River Cruises News

The Port of New Orleans (Port NOLA) reports its cruise passenger numbers are back to pre-pandemic levels. The port said Monday that it finished calendar year 2023 with nearly 1.2 million cruise passenger movements and renewed commitments to the New Orleans cruise market from both oceangoing and river cruise lines.“The cruise business has rebounded in New Orleans and cruise line partners are confident in our Port NOLA cruise market,” said Port NOLA president and CEO Brandy D. Christian.

German ferry operator Aktien-Gesellschaft EMS (“AG EMS”) has partnered with Hogia Ferry Systems to implement their standard reservation software BOOKIT.AG EMS operates a ferry service between Emden and the island Borkum, using both traditional and high-speed ferries. The company will also use BOOKIT for its river cruises and excursions.“We had reached the end of opportunities with our current system, and we needed a modern and reliable standard ferry reservation and check-in system to replace it," said Stefan Beekhuis, CIO, AG EMS.

It’s amazing to consider that a commercial vessel in the Pacific Ocean, approaching the mouth of the Columbia River, can continue its eastward journey to finally tie up at the Port of Lewiston, in Lewiston, Idaho, America’s most inland West Coast port, 465 miles from the Pacific Ocean.The Columbia and Snake Rivers form that critical east-west waterway, an economic powerhouse regionally, nationally and internationally. According to the Pacific Northwest Waterways Association (PNWA)…

The year just ended, 2021, might be described as being about “trying to get back to normal”, across the entire transportation spectrum, two years into the pandemic. During this time, the decarbonization and electrification waves have swept across maritime passenger transport. The passenger side of the business is dependent on multiple funding sources; increasingly, this money will be driven by environmental and social considerations.The long-awaited funding of “infrastructure”-related projects…

A luxury cruise ship has skipped its call to Miami and diverted to the Bahamas after a U.S. judge ordered its seizure as part of a lawsuit over unpaid fuel bills.The Crystal Symphony, operated by Genting Hong Kong's Crystal Cruises, was scheduled to conclude a Caribbean voyage in Miami on Saturday, but the ship sailed to the Bahamian island of Bimini instead after a federal judge in Miami granted an order to arrest the 781-foot, Bahamas-flagged vessel over unpaid fuel bills.Bunker supplier Peninsula Petroleum Far East sued the ship and Crystal Cruises…

Naval architecture and marine engineering firm NETSCo said it is collaborating with Viking Cruises in preparation for the company's new Mississippi River cruises, launching in 2022 from New Orleans to St. Paul.According to NETSCo, the first phase of the project required vetting the ship design. This included taking into account varying water levels (which can change as much as 50 feet) and determining if the physical size and height of the ship would fit through locks, bridges and other obstacles throughout the entire 2…

American Cruise Lines' new river cruise ship American Melody is ready to kick off its inaugural season on Friday along the line’s longest Mississippi River cruise.The 22-day complete Mississippi River cruise had originally been scheduled to operate from New Orleans, La., to St. Paul, Minn., but due to Hurricane Ida, guests will embark in Natchez, Miss.Through the end of December 2021, American Melody will also operate eight-day Upper Mississippi River cruises between St. Louis, Mo., and St.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Friday people at an increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19 should avoid travel on cruise ships, including river cruises, irrespective of their vaccination status.Older adults and people with medical conditions are more likely to get severely ill from the disease and should take professional advise before cruise ship travel, the agency said.Cruise operators have been sailing from U.S. ports again in recent…

German shipbuilder Neptun Werft said on Thursday it has delivered two new river cruise ships to the shipping company Viking River Cruises (Basel).The ships, to be named Viking Gymir and Viking Egdir, are the last two river cruise ships in the builder's current order book, ending a string of 65 sister ship deliveries for Viking River Cruises ordered at Neptun Werft from 2010 onward."More than a decade ago we launched this series of ships, which has been extremely successful and very popular with passengers.

River cruises are making a quiet comeback on the Danube after the COVID-19 pandemic brought global tourism to a standstill and forced companies to suspend voyages.Holiday makers are adapting to strict new safety measures on the elegant ships with Germany’s Nicko Cruises the first to restart Danube trips on June 22.The company is now operating three vessels for the six to eight-day trips from Passau, in Germany, to Budapest, passing scenic hills and old castles along the way.“Normally, we have 90% occupancy, this year we have around 70%.

Viking announced it will launch a Mississippi River cruise line with its first vessel, Viking Mississippi, scheduled to sail voyages on the Lower and Upper Mississippi, between New Orleans and St. Paul from August 2022.Purpose-built for the Mississippi and is currently under construction in Louisiana, the five-deck ship will accommodate 386 passengers in 193 all outside staterooms.“At a time where many of us are at home, looking for inspiration to travel in the future, I am pleased to introduce a new, modern way to explore this great river.

