Fincantieri Floats Environmentally-Advanced Cruise Ship for TUI Cruises

Mein Schiff Relax was towed from the building dock for fitting out before her late 2024 introduction (TUI)

PUBLISHED NOV 28, 2023 5:57 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

 

Fincantieri marked another milestone in its cruise ship construction with the float out of the first ship being built for Germany’s Mein Schiff operated by TUI. After many years of building cruise ships in Finland, Mein Schiff which is a joint venture between TUI and Royal Caribbean Group, placed the order for the two new ships with Fincantieri, the first time either company has built a large cruise ship in Italy.

The new ship which is named Mein Schiff Relax will be approximately 160,000 gross tons when completed and one of the most advanced technologically with additional consideration for its environmental impact. The new ship is dual-fuel designed to run on LNG or marine gas oil (MGO), and only the second cruise ship Fincantieri has built for LNG. With the ship’s introduction in late 2024, TUI will join the growing list of cruise ship operators including Carnival’s AIDA, Carnival Cruise Line, Costa, and P&O Cruises, as well as Disney Cruise Line, Ponant, Havila, and Silversea Cruises, which are already operating LNG fueled cruise ships. Both Royal Caribbean International and Carnival’s Princess Cruises will also be introducing LNG-fueled ships in 2024.

 

The new ship will be the largest in the cruise line's fleet (TUI)

 

Fincantieri highlights that the order for the two cruise ships for TUI’s InTUItion class is based on a prototype project developed by the shipbuilder that consolidates modernity with sustainability. Energy efficiency was at the center of the project, with the vessels being built to also use the next generation of fuels including bio- or e-LNG, when it becomes available.

Other features incorporated into the design include heat recovery from the diesel generators as well as catalytic converters. The ship is also equipped to use shore power when it is in port. TUI highlights that its cruise ships spend as much as 40 percent of their time in port and the new ship will be able to operate emission-free while docked. The ship will also be equipped with an even more efficient innovative waste treatment system capable of transforming organic substances into charcoal through a thermal process.

Construction of the ship began in June 2022 with the first steel cut and she is being assembled at the company’s yard in Monfalcone, Italy. The vessel was given the traditional blessing and christening by a Madrina before the hull was floated and towed from the building dock on Monday, November 27. 

 

Cruise ship being moved from the dry dock to the fitting out berth on November 27 (TUI)

 

In addition to being Mein Schiff’s first LNG-fueled cruise ship, she will also be the largest at 160,000 gross tons. She will accommodate 3,984 passengers and include a range of new amenities for the cruise line which is focused on the German-speaking market. TUI said the name was chosen to highlight the relaxation and well-being atmosphere and features of the ship which will include a large culinary variety as well as accommodations for solo travelers. The ship will also have a dedicated area for children and families. 

TUI is moving aggressively forward with its efforts to reduce emissions. In addition to shore power, it has begun testing biofuel on its existing fleet. The company is also building the final ship in a prior class at Meyer Turku which will be introduced in mid-2024 as the seventh cruise ship of the line. While using a traditional propulsion plant they are also outfitting the vessel to be methanol-ready when it is launched. 

Mein Schiff Relax will be the eighth cruise ship for the line and will enter service in late 2024. In 2025 she is scheduled to be cruising in the Western Mediterranean. She is to be followed by a sister ship from Fincantieri in 2026.

Low Air Draft Creates Whale of a Tale for Carnival Cruise Ship

Carnival Panorama with 15 passenger deck and her massive funnel is too tall to reach the shipyard (Fincantieri file photo)

PUBLISHED NOV 24, 2023 6:08 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

 

Carnival Cruise Line is facing a “whale tail” of a problem for its cruise ship Carnival Panorama (133,596 gross tons) which is in urgent need of repairs. The cruise ship requires too much air draft to get to the only available nearby shipyard to repair the vessel and get it back into service in time for the busy holiday season cruises.

The Carnival Panorama, which is 1,055 feet in length and has 15 passenger decks, normally operates from Long Beach, California on cruises ranging between five and eight days to Mexico. In mid-November, on the first night of a cruise, she developed what the cruise line described as “steering and propulsion problems.” Passengers aboard wrote on social media that one of the cruise ship’s two engines failed leaving them with half power. Two ports had to be dropped from the cruise and the ship limped back to California.

Carnival initially said the ship would be out of service for four cruises and then extended to six reporting that the Carnival Panorama needed to be drydocked for repairs. The challenge, there are only a relatively small number of dry docks that can handle a 1,000-footer and even fewer available in the vicinity of Southern California that can accommodate an urgent job.

Vigor’s Portland shipyard on the Willamette River in Oregon was available. However, it requires a trip some 95 miles along the Columbia River with bridges between the yard and the ocean. The Carnival Panorama is too tall to clear at least one of the bridges to make it to the shipyard.

 

Docked in Astoria the cruise ship can not proceed up river because of the air draft and the bridge (Port of Astoria)

 

Carnival initially sent the cruise ship to Astoria, Oregon where she docked on November 15. According to reports, they were exploring all the contingencies to get the ship to the shipyard located on Swan Island. The solution was to remove a portion of the ship’s massive funnel widely known as the “whale tail” because of Carnival’s distinctive style with two extensions from the main funnel to vent exhaust toward the sides of the ship. 

