Porthole Cruise News Briefs – Mar. 13, 2015

Porthole Cruise News Briefs – Mar. 13, 2015

• Her Majesty, the Queen, wore a peach suit and matching hat for the naming ceremony of P&O Cruises’ newest ship, Britannia, the largest ship ever built for the British market. Queen Elizabeth II was accompanied by Prince Philip at the dockside ceremony in Southampton. Carnival Corp. Chairman Arnold Donaldson, Carnival UK Chairman David Dingle and Carnvial UK CEO David Noyes were among those in attendance. The Queen pushed a button to send a huge bottle of sparking British wine smashing against the ship’s hull….
   
• Royal Caribbean International’s Harmony of the Seas, which will debut in spring 2016 as the world’s largest ship, will sail its first season in the Med, on 7-day cruises from Barcelona….
   
• Regent Seven Seas Cruises will debut a new Parisian-influenced restaurant on the upcoming all-suite Seven Seas Explorer. Chartreuse will be done up in chartreuse and present a modern take on classic French dishes. After the launch in summer 2016 on Seven Seas Explorer, the restaurant will also debut on other ships, replacing Signatures. Guests looking for a hands-on foodie experience on Seven Seas Explorer will also be able to choose from a dozen classes led by professional chefs at the line’s first cooking school. The Culinary Arts Kitchen will be equipped with 18 individual cooktops.
   
• Holland America Line’s 2,650-passenger Koningsdam reached a construction milestone, moving from dry dock to water at the Fincantieri shipyard in Marghera. Next up is final construction and interior decorating, the new Pinnacle-class ship now scheduled for (slightly delayed) delivery on March 31, 2016. The ship will sail its premiere voyage on April 8, 2016….
   
• Anthem of the Seas, Royal Caribbean International’s second Quantum-class ship, left Meyer Werft in Papenburg, and headed down the River Ems to the North Sea. The 4,180-passenger ship debuts in Europe in April. Meanwhile, sister ship Ovation of the Seas, set to debut in spring 2016, had its keel laid at the same shipyard….
   
• Uniworld is celebrating the 50^th anniversary of “The Sound of Music” with an opportunity for passengers on select Danube river cruises to meet not movie fan Lady Gaga, but rather a real von Trapp. Elisabeth von Trapp is granddaughter of the couple who inspired the story. She will be performing for passengers, including a sing-along of “Do-Re-Mi.”…
   
• AmaWaterways will launch its first-ever Bordeaux itineraries in spring 2016, officials said. The “Taste of Bordeaux” sailings will be aboard AmaDolce, and take passengers through the increasingly popular (for river cruises) French wine region.

— Fran Golden

^{Photo: P&O Cruises}

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