New ships sailing from the UK next year

Celebrity Cruises have announced that they will be locating a second ship in the UK next  year whilst Carnival will be positioning their first ship in the UK since they pulled out in 2008.

Celebrity have seen great success with Celebrity Eclipse which has sailed from Southampton for 3 years now (I don’t think I’ve ever read a bad review) and now they are adding Celebrity Infinity also sailing from Southampton.

Celebrity Infinity is a mid sized ship at 90,228 gross tons and she has just been ‘Solisticized’ – a make over which gives her the same facilities as Eclipse, Equinox and Solstice. She will offer a range of 10, 11 and 12-night itineraries to include Norwegian Fjords, British Isles and European wine cruises and  she will be the only 5* ship to sail from Harwich. The only other ships that sail from here being Royal Caribbean’s Jewel of the Seas, Voyages of Discovery’s MV Discovery and Thomson Spirit. Harwich just out of interest is the only port with a dedicated station at the terminal and it is served by a dedicated train from London’s Liverpool Street Station, which makes it really accessible.

Meanwhile Carnival Legend is going to based in Dover and like Celebrity will be offering the Norwegian Fjords and British Isles cruises and but also the Baltics and the Mediterranean. Carnival hasn’t had a great presence in Europe in recent years but is very popular in the States and the Caribbean with the American market. They do have Carnival Breeze offering sailings from Barcelona this summer which are selling to the British really well so I’m looking forward to being able to offer Carnival to people wanting to sail from the UK again.

Princess are also bringing another ship to the UK, although just for 3 sailings. The new Royal Princess which launches in June 2013 is offering 2 3 night cruises from Southampton on the 10th and 13th June. She then starts her maiden cruise from Southampton on the 16th June, heading out to Iberia.

I think it’s fantastic that there are going to be more ships sailing from the UK. It’s such a great way to holiday, there is no major rush to get there, ships sail late afternoon and lunch is served on board so you can leisurely check in and relax. There’s no problems with luggage either, you can pack as much as you’d like and there’s no hanging around airports and rarely are there delays.

Now whilst 2013 itineraries and slowly being announced prices are out yet but are due at the end of next month. If you would like any information on 2013 cruises just get in touch with me and I can contact you just as soon as the brochures / prices arrive.