Feliks Magus: Exceptional year for Tallinn

Royal Caribbean Cruises
boosts deployment
nReflecting the rise in demand worldwide
for cruise holidays, Royal
Caribbean Cruises has just released information
that in 2012 it will deploy 19 of
its ships in Europe during summer 2012.
The is an increase from the 17 ships in
Europe during the summer season 2011,
The market leader in Mediterranean
cruises – it has the most options and
the most passengers – Royal Caribbean
Cruises, ships in Europe come under several
brands. This year there are 11 Royal
Caribbean International ships, four Celebrity
Cruises ships and two Azamara Club
Cruises, most of which will be sailing in
the Mediterranean.
Special pricing for children is
available for the first time ever in the
Mediterranean in 2011, with the price for
kids aged under 12 for a seven-night RCI
cruise, for example, starting at €201.
There’s plenty to keep the children
entertained and enthralled. In cooperation
with Dreamworks animation, Shrek
and friends regularly appear onboard
Royal Caribbean’s “mega” cruise ships
Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas –
the world’s biggest and most innovative
cruise vessels – as well as Liberty of the
Seas and Freedom of the Seas.
Royal Caribbean International is a
global cruise brand with 22 ships currently
in service. The line also offers
cruise-tour land packages in Alaska,
Canada, Dubai, Europe Australia and
New Zealand.
Variety in Europe
Royal Caribbean International has just
unveiled its 2012 Europe cruise and
cruise-tour season, upping the ante
from its 2011 line-up of 11 ships to 12
for 2012. This will again include two
Freedom-class ships, the largest and most
groundbreaking in the line’s fleet to sail
European waters.
Amsterdam will debut as a homeport,
with ships calling at 101 ports in
34 countries on itineraries ranging from
three to 16 nights. Serenade of the Seas
will make its European debut from Barcelona.
Brilliance of the Seas will operate on
a new series of Northern Europe itineraries
out of Amsterdam and Copenhagen.
Mariner of the Seas will add new
Holy Land vacations and seven-night
Western Mediterranean cruises from
Rome. And Vision the Seas will sail on
Holy Land sailings as well as a roster of
Northern Europe itineraries.
Liberty of the Seas will offer new
five-night Western Mediterranean itineraries.
Independence of the Seas, Adventure
of the Seas, Navigator of the Seas
and Grandeur of the Seas will sail on a
wide-ranging roster of Mediterranean
vacations. Voyager of the Seas and Splendour
of the Seas will operate on Greek
Isles and Turkey cruises, while Jewel of
the Seas will focus on Scandinavia and
Russia vacations. Itineraries on many of
these are now open for booking.
“Every year Royal Caribbean surpasses
its previous Europe offerings to
continue to exceed the expectations
of vacationers,” said Betsy O’Rourke,
senior vice president of Marketing,
Royal Caribbean.
“In 2012, the line’s ships will add
three more ports, giving vacationers the
opportunity to tailor-design their cruise
experiences on itineraries that are as
short as three nights or as long as 16.”
In addition to the 12 homeports that
guests can choose from, Royal Caribbean
is also offering eight “interports” – where
guests can board itineraries en route –
creating 20 options for embarkation
and disembarkation, including Toulon,
Marseille and LeHavre, France; Genoa,
Messina (Sicily) and Bari, Italy; Valencia,
Spain; and Kusadasi (Ephesus) in Turkey.
Maiden calls will be made at Arhus,
Denmark; Klaksvik, Faroe Islands; and
Leknes (Lofoten), Norway.
Serenade of the Seas will make
its Europe debut on 12-night alternating
cruises on spring, summer and fall
roundtrips from Barcelona, with one of
the itineraries featuring an overnight in
Venice and the other offering port calls
in Greece and Turkey.
Brilliance of the Seas’ new sailings,
roundtrip from Amsterdam and Copenhagen,
include a mix of Norwegian Fjord
and Arctic Circle sailings of 12 nights
through mid-July. Its other offerings feature
seven-night “Scandinavia & Russia”
sailings roundtrip from Copenhagen from
late July through early September.
Mariner of the Seas will return to
Europe for its second season with a new
12-night Holy Land itinerary roundtrip
from Rome, available in May, September
and October, which will offer overnights
in Jerusalem and Alexandria, Egypt.
Its new seven-night roundtrips from
Rome are available from June through
mid-September.
Liberty of the Seas features new
five-night spring sailings from Barcelona,
which will call at Cannes, Monte
Carlo, Rome and Palma de Mallorca. The
ship will also operate on a seven-night
itinerary from June through September.
For the third consecutive year, Liberty
of the Seas’ sister ship, Independence
of the Seas, will be positioned year-round
in Southampton, primarily operating on
an alternating series of 14-night sailings,
“Mediterranean Treasures” and “Italian
Mediterranean” programs.
