2004 yearend review: smooth sailing for the cruise industry in the wake of last year's record passenger numbers

Cruise Travel, Jan-Feb, 2005 by Theodore W. Scull

NCL America has announced arrival dates for its next two Hawaiian-based vessels. The 88,000-grt Pride of America, delayed because of a shipyard accident last January, will be delivered on June 6, 2005, by Lloyd Werft shipyard in Germany. Following several inaugural cruises, she will begin seven-day roundtrip cruises from Honolulu on July 23. The itinerary may also be shortened to three-day and four-day inter-island cruises between Honolulu and Maui.

The Pride of Hawai'i, originally designed to be a sister to the Pride of America, will be delivered in the summer of 2006. She has been enlarged to 92,000 grt to accommodate almost 2,400 passengers and redesigned to match other newbuilds in the NCL fleet. She will now be a sister ship to the Norwegian Jewel (set to enter service in August) and as a result has little of the original American design remaining. The two U.S.-flag ships were originally being built in Mississippi as part of "Project America" for now defunct United States Lines. Although both ships are being built in Germany, they will be American-registered and 85 percent U.S.-crewed for year-round Hawaii cruises (the remaining 15 percent may be green-card holders).

The presently Honolulu-based Pride of Aloha (the former Norwegian Sky, reflagged into NCL America service) may also be boarded at Maul for a seven-day cruise. Another NCL Hawaii-based ship, the Norwegian Wind, continues 10- and 11-day cruises that include Fanning Island (Republic of Kiribati); as a foreign-flag ship, she sails under the Norwegian Cruise Line brand rather than for U.S.-flag NCL America.

NCL also took over the SuperStar Leo from Asia-based parent company Star Cruises to operate as the Norwegian Spirit, replacing the Norwegian Sky in Alaska. The Norwegian Sea will go to Star Cruises as a replacement. Following its sale of several other ships, Star Cruises was left with just the SuperStar Gemini, Star Pisces, and SuperStar Virgo--a major comedown for the firm that owns NCL and spearheaded the idea of multiple restaurants and "freestyle cruising."

After ordering the first "Ultra Voyager," Royal Caribbean International turned the option for a second into a firm order for delivery in the spring of 2007. The first, now under construction, has been named Freedom of the Seas and is expected to be about 158,000 grt, roughly 15 percent larger than RCI's Voyager Class ships and six percent larger than the Queen Mary 2, currently the world's largest passenger ship. Because of the QM2's ocean-liner hull design, she will remain the longest at 1,132 feet, compared to the 1,112-foot Freedom of the Seas, which will carry 3,600 passengers and 1,400 crew-members.

For two months beginning in May, RCI will heavily refit its Enchantment of the Seas, including the addition of a 73-foot midsection that will increase the vessel's tonnage from 74,140 to 80,700 and overall length to 990 feet. New and refitted indoor and outdoor public areas will be added, plus 151 staterooms. Some of the outdoor design features look splendidly innovative (see "New Ship Review," page 14). When the work is completed, the ship will initially undertake a varied program of Canada/New England cruises from Bayonne (NJ), Philadelphia, and Boston.