Porthole Cruise News Briefs – Mar. 10, 2017

Porthole Cruise News Briefs – Mar. 10, 2017

• Hapag-Lloyd Cruises has named its two upcoming expedition ships HANSEATIC inspiration (serving the international market) and HANSEATIC nature (serving the German-speaking market). Both ships feature extendible glass balconies, three restaurants, a marina for watersports, and the highest ice rating of any passenger vessel. They’re due in 2019.
• On Tuesday, Viking Cruises celebrated 20 years of cruising by christening two ships at a celebration in Koblenz, Germany. Viking Hild, which will cruise the “Paris to the Swiss Alps” itinerary on the Rhine, was named by Dr. Princess Stephanie Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg, CEO of the winery Weingut Fürst Löwenstein. Viking Herja, which will sail on the Danube and the Rhine, was named by British composer and conductor Debbie Wiseman MBE.
• American Cruise Lines has announced a new itinerary, “Grand New England,” an 11-day cruise from Boston that visits Newport, Rhode Island; Martha’s Vineyard and Provincetown, Massachusetts; and ports along the Maine coast from Kennebunkport to Bar Harbor.
• Seatrade Cruise News has unveiled details on TUI Cruises newest vessel, Mein Schiff 6, including 12 onboard bars and restaurants, a jazz club, an open-air cinema and sports area, and a daytime Escape Room challenge. The ship, scheduled to be christened on June 1, will also have a new shopping concept: the “Neuer Wall” duty-free shopping area that includes bars and beach chairs for relaxation.

^{Photo: Hapag-Lloyd Cruises}