Premier Cruise Line was originally founded by two cruise veterans in the year 1983, which was later purchased by Dial Corporation, who owned the Greyhound Bus Company. The cruises normally operated four-day and three-day Bahamas trips put of Port Canaveral, Florida and it earned more than $20 million gross. During late 90s, the company was successfully led by Jim Naik, previously President/Chief Executive Officer of Royal Cruise Line, San Francisco and Chief Executive Office and President. Some of the Premier ships were Majestic, former Princess Cruise Lines’ former Sun Princess, Atlantic and Royale, former Costa liner called Frederico C.

Premier Cruise Line began with 25-year old vessel, which was redesigned and called StarShip Royale. After two years company added another ship called StarShip Oceanic. During this time there was rapid growth in the cruise industry and the competition for customers was pretty fierce among the cruise lines specifically engineered with families in mind. Cruise lines like Royal Caribbean, Princess Cruises and Carnival Cruise started producing ships that weighed approximately 100,000 tons with plenty of attractive extras like ice skating rinks, mini golf courses and 24-hour pizzerias.

Major cruise lines had stopped calling at Tunis since there were a few internal security issues. As the country has now returned to normalcy and the security levels become stable, MSC will be offering the port of La Gaulette as part of the itinerary for the seven night Mediterranean cruises.

MSC Cruises CEO, Pierfrancesco Vago stated that tourism is one of the most important resources for the economic revival of Tunisia, and that they were proud of being able to support this.

MSC Lirica and MSC Fantasia is scheduled to come back to La Goulette on 5 t h of Jul, with MSC Sinfonia and MSC Splendida coming here on the next day.

The four cruise vessels part of the MSC fleet will be going on seven night cruises on the Western Mediterranean.

MSC Lirica will call at  Marseille (France),, Spain), Palma de Mallorca (Majorca, La Goulette (Tunisia), Salerno (Italy), Civitavecchia (Italy), Ajaccio (France), Genoa (Italy).

MSC Splendida will call at Palermo (Italy), Palma, Genoa (Italy), Barcelona (Spain), Naples (Italy), La Goulette (Tunisia) and Marseille (France).

MSC Sinfonia will call at Naples (Italy),, Catania (Italy), La Goulette (Tunisia), Ibiza (Spain), Valencia (Spain), Villefranche (France) and twice at Livorno (Italy.

Also, MSC Cruises will have Tunis as a destination in the winter on the MSC Splendida. There are 6 seven night cruises on offer from Dec 2011 to Mar 2012. These will set sail from Genoa.

MSC Aurea Spa Suites will make their entrance for the first time in the MSC Fantasia on a 11 night round trip cruise that departs from Genova on 5 t h November and calls at Portugal, Morocco, Spain and Italy. On MS Splendida, they will debut on the 11 night 13 t h cruise from Genoa that calls in Turkey, Greece and Italy.

The elegant retreat close to the MSC Aurea Spa as well as an assortment of spa facilities are provided to the guests booking the MSC Aurea Spa Suite as part of the cruise fare. There will be additional benefits such as . . .

• Full – body tanning session at the Solarium
• Facials with cream designed to assist firm skin (a thirty minute treatment)
• Private consultation with spa doctor
• Consultation in private with the spa doctor
• Non alcoholic welcome drink at the Aurea Spa Bar
• Thirty minute Balinese Massage

The MSC Aurea Spa Suite exclusives are available for persons aged eighteen or more staying in the state rooms. The cruise rates begin from $ 1, 949 for seven night cruising as well as a $ 2, 249 for an 11 – night cruise for two occupancy. The government taxes and fees are extra.

The ship is as yet unnamed and has a capacity of three thousand six hundred and eleven passengers. The ship will be the largest in size among the fleet of P&O Cruises. The ship is the largest cruise ship that is built aiming at the British Market specifically.

The ship will be built at the Monfalcone yard of Fincantieri and will have an all in cost of about € 155,000 per lower berth. The ship will usher in an era of excitement for P&O cruises, and will feature an innovative and stylish design. The passenger facilities will be an unprecedented number, as well as the iconic and classic features of the brand. The product innovations as well as the various specifications of the ship will be revealed at a later date.

