Day 2!
It’s (a day late) day 2 of the official Cruise News Recap!
There was a little snafu with the website, but it is good to go now, so…
…here we go!
In May…
MSC Cruises announced it was expanding its family entertainment with new activities, game shows, dance parties, and parades. Included in the offering were the debut or expansion of things like the LEGO Family Game Show, the LEGO family parade, the Doremix Family Disco, the popular Guinness World Records activities, and more.
We hopped around several more islands. Search “Island Hopping” above to see them all.
One of my favorite stories every year is Norwegian Cruise Line’s Giving Joy contest. It happens every May to coincide with Teacher Appreciation Week. Teachers are such an integral part of our children’s lives as they work tirelessly for them and their future. Thank a teacher today, and I’m sure you can nominate a teacher this May 2026 as well.
While not scheduled to open until Fall 2027, Royal Caribbean began releasing details about Perfect Day Mexico.
In June…
Luxury cruise line, Oceania Cruises, began construction on a new class of ship–the Sonata Class. The celebratory steel cutting of Oceania Sonata was held at the Fincantieri-Marghera shipyard in Italy. Once completed, she will be the cruise line’s largest ship.
Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth arrived at the Port of Seattle for the first time on June 12, 2025. She sailed Alaska voyages between June and September, offering a different experience on the newly refurbished ship.
June also brought the announcement of Carnival Cruise Line’s new loyalty program–Carnival Rewards. Don’t read too much into this one; it’s already changed (more than once).
All 16 ships in the Princess Cruises fleet won the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence in the publication’s 2025 Restaurant Awards. Is it any surprise, though? Princess Cruises offers more than 250 labels from wine regions around the world, features wines from emerging producers, has a section dedicated to women winemakers, and offers the exclusive Love Lines Premium Liquors Collection from famous personalities.
In July…
There was rejoicing (especially by Tony) when Carnival announced it would be serving Coca-Cola again!
Norwegian Cruise Line canceled four months of sailings aboard Norwegian Breakaway and Norwegian Prima due to “fleet redeployment.” It wasn’t quite as bad as it sounds.
Regent Seven Seas Cruises recorded the biggest single booking day in the cruise line’s history when it opened bookings for its newest ultra-luxury cruise ship, Seven Seas Prestige. She is expected to debut in December 2026.
Celebration Key opened! Tony visited shortly after it opened and shared his first impressions.
Royal Caribbean officially welcomed 100 million cruise guests. A celebration was held aboard Icon of the Seas.
In August…
Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady debuted in Iceland. She called on Akureyri, the largest city in northern Iceland, Ísafjörður, a small town in the Westfjords, and made an overnight call in Reykjavik.
Princess Cruises’ Star Princess completed her sea trials as she prepared to welcome her first guests in October. Upon her debut, she will reveal a reimagined Spellbound by Magic Castle.
Portsmouth announced it had completed the “full Virgin Voyages set” when Brilliant Lady arrived, making Portsmouth the first port in the world to welcome all four Virgin Voyages’ Lady Ships.
Royal Caribbean’s Star of the Seas was officially christened. Streaming live from a bar onboard was La Lido Loca’s own Tony B and his brother-in-law, Steve.
That’s the 2nd four months! The last four are coming soon!