AIDA Cruises’ 183,200gt AIDAnova had her cruising debut pushed back again in November to 19th December due to delays in completing the ship. Sea trials commenced on 16th November and Meyer Werft hoped to have concluded the process on or before 30th November. The debut had previously been delayed to 2nd December.

The American Queen Steamboat Company (AQS) revealed on 12th November that it had signed an agreement to acquire the Victory I and sister ship Victory II from Sunstone Ships Inc., as well as the Victory Cruise Lines brand as from January 2019. The 5,000gt and 202 passenger capacity duo are identical and will join the AQS fleet under the Victory Cruise name, alongside the flagship American Queen and 166 guest paddle wheeler American Duchess sailing the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, plus the American Empress in the Pacific Northwest. The American Harmony was declared as being four weeks ahead of schedule on 20th November and was launched exactly one year to the day after her sister ship American Song at Chesapeake Shipbuilding. The 6 deck vessel will embark upon her inaugural season in Summer 2019 on the Mississippi River. The company also has the American Countess under construction in Louisiana and she will debut in 2020.

Costa Cruises’ 92,720gt/2009 built Costa Luminosa (above) rescued the crew of a fish carrier that was on fire in the Aegean Sea, saving eleven people onboard, on 20th November. Under the guidance of Captain Pietro Sinisi, the Costa Luminosa deviated from her route to reach the boat. Despite the dense smoke and the adverse weather conditions, with winds of 30 knots and 2m waves, rescue operations were successful. The crew members were recovered from the bow of the stricken Kilic 1 by a tender from the ‘Luminosa and then transhipped to a cargo ship also involved in the operation. The Costa Luminosa later continued towards Katakolon. Costa Cruises revealed on 3rd December 2018 that it had signed a contract with the Commission for the Naples Universiade 2019 for the 75,166gt/1996 built Costa Victoria (above) to be moored in Naples 28th June-16th July 2019 where she will host athletes and delegations taking part in the Universiade. As a result of the ship’s new commitment, changes will be made to her summer 2019 itinerary, which the company communicated to guests and travel agencies. The itineraries scheduled to depart from Bari on 22nd/29th June and 6th/13th July 2019 have been modified to an equivalent cruise on a fleet-mate in the Mediterranean. On 20th July the Costa Victoria will resume her scheduled programme of one-week cruises through the Greek islands from Bari.

Cunard Line’s 90,901gt/2010 built Queen Elizabeth departed from Southampton for Damen Shiprepair in Brest on 14th November for her refit. Work onboard cabin upgraded a redesigned Royal Arcade, new outdoor spaces and a refurbished spa and beauty salon. The aim of the ship-wide cabin refurbishment was to bring the Vista Class ship up to the standards of fleet mates Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria, which were refitted in 2016 and 2017 respectively. Other changes include a technical overhaul of The Royal Court Theatre. The ship arrived back at Southampton on 30th November. On 3rd January she will sail to Australia via Cape Town, being based there until 30th March when she heads for Tokyo for two voyages. Then, on 5th May, the ship relocates to Alaska for a maiden season until 30th June when she heads home via the Panama Canal.

Havila Kystruten of Norway has unveiled the names of its four new 122.7m long/22m beam environmentally friendly ships. They will be christened Havila Capella, Havila Castor, Havila Polaris and Havila Pollux. The quartet will be the most environmentally friendly ships in service along the Norwegian coast and powered by a hybrid package of LNG fuel and battery packs. From January 2021, they will operate between Bergen and Kirkenes, with calls in 34 ports on the northbound route and 33 ports on the southbound. The new ships will be able to sail into the World Heritage site of Geiranger, which is to become an emission-free zone in 2026, five years ahead of the zero-emission requirements given by the Norwegian Parliament. The Havila Capella and Havila Castor will be built at the Tersan Shipyard in Turkey while Havila Polaris and Havila Pollux will be constructed at the Barreras Shipyard in Spain. The new ships will be able to accommodate up to 640 passengers, 468 in berths and 172 day passengers.