Micky Arison, CEO and Chairman of Carnival Corporation and PLC, stated that P&O is the number one cruise operator in Britain and has a rich British heritage. The ship will be targeted specifically for customers from Britain, and the country will be a key growth market.

Carol Marlow, Managing Director of P&O Cruises said that the ship will literally offer ‘the best of the best’ in the way that it will combine the features that made ships such as Aurora and Oriana famous, as well as the variety and choice typical of the Azura and Ventura. This will be along with a large number of concepts and ideas that the new ship will be equipped with.

The ship underwent an over haul for three weeks at the Grand Bahama Shipyard, where a number of additions and refurbishments were made to fit in with the rest of the fleet at P& O. The theme for the christening ceremony, which was headed by Dame Shirley Bassey, a legend vocalist, was diamonds. The diamonds theme was placed in honor of the song “Diamonds are Forever”, which is one of the greatest hits sung by the diva.

Adonia is now the smallest ship part of the P & O cruises fleet. The ship was originally built as part of the Renaissance fleet in 2oo1. It was known as R8 at the time. After that it sailed for a period of time as Minerva II for Swan Hellenic and recently as Royal Princess as part of Princess Cruises.

Neither P& O nor the previous owners have made extensive changes to the interiors of the ship. There are many elements that were typical of the country house elegance that the Renaissance R8 was known for. There are trompe l ’ oeil ceilings, faux fireplaces, a wrought iron staircase and more.

The casino abroad the Adonia has been changed into an Anderson’s, the lounge and club option trademark to P & O. The Sun deck has the two new additional restaurants, Sorrento and Ocean Grill, excellent alternative options. The Ocean Grill will be looked over by Marco Pierre White, celebrity chef and the Sorrento will serve Italian classics.

The power sockets have been changed into three pin British plugs and kettles and tea bags have been added in all cabins. The official currency on board will be the Sterling. The cruise ship will set sail on the maiden voyage on Sunday. It will sail out on a sixteen night Western Mediterranean cruise.

The ship will sail out of Southampton throughout the summer, and a series of Mediterranean fly cruises will be embarked upon in the autumn season. In January 2012, there is an eighty seven night cruise to South America being planned.

This will be with effect from Sept 2012. Rotterdam was chosen as a homeport as the HAL has a deep connection with the city and also because of its convenient situation in North west Europe.

The Itineraries that are launched till spring 2013 will include two extended trips that will set sail for thirty four and ninety days and a number of regional sailings from 14 to 18 days.

After concluding the European summer season that was previously announced, the Rotterdam will set sail on 15th Sept, 2012 for the fourteen day Portugal and Spain Explorer Cruise which will take the Strait of Gibraltar to Barcelona in Spain.  A number of Portuguese ports will also be called at on the way to Barcelona and back.

There are two explorations in Sept and Oct that will last for seventeen days each and taking alternate routes. The Moorish Empire Voyage will set sail on 29th Sept, and will go through the Strait of Gibraltar  and then on to Civitavecchia in Rome and back. There are popular ports of call in Portugal and Spain.

The Canary Island Adventure will in turn start on Oct 16, and will head south to Morocco and the Canary Islands. There will be overnight calls at ports at Funchal, Portugal, Madeira as well as Tenerife, Canary Islands.

The Canary island Holiday will depart from Dec 22, and will call at the same ports, along with an additional night at Tenerife for New Year celebrations. There will be another Canary Island Adventure at 19th Apr, 2013, for 19 days, with the same route, but with an additional port o call at Portimao in Portugal.

Rotterdam will set sail from the Rotterdam port on 2nd Nov 2012 for a 34 night round trip called Caribbean Odyssey Adventure, which will sail across the Atlantic to the Caribbean and then back.

There are calls at the Azores, the islands of Barbados, Trinidad, St. Lucia, St. Maarten, Tortola, as well as Curacao, Bonaire and Aruba, the ABC Islands and will return to Rotterdam with calls at Madeira, Portugal,  Funchal, as well as Southampton in England.

The ninety day – Passage to the Far East Cruise set to depart on Jan 9th 2013 will take a route in the east to Asia, and will pass through the Suez Canal, and will call at ports in Spain, Greece and India. There are overnight stays and longer time port callings at Singapore, Malaysia and Dubai. A 2 week exploration of Indonesia, which is rich in Dutch heritage is another highlight. It is also possible to take part in this voyage in segments as well, from twelve to fifty three days.

