What do you want on a cruise? How private resorts are changing travel

By Vinod Sreeharsha Miami Herald Cruise ships are trying to address murky waters Do travelers want more and faster waterslides Or the number of decks to reach the s Do they still want to hike on all seven continents Or just stay on the ship and sip fruity cocktails Increase in cruise ship advance is starting to slow compared to the post-pandemic boom That trend has cruise lines looking at several procedures to keep people coming on board Particular are creating new private resorts Others are doubling down on super high-end luxury trips Still others are offering river cruises How all this unfolds affects South Florida and the Sunshine State home to the three largest voyager cruise ports in the United States PortMiami Port Canaveral and Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale The industry fills about jobs in Florida Private islands In December Royal Caribbean will debut its third all-inclusive resort the Royal Beach Club Paradise Island in the Bahamas The company is promising the resort will include the world s largest swim-up bar It spans acres of land with seven beach bars and pools for every vibe The project is a partnership with the Bahamian administration This will be Royal Caribbean s third private island following Perfect Day at CocoCay in the Bahamas and Labadee in Haiti where the company has suspended voyage Interior view of the new MSC Cruises Terminal AA designed by Miami s Architecture Studio Arquitectonica that includes an art piece by artist Lauren Shapiro at PortMiami which is the world s largest cruise terminal capable of accommodating three ships simultaneously and processing up to guests daily on April Pedro Portal Miami Herald TNS MSC Cruises remodeled its private island Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve in the Bahamas in adding a private yacht club and solar farm Now the cruise line will be creating a second private island near the original thanks to a dredging project at Ocean Cay Ryan Rea a -year-old frequent cruiser from Miami is drawn to that idea I prefer the private island because I ve been to the ports so multiple times Rea revealed They re confident safe and relaxing he mentioned You know you won t get bothered Luxury trips Several cruise lines are creating more high-end luxury cruises in part because that s where the money is And MSC Cruises which opened a modern new terminal in April at PortMiami is betting on it Explora Journeys the luxury company it owns will have its two ships Explora I and Explora II sail from Miami starting in November through the winter season Each offers over trips that are either or nights Countless sail to San Juan Puerto Rico and elsewhere in the Caribbean That includes Greater and Lesser Antilles St John s and the lagoons of Tortola MSC Cruises officially named its highly anticipated new flagship MSC World America at the line s new state-of-the-art MSC Miami Cruise Terminal on April at the PortMiami Carl Juste Miami Herald TNS The Explora III a new vessel that will start sailing during the summer of will have trips from PortMiami starting in November mostly to San Juan and the Caribbean but also for the first time La Romana in the Dominican Republic The publication Cruise Critic has noted that all cabins on Explora I are suites and each has an outdoor terrace Suites mirror inhabitants spaces designed to feel like a boutique hotel or room at a luxury resort rather than a cruise ship one reviewer wrote The line has achieved this not just in the d cor modern and neutral but in scale Of lesson these journeys aren t for everyone eight-night trips start at about per person One catalyst for MSC pushing more into high end is how costly things are on land Pierfrancesco Vago executive chairman for MSC Group s cruise division recounted in April to an audience in Miami Beach at the yearly Seatrade Cruise Global conference how expensive he identified things on land when he visited When I see the prices it s incredible he mentioned The dinner alone cost the same as a day on a luxury ship That helped convince him that MSC was on the right track How can we be wrong Vago urged Euphoria ending for the cruise ship industry The cruise industry experienced massive upsurge as the COVID- pandemic faded and millions decided to jump into their bucket lists In million people took an ocean cruise worldwide up from according to a new assessment from the deal group Cruise Lines International Association That s nearly twice the NFL s total attendance for the regular season Yet the development rate is slowing The statement forecasts enhancement in and in The ocean vessels operating in is just a increase from the year before That s the smallest annual advancement since at least excluding the pandemic year And there are other challenges Cities throughout the world are imposing restrictions on large ships docking at their ports In January the mayor of Nice on the French Riviera issued a decree barring cruise ships with or more passengers from docking at its ports Last year Juneau Alaska had a ballot measure that would ban ships from docking on Saturdays While voters rejected it that has given life to other options to limit cruise tourism In November voters in Bar Harbour Maine chose to maintain their limit of passengers per day Cities making it tougher for big cruise ships to dock is one concern But even busy ports have finite space industry analysts say and will soon have to cope with congestion PortMiami for example will be able to handle ships simultaneously once it finishes all three berths at MSC s new terminal inaugurated in April Earlier this year it set a record when ships arrived one morning A view of Cunard s Queen Anne while it is docked at PortMiami on Jan in Miami Photo by Matias J Ocner Miami Herald TNS They may have room to build one or two more docks announced Stewart Chiron a cruise expert But then what The author of The Cruise Guy who takes at least cruises a year wonders You can build new ships but where are you going to put them PortMiami s Florida neighbors to the north have already had to face that question Last year Port Canaveral suspended an effort to expand its port after state departments of commerce and transportation objected saying it would bother the Space Coast The port