Sam's Sea Stories

One of the most frequent questions I get asked when trying to arrange the right cruise for my clients is regarding dress codes. Some are still under the impression that all cruise lines are overly formal and likewise some believe certain cruise lines have let standards slip when it comes to attire on board.

With the recent closure of travel industry giant Thomas Cook, I thought I’d take a look back to a time that truly showed Thomas Cook as the pioneers of cruising as we know it today. Not a lot of people know that while it never operated its own cruise ships, like recent days competitor Thomson Holidays, Thomas Cook nevertheless had a significant impact on the early days of cruising. From organising its first cruise to Norway’s North Cape in 1875, using the chartered Norwegian barque President Christie, to organising full World Cruises from 1925. In 1880, not long after its first North Cape cruise, Thomas Cook found itself promoting cruises from New York to Bermuda, the West Indies, and Canada.

MSC Magnifica will be sailing from the UK In 2021. The Italian cruise giant will be offering EX UK sailings solely for the British market meaning facilities, entertainment and food will be geared specifically towards UK guests. MSC has always had incredible ships though the one main bugbear of many clients trying MSC for the first time was the fact they offer such a European style of cruise, this is hardly surprising being an Italian cruise line, but with the Magnifica 2021 programme, this shouldn’t be an issue.

We all know how important it is to have adequate travel insurance in place, not only for when we go on holiday, but also from the time of booking as this can cover monies paid in the unfortunate event of cancellation. I did wonder how many people book standard travel insurance when going on a cruise, as opposed to specific cruise insurance.  With that in mind I thought I’d share a few pointers which may shed a little light on the subject.

Azamara Cruises, in partnership with PerryGolf, will offer a total of 24 worldwide golf voyages, including play at more than 70 marquee courses in 23 countries, as part of its upcoming 2020/2021 itineraries.

With our American cousins having recently celebrated National Nude Day on July 14^th, Carnival cruise lines have just announced some fantastic news. The Big Nude Boat 2021 will be expanding its nude cruise to a full two weeks, offering more attire free fun in the waters of the Caribbean!

The massive growth in the cruise holiday market has naturally led to a more and more diverse customer base, cruise lines have recognised this fact are increasingly aware of the needs of its differing clientele. Onboard dining being one of the main priorities when it comes to customer expectations being met, and overall enjoyment of the cruise experience, NCL for one have decided to launch a new menu option on all of its ships.

Bruges has become the latest European city to limit cruise passenger numbers in a bid to control “over-tourism”. The popular Belgian city plans to limit the number of ships moored at any one time and will be encouraging lines to visit on weekdays, rather than weekends.

Residents in Venice have again taken to the streets in protest following the recent MSC Opera incident. On Sunday 2nd June, the 65,500-ton MSC Opera, a 54-meter high and 275-meter long liner, was approaching a passenger terminal on the Giudecca Canal when it hit the dock and a nearby ferry after a technical problem. Footage of the incident showed passengers who had been waiting at a wharf in San Basilio-Zattere fleeing for safety as the huge ship, its horns blaring, crashed into the much smaller, moored “River Countess,” which had 110 people on board. Several tourists were slightly injured in the accident at San Basilio-Zattere, port authorities said.

The winner of arguably the world’s best job has been announced. Following 37,000 applications, the successful candidate who will embark on a three-week all-expenses-paid world tour on behalf of Royal Caribbean has been chosen. In February, Royal Caribbean launched an Instagram competition to recruit a Cruise Shore Explorer to travel to far-flung destinations including Alaska, Japan and Norway, capturing incredible imagery and uploading them to social media.