The Holland America Line’s cruise ship Oosterdam, which was sailing on regular cruises on the ex San Diego Mexican Riviera region from Oct to Apr, has been announced to be redeployed to Australia in Oct 2012.

However, Holland America Line has not declared all the deployments it plans to make beyond fall 2012 and it also has not commented whether Oosterdam would be replaced by a ship on the Mexican Route. According to the statement made by Holland America Line, they stated that the port and the city have been a wonderful location and that they expected the relationship to continue.

Rita Vandergaw, official at Port of San Diego commented to the San Diego Union Tribune that, for the moment, the city appears to be offering regular Mexico sailings no longer. The port was at its peak in 2008, with more than 255 ships harbored at that time, but now the numbers will fall to less than 103 in this year and the next.

Oosterdam being redeployed is only the latest setback to the depressed So Cal cruise industry. San Diego and Los Angeles is experiencing a mass deployment exodus of sorts, with ships from Royal Caribbean, NCL and Carnival being deployed. There are several reasons cited for the departure, and this includes the disinterest with ports on the Mexican Riviera, swine flu scare locally as well as the local economy, which is struggling.

There is only one ship part of the fleet at Voyages to Antiquity. The cruise line entered the market with a number of cruises on the Mediterranean on the Aegean Odyssey, which was formerly named as Aegean I.

Gerry Herrod is said to have been inspired to set up the concept for Voyages to Antiquity when he read the “Middle Sea” by Lord John Julius Norwich, who described the ancient civilizations of the central and eastern Mediterranean region. There are a good number of excellent destinations on offer.

There are itineraries that span such areas as Rome, Greece and Egypt and the ruins and remnants of historical sites. There are also visits to ports that are interesting from a cultural or historical viewpoint. There were ships that focused on the journeys of the ships in the ancient ages.

Voyages to Antiquity is one cruise line that puts more focus on the destination that is being visited rather than the cruise itself. The focus is not on providing a resort like experience like modern cruise lines now, but your on board time will be spent in attending a huge number of lectures from qualified lectors on the historical and cultural background of the places that are being visited as part of the itinerary.

There are a huge number of excellent destinations that are featured, Shore trips and other day trips will keep you entertained through the duration of the cruise. You will not realize the deliberate downsizing of entertainment.

The Grand Princess Dry dock journal had posted twenty six videos as well as the three hundred photographs in total of the daily progress of the revamping procedure. The progress was watched by hundreds of thousands of fans while the ship was docked in Bahamas.

The Skywalkers nightclub on the stern of the ship was removed, and the atrium of the ship was also demolished and rebuilt so as to make a Piazza. The video updates were presented by Martyn Moss, Cruise Director, and had behind the scenes action on many aspects that were undertaken in during the dry docking.

The revitalization dry dock was monumental in a number of ways, and was worked on by a huge number of teams, all of which were shown in the video updates. There are were many tidbits available on the Drydock journal, and had a huge number of updates from key members that played a leading role in the dry dock process, such as Captain Tony Herriott,

Gilberto Vinci, Chief Technical Officer, John Gunner, Senior Vice President of Technical Services, as well as Steve Storey, Project manager.

The abundance of flower arrangements, sweeping central stair cases contribute to the feeling of classiness, whereas the wing chairs, overstuffed sofas, toile and Brocade fabrics covering the windows, all of these contribute to the intimate and cozy feeling in the interiors. The effect is very much like a stay at an English Manor.

Oceania Nautica Cabins:

There are private balconies aboard the Oceania Nautica that have tables and chairs outfitted. The living spaces have seventy five per cent of all exterior cabins. The cabins come with a vanity desk as well as an area for seating, with table, chair and sofa. The bathroom shelves, drawer and shelf storage and more. The Vista and Owners Suites come with a separate living/dining room as well as a powder room.

Ship Facts and Specifications . . .

• No of Crew and Staff Members – 400
• Year at which entered Service – 1998
• Gross Tonnage – 30 277
• Length – 594 ft
• No of Cabins = 342
• Capacity for Passengers = 684 ( 824 max )
• Width = 84 ft