The Lyubov Orlova is once again under tow - this time - by the offshore supply vessel the Atlantic Hawk.

The Hawk latched onto the former Russian cruise ship Wednesday around 6:15 p.m.

It was successful in pulling the vessel away from offshore oil installations.

The Hawk and the Orlova are heading north, and are approximately 90 kilometres north of the Sea Rose platform.

Husky Energy operates the Atlantic Hawk. A spokeperson from the company said they will continue towing the Orlova until Transport Canada makes a decision about the vessel's final destination.

Husky said it isn't clear at this point, who will be footing the bill for the operation.

Source: CBC News

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China's first luxury cruise liner ready to make waves

China's first luxury cruise liner, the Henna, left the southern resort island province of Hainan for her maiden voyage on Saturday, marking what experts say is a major breakthrough for the cruise industry.

The three-day, two-night voyage saw the vessel travel from Sanya Phoenix Island International Port to Halong Bay in Vietnam. A further 39 voyages to Vietnam are planned for its first cruise season, from January to April.

"Buying the Henna as the country's first luxury cruise ship has historic meaning, not only for the company but also for the country," said Zhang Hao, president of HNA Tourism Cruise and Yacht Management.

It marks the opening of the domestic cruise business and indicates a booming market potential, with annual cruise industry growth reaching more than 8 percent since the 1980s, much stronger than the global tourism industry's 4 percent, according to the China Cruise and Yacht Industry Association.

The association said China received 262 international cruise ships in 2011, a year-on-year increase of 17.5 percent, and 504,582 cruise travelers.

Faced with this booming market, the National Tourism Administration set 2013 as National Ocean Tourism Year. The State Council, China's cabinet, also wrote cruise industry development into the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15) on marine economy development.

"The timing is good and we are taking the opportunity to be the first Chinese company to enter the cruise market," Zhang said.

The Henna was built in 1986 for Carnival Cruise Lines, a British-American-owned cruise line, and was originally called the Jubilee. The vessel was bought by the Chinese company in July from Pacific Sun P&O Cruises Australia for hundreds of millions of US dollars and refurbished at Sembawang Shipyard in Singapore, Zhang said.

He added that such a huge investment for a newcomer to the industry is a risk, but said the more than 70 percent booking volume for the Henna's maiden voyage has given the company confidence in potential demand in China.

The vessel, which is 223 meters long and 31 meters wide, has 739 cabins as well as a full range of living and entertainment facilities. About 1,200 passengers were on board for the maiden voyage.

They included Fang Yangzhao, a 69-year-old traveler from Guangdong province, who could not hide his excitement. "It's a good way to feel the charm of the ocean," he said.

According to cruise industry records, about 50 percent of passengers are aged between 20 and 40, while journeys are priced from 1,688 yuan to 15,888 yuan ($270 to $2,520).

To attract Chinese clients, HNA has made a series of adjustments to the Henna, such as including electric kettles in rooms, fitting out a mahjong room, and serving Chinese dishes.

The crew is more like an international family, with workers from around the globe all under the management of Star Cruises, the world's third-largest cruise line.

After its first season, the Henna will sail to Tianjin for its second season, which runs from May to October, with 40 four- to five-day voyages arranged around the Korean Peninsula.

Zhang said Chinese cruise liner routes are mainly based on short-term needs and short distances, and that HNA expects to introduce a second ship within three years.

"We'll open routes to Taiwan and Hong Kong when conditions are right," he said.

World-class port:

The cruise industry has been a hot topic for authorities, according to Hu Yueming, deputy director of the Hainan Tourism Development Commission. He said the province will accelerate development of the industry and build Hainan into a world-class mother port.

Sanya Phoenix Island International Port is in its second phase of construction, which will make it able to accommodate four cruise liners: one weighing 225,000 metric tons, one of 100,000 tons and two of 150,000 tons. Total investment is more than 1.6 billion yuan, according to the provincial tourism plan.

He Zhineng, deputy director of the Tianjin Tourism Bureau, said the cruise industry has great potential, and that the Henna's debut will bring a dramatic change to the domestic market.

In the 12th Five-Year Plan on marine economy development, authorities vowed to boost the industry and improve cruise transport in coastal areas including Dalian, Tianjin, Qingdao, Shanghai, Xiamen, Shenzhen and Sanya.

Although the central and local authorities sent positive signals to the industry, regulations and general market planning still need to improve, Zhang at HNA said.

"The cruise industry is just starting in China, and there is no general development plan or comprehensive regulations for companies to follow," he said.

Zheng Weihang, vice-chairman of the China Cruise and Yacht Industry Association, told a conference in July that the National Tourism Administration plans to draw up a development plan for China's cruise industry, which will include setting pilot cities and other fundamental work, such as expert training.