Several major cruise operators have voluntarily suspended operations in response to the developing coronavirus pandemic. For most, the reason given has been "an abundance of caution".On Wednesday, Viking became the first major cruise line to temporarily suspend operations, canceling all river and ocean cruises scheduled to embark between March 12 to April 30. It said it expected to resume sailings on May 1.Princess Cruises, the operator of two coronavirus-stricken ships -- Diamond…

There was important cruise news in January: Viking – a premier European ocean and river cruise company - will offer two new “destination-focused travel experiences,” starting in 2022. One set of cruises becomes Viking’s first foray in the inland North American market, in this case the Great Lakes. Another set of cruises will head to the Arctic and Antarctica. Viking is building two new vessels: the Viking Octantis and the Viking Polaris, under construction now in Norway, by Fincantieri’s VARD.In a press release Viking writes that it has created “the thinking person’s expedition.”  Indeed…

Port of Amsterdam realised net profit of EUR 68.5 million in 2018, which represents a 12.5% increase compared to 2017 (net profit of EUR 60.9 million).Revenue rose slightly in 2018, rising 5 percent to EUR 157.4 million, primarily due to a record amount of land allocations totalling 45.1 hectares (2017: 18 hectares) and an increase in harbour dues owing to a record level of transhipment totalling 82.3 million tonnes of cargo (2017: 81.3 million tonnes).The annual figures show a financially healthy position for Port of Amsterdam, which is benefitting from the favourable economic climate. The added value of the port increased by more than 4 percent to EUR 7.2 billion and port-related employment rose by more than 2 percent to 68…

Viking Jupiter, the 47,800gt cruise ship built at Fincantieri’s shipyard in Ancona, Italy for Viking Cruises, has been delivered with a Thordon Bearings’ seawater-lubricated propeller shaft system. It is the sixth Viking cruise ship to be fitted out with the COMPAC bearing arrangement.Two 930 passenger-capacity sisterships, Viking Tellus and Viking Venus, currently undergoing construction at Fincantieri and slated for delivery in 2021, have also been specified with the pollution-free Thordon system.

A record number of cruise ship passengers traveled through the Port of New Orleans (Port NOLA) in 2018.The official tally - 1,182,111 - marked a 2.3 percent increase from 2017 and the fifth consecutive year of hitting the coveted 1 million passenger mark at the port's cruise terminal facilities.A 23 percent surge in guests taking Mississippi River cruises helped buoy the total, with new and larger ships set to sail from New Orleans both in the Caribbean and on the River in 2019.“Port NOLA’s success is due in large part to the hard work of the stevedores, labor, cruise terminal staff and the support of local businesses and tourism partners,” said Brandy D.

One year ago, we reported on vacation river cruising, presenting an industry mostly on the optimistic side of growth and expansion for 2018. This year’s review is more geographically limited – to the Mississippi River, heartland cruises centered among New Orleans, Memphis, St. Louis and St. Paul – but with links important for a lot of smaller cities in between.Big picture:This industry is strong, at least among its two major players: American Cruise Lines and the American Queen Steamboat Company. Both have extensive and varied schedules for 2019.

American Cruise Lines has announced that brand new ship American Song has successfully passed Sea Trials and is now on its way to the “Big Easy.” The first modern riverboat in U.S. history is expected to arrive in New Orleans the first week in September.American Song passed Sea Trials with flying colors and is the second new vessel completed and delivered to American Cruise Lines by Chesapeake Shipbuilding this year. American Harmony, the second modern riverboat in the series…

Port of Cleveland President & CEO and newly elected Board Chairman of the American Association of Port Authorities William Friedman weighs in this month on the Port of Cleveland and its role in the all important Great Lakes trades.When the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) announced the election of Port of Cleveland President and CEO, William D. Friedman, to serve as chairman for the 2018-19 year, beginning this October, it was perhaps a conscious decision to tap someone who has a broad range of experience and skills in myriad ports, large and small. That’s Friedman in a nutshell. AAPA represents 140 of the leading maritime port authorities in this hemisphere. If you’ve seen one port; well, you’ve seen one port.

Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri has delivered the fifth cruise ship in a series of oceangoing newbuilds for ship owner Viking Cruises. The new vessel, Viking Orion, was delivered today from the builder’s shipyard in Ancona.Viking Orion, as its four preceding sister ships, fits into the small cruise ship segment, with a gross tonnage of about 47,800 tons. It has 465 cabins with accommodation for 930 passengers.Viking's ocean ships are all equipped high-efficiency engines, hydro…

Incat Crowther launched of Spirit of the Wild, a spectacular new tour vessel for Gordon River Cruises, and the first in Australia to operate in World Heritage-listed wilderness with Silent Drive. Offering interpretive tours into the heart of the UNESCO Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, Spirit of the Wild will give customers a unique natural experience. Built by Richardson Devine Marine, Spirit of the Wild is fitted with a pair of MTU 10V2000M72 main engines. Added to this is a cutting-edge hybrid electric system, consisting of a pair of ABB e-motors, driving Hybrid-ready ZF gearboxes.

Taking ahead the bilateral relations between India & Republic of Indonesia, Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Shipping met General (Retd.) Luhut Binser Pandjaitan, Coordinating Minister of Maritime Affairs of Indonesia, in New Delhi. Ahead of the visit of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Jakarta in May 2018, General (Retd.) Pandjaitan, who is on a 2-day visit to India met Shri Gadkari to discuss bilateral cooperation in the maritime sector between the two countries. The bilateral talks covered a wide range of topics including river rejuvenation, wastewater treatment, generating revenue streams from waste, enhancing shipping linkages between the two countries, developing ports and airports, training on light house technology and development of navigational aids.

RadiantFleet announced closing an agreement with River Advice AG. The agreement includes the use of RadiantFleet platform (Software as a Service) for Crew and Payroll Management. The software solution provides River Advice real time collaboration between their corporate offices, managed vessels and crew. River Advice was established in 2004 and soon developed to what is now the leading manager of river cruise ships in Europe. With corporate offices in Basel, Cologne, Limassol and Luxemburg, the group offers a broad range of services tailored to the needs to each client. River Advice provides services for ship management, crew management, catering and hospitality, new building and conversion consultancy.