The original plan was to explore removing the portion of the funnel while the ship was docked in Astoria but now Carnival has determined that too was not possible. So, working with Victoria Shipyards in Canada, a new plan was hatched. The Carnival Panorama is making an out-of-season call in Victoria, British Columbia at the deep-water berth at Ogden Point. She arrived in Victoria on Monday evening, November 20. A large crane is being positioned alongside on the dock and crews are erecting scaffolding to remove a portion of the funnel and reduce the required air draft. 

 

Look closely and you can see the scaffolding going up around the funnel (Greater Victoria Harbour Authority)

 

After the portion of the funnel has been removed, the cruise ship will proceed to Vigor’s yard in Portland, which will undertake the necessary repairs. The cruise ship has two 16,500 kW propulsion pods and five MAN diesel generators. It is unclear which ones need the repairs, but the goal is to get the work done, send the cruise ship back to Victoria to reassemble her funnel and get her back to Long Beach in time to run her December 23 Christmas holiday cruise and December 30 New Year’s cruise. Anxious passengers are holding their breath to see the ship back in service for their long-planned holiday cruises.

The Greater Victoria Harbour Authority reports it was pleased to assist and work with Western Stevedoring, Victoria Shipyards, Portland Shipyard, Carnival, and the crew of the Carnival Panorama to make it all happen. They even deferred planned out-of-season maintenance at Ogden Point to make the berth available for this unique operation.

Three-Year World Cruise Turns Into Cruise to Nowhere

AIDAaura which was linked to the three-year cruise was delivered to her new owners in mid-November (AIDA file photo)

PUBLISHED NOV 24, 2023 3:40 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

The much ballyhooed three-year world cruise that was to offer a unique chance to live at sea has turned into a cruise to nowhere. CNN is reporting that it saw copies of a video and statement sent to passengers that the cruise was canceled because Life at Sea, a company set up by Turkish tour operator Miray Cruises, had failed to obtain a ship for the deferred sailing date of December 1.

The concept drew broad attention from the mainstream and international media promoting the idea of living aboard a cruise ship. The reports widely echoed the marketing promotions which highlighted the trip as a “first of its kind experience,” that would ultimately cover over 130,000 miles across all seven continents, 140 countries, and 382 ports. What’s more, the marketing said it was the “first reasonably priced, all-inclusive world cruise starting from only $77,026 per year based on double occupancy.”

The promotions said people could “Live, Work and Explore from their Home at Sea.” They were promised free medical visits, free WIFI, and the ability to invite friends and family to join in. The website also says, “Speak to your Tax Accountant about the advantages of being an international resident aboard a ship.”

According to the reports, 111 cabins had been reserved with CNN saying that people had sold or rented their homes and abandoned most of their possessions. Now they have vague promises from the company to pay for housing till December 1, airfare home, and eventual repayments in installments from mid-December till February 2024 according to CNN.

The report says passengers were informed their idyllic three-year voyage would not be sailing a day after Celestyal Cruises confirmed it had purchased the AIDAaura from Carnival Corporation. Reports are the Greek company paid $60 million for the cruise ship and they took possession before the sale was announced. Observers in Bremerhaven, Germany, immediately saw the new name Celestyal Discovery being painted on the ship and a change in registry to Malta. The 42,000 gross ton cruise ship departed Germany on November 21 apparently bound for Greece where she will be refitted for her 2024 entry into service.

Life at Sea had repeatedly assured its customers that it was awaiting the handover of the cruise ship reporting it was just taking longer than expected. However, by early October they admitted their crew had left the ship and that the handover and refit were delayed. Originally, the cruise was scheduled for a grand sendoff on November 1 from Istanbul, which was later moved to November 11 from Amsterdam or a vague offer to board when the ship reached Freeport in the Bahamas. The final reports said the departure would be November 30 before the company went silent.

 

Miray operates cruises from Turkey aboard the smaller ship Gemini (Miray)

 

The cruise was being promoted by Miray, a company based in Turkey that operates the smaller Gemini, a 19,000 gross ton cruise ship built in Spain in 1992 with 400 cabins for 800 passengers. Miray has been running cruises in the Mediterranean since 2021 with the ship and initially said it would be the basis for the three-year world cruise. However, last spring they said they were upgrading to a larger and more modern ship. While never naming the AIDAaura, the ship they were calling Laura was quickly matched to the 20-year-old cruise ship Carnival’s AIDA brand announced it was retiring in September. It is a larger cruise ship with 627 cabins and is designed to carry about 1,200 passengers.

CNN reports that the owner of Miray told them that he runs a small company and could not afford to pay $40 or $50 million for the ship but he had attracted investors. He blamed the attacks on Israel and the war against Hamas as undermining the plan and the investors backing out. He said they looked for another cruise ship but it was not possible to quickly obtain a third one. 

Miray held out vague hope the company might try again in the future if it could find another cruise ship. For now, the first-of-its-kind three-year world cruise is instead a cruise to nowhere.