Port Canaveral Gets Ready For Cruising To Return
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Port Canaveral Florida is getting ready for cruising to resume this week! The cruise industry is kicking back up and cruise lines are heading back out with passengers.
Related The Disney Dream prepares for cruising to return at Port Canaveral
Cruise lines have completed test sailings and have been given the go-ahead to sail with paying passengers. Carnivals Mardi Gras just returned to Port Canaveral after completing its first sailing back after the pandemic.
Royal Caribbeans Allure of the Seas set sail yesterday on its first sailing back since COVID. Tonight, Disney Cruise Lines Disney Dream will sail its first cruise with paying passengers since the COVID shutdown. It will be sailing a 4-night Bahamian cruise.
Related Carnival Cruise Line receives approval to resume cruising from Port Canaveral
Port Canaveral will have one of its busiest weekends since the pandemic started. Cruise lines were shut down for over a year due to COVID.
Over the next two to three weeks, youre going to see a lot of activity of active sailings out of Port Canaveral. And thats whats got us excited right now, said Canaveral Port Authority CEO Captain John Murray.
Work at Port Canaveral has been very slow over the last year. It was very slow, said Port Canaveral Manager Adam Der. Sometimes a little boring, but you kind of keep busy and do what you do.
Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line
Another cruise line set to sail this July is Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line, which sails 2-day itineraries onboard its Grand Classica cruise ship starting July 2. Guests do not need to be vaccinated but will be held to additional health and safety regulations onboard the ship.
Feel free to discuss this topic and all things cruise at our new boards. A place where readers can ask questions, help their fellow cruisers and general cruise discussions on cruise lines and ports.
Ship Sets Sail Saturday
BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. Disney Cruise Line plans to have a test sailing out of Port Canaveral, departing Saturday afternoon, as a key step toward Disney resuming operations with paying passengers from U.S. ports, News 6 partner Florida Today reports.
Saturdays sailing will be on the Disney Dream, and would be the first such cruise activity out of Port Canaveral since March 2020, as cruising had been idled since then by the coronavirus pandemic.
This is an important milestone for the safe restart of cruising, Port Canaveral Chief Executive Officer John Murray said Friday.
We continue to work closely with our cruise partners, and are proud of our collective efforts to get this business up and running once again at our port, Murray added.
The Dream is scheduled to arrive at Port Canaverals Cruise Terminal 8 at 6 a.m. Saturday and depart at 4 p.m.
Having a test sailing also known as a simulation cruise is one way cruise lines can get Centers for Disease Control and Prevention clearance to sail with paying passengers.
The two-night sailing will include about 300 volunteer Disney Cruise Line employees and their guests.
Canaveral Port Authority Chairman Wayne Justice said he is pleased about the latest development.
A previously scheduled test sailing of the Dream that was to depart on June 29 was canceled. The ship would have carried about 300 Disney Cruise Line employees, playing the role of passengers, on a two-night cruise.
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Take A Gambling Cruise From Port Canaveral
As well as luxury cruises to Mediterranean ports of call, Port Canaveral is the home port of Victory Casino Cruises. They sail from the port twice daily, at 11 a.m. and again at 7 p.m., and cruises last 5-6 hours.
You must be 18 years or older to sail and gamble, and over 21 to drink alcoholic drinks. Casino cruises cost just $13 to board and guests can pay an additional fee for buffet dining.
Once the ship reaches international waters, land laws regarding gambling no longer apply. Victory Casino Cruises open their casino once they are three miles offshore. Like larger cruise ships, casino cruises have many slots and tables for black jack, baccarat, poker and Texas holdem among other popular card games.
Cruises Are Back These Ships Will Sail This July From Florida
Find out which cruise ships are resuming operations out of Florida this July including from Carnival Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises.
Are you planning on taking a cruise this summer from Florida but getting confused about the offerings? You are likely not alone. Cruise companies have been changing their schedules, ships, requirements, and itineraries on an almost daily basis in the last few months.
Nonetheless, Cruises Are Back!
So, the question is then, which cruise ships are sailing? We look at what we can expect from Royal Caribbean and Carnival Cruise Line this July and some other cruise lines that will sail from the sunshine state.
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Norwegian Cruises Things To Do
- Norwegian Cruises are very convenient for people who have the knowledge of English. All the signs and announcements on the ships owned by Norwegian are in English language. The crowd on board is also usually English speaking crowd. You might have difficulties enjoying your time on an NCL cruise if you do not at least know a little bit of English since the cruises that do not leave from English speaking countries also have primary mode of communication as English.Music lovers also enjoy their time on Norwegian Cruises as compared to other cruise companies. Norwegian has a lot of special events on their ships, specially designed for people who admire music as a part of culture. These events may include musical concerts, special orchestras and performances by some well known musicians. They have special themed cruises for travelers who enjoy music because their loyal customer base includes a lot of guests who travel with them only because of this facility which gives Norwegian an edge over other cruises
Where Are The Cruise Ship Ports In Florida Located
There are four major cruise ports in Florida.
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Msc Cruises: Resume Sailing August 2
MSC is a global cruise line and has ships sailing worldwide, but it is making inroads into the United States with some of its newest and largest vessels.