By Huang Yiming and Wang Qian in Sanya, Hainan (China Daily)

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An empty Russian cruise ship was drifting toward the open sea off Newfoundland as questions mounted about its safety and why a tugboat was allowed to haul it out of the St. John's harbour in the middle of winter.

The Lyubov Orlova, a 237-passenger vessel about 100 metres in length, has been adrift since its tow line snapped in rough weather last week as it was pulled to the Dominican Republic for scrap.

Transport Canada says it ordered the tugboat Charlene Hunt back to St. John's over safety concerns and was inspecting it.

Department spokesman Steve Bone said Transport Canada, the coast guard, the Natural Resources Department and the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board were working together on the Lyubov Orlova.

In an email, he said operators of offshore oil rigs in the area have implemented contingency plans to deal with potential collisions from floating objects, such as icebergs and vessels that have lost power. He did not elaborate on what actions those contingency plans include.

Bone said the Lyubov Orlova was about 270 kilometres southeast of St. John's on Tuesday night.

About 40 km from Hibernia platform:

A source said Tuesday evening that the ship had drifted about 40 kilometres from the Hibernia offshore oil platform, which is about 315 kilometres southeast of St. John's, and a supply boat was headed to the Lyubov Orlova to keep watch.

ExxonMobil Canada could not be reached for comment on the Hibernia platform.

Bone also played down the environmental risk posed by the drifting ship, saying the coast guard "advises that there is virtually no risk of pollution from the Lyubov Orlova."

The owner of a vessel "is always responsible for its movements," he added.

The ill-fated Lyubov Orlova was named for the beloved Russian actress best known for the 1934 comedy "Jolly Fellows." It was a popular Arctic cruise ship before Canadian authorities seized it in St. John's in September 2010 as part of a lawsuit by Cruise North Expeditions against its Russian owners. The company was trying to recoup cash for the cost of a trip it cancelled due to technical problems.

The ship's mostly Russian crew, who hadn't been paid for months, was stranded in St. John's for six weeks as local residents offered everything from food to cigarettes to Internet access. The Russian government eventually helped fly most of the workers home.

The increasingly derelict, listing ship sat in the harbour for more than two years. She was bought last year by Iranian scrap merchant Hussein Humayuni for $275,000 in a Federal Court process in Montreal.

The St. John's Port Authority confirmed that Humayuni hired the Charlene Hunt to tow his ship to a scrapyard in the Dominican Republic. He was in the capital of Santo Domingo on Tuesday and could not be reached.

The long journey started last Wednesday but halted the next day when the tug cable snapped. Efforts to reattach it failed, and Transport Canada ordered the Charlene Hunt back to St. John's on Sunday.

It isn't clear if it will return to try again.

Mac Mackay, a longtime ship watcher and marine blogger in Halifax, questions why the Charlene Hunt was tasked with pulling the Lyubov Orlova — especially in January's turbulent seas.

Mackay cites another major incident 17 months ago in the waters off Nova Scotia.

The MV Miner ran aground on Scaterie Island off Cape Breton on Sept. 20, 2011, while being towed to a scrapyard in Turkey. Federal and provincial officials have since pointed fingers at each other over who should pay for the cleanup.

"If the Lyubov Orlova does pile up on the shore, it'll be interesting to know whose responsibility it is to clean it up," Mackay said. "If it sinks in the ocean ... there's bound to be some pollution.

"It really is a drifting accident waiting to happen."

Jacqueline Savitz is deputy vice-president of U.S. campaigns for Oceana, billed as the largest international group focused solely on ocean conservation. She called for quick action by Canada if the ship's owner won't step up.

Besides the risk of collision if the vessel drifts into shipping lanes, there's significant environmental risk if it sinks, she said.

"This ship probably still contains lots of toxic chemicals, electronics, oil probably. Those are all things we want to keep out of the ocean."

Source: The Canadian Press

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Powered by a new owner, new leadership, and $18 million of renovation, Windstar Cruise’s three ships are sailing again with vim, vigor, a contemporary interior, and a batch of new sails that total the size of seven football fields.

Windstar’s energetic president and CEO, Hans Birkholz, said that bookings for 2013 are up 60 percent over 2012, and that the cruise line is looking to expand. Birkholz said that means additional ships, coming soon, though the vessels may be without sails.

After a week in the Caribbean on the spruced-up flagship, Wind Surf, I can say that Windstar is back among ships in the upper premium cruise market. The style, atmosphere, food, service and energy aboard easily equaled — and surpassed — those of the same ship when I last cruised on Wind Surf in the Med in 1998.

Vacations on a sailing ship are a tiny portion of the cruise business. But the sailing market niche is deep, attracting a worldly bunch of soft adventurers — riding the waves with a glass of wine instead of toiling on deck — to the masted fleets of several companies, including Windstar, Star Clipper, and Sea Cloud.

