Happy Anniversary, HAL!
Social distancing is making celebrating a little different these days, but we wanted to give a big Happy Birthday shout out to Holland America Line, who turned 147 years old over the weekend! Way back in 1873, the Netherlands-American Steamship Company started sailing goods and people from the Nethe
CRUISE RECIPE: Norwegian Cruise Line Pretzel Rolls
Hungry to Sail Again After this pandemic, I know I’ll never take the following things for granted: Restaurants, movie theaters, bookstores, concerts, medical professionals, bars, hairstylists, eyebrow waxers, toilet paper …and Norwegian’s pretzel rolls. Any other year, I’d either be cr
CRUISE RECIPE: Onion Tarte from French Country Waterways
Hungry to Sail Again What I simply adore about cruising is its variety. We can sail massive ships, mid-size ships, small ships, river boats, yachts, expedition ships….and, with French Country Waterways, even luxury barges with a capacity of less than 20 guests. That’s my kind of soci
Holland America Line Extends Temporary Pause
Holland America Line followed suit with sister line Carnival in extending their pause on cruise operations until mid-summer. In a statement yesterday, company President Orlando Ashford explained the extension was due to a number of factors surrounding the COVID 19 pandemic, including the extension o
Carnival Extends Pause on Operations Once More
On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a 100 day extension on the no-sail order from earlier in March. The order did leave some wiggle room for a return to cruising before the 100 day period, but as we commented last week, it was highly unlikely that the conditions for a re
Growing Up Cruising
We’ve been asking cruising from all over the world to share their cruise stories and our readers have emailed, tweeted, commented and videotaped themselves sharing their favorite cruise memories from over the years and many shared a positive outlook for the future of the industry. The stories and
Choose Your Cruise – April 10, 2020
It’s choose your cruise time! Last week we posted some of our favorite expedition cruises from companies who are really pushing the boundaries between luxury and adventure. Today, we’re skipping the remote environments for river cruises all over the world. If you love sipping wine, learn
CDC Issues Extension On No-Sail Order
In an order filed to the Federal Registry yesterday, the CDC shut down any hope that the cruise industry would return soon, extending the no-sail order for another 100 days. The order also outlines other measures cruise lines must comply with regarding anyone currently on board their ships to keep t
Talking FOOD & Carnival Mardi Gras with Master Chef Rudi Sodamin
Whether he’s sprinkling parsley on flaky filets of dover sole at Rudi’s Sel de Mer or cutting the ribbon at Carnival Kitchen on board the new Carnival Panorama alongside celebrity chefs Guy Fieri and Emeril Lagasse, Rudi Sodamin is a staple in the cruise industry. His resume serving up gourmet c
Zaandam, Rotterdam Finally Dock in Florida
The weeks long ordeal for passengers and crew on board Holland America Line Zaandam and Rotterdam is finally over. The ship docked in Fort Lauderdale, FL today after numerous countries turned down their request to port due to positive cases of COVID 19 confirmed onboard. The ships are just two of ma
Barbados Takes Humanitarian Approach to Cruise Ships
As more and more ports turn their backs on incoming cruise ships, even those with a clean bill of health, the Caribbean island nation of Barbados is taking a decidedly different approach. The country has welcomed incoming cruise ships looking for a place to port while they wait for the go-ahead to r
Cruise Memories: Just What We Needed
While we wait for cruising to come back into our lives, we’ve been asking cruising from all over the world to share their cruise stories from over the years. One story we received caught our eye for its message of hope, love, perseverance and the ability of a cruise to melt away the stres
Cruise Memories with Bill Panoff: The Tom Jones Years
Welcome to the second installment of cruise memories with Bill Panoff! Yesterday, we asked Bill about his first memories of cruising on board TSS Carnivale where he worked as a magician. One of the events on board the ship was a talent contest and that’s when Bill decided to try his hand
Cruise Deal of the Week – March 20, 2020
Okay, we can all agree that 2020 is the WORST. But don’t let your pure, unadulterated hatred for this year prevent you from scoring a great deal on a cruise for 2021. Since cruise lines are on a short hiatus from sailing, they’re focusing on making their future sailings some of the best
Cruise Memories with Porthole Cruise Founder Bill Panoff
Since we’re all taking a break from cruising for the time being, we decided the best thing to do was to share some of our favorite cruise memories! There’s nothing better than a cruise vacation and the memories we make while at sea and in port are some that will last forever! There
Celebrity Edge Crew Gets the Chance to Cruise like Guests
The news that thousands of cruisers would have their vacations cancelled over the next 30 to 60 days sent shockwaves around the travel industry and rightfully so. Most people plan their cruise vacation for months, if not years in advance and to have to cancel at the last minute was a devastating blo
Cruise Industry Executives Offer Encouraging Words
It hasn’t always been smooth sailing for the cruise industry, but it’s safe to say that the current outbreak of Covid-19 is the most difficult challenge cruise lines have ever faced. Last week saw every major cruise line, their sub-brands and other small ship lines included, halt operation for a
Get Creative Recreating Your Cruise Vacation
This weekend, a video of a retired Australian couple made the rounds on social media and cruisers from all over could relate! Norma and Dave from Australia were a couple of happy cruisers until their upcoming sailing was cancelled due to the global health situation. While they were obviously disappo
Cruise Update: Port Tampa Bay Responds To Coronavirus Concerns
UPDDATE :Editor’s Note: This article was published on March 2, 2020. Click here for the latest Coronavirus news and cruise updates. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis confirmed over the weekend that the first cases of COVID-19, also known as Coronavirus, have reached the Sunshine State. The Florid
Cruise Deal of the Week – February 28, 2020
We’re just weeks away from the arrival of Virgin Voyages Scarlet Lady and the hype surrounding the newest ship at sea is only growing. Since the first people began to board the ship in England this week, Virgin is running some great promotions for those who book by March 31. The ship
