Just in case you need a little midweek motivation, this week’s  cruise wrap is BURSTING with parties, pride, awards, famils, deals and pretty pictures for you to scroll through.

Crystal Symphony redesign wins prestigious award for hospitality and design 

The dramatic new look that resulted from Crystal Symphony’s most extensive dry dock ever in fall of 2017 has earned the acclaim of some of the top design experts in the world. In the 2019 AHEAD (Awards for Hospitality Experience and Design), the luxury ship won in the annual awards’ Transport category in the Americas division, citing details from her makeover created by London-based AD Associates.

Design features like blackened steel, aviary-style structures and living walls were crafted in Crystal Symphony’s new Silk Kitchen & Bar – located adjacent to the Trident Grill and serving a fusion of Chinese comfort food – giving it a contemporary and cosy feel accented by natural elements, while the functionality of the space remained paramount.

Scenic sponsor Taste Le Tour with Gabriel Gaté on SBS + new agent famil

Scenic will once again join SBS and Gabriel Gaté as he follows the 21 stages of the Tour de France on a gastronomic journey through Belgium and France, alongside contestants of the famed bicycle race. Along the way, he will share chef insights and learnings about the local produce and prepare some sumptuous French cuisine.

Scenic is the primary sponsor of Taste Le Tour with Gabriel Gaté, which is part of SBS’s coverage of the 2019 Tour de France.

Meanwhile,

Scenic Group is offering agents the opportunity to win a self famil to France as an important part of the July campaign focusing on France River Cruising

To be eligible, agents will need to book and deposit two Europe or France river cruise products on either Scenic or Evergreen between 1 July – 31 July 2019. Then, in 25 words or less tell us why you would recommend a Scenic and/or Evergreen France river cruise to your clients.

Entries will go into the draw to win either a:

• Self famil to France for two in 2020 with Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours: or
• Self famil to France for one with Evergreen in October 2019

Simply log your entry at https://www.scenic.com.au/france-incentive or https://www.evergreentours.com.au/france-incentive

The famil prizes will be drawn on 14 August 2019 and the winning agent will be contacted via email.

#GETONBOARD with Celebrity Cruises for its third annual pride party at sea 

For a third year running, Celebrity Cruises is celebrating Pride Month across the brand’s growing global fleet by hosting its third annual Pride Party at Sea with Olympic medalist Adam Rippon reprising his role as Grand Marshal for the festivities.

Celebrity’s 30 Days of Pride have been ongoing since the first of the month, with a variety of multi-generational LGBTQ+-focused programming happening each day of the week across the fleet. All of this led up to the Pride Party at Sea extravaganza, which took place on ten ships across the brand’s fleet, including Celebrity’s newest ship, Celebrity Edge. Together, Officers, staff and guests around the world have been participating in signature Pride programming such as The Largest Kiki At Sea, Silent Disco Pride, and Pride Art Hour.

Seven Oceans Cruising launches Neptune Booking System

Seven Oceans Cruising is pleased to announce the launch of their new one-stop-shop to book all your cruise needs!

Live now from 1 July 2019 Seven Oceans’ new booking system ‘Neptune’ is based on the Odysseus system and will provide the ability to book cruises online twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. In addition, consultants will be able to add pre- and post-cruise accommodation as well as flights.

To coincide with the launch, Seven Oceans are offering a Neptune Launch Incentive. For every new booking made online through Neptune during the incentive period 01-31 July 2019, Consultants will earn DOUBLE Trip Dollar$. There will be weekly prizes per region within Australia of $150 Trip Dollar$ to the Consultant with the highest number of bookings, and the highest booked revenue.

A lifetime of adventure cruising: Cruise360 to take insight from expedition leader

Expedition cruise specialist Aaron Russ spent his childhood travelling on small ships to the Subantarctic Islands, giving him a lifetime of experience to be shared at this year’s Cruise360 Australasia conference in August.