Passengers who prefer this upscale casual style of cruising, entertaining themselves with the romance of moving about the seas with the winds (their capriciousness tamed by motors when necessary), tend to return, over and over again, to the handful of small sailing vessels that ply such destinations as the islands of the Caribbean and Mediterranean.

A few years ago, business was slipping for Windstar Cruises, a major line with a premium past. In the 1990s and into the last decade, Windstar was known as a place for barefoot elegant vacations and honeymoons, especially for second marriages. Then, Windstar’s three ships — two carrying 148 passengers and one with a capacity of 300 plus — faded a bit, and industry watchers wondered about their future. In a cruising world where small ships boast of fine bathrooms and fancy alternative restaurants, older vessels either improve or slip away from top markets.

Windstar, acquired in 2011 by Xanterra Parks & Resorts, a subsidiary of Anschutz Corp., has managed to refurbish its three ships by restoring and improving an upscale atmosphere, without overdoing it, eschewing a luxury style that might ruffle the sensibilities of sailing vessel passengers.

Wind Surf feels more comfy yacht club than exclusive country club.

New owners have spruced up the main restaurant, now called AmphorA, its only nod to pretense a capital A on either end of the name, though Birkholz said that with a classier atmosphere he now sees more collared shirts on men in the dining room.

Windstar has hired an executive chef, changed menus, added a French bistro to Wind Surf, and has moved to a softer touch in design and fabrics throughout the ship, with sand and marine colors. “And we put down a lot of wood,” said Birkholz.

Windstar makes efficient use of its of refurbished cabin space, 188 square feet on Wind Surf, the only ship with a deck of suites that were formed in renovation by making two cabins into one, opening about half the wall between the two. The result is a one-bedroom suite with sitting room, two full bathrooms, two desks and plenty of storage.

“They hit a home run with the renovations. It’s a sexy product,” Vanessa Lee, president of a travel agency, Toronto’s Cruise Strategies, told TravelMarketReport.com during an interview on Wind Surf.

When sails unfurl and the ship cranks up music from Ridley Scott’s 1992 movie about Christopher Columbus, 1492: Conquest of Paradise, you get goose bumps, said Lee. “That is what Windstar is all about, the freedom (to use the ship like a private yacht) and the goose bumps.”

Windstar crews are mostly Indonesian. Passengers tend to be worldly and weathered. You don’t see much jewelry or elegant duds, so it’s hard to tell among the mix of casual sailors who belongs to a fancy yacht club at home, who owns a simple sloop, and who merely prefers to vacation for a week or more on an upscale sailing ship that pulls into small, less trafficked ports — at a price generally ranging from $300-$400 a day per person.

Two Windstar ships — Wind Surf and Wind Spirit — are in the Caribbean this winter, and the third, Wind Star, is sailing between Panama and Costa Rica. All head for the Med in the spring. Itineraries recently were adjusted to provide special experiences at destinations, and Windstar is working on vacation packages on either end of the voyages.

By David G. Molyneaux, TheTravelMavens

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A derelict ship that has been taking up space on the St. John's waterfront for nearly two and a half years has finally left port.

The Lyubov Orlova, an abandoned cruise ship, had its last line to the wharf cut at about 12:30 p.m., and was towed out of the harbour by a tugboat shortly afterwards.

The tow rope broke on Thursday, just one day after the decrepit ship was towed out of St. John's harbour.

Sea conditions had improved overnight, but the winds Friday morning were still about 35 km an hour and the waves were up to three metres high.

A DFO spokesperson said the crew of the tugboat that had the old cruise ship under tow will try to reconnect the line today.

The Lyubov Orlova will be towed to the Dominican Republic, where it has been sold for scrap. The voyage should take three to four weeks.

The ship was arrested in St. John's in September 2010 after a creditor put a lien on the vessel.

A Russian company, Locso Shipping, owned the 90-metre Orlova. At the time of the ship's arrest, the Russian-based company owed Cruise North Expeditions $250,000. The company also owed 51 crew on the vessel more than $300,000 in wages.

Since 2010, the abandoned ship has been sold and resold, all the while being moored on the St. John's waterfront.

Reza Shoeybi, owner of a tugboat from Boston, arrived in St. John's in early December to prepare the Orlova for towing, and has been waiting for five to six weeks for the right conditions in which to move the vessel.

Source: CBC News

A French sailor who had spent three days adrift in a life raft in the Southern Ocean off the coast of Tasmania in Australia has been rescued.

A cruise ship picked up Alain Delord on Sunday, said a spokesman for the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.