in Tampa has height restrictions This may be leading to one of the biggest trends in cruising visiting private islands held or built by the cruise companies The first one Great Stirrup Cay launched by Norwegian Cruise Line dates back to Those were early days for cruise companies That was also the year The Love Boat debuted on ABC television But they are now in vogue like never before The cruise lines are limited in where they can dock Chiron the Cruise Guy mentioned That s why they have to create these destinations New places and faces on a cruise Next year Royal Caribbean will open another private port Royal Beach Club Cozumel in Mexico Guests can snorkel kayak and enjoy tequila tastings and cooking classes The resort will include swim-up bars street markets and private cabanas In it ll launch what it dubs Perfect Day Mexico Each allows for new adventures in the western Caribbean the company reported Notably the islands in Mexico will be closer to Galveston Texas than other destinations That could create a test of whether Galveston can compete with South Florida s main ports Galveston is about miles from Houston which is home to about million people Doral-based Carnival reported the Miami Herald it expects to have ready Celebration Key its own private advancement in the Bahamas for sailing trips starting in July On the southern side of Grand Bahama island and about miles northeast of Freeport the resort will have its own pier with two berths where Carnival s largest ships can dock MSC Cruises officially named its highly anticipated new flagship MSC World America in a dazzling ceremony at the line s new state-of-the-art MSC Miami Cruise Terminal on April at PortMiami Carl Juste Miami Herald TNS In the pier at Celebration Key will add two more berths so a total of four Carnival ships can dock at the same time Costing million the area will feature water slides for kids scuba diving and other sports and excursions And there will be more than restaurants and bars that passengers can reach by walking or swimming Carnival is so keen on Celebration Key that of its ships plan to sail there including all five ships that call PortMiami home Carnival Celebration Carnival Horizon Carnival Sunrise Carnival Conquest and Carnival Magic Ships sailing from Baltimore New Orleans and Galveston will also head there this year In addition to giving the ships additional and alternative places to dock the private resorts give travelers more beach time expand group initiatives and bring in more money to the cruise lines The business justification was expressed by Josh Weinstein president chief executive officer and chief atmosphere officer of Carnival Corp He explained in April at the cruise conference in Miami Beach that the private island or resort gets a broader audience it gets more customers and it will ultimately conclusion in more demand Cruise companies are hoping that s also true for luxury travelers Related Articles Final boarding call for free bags at Southwest as airline abandons a cherished perk In India wine beliefs takes off with a vineyard scene that s worth a trip Immerse yourself in a London neighborhood for a richer more authentic visit If you haven t left yet it may be too late to avoid the Memorial Day voyage rush Hydrate Make lists Leave yourself time And other tips for reducing holiday trip stress Royal Caribbean is also making a play in that space all the way in Antarctica It expects to have an Antarctica Bridge fly-cruise undertaking ready by the end of that allows travelers to fly directly from Santiago Chile to Puerto Williams before getting on a cruise But before that guests can stay at a -room hotel The Cormorant at South in Puerto Williams which is in the Beagle Channel and near Ushuaia The site self-proclaimed as the southernmost hotel on Earth is planning to open by the end of this year It overlooks the channel and is surrounded by forest and water and the snow-capped Patagonian mountains Amenities include a fitness center gift shop lounge and a large restaurant The hotel and the expedition cruise ships are being organized by Silversea Cruises an ultra-luxury and expedition cruising company Royal Caribbean acquired in Silversea has three expedition ships Then there are river cruises In Royal Caribbean will start offering trips along European rivers on its subsidiary company Celebrity River Cruises It has already ordered ships and will go up against better-known river carriers like Viking Whether these trends will fend off the uncertainty is another question Trump tariffs President Donald Trump has used executive power to raise tariffs against China to He s put a tax in place against all imports from majority countries including close allies and those who hold commerce deficits against the U S He later suspended particular of them for days Still businesses are reporting slowdowns At the Seatrade cruise conference in April and in subsequent earnings calls cruise executives have acknowledged they aren t immune to the policies The uncertainty and the ripple effects absolutely have an impact on the industry Carnival s Weinstein stated Still he noted that we had more bookings in the first quarter than we have ever had Meanwhile on a conference call on April to discuss first-quarter results Royal Caribbean Group President and CEO Jason Liberty noted the company is over fully booked for the year and we see really no impact no change in cancellation rates and no real change in how our consumers are acting The company disclosed serving million guests in the first quarter up from the same period in and commented travelers spending on board was higher than a year ago That may be due in part to travelers like Ryan Rea The Miami resident has averaged taking four to five cruises in past years This year will remain the same he explained He already has one trip booked on Virgin Voyages in October to the Dominican Republic Rea declared he still finds cruising the the majority economical way to vacation and he regularly receives promotions because he s a regular and he gambles while on board But he also believes cruise companies can stave off tariffs because of their influence with regime leaders The cruise lines he mentioned are pretty powerful Miami Herald Visit miamiherald com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency LLC