The General Manager of CLIA Executive Partner Wild Earth Travel, Mr Russ has led more than 100 small ship expeditions to some of the world’s most fascinating destinations and will offer his insight as part of a panel discussion on the current revolution in shore excursions.

Also joining this year’s Cruise360 Australasia conference line-up is Sandy Haberman, the General Manager of Airline & Cruise from travel data specialist and CLIA Executive Partner Sojern. Mr Haberman will provide a unique insight into traveller trends and explain how to use data to engage with travellers throughout their path to purchase.

To be held on Friday August 30 at Hyatt Regency Sydney, CLIA’s 2019 Cruise360 Australasia conference will offer a full-day line-up of expert speakers and panel sessions, as well as a trade show for cruise industry exhibitors. It will be preceded by a dedicated Executive Partner Product and Destination Showcase as well as a ship inspection aboard Princess Cruises’ Sea Princess on August 29.

The B is back and better than ever: U River Cruises unveils new itineraries and destinations for 2020

U River Cruises, the first river cruise dedicated to a new generation of travellers, is excited to announce three new itineraries and the relaunch of The B  for 2020.

Setting sail from April 2020, U’s eight-day itineraries will sail throughout hot spot European destinations such as Vienna, Brussels, Dusseldorf, Salzburg, Bratislava and more.

New offerings on the sailings include added overnight stays, complimentary happy hour every night for guests to socialise, and even more active excursions.

Princess Cruises begins one-year countdown to Enchanted Princess

Princess Cruises has commenced the one year countdown to the launch of its next new ship Enchanted Princess in Southampton on June 30, 2020.

Construction of the 143,700-tonne ship is currently under way in the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy, where it will take a total of three million construction hours to build. On completion, the vessel will carry 3,660 guests and sail from Southampton for an inaugural season in the Mediterranean before heading to the Caribbean in autumn 2020.

Its maiden voyage will be a 10-night sailing to Rome, calling at Bilbao, Lisbon, Gibraltar, Barcelona, Toulon/Provence (La Seyne) and Florence/Pisa (Livorno), departing on July 1, 2020.

Enchanted Princess is the sister ship to Royal Princess, Regal Princess, Majestic Princess and Sky Princess, which joins the fleet in October 2019. Royal Princess was the most recent vessel from the line’s fleet to be named in Southampton, in 2013, by Her Royal Highness, Catherine, The Duchess of Cambridge.

Sun Island Tours’ Croatian Cruising Brochure Out Now! SAVE up to 20 per cent on early bookings

Australia’s top selling Croatian cruise and tour operator, Sun Island Tours has announced the early release of their 2020 Croatian Cruising brochure.

Recording 30 per cent year-on-year growth on Croatian cruises, the company has for this initial release, put together a wide range of itineraries to meet the ever-growing demand from Aussie travellers.

For 2020, Sun Island Tours has an early release of 64 cruise itineraries, almost double compared with last year’s 37 cruises featured in the brochure.

The Allure of Alaska is calling with Norwegian Cruise Line 

Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), the innovator in global cruise travel, is offering cruisers the chance to explore Alaska in 2020 onboard the youngest fleet sailing the region.

From spectacular glaciers to majestic marine life and wild coastal scenery, Alaska delivers a raft of ‘bucket-list’ experiences best discovered by sea. Explore mighty snow-capped cliffs onboard NCL’s newest ship Norwegian Bliss, the recently refurbished Norwegian Joy, Norwegian Jewel or Norwegian Sun, with numerous immersive itineraries available.

P&O Cruises poised to carry two million passengers from Brisbane with biggest ever choice of itineraries in new 2021 program

After an amazing 16 years carrying passengers from Brisbane, P&O Cruises Australia is on the threshold of carrying two million guests from the Queensland capital with the biggest ever new program of itineraries on sale from today.

P&O Cruises’ summer 2021 program features 30 itineraries from Brisbane including longer cruises to idyllic South Pacific islands and Papua New Guinea and themed Short Breaks for a taste of the joys of cruise holidays.