The yachtsman was attempting a solo round-the-world voyage when he ran into trouble on Friday, 500 nautical miles off Australia's island state.

The mast on his yacht broke in rough weather forcing him to abandon it.

The BBC's Nick Bryant in Sydney says Australian authorities were able to drop food, water and a survival suit to the 63-year-old, but his location was too remote for a helicopter rescue.

Mr Delord was uninjured and said to be in reasonable spirits, he adds.

The cruise ship Orion was on its way back from the Antarctic when it answered the distress call, making a 50-hour diversion to pick him up.

The experienced French sailor's personal website shows that he was following the route taken by the Vendee Globe race, but was not a registered competitor.

The race, founded by French sailor Philippe Jeantot in 1989, is held every four years.

Competitors race from France and then around the world in the seas around the Antarctic.

It is seen as a test of human endurance.

In 1997 Frenchman Thierry Dubois and Briton Tony Bullimore were both rescued by the Australian navy after running into trouble in the Southern Ocean during the race.

Source: BBC News Asia

One of the world's most luxurious expedition cruise ships was damaged over the weekend by rough seas while on a voyage to Antarctica.

Silversea Cruises says four crew members of the 132-passenger Silver Explorer sustained minor injuries during the event, which took place on Jan. 12 in what the line describes as heavy weather.

The ship is returning to Ushuaia, Argentina, where it began the 18-night trip to Antarctica earlier this month, and the line says the rest of the voyage is being canceled. Silversea also has canceled the Jan. 21 sailing of the vessel.

Silversea has not released details of the damage to the ship but says the vessel has full power and control, with stabilizers in good working order.

RELATED: Silversea Cruises simplifies fares

PHOTO TOUR: Look inside a Silversea ship

"The safety and security of our guests and crew is always our paramount concern," Silversea says in the statement sent to USA TODAY. "All 133 guests and 113 crew members are safe; no guests were injured but four crew members received minor injuries and were treated in the ship's Medical Centre."

Silversea says passengers on the vessel have been able to keep in touch with families at home via the ship's Internet.

The line says it expects the Silver Explorer to re-enter service Jan. 31.

By Gene Sloan, USA Today

Call it the end of an era at MSC Cruises.

The line on Monday announced the retirement of the 30-year-old MSC Melody — its oldest and smallest ship.

Dating to 1982, the 1,098-passenger Melody in recent years has been an outlier at a line that otherwise boasted all new vessels. Originally built for Home Lines as the Atlantic, the ship also sailed for Premier Cruise Line before joining the MSC Cruises fleet in 1997.

The retirement is effective immediately.

"The decision to withdraw one of its first and most traditional cruise ships reaffirms MSC's focus on cutting-edge service and reflects the company's continued desire to offer travelers the highest standards in product innovation and the maximum in comfort, elegance and technology across the entire fleet," the line said in a statement.

With the retirement of the Melody, MSC now has 11 ships, all of which have made debuts since 2001. Another MSC ship, the 3,502-passenger MSC Preziosa, is scheduled to begin sailing later this year.

MSC says it is offering a wide range of alternatives for customers who already had booked a cabin on the Melody for the coming summer season.

"Over the next few days these passengers will all be contacted, either directly by the company or through partner travel agents, and informed about all possible options including an upgrade on board one of the other beautiful ships in the MSC fleet," the line says.

A spokesperson for the line tells USA TODAY the Melody has been listed for sale at Lloyd's.

By Gene Sloan, USA Today

A second cruise liner hit by the norovirus vomiting illness has arrived back in the UK.

The Azura docked in Southampton yesterday morning and was leaving later for a 12-night Christmas cruise to the Canaries.

P&O Cruises said: "There has been an incidence of a mild gastrointestinal illness among the passengers on Azura.

"This illness is suspected to be norovirus, which is highly contagious and typically transmitted from person to person.

Norovirus is common throughout the UK, Europe and North America and has affected a number of schools, hospitals, nursing homes and children's day care centres."

The ship had been on an 11-night Iberia cruise. There were 3,059 passengers on board, of whom ten are known to be suffering symptoms.

Another P&O liner, the Oriana, was dubbed "a plague ship" after it was struck by the virus.

The ship, which carries 1,843 passengers, returned to Southampton yesterday from a 10-day Baltic cruise and left last night for a 23-night cruise in the eastern Mediterranean.

Scores of passengers were laid low by the virus.

During the cruise, passenger Paul Gilman, 62, told the Daily Mail: "People were falling like flies, yet the crew were trying to insist everything was fine.

"Everyone is saying, 'this is a plague ship'. It's a living nightmare."

Birmingham City Hospital yesterday told visitors to stay away after it was forced to close three wards due to the norovirus infection.

Other hospitals have also taken to Twitter to caution visitors and potential patients.