In the United States, trips are scheduled to begin again August 2, 2021 according to CruiseIndustryNews.com. The first trip will be aboard MSC Meraviglia, which will offer short 3 and 4-night cruises to The Bahamas, including its private island, Ocean Cay.
Notably, MSC has some practice in sailing in the new environment. They’ve had a number of sailings in Europe under new regulations and seem to be successful in keeping passengers healthy.
Norwegian Cruise Line: Resume Sailing August 7
As of March 2020, Norwegian made the call to suspend voyages across their fleet worldwide. The plan was for the ships to resume sailing in April 2020, but the suspension was lengthened multiple times. It’s now been extended through July 2021 for the U.S., with cruises returning in August.
According to the NCL, the first cruise scheduled from the United States is a trip from Seattle to Alaska on August 7.
Notably, there is some question if that cruise will sail from Florida, where trips are scheduled starting August 15. Norwegian has been firm that it wants to sail with 100% of passengers vaccinated. However, Florida law says businesses can’t require proof of vaccination from customers.
This has led to tension between the state and the cruise line. Recently, the cruise line’s parent company filed suit to be able to sail fully vaccinated from the state. It’s not clear what will come of the suit or NCL’s restart plans given the desire to sail fully vaccinated from Florida.
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Port Canaveral Cruise Terminal A
Port Canaveral is divided into two sections by the shipping channel. The north of the channel is home to Cruise Terminals 5, 6, 8, and 10. These terminals are easily accessed after you turn off of 528 to Cruise Terminal or Port Canaveral North Cargo Piers.
Carnival Cruise Line
Carnival is the cruise line with most ships docked at Port Canaveral and has exclusive use of Cruise Terminals 5 and 6 on the north side. These terminals include sailings by Carnival Magic, Carnival Sunshine, Carnival Liberty and Carnival Breeze.
Disney Cruise Line
With the Disney theme parks close by, it comes as no surprise that the Space Coast is home to the Disney Cruise Line. The mouses ships dock at Cruise Terminal 8 and include the Disney Dream, Disney Fantasy, and Disney Wonder.
Norwegian Cruise Line
The Norwegian Epic and Norwegian Sun sail out of Cruise Terminal 10. The Norwegian Breakaway will sail out of Port Canaveral starting Nov. 23, 2019.
Reasons To Choose Port Canaveral Cruises
Find out why you should choose Port Canaveral cruises out of Florida. Details about the terminals, transportation and things to do at the Florida port.
Port Canaveral cruise port is the second busiest cruise terminal in the world, after Miami. There are many reasons why Port Canaveral is such a popular cruise port and why 4.5 million cruise passengers choose it as the best cruise terminal for Caribbean and Transatlantic cruises.
Before you book your next cruise, check out these top reasons why you should choose the Port Canaveral cruise terminal for your next luxury cruise.
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Getting To Port Canaveral By Air
International passengers have a good choice of airports within easy reach of Port Canaveral Cruise Port. Orlando International Airport is 45 miles away. Cruisers can book a shuttle bus or car rental with cruise parking to transport them easily to Port Canaveral cruise terminal in around 45 minutes.
Other airports serving Port Canaveral cruises include:
- Melbourne International Airport 34 miles south of Port Canaveral
- Sanford International Airport 61 miles north
- Daytona International Airport 75 miles north
- Tampa International Airport 135 miles west of Port Canaveral
- Fort Lauderdale Airport 204 miles south
- Miami International Airport 225 miles south
Cruise Line Offering Balcony Cabins Starting At $169 And Kids Sail Free
A cruise line is offering cruise deals right now that include balcony cabins for the price of ocean view and kids sail free on cruises from Miami and Port Canaveral.
MSC Cruises is offering balcony cabins from $169 per person on cruises from Florida for the 2021-2022 season. The cruise line has two ships sailing from the state, MSC Meraviglia from Miami and MSC Divina from Port Canaveral.
MSC Cruises current cruise deals include:
- Get a balcony cabin for the price of ocean view
- Balcony cabins start at $169 per person
- Kids sail free on select cruises
- Good on cruises in 2021-2022
Offer is valid through November 3, 2021 for cruises that depart through October 2022.
The lead rate of $169 is for Category B1 and applicable on MSC Divina & MSC Meraviglia on select 3-night cruises.
Kids 17 and under sail free on select cruises when sailing as 3rd/4th guest in a stateroom.
For complete terms and detail of this latest sale from MSC Cruises, visit MSCCruisesUSA.com or contact your local travel professional.
Learn the cruise secrets most people don’t know and cruise like a boss. Check out Intelligent Cruiser here for a better cruise vacation.
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Ncl Out Of Miami And Alaska
Norwegian Cruise Line has already released details on restarting operations to Alaska and out of five US ports through the fall. The cruise line has now released further details on a restart from the US in August with the newest ship in the fleet sailing to Alaska and cruises restarting from Miami.
Norwegian Gem will kickstart cruises out of PortMiami on August 15, 2021. The ship will sail seven-day itineraries to the Caribbean and a four-day voyage to the Bahamas in November.
