Australia, Spain Extend Cruise Ship Ban
While American’s spent Friday warming up the grill and preparing to pay their respects to our fallen military service members for Memorial Day, Australia took an aggressive step against cruise ships sailing to the country. The Australian Border Force, a law enforcement agency operating under
CEO Carnival Corp Talks Future Of Cruising with Porthole Cruise
Earlier this month, Arnold Donald joined editor-in-chief of Porthole Cruise Magazine, Bill Panoff, to discuss the latest in cruise news and Carnival Corporation’s response to COVID-19. Here is the exclusive part 2 of that interview. You can watch part one of the interview with Carnival Corp CEO Ar
Virgin Voyages Announces New Return Date
Virgin Voyages announced today in a press release that they will begin sailing again on October 16, 2020 after pushing back their initial return date of late July. When the world first went into lockdown due to COVID-19, every cruise line had a difficult time adjusting. However, Virgin Vo
Interview: Travel Pro Scott Eddy and His New Show Video Globetrotter
When it comes to traveling the world, few people log more miles than Scott Eddy. A veteran travel buff with more than 75 countries under his belt, Eddy is the star of a brand new show debuting this Friday on Lifetime TV called Video Globetrotter. He’s no stranger to cruising, having previously
Introducing Silversea Origin
In these days of cancelled sailings, delayed inaugurals and postponed launches, it’s almost unheard of to hear of a new ship…but today we welcome the intimate Silver Origin, the latest addition to Silversea Cruises’ luxury fleet and, with just 100 passengers and remote and uncrowded destinatio
Windstar Cruises Announces Return Date
One of the foremost small ship cruise lines in the industry announced their date for return following the pause in operation due to COVID-19. Windstar Cruises will return to operation on September 3, 2020 when their motor sailing yacht Wind Spirit sets sail in Tahiti. The cruise line first
Puerto Vallarta Takes First Step Towards Economic Recovery
The beautiful and popular cruise destination of Puerto Vallarta is taking the first steps towards reopening today after months of shutdowns and social distancing. May 18th marks the start of ‘phase 0’ of the State of Jalisco’s plan to recover economically from COVID-19. This phase of the proce
Bookings Boom
We’ve been saying it since cruise lines began their pause in operation in March: there’s never been a better time to book a cruise. Well, apparently cruisers agree. When Carnival Cruise Line announced last week that they had a tentative plan in place to resume cruising on August 1st, it ma
Orlando Ashford Stepping Down as President of Holland America Line
After six years as the President of Holland America Line, Orlando Ashford is saying goodbye to the cruise line. Ashford announced his decision in a press release today. The news comes just six days after Holland America Line decided to extend its pause of global cruise operations and cancel all Alas
Nevis Announces They’re COVID-Free
When COVID-19 first began spreading globally, the island of Nevis in the Caribbean took an aggressive approach to fighting the virus and it appears those measures have paid off. The island’s Ministry of Health has declared the island free from COVID-19 after all four cases have successfully recove
Blue Angels Salute COVID-19 Responders Over Miami
The sunny skies of South Florida were in for a treat today as the Blue Angels Flight Demonstration Squadron buzzed the skyline in a salute to COVID-19 responders working hard to flatten the curve and help those recovering from the virus. Operation “America Strong” flew over Jacksonville this mor
Carnival Corp CEO Talks COVID-19 Response with Porthole Cruise
How important is Carnival Corporation to the cruise industry? The conglomerate holds nine of cruising’s most recognizable brands and employs hundreds of thousands of people both here in America and on ships all over the world. That makes CEO of Carnival Corporation Arnold Donald one of the mo
Hotels May Provide Blueprint for Cruise Cleanliness
We’ve all seen articles about what cruising is going to look like in the aftermath of COVID 19. Precautions like doing away with self-service buffets, not filling ships to the max with passengers and even shorter itineraries where the only stops are cruise line private islands are all possibilitie
Carnival Cruise Line Releases Plan To “Phase-In” Service
In a press release this morning, Carnival Cruise Line released their plan to phase-in cruising operations beginning on August 1, 2020. This is the first concrete plan we’ve heard from any cruise line for a return to service. The line also acknowledged that all cruises until that time would be
Cruise Stoppage Costs Alaska $800 Million
The economic toll of COVID 19 on the cruise industry is devastating, but the people of Alaska may be the biggest losers in the whole ordeal. Mike Tibbles, a Cruise Lines International Association Alaska representative, spoke to the Alaska Board of Marine Pilots this week and explained that with the
St. Thomas Eyes June 1st Return for Tourists
In an address to the people of the U.S. Virgin Islands yesterday, Governor Albert Bryan Jr. outlined a five-tier plan to reopen the islands for tourism by June 1, 2020. A stay at home order remains in effect until May 4 when things will begin to ramp up from a business and tourism standpoint.
Could Cruise Lines Make Passengers Wear Masks?
We’re starting to see what travel in a post-Coronavirus world will look like and for JetBlue passengers, that means masks are mandatory for all passengers beginning May 4th. In a press release, JetBlue became the first airline in America to institute a policy requiring face coverings, but chances
NKOTB’s Annual Cruise Goes Virtual
Thousands of New Kids on the Block fans—and the five New Kids themselves—were meant to be aboard the Carnival Conquest right now, sailing towards Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas. When the band’s eleventh annual cruise was canceled due to COVID-19—part of the industry-wide pause the coronavirus
Cunard Line Extends Pause in Operations
Citing “the continued impact of COVID 19,” Cunard Line made the decision to pause their voyages further past the initial date of May 15, 2020 previously announced. The line also announced they have cancelled the entire Alaska season and all departures on Queen Elizabeth through
More People Searching for Travel Says CEO of Revelex
For more than 20 years, Revelex has provided a powerful booking engine for dozens of major cruise lines. Company CEO David Goodis has his pulse on not just cruising, but travel as a whole, and he joined Bill Panoff to discuss the state of the industry, what changes he’s seen in digital consumer be