Doncaster and Bassetlaw Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust tweeted: "Please don't visit hospital until at least 2 days after last symptoms of vomiting diarrhoea norovirus Stay home, rest & take fluids."

Recent figures from the Health Protection Agency (HPA) show that more than 750,000 people could be affected by the outbreak of norovirus that has swept the UK.

There have been 2,630 confirmed reports of norovirus so far this season, but for every reported case there are likely to be a further 288 unreported sufferers, the HPA said.

It means 757,440 people could be affected by the stomach bug - representing a 72% increase on the same period last year.

The infection has led to the closure of dozens of hospital wards.

Norovirus is highly contagious and can be transmitted through contact with an infected person or contaminated surfaces and objects. It is known to spread rapidly in closed environments such as hospitals, schools and nursing homes.

Symptoms include sudden vomiting, diarrhoea or both, a temperature, headache and stomach cramps.

The bug usually goes away within a few days.

Although people can suffer from norovirus at any time of the year, activity increases in the winter months, with most cases seen between October and April.

By Telegraph Reporters, The Daily Telegraph

• Around 400 passengers left quarantined in their cabins due to norovirus
  
• Seniors officers on P&O liner accused of 'lying' about extent of virus
  
• Ship due to port in Southampton where passengers are threatening action
  

Hundreds of ‘mutinous’ passengers aboard a cruise ship ravaged by the winter vomiting bug are planning a sit-in protest when it returns to port today.

Travellers on the P&O cruise liner Oriana are furious after some 400 were left quarantined in their cabins with norovirus.

They claim many sick passengers had to queue for hours to see the ship’s doctor before being rudely ordered to stay in their cabins. They said the liner turned into a ‘plague ship’, with restaurants operating only limited service and an overwhelming stench of vomit below deck.

One traveller, who had to be treated by the ship’s doctor, was told he had racked up more than £1,000 in medical bills.

Passengers accused senior officers of ‘lying’ about the extent of the norovirus problem and failing to address their concerns.

Last night the ship, with 1,843 passengers on board, was returning to Southampton. It is due to leave again with a fresh intake of passengers at 5pm.

But dozens of the current passengers, many of them middle-aged and elderly, say they will stage a sit-down protest on their arrival at the port over the way the ten-day Baltic cruise has been run.

One elderly female passenger said: ‘We’re going to stage a sit-down or a protest of some form on board the liner before we get off.

‘We’re all respectable middle-class travellers of a certain age. I have never been on a protest in my life but this trip has infuriated me.

‘People are angry because they had an outbreak onboard on the previous cruise and there are questions over whether it should have gone to sea so quickly afterwards.’

Paul Gilman, 62, a retired accountant, said: ‘The captain has jokingly told us we shouldn’t storm the bridge but there has been huge discontent on this cruise and there is a wave of support for further action.’

Graham Hodgson, 68, added: ‘There has already been a meeting of 300 passengers on board who were all determined something should be done. People will certainly be letting P&O know what they feel about the whole thing when they get into port.’

Passengers are furious that the cruise was allowed to go ahead even though dozens of passengers had been taken ill on with norovirus on its previous voyage.

They say the ship must not have been properly cleaned – something the company strenuously denies.

Elizabeth Dobson of Sheffield, who was on the previous cruise around the western Mediterranean, said: ‘It was awful. There were so many people on board who were sick. When I heard this latest cruise had suffered it I was not surprised.’

Oriana has been on a ten-day cruise to the Christmas markets of northern Europe and docked at Zeebrugge (Bruges), Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Oslo and Hamburg before returning to Southampton. Passengers paid up to £1,429 for a balcony cabin, £949 for an outside view cabin or around £799 for an inside cabin.

Oriana passenger Mary Smith, 67, died three days after disembarking in 2009 after she became ill on board with suspected norovirus.

Southampton Port Authority said an inspection of the Oriana would be carried out after cleaning to ensure it had properly managed its outbreak plan. It said 378 passengers and 25 crew had fallen ill.

A spokesman for Carnival, the parent company of P&O Cruises, said no one on board would have to pay their medical expenses.

By Jaya Narain, Daily Mail Online

A judge in the U.K. on Wednesday dismissed a much-ballyhooed lawsuit against Thomson Cruises over an early wake-up call on one of its ships, a U.K. news outlet is reporting.

In a case that made international headlines, David Bookbinder, 71, of Derbyshire, England had sued for a full refund for his Red Sea cruise on the Thomson Celebration after being forced to get up before 5:00 a.m. on the day of a stop in Israel to clear immigration.

Bookbinder argued that while the ship's staff told passengers the early wake-up call was necessary so they could be interviewed by Israeli immigration officials, it really was a ploy to sell more shore excursions for the visit, the Daily Telegraph says. But the judge in the case on Wednesday wasn't buying his claim that the wake-up call was unnecessary and had caused a level of stress that ruined his vacation, the news outlet says.

