Last Month in Cruise August 2024 - Written By Sara Macefield
It’s full steam ahead as new ships flow into the order books and out of the shipyards, though as summer ends, attention is turning to the river cruising Christmas market season and, further ahead, celestial wonders with a clutch of cruises promising the best views of the next total solar eclipse.
Hip-hip hooray for new ships . . .
There’s more than a hint of magic with this latest crop of newbies, led by Disney Cruise Line’s Disney Treasure which was floated out at Germany’s Meyer Werft shipyard ahead of its December launch. Royal Caribbean International has gone large (ginormous in fact) with its order for a fourth Icon-class ship, and options for two more. Windstar Cruises unveiled a first peek of its 224-guest Star Seeker, debuting in January 2026, while work started on Scenic’s next-generation yacht Emerald Kaia, launching in April 2026.
. . . and spruced up ones too
Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Encore is getting snazzy new extras in a revitalisation that is adding outdoor adults-only lounge Spice H2O and 24 new balcony staterooms, plus redesigned suites in The Haven and an expanded Cagney’s Steakhouse and Teppanyaki.
A $100-million-plus “amplification” is planned for RCI’s Allure of the Seas ahead of its Europe season next summer. Guest can expect a reimagined Caribbean pool deck, a new Pesky Parrot tiki cocktail bar (which debuted on Utopia of the Seas), Southern restaurant Mason Jar and more.
Cruises promising to eclipse all others
It seems cruise lines are getting all starry-eyed. With the likes of Princess Cruises, P&O Cruises and Cunard having already revealed sailings coinciding with Europe’s next total solar eclipse in August 2026, this month saw Windstar Cruises, Carnival Cruise Line and Virgin Voyages add their own sailings for this celestial wonder. NCL has shone a light on this with two partial solar eclipse cruises to Scandinavia later in September and a Hawaii voyage in October that coincides with a partial solar eclipse in the South Pacific.
River news update
As the sun sets on summer, Emerald Cruises and VIVA Cruises are ramping up the festive feeling with Christmas departures that still have availability. Yuletide departures are not only offered on the Rhine and the Danube, but on the Main, Elbe, Vltava and Seine rivers. Admirers of AmaWaterways and its charismatic co-founder Rudi Schreiner can now experience the Danube “Rudi’s Way” on special round-trip sailings from Budapest in February and March before the season proper gets going – his favourite time of year to cruise this waterway.
Footy news and famous names
As the new football season kicks off, P&O Cruises has unveiled a tie-up with Southampton FC – it’s first sports partnership that also promises to bring benefits to guests with match tickets, meet and greet events and onboard coaching. MSC Cruises has scored by extending its partnership with Chelsea FC for another three years. Meanwhile Saga Cruises is spicing up its November 7 Canaries sailing with legendary ice dance duo Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean, and a Canary Islands voyage on November 21 with broadcaster and author Dame Jenni Murray, while Cunard has again teamed up with two Michelin-star chef Michel Roux for Le Gavroche at Sea residences on Queen Anne and Queen Mary 2 next year.