Couple jet-skiing near
Navigator of the Seas
“The outdoor
video screen
was so well
received, we
decided to
deploy it on
all ships due
for revitalisation."
features
Three 10- and 11-night Canary
Islands itineraries will be available in
October and November. The ship will
also offer one three-night sailing, overnighting
in Paris (Le Havre) in May; and
a four-night cruise spending the night in
Cork, Ireland.
Presidential suite
Liberty of the Seas and Independence of
the Seas will be the only vessels in Europe
exclusively featuring amenities that have
revolutionised the cruise industry, such
as the FlowRider surf simulator, the H20
Zone water park, a boxing ring, cantilevered
whirlpools, and the four-bedroom,
four-bathroom Presidential Family Suite
that sleeps up to 14. With eight restaurants
and more than 15 bars and lounges,
each of the two ships offer guests one-ofkind
vacation experiences found on no
other ship in Europe.
Vision of the Seas, meanwhile, will
add two new six-night Norwegian Fjord
cruises from Oslo. The ship will sail
Northern European waters from April
29 to September 7, offering 14 different
itinerary options. Itineraries, which
will range from four to 12 nights, will
explore ports in Scandinavia, Russia, the
Norwegian fjords and the British Isles. A
12-night Arctic Circle sailing on August
9, roundtrip from Copenhagen, will cruise
the Arctic Circle.
From May through September,
Adventure of the Seas will continue on
its pattern of seven-night Western Mediterranean
itineraries roundtrip from
Malaga, Spain. At the end of the season
the ship will operate on a series of five
seven-night Canary Islands sailings,
also from Malaga. Sister ship Navigator
of the Seas begins its European season
with an eight-night itinerary on April 14
from Barcelona to Spain, where, through
November 18, it will offer seven-night
Mediterranean sailings.
Grandeur of the Seas’ cruise schedule
will include seven-night Western
Mediterranean sailings that will operate
from June 2 to October 20, roundtrip
from Palma de Mallorca. Voyager of the
Seas, meanwhile, will spend the bulk of
its Europe season sailing out of Venice,
but will shift from seven-night itineraries
to 10- and 11-night cruises, with
itineraries including overnight call
in Istanbul.
Splendour of the Seas will return to
its schedule of seven-night “Greek Isles
and Turkey” and “Greek Isles” sailings for
the bulk of its season, sailing roundtrip
from Venice from late April through
early November.
Jewel of the Seas will continue to
operate on its 12-night “Scandinavia &
Russia” cruises from May 15 to August 19
roundtrip from Harwich, England. It will
also feature one new cruise on June 20,
a “Fjords & Iceland” itinerary, roundtrip
from Harwich.
To add even more depth and breadth
to their Europe vacations, Royal Caribbean
is offering six cruise-tours, which
enables guests to couple sailings with
escorted land tour options to create
Kids play at the H2O Zone,
Oasis of the Seas
packages in conjunction with six of the
line’s ships.
Options for that include four nights
in Madrid and Barcelona, available on
Serenade of the Seas; five nights in
Venice, Florence and Rome, available
on Mariner of the Seas and Navigator
of the Seas; three nights in glamorous
Lake Como and Venice, available on Voyager
of the Seas; four nights in Paris and
London, available on Jewel of the Seas;
and four nights in Turkey’s Istanbul and
Cappadocia, a region filled with ancient,
underground cities, available on Vision
of the Seas.
Plenty for kids
Freedom of the Seas has returned to service
after completing a week-long drydock
at the Grand Bahama Shipyard. As
part of its revitalisation and enhancement
program, the vessel received new
dining concepts, entertainment options,
children’s programming and technology
advancements that were introduced
to wide industry acclaim aboard Royal
Caribbean’s new Oasis-class ships.
The program comprises approximately
$70 million of enhancements
aboard five of the world’s most innovative
cruise ships in 2011 to expand onboard
experiences across the cruise line’s fleet.
Freedom of the Seas alternates an Eastern
and a Western Caribbean seven-night,
round-trip itinerary from Port Canaveral
on Florida’s Space Coast.
“Royal Caribbean is rooted in providing
our guests with incredible vacation
experiences across the fleet and around
the world,” said Lisa Bauer, senior vice
president of Hotel Operations, Royal
Caribbean International. “The outdoor
video screen installed aboard Liberty
of the Seas in January has already been
so well received that we have decided to
deploy it aboard all the ships scheduled
to undergo revitalisation in 2011.”
In dry-dock, Freedom of the Seas
received new technology enhancements,
such as enhanced Wi-Fi, interactive
televisions, electronic waivers for sports
activities and electronic mustering (as
well as ticketing for shows later in the
year) that offer greater convenience
to Royal Caribbean guests on their
cruise vacation.
Another newly acquired Oasis-class
signature aboard Freedom of the Seas is
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