The early wake-up call "may have been inconvenient for ... passengers, but it was not a breach of contract," the Telegraph quotes the judge as saying.

The judge ordered Bookbinder to pay half of the court costs incurred by travel agency Thomas Cook, which also was named in the lawsuit, after saying the case against the company was built on "not so much very thin ice but no ice at all," the Telegraph says.

Bookbinder didn't have to pay Thomson Cruises' court costs, as the judge ruled it wasn't unreasonable that he had sued the line.

By Gene Sloan, USA Today

P&O Cruises is to offer seven Strictly Come Dancing-themed sailings in 2013, following the success of its first two this year.

The cruises will take place between May and October, lasting from 12 to 17 nights, and will visit the Canary Islands or the Mediterranean.

Each will feature Craig Revel Horwood, the judge renowned for his caustic criticism of the hit BBC show’s more rhythmically-challenged celebrity performers, and two of the programme’s professional dancers.

Ian Waite and Natalie Lowe will join next year’s first Strictly-themed cruise – departing from Southampton on May 11 – while James Jordan, Ola Jordan, Pasha Kovalev, Katya Virshilas, Kristina Rihanoff, Robin Windsor, Camilla Dallerup and Darren Bennett will appear on later voyages.

The cruises typically feature performances by the professionals, a live interview with Revel Horwood, and a dance contest for passengers.

Earlier this year Telegraph Travel’s James Bedding joined P&O’s inaugural Strictly Come Dancing cruise, and received the following criticism from the acerbic judge: “You were nervous, stiff, agitated, wooden – as if you had a rod placed firmly up your a--- and you weren’t going to release it.”

The popularity of themed cruises has grown sharply in recent years. Some of the more bizarre options available include The Barge to Hell, an annual five-day sailing to the Caribbean aimed at fans of heavy metal, and the “Cougar Cruise”, offered by SinglesTravelCompany.com and described as “five nights of fun for younger men/older women”.

By Oliver Smith, Telegraph Media Group Limited

A 3,100-passenger cruise ship was damaged this week during a rough crossing of the Bay of Biscay.

Passengers aboard P&O Cruises' Ventura posting at online forums say a crack at least two inches wide opened up high above the water line near the pool deck. A photo at one online forum shows a crack running vertically near the top of the vessel.

A spokesperson for the line contacted by USA TODAY did not respond to questions about the nature of the damage but sent a statement saying it is not structural.

"Repairs will be made to an aluminium deck on Ventura upon arrival in Southampton (UK) today. This has no structural strength or safety implications," the statement said.

The statement said Ventura will leave Southampton later today as planned for a two-night cruise.

By Gene Sloan, USA Today

ROME — An Indonesian cruise ship crew member died of meningitis, nine days after being hospitalised with three colleagues in the western Italian port city of Livorno, health sources said.

Ermandiasa I Gede, 32, died Tuesday despite intensive attempts to save him since he was hospitalised on October 7.

His employer, the Swiss-based MSC Cruises, released a statement expressing its sadness at the news of his death, while praising the efforts of the Italian hospital staff.

According to the company, a 47-year-old Italian cook from the ship was still on life support but his condition had "improved markedly" in recent

A 26-year-old Brazilian crew member and a 32-year-old Filipino had recovered, the MSC statement added.

The MSC Orchestra cruise ship had been sailing in the Mediterranean between Italy, France and Spain when it docked at Livorno in Tuscany and the four crew members were hospitalised with symptoms of meningococcal meningitis, which attacks the brain and spinal cord and is contagious in cases of close and prolonged contact.

Antibiotics were distributed to the 3,000 passengers and other crew members as a precautionary measure.

On Sunday the cruise liner was given the all clear by health authorities after no one else aboard showed symptoms after a week.

Source: AFP

A ceremony marking the steel-cutting for the newest ship for P&O Cruises has been held at the Monfalcone shipyard of Fincantieri near Trieste, Italy.

The largest ship ever built for P&O Cruises and for the British cruise market, the new 141,000 ton ship will be launched in spring 2015.

P&O Cruises managing director, Carol Marlow said: “The cutting of the steel marks the moment the ship goes into production so for us it is a very exciting time as we go from the drawing board to reality.”

The 3,611 passenger ship will offer a stylish and innovative new design and an unprecedented number of passenger facilities, along with many of the brand’s classic and iconic features.

Specifications and new product innovations will be announced at a later date.

For the first time a British design company, Richmond, is overseeing the whole ship’s interiors to incorporate the classic and iconic history of P&O Cruises with modern design and features to appeal to both existing and a new generation of passengers.

