance with these practices since that time. Additionally, where available and reasonable, ships discharge wastewaters to shore facilities in Baltic Sea cruise ports.  Moreover, many cruise lines have already invested hundreds of millions of dollars in advanced onboard systems that treat wastewater to the highest standards available.

“As an industry deeply committed to the protection of the environment, we look forward to continuing to work with the WWF as well as the ports, the maritime industry, land-based facilities and local government to protect the Baltic for generations to come.”

Dale noted that since 2007, CLIA has worked closely with the WWF to share information and find solutions to the environmental challenges in the Baltic region.  He also called for a collaborative effort to control all sources of nutrients contributing to issues in the Baltic Sea, whether from land or sea.

“A truly effective effort would include farm operations, industrial facilities and municipal wastewater treatment plants, in addition to ports and the maritime industry,” Dale said. 

All members of the Cruise Lines International Association operating in the Baltic Sea – and all over the world – meet or exceed the discharge standards for sewage set by the International Maritime Organization, Dale noted.

The VTT study is available online at http://www.vtt.fi/inf/pdf/tiedotteet/2007/T2370.pdf.

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