Norwegian Encore, which is currently the newest and largest ship in the fleet, will replace the Norwegian Bliss in Alaska. The Breakaway-plus class vessel will replace the previously announced cruises for Norwegian Bliss from Seattle, Washington, starting on August 7, 2021.
Harry Sommer, president and chief executive officer of Norwegian Cruise Line, said. With these additional itineraries, were providing travelers with more opportunities to set sail from some of their favorite homeports and to some of their preferred destinations. He continued to say, We are very excited to sail in the U.S. again, and to sail first with our latest beautiful ship Norwegian Encore. Were able to reintroduce her to our guests and invite them to experience her world-class offerings, as she makes her debut in Seattle and Alaska.
Virgin Voyages Terminal V
On November 28, 2018, Richard Branson and Tom McAlpin officially announced in Miami City companyâs plans to build a new cruise terminal in PortMiami.
âVirgin Voyages Terminalâ is sized 100,000 ft2 and will be located on seaportâs northwestern side. Approval for the project was given on Sept 20, 2019, with subsequent berthing agreement deal.
Construction works started in October 2019, with scheduled completion in November 2021. The USD 150 million facility was officially renamed from âTerminal Hâ to âTerminal Vâ. Virgin Voyages has brandâss name on a for-profit train connecting Miami with West Palm Beach . Virginâs cruise operations from PortMiami were planned to start in April 2020 with Scarlet Lady.
In late-October 2019 was approved the agreement for Brightline Miami to be rebranded âVirgin Trainsâ and Virgin Group to build a train station at the cruise port. The new station serves high-speed trains and connects PortMiami directly with the USAâs intercity railway system and Orlando International Airport. Construction works on Virgin Trains PortMiami are scheduled for completion in 2022.
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Cruises Return But Still Months Until All Ships Are Back
The process of cruises returning is like nothing the industry has seen before. There is no precedent. That makes it more difficult to understand exactly how it will play out.
The process has been slow so far with the CDC, but it is starting to ramp up more quickly. Already, several major lines including Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, and Carnival have officially returned to sailing, with many more scheduled in the weeks and months ahead.
But the full return of ships will take many more months to play out — even if all goes well. Carnival has said that it plans to have 15 ships sailing by the end of October.
All of this, of course, is dependent that a rise in virus cases doesn’t impact the return and vaccines continue to work against the virus.
Keep in mind that this situation is truly unprecedented. There is simply no way to know exactly when cruises return until the ship leaves the dock with passengers.
Below are the latest return dates for U.S. sailings, based on currently scheduled cruises.
Royal Caribbean Just Got Cleared To Sail From Miami This Weekend
This marks Royal Caribbeanâs first passenger cruise from the U.S. since the start of the pandemic.
Royal Caribbean just got the green light to depart on its first ticketed cruise from the U.S. since the pandemic started.
Following a successful test voyage, Royal Caribbeanâs Freedom of the Seas is set to leave Miami on Friday for a Fourth of July weekend cruise to the Bahamas. The ship is scheduled to stop in Nassau and at CocoCay, Royal Caribbeanâs private island in the Bahamas.
âThis is exciting progress, and we look forward to welcoming our guests on board,â Royal Caribbean CEO Michael Bayley said in announcing the development .
Royal Caribbeanâs Freedom of the Seas recently completed a three-day, two-night test voyage from Miami with 650 employees on board a gauge of its ability to operate safely during an ongoing pandemic.
Royal Caribbean said all crew members expected to be on board the Freedom of the Seas have been vaccinated. The cruise line also noted that âthe majority of guestsâ have been fully vaccinated, though it declined to provide specific numbers.
Many of the shipâs unvaccinated guests are children and will have to participate in COVID-19 testing and other safety measures, Bayley said on Facebook.
Vaccinated guests will also have access to all areas on board, including restaurants, bars, pools, shops, and entertainment venues, while unvaccinated passengers will be restricted in certain places. You can find a full list here.
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What Are The Best Airport Hotels To Use If We Want To Overnight At The Airport Upon Arrival
Here are our top choices for airport hotels that offer reasonable prices and friendly service:
- Miami International AirportHilton Miami Airport Blue LagoonPullman Miami Airport
- Le Méridien Dania Beach at Fort Lauderdale Airport
- Orlando International AirportHyatt Regency Orlando International AirportMarriott Orlando Airport Lakeside
- Hilton Garden Inn Tampa Airport West ShoreGrand Hyatt Tampa Bay
Independent Van And Car Services
From MCO, there are several shuttle services, including Busy Traveler Transportation, Cocoa Beach Shuttle,Melbourne Airport Express and Mears. To get an idea of price, we asked for a quote on a one-way trip from MCO to Disney Cruise Line at Port Canaveral. A luxury sedan for a family of four cost $160. Upgrade to an SUV for $188.
There are also plenty of car services to hire. Look locally or go with Groundlink. The estimated cost from MCO to Port Canaveral is about $114 one-way for a standard vehicle that accommodates three people. Add $20 if you need a car seat for a child. A van accommodating up to 10 people priced out at $161.
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