Richmond, leading designers in the hospitality industry, have a remarkable portfolio of iconic British hotels, notably The Langham London (flagship of the Hong Kong based Langham Hotels); Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park; and the Intercontinental London.

Marlow continued, “Richmond’s design will make a stunning statement across the entire ship’s interiors.

“Through their ideas they will imbue the ship with a cohesive personality which works across all the public areas including the cabins, cafes, bars, restaurants and lounges.

“Richmond’s designs will add an elegant and timeless Britishness to appeal to everyone who steps on board and will facilitate an excellent evolution of the P&Oness our passengers know and love.”

The keel-laying, which involves the placement in the dry dock of one large section of the ship’s hull and the beginning of the actual ship build, will take place in May 2013.

The ship, yet to be named, will take to the water for the first time at her float out in summer 2014, before her delivery to P&O Cruises in spring 2015.

Source: Breaking Travel News

(CNN) -- Doctors distributed antibiotics to passengers aboard an Italian cruise ship after four crew members were diagnosed with bacterial meningitis, Italy's health ministry reported Monday.

All four were taken to hospitals in the Italian port of Livorno after the crew of the MSC Orchestra reported the illnesses, the ministry said. More than 2,800 doses of the antibiotics ciprofloxacin and rifampicin were issued for passengers, and the ministry said passengers who have disembarked in the past week should take similar precautions.

The 294-meter (965-foot), 2,500-passenger Orchestra is currently in the French port of Villefranche sur Mer, on the outskirts of Nice, and the ministry said Italian authorities have notified their French counterparts. MSC, the passenger arm of Italy's Mediterranean Shipping Company, said it was doing "everything necessary to safeguard the health of its guests and all the crew members."

The crew members were diagnosed with meningococcal meningitis, which attacks the lining of the brain and the spinal cord. The disease is passed by close contact with respiratory secretions or saliva, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.

"The strand was found in the crew that worked in the kitchen and that, therefore, they should not have had continuous and close contact with passengers," the Health Ministry noted. Two of the four cases were identified as Meningitis C.

The cases involve a different disease than the outbreak of fungal meningitis now being seen in the United States. Eight people have died after being injected with steroids contaminated by a fungus, the CDC reported Monday.

CNN Marilia Brocchetto contributed to this report.

Hundreds of people have had their holiday plans ruined after a Southampton, England-based cruise ship suffered a mechanical failure.

Cunard's Queen Victoria has suffered a problem with one of its propulsion units with hundreds of passengers on board and it cannot travel at its top speed.

But it means Cunard has been forced to cancel a 16-night Mediterranean cruise due to depart on Oct. 3 because the ship needs to undergo emergency work to fix the problem in Germany.

It is unknown how many holidaymakers had booked onto the Adriatic Discovery trip, which was set to sail from Southampton and call at Cadiz, Katakolon, Corfu, Split, Venice, Dubrovnik and Malaga.

Tonight the cruise ship operator said all passengers have been contacted and have been offered a full refund or an alternative Cunard sailing.

A spokesman said: "Cunard needs to carry out some essential maintenance work on Queen Victoria and has therefore taken the regrettable but unavoidable decision to cancel a 16 night Mediterranean voyage due to depart from Southampton on October 3.

"The work relates to one of Queen Victoria's propulsion units. Although there are no safety issues relating to this maintenance, it does preclude the ship achieving the speeds required to deliver the voyage itinerary and therefore it is necessary to take the ship out of service for a short period."

Queen Victoria, which launched in 2007 and has 981 crew and a guest capacity of 1,990, is currently in the Atlantic Ocean off Portugal returning from a Mediterranean cruise where it suffered the problems with one of its propulsion units.

Cunard said there is no danger to the passengers currently on board.

The dry-dock work to the ship will take place in Bremerhaven in Germany and the ship will return to service on Wednesday, Oct. 17 with a two-night voyage sailing from the city, a spokesman said.

Queen Victoria will then set out on her 23-night Caribbean voyage as brochured on Oct. 19.

Peter Shanks, MD and president of Cunard, said: "We are very sorry to disrupt our passengers' travel plans.

"We are doing all we can to minimise the impact on our passengers and to help everyone affected find suitable alternative holidays."

By Tara Russell, The Southern Daily Echo

MSC Cruises has announced a number of new children-friendly initiatives.

First, children can now order from the “kid’s menu” at dinner, and, if they finish food earlier than the rest of their family, the kids’ club staff will come and pick them up.

For kids who relish their independence and would love the freedom of eating with their friends, away from the grown-ups and their dull conversations, MSC Fun Time Dinners have been introduced.

