Celestyal-Journey

The situation of the passengers on the TUI ships "Mein Schiff 4" and "Mein Schiff 5," as well as the "MSC Euribia," remained uncertain on March1. At least all passengers were safely back on board. The three ships, along with three other cruise ships, remained docked in the ports of Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Qatar. What would happen next for the passengers and the ships was still completely unclear. The night in the Persian Gulf was once again marked by military operations. According to unconfirmed reports, the military strikes were now also targeting the Iranian navy. Iran has closed the crucial Strait of Hormuz to shipping. This means there is currently no escape for ships from the Gulf. Only ships with ties to China or Russia passed through the strait during the night. The approximately 2,000 passengers of the 'Mein Schiff 4' were originally scheduled to depart from Dubai on March 1 for their return journey to Germany, making room for about 2,000 new passengers who were to arrive by plane from Germany. Continue With these new passengers, the "Mein Schiff 4" was supposed to set sail on March 2 at 10:30 p.m. for the seven-day "Magic of the Orient" cruise to Oman. That will no longer happen. The "Mein Schiff 4" itinerary has been suspended for the time being. The situation was similar for the "Mein Schiff 5" in Qatar, whose passengers have been stranded in Doha since Feb 28, after the end of their cruise. Some were already on planes when the aircraft turned back. They landed again and were stuck at the airport. After waiting at the airport for ten hours, according to their own statements, the passengers were brought back to the "Mein Schiff 5" in the evening. Warnings about incoming missiles on smartphones From time to time, warnings about incoming missiles from Qatar's Civil Defense appear on the passengers' smartphones. According to the captain, the ship was in constant contact with the German embassy and TUI on land. More information was expected during the afternoon. The passengers hadn't received any messages from the cruise line for 12 hours. However, it was better to wait on board. There was such terrible chaos at Doha airport; there were endless lines and nobody knew anything. Passenger of the "Mein Schiff 5" had to leave all their luggage behind at Doha airport. Since they were not allowed to leave the ship, they were directed to the onboard shop for toiletries and a change of underwear. Underwear was meanwhile completely sold out. The “Mein Schiff 5” was scheduled to leave Doha with new passengers on March 1 at 10 p.m. Several more cruise ships were stuck in Dubai The “MSC Euribia" was docked in Port Rashid, the port of Dubai. It was also supposed to depart on March 1 for a cruise through the Gulf and to Oman. MSC Cruises announced on thr morning of Feb 28, immediately after the first reports of the conflict, that the cruise would not take place. Also docked in Dubai wee the "Aroya" of the Saudi cruise line Aroya Cruises and the "Celestyal Discovery" of the Greek shipping company Celestyal. A second ship from the same company, the "Celestyal Journey", was docked in Doha, Qatar, along with the "Mein Schiff 5."

On the morning of April 5, ,2025, the Heraklion Port Authority was informed that two passengers of the'Celestial Infinity', a 77-y'ear-old Greek national and an 85-year-old British national, required immediate hospital treatment. The 77-year-old patient was medevaced and transferred to the University General Hospital of Heraklion for further medical treatment, while the 85-year-old was transferred to a private clinic in Crete for further medical examination. The ship continued its route to the port of Piraeus.

CMV Cruise & Maritime Voyages is going to acquire PACIFIC ARIA and PACIFIC DAWN from P&O Australia. New names of the ships will be IDA PFEIFFER and AMY JOHNSON. Full article and images : https://www.cruisedeck.de/die-neuen-schiffsnamen-bei-cmv/

P&O Cruises Australia is to sail six itineraries to Papua New Guinea in 2019, taking guests to destinations such as Alotau, Kitava Island, Rabaul, Kiriwina Island and the Conflict Islands. The line will offer five 10-night ‘New Guinea Island Encounter’ cruises from Brisbane, Australia. The sixth cruise will be an 11-night roundtrip from Sydney, Australia onboard Pacific Aria in mind-November, which will include a call at the Conflict Islands, one of the most remote locations in the Coral Sea.