Hurtigruten is refitting its ships to make them less polluting, and plans to use a by-product of rotten fish to help power their new, leaner engines. The company is investing 7 billion Kroner ($826 million) over three years to adapt its 17 strong fleet. Six of its older vessels will be retrofitted to run on a combination of LNG, electric batteries and liquefied bio gas (LBG). Two of the electric battery-powered ships planned for Hurtigruten, costing over €150 million each, are already under construction with a letter of intent for a third. In other company news, the 11,205gt/1993 built Richard With has undergone an extensive refurbishment, highlighted by new large bay windows and other enhancements. The single largest upgrade project in Hurtigruten’s history sees the vessel emerge as a brand-new ship following a one-month upgrade of all cabins, suites and guest areas. New larger windows were fitted to the main restaurant, bay window suites and panoramic mini suites on deck 6 aft. All staterooms and suites were fully upgraded and on deck 6 a number of cabins were merged into 14 larger suites, some with large bay windows. In addition to a full makeover, the aft-facing Torget main restaurant received large full height windows whilst the Brygga bistro found on other Hurtigruten ships will be replaced by an upgraded and larger arcade plus a brand-new Activity Centre. Two new lecture halls were also added forward on deck 4, in conjunction with the open Kompass information and shopping area. On deck 7, the Hurtigruten venue Multe Bakery will be added whilst the Explorer Lounge and Panorama Bar offer the best views on the ship. This is the first of a two-step upgrade that will transform the custom-built polar water vessel to one of the most modern and environmentally friendly cruise ships in the world. Over the course of the next two years, Hurtigruten will replace diesel propulsion with large battery packs and green LNG engines in the Richard With, plus at least five others in the fleet.

Mystic Cruises is increasing its venture into the ocean-going expedition market by ordering two more 9,300gt and 200 guest expedition vessels from the West Sea shipyard in Portugal. The company, owned by Portuguese entrepreneur Mario Ferreira, will see its first ship debut in 2019 when the World Explorer sails on charter agreements for the Nicko Cruises brand in summer 2019 before repositioning to Antarctica for Quark Expeditions. The second and third ships will arrive in 2021/2022.

Norwegian Cruise Line’s 93,558gt/2006 built Norwegian Jade had a cruise from Miami cut short on 18th November prior to her scheduled departure from San Juan, Puerto Rico. A serious technical issue had developed with one of the ship’s propulsion pods so the passengers had to be flown back to Miami having only sailed from there on 16th November. The ship limped back to Miami to undergo repairs. NCL refunded all passengers and offered a 100% credit for a future cruise.

Portuscale Cruises’ historic 9,563gt/1961 built cruise vessel Funchal (above) was sold by public auction to the British hotel group Signature Living for €3.910 million on 5th December. She has been laid up at Cais da Matinha in Lisbon since the cruise company ceased trading in 2015. Reports suggest that the ship will be moved to a U.K. port but her future use has yet to be disclosed.

Royal Caribbean International’s 228,081gt and 5,518 guest capacity Symphony of the Seas, the company’s 25th ship, made her U.S. debut at Port Miami’s Terminal A on 13th November having completed her transatlantic repositioning after her debut season in Europe. The ship now sails year-round 7 night Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries from Miami, which began on 17th November. The official naming ceremony for the Symphony of the Seas took place on 15th November during the pre-inaugural celebration hosted by the ship’s first-ever God Family, American actors and avid Royal Caribbean fans Carlos and Alexa PenaVega, along with their young son, Ocean. RCI has confirmed that it is to deploy the 168,666gt/2015 built Quantum Class favourite Anthem of the Seas back to Southampton in May 2020 and she will be joined by the ever-popular 155,889gt/2008 built Independence of the Seas.

Saga Cruises revealed the separate identity that the Spirit of Adventure, the company’s second newbuild, will have during November. There will be a bold and adventurous style plus a Nepalese speciality restaurant inspired by Gurkha heritage, the Khukuri House. The 999 passenger capacity ship will make her debut in 2020 whilst the Spirit of Discovery makes her debut on 10th July 2019. The Spirit of Adventure will be fitted out with features such as the hub of the ship, The Living Room and The Amalfi.

Scenic’s newbuild Scenic Eclipse was announced as delayed again on 13th November with a further seven departures being cancelled due to issues at the Croatian shipyard of Uljanik. The vessel will now enter service on 13th April.

Sunstone has signed an order for another two 104m long/18m beam X-bow Infinity class vessels in China. Their passenger capacity will be 130-200. Each vessel is Ice Class 1A, Polar Code 6 and are being built with Safe Return to Port, Dynamic Positioning and Zero Speed Stabilizers. Current Infinity Class newbuilds under way are the Greg Mortimer (scheduled for delivery August, 2019), the Ocean Victory (September 2020), the Ocean Explorer (March 2021) and the Ocean Odyssey (May 2022).

Virgin Voyages announced on 28th November plans to build a new cruise terminal for the company at PortMiami. Virgin Voyages also announced that its first ship, the Scarlet Lady, will continue to sail to the Caribbean from Miami throughout 2021. The company’s second ship will sail from Miami during the autumn/winter cruise season of 2021/22. Sir Richard Branson also announced that bookings for Virgin Voyages’ inaugural season will open for sale on 14th February to the general public and 5th February for those currently holding pre-sale deposits. The new Virgin Voyages Terminal will be located on the northwest side of the port. Pending the Board of County Commission’s approval of the MOU for construction of a new cruise facility along with the subsequent berthing agreement, this project will start in 2019 for completion by November 2021. The new building will be a palm grove inspired design concept developed by the Miami-based designers from Arquitectonica.