With MSC Fun Time Dinners, children in a separate, specially decorated area of the buffet restaurant with the entertainment team, and then have fun in the Mini and Junior Club while parents enjoy a leisurely dinner alone, picking up the kids when they’ve finished.

Every single night of the week, children aged between three and 11 can eat together with the entertainment team and their new friends. Three of these nights are theme parties- a Welcome Party, Italian Party, and Farewell and Birthday Party- while the remaining four are MSC Fun Time Dinners.

Both the MSC Happy Dinners and the MSC Fun Time Dinner services are now available free of charge on all MSC ships. Dedicated to children aged from 3 to 11, parents simply need to register their children in advance with the Mini or Junior Club and fill inthe special ‘dinner coupons’ with their details.

MSC Cruises has also introduced a second nanny-hour to its kids’ club programmes. Every morning from 09.00 to 10.00 and now also from 17.00 to 18.00, MSC offers a special programme designed for babies and toddlers aged 10 to 36 months to spend quality time with their parents with the support of MSC kids’ club staff.

Staff organize dedicated games and activities aimed specifically at MSC’s youngest guests and their parents, including playing with bricks, musical games, baby disco, puzzle games and drawing.

By Cruise Industry News

Silversea guests will soon find their sleep experience elevated to a new level of comfort and luxury with the debut of Pratesi custom-made bed linens.

Founded in 1860 and renowned for creating masterpieces in linens for the Italian and European aristocracy, the legendary Italian linens firm is bringing its high-quality and stylish creations to the beds in every Silversea suite beginning with the September 3 voyage of Silver Spirit, followed by Silver Cloud in November. Pratesi bedding will then be rolled out to the rest of the Silversea fleet in 2013.

The plush new bedding collection, which features 240 thread count, 100% Egyptian cotton satin sheets, pillowcases and duvet covers, will complement an already lavish collection of sleep amenities enjoyed by Silversea guests. These include a memory pillow top and dual-side mattress that can be flipped to provide either soft or firm support, a down duvet, and a pillow menu offering nine different pillow options, from soft down to memory foam, and chamomile or lavender aromatherapy pillow covers.

"Getting a great night's sleep is a priority for luxury travelers," said Ellen Bettridge, Silversea's president of the Americas. "We know many of our guests have luxurious bedding in their own homes, and if they have not yet discovered Pratesi, we're happy to introduce them to this revered Italian brand."

Source: Cruise Industry News

ROME — The captain of the shipwrecked Costa Concordia said in an interview broadcast Tuesday that he was distracted by a phone conversation shortly before the cruise liner crashed into a reef off an Italian island and capsized, killing 32 people.

Francesco Schettino described the collision to private Italian TV channel Canale 5 as a “banal accident” in which “destiny” played a role.

An Italian judge last week lifted Schettino’s house arrest order, but said he must remain in his hometown near Naples during a criminal investigation in which he is accused of manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning the liner while many passengers and crew were still aboard.

Prosecutors have alleged that the Concordia cruised too close to the island in a publicity stunt, and shortly before it rammed the reef Schettino was on the phone with a retired sea captain on Giglio.

“I blame myself for being distracted,” Schettino said when asked about the phone call.

Schettino on Tuesday appeared to want to lessen his role, insisting that another official, and not he, was at the helm of the ship at the moment it rammed the reef.

“At that moment, I went up to the bridge. I ordered the navigation to be manual, and I didn’t have the command. The navigation was being directed by a (lower) official,” Schettino said

“This is a banal accident in which destiny found space right in the interaction among human beings,” Schettino added, apparently referring to the various officials on the bridge involved in the maneuver.

He said that for a captain of a ship, “there is no measure of sorrow” for losing a vessel. However, he said “it’s much less” painful than losing a child — a reference to a young Italian girl who was among the dead.

A court hearing later this month in Tuscany on evidence in the case, including information from the ship’s “black box” data recorder, could shed light on what went wrong and on who or what is to blame, and likely will figure in a judge’s decision on whether Schettino should be ordered to stand trial.

Schettino called the events in the accident “complex,” saying “everyone has his own truth,” about what happened.

In the interview, Schettino again insisted that by guiding the stricken ship to shallower waters near Giglio’s port instead of immediately ordering an evacuation he potentially saved lives.

Passengers described a confused and delayed evacuation, with many of the life boats unable to be lowered after the boat listed to one side. Some of the 4,200 aboard jumped into the Mediterranean and swam to the island, while others had to be plucked from the vessel by rescue helicopters hours after the collision.

Some passengers said they were shocked to see that the captain was already ashore when they were being evacuated. Schettino claims he helped direct the evacuation from the island after leaving the ship.

Work has begun to remove the tons of rocky reef embedded into the Concordia’s hull, a first step in plans to eventually tow the wreck away from the island.

The whole removal process could take as long as a year.