Thousands of guests will be welcomed onboard P&O’s flagship Pacific Explorer, which will be based in Brisbane from October 2020, continuing more than a decade of enabling Queenslanders to cruise from their doorstep in one of Australia’s fastest growing cruise markets.

Along with the enhanced variety of cruise itineraries from Brisbane, P&O’s 2021 Queensland season will contribute an estimated $40 million to the state economy with guest and crew spending, ship supplies and port charges.

Oceania Cruises releases inclusive OLife Ultimate package on select 2019 sailings

Now is the perfect time for Oceania Cruises’ valued travel partners to book a 2019 getaway for their clients aboard the world’s leading culinary- and destination-focused cruise line. For a limited time only, guests can save up to 40% on select 2019 sailings, while also taking advantage of Oceania’s OLife Ultimate offer, with all amenities including internet, up-to eight shore excursions, a beverage package and up-to US$800 of shipboard credit.

The special offer applies to 35 stunning voyages across Europe, South Pacific, Australia, Canada and New England, and is only valid for a limited time.

Launch of first-ever, week-long cruises on India’s Kerala Backwaters  – The Green Venice of the East

Adventure Resorts and Cruises will this October launch the first-ever extended cruises on the beautiful Kerala Backwaters in southern India.

To mark the debut of the tropical, seven-night journeys aboard a traditional wooden, 18-passenger barge, a discount of 20 per cent is available for sailings from October, 2019, to April, 2020, with single travellers also able to explore Kerala’s labyrinth of palm-lined lakes, lagoons, canals, rivers and inlets without paying a solo supplement.

Adventure Resorts and Cruises will offer 36 seven-night sailings aboard the nine-cabin RV Vaikundam from Cochin to Alleppey and vice versa from October, 2019, to March, 2021.   The company also offers luxury cruises on the Brahmaputra River in north-east India.

Cruise de France with Evergreen’s Special Offers

Evergreen Cruises & Tours has released two special offers on its France river cruise product to celebrate the Cruise de France month!  For July and August 2020 departures, guests can save an extra $500 per couple or fly for $695 per person for bookings made on 29 June – 31 July 2019.

Combined with Earlybird savings and Evergreen’s unique Early Payment Discounts, guests can save up to $4,800 per couple on its France river cruising program, making 2020 the year to discover the essence of France.  Alternatively, guests can opt for the Fly for $695 per person offer with savings of up to $800 per couple.

Cruise Express signs Rail GSA Agreement with The Steam Dreams Rail Co

Cruise Express and UK-based The Steam Dreams Rail Co announced today that they have signed a GSA agreement for Cruise Express to exclusively represent Steam Dreams in Australia and New Zealand from July, 2019.

Apart from a long history of selling cruise holidays, Cruise Express, based in Australia, now also offers a range of rail and ‘rail & sail’ products. They will promote Steam Dreams’ ‘Holidays by Steam’ packages and the company’s other international tours.

Initial product offerings to Cruise Express’ Australian and New Zealand clients will include tours to Ireland in 2019, around the UK in 2020, and New Zealand in 2021.

Holistica, a new joint venture, innovates destination development for evolving world

Two respected leaders in the travel and tourism industry, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL) and privately-held ITM Group, are teaming to form a new destination company, to be called Holistica.

Holistica will create an inclusive model for destination development that works holistically – thus the name – to meet the needs of coastal communities, local governments, and land, sea, and air travellers.

Holistica’s first project: a $275 million development in Freeport, The Bahamas, was originated by RCL and ITM and is currently under review by the Bahamian government. Centered on the regeneration of the Grand Lucayan resort, the project includes ambitious plans for local ownership, employment, job training, community investment and sustainable construction practices.

In addition to the Freeport project, the companies said the new venture will own and operate destinations in Costa Maya, Mexico; Roatan, Honduras; and Kumamoto, Japan. These projects, among others, will serve 8 million visitors annually, and be accessible to all travelers, including land and air vacationers and guests of multiple cruise lines. Holistica is also engaged in discussions regarding multiple existing and proposed destinations around the world.