Cruise News

She's big, she's brash and she's burly. She's also suffering from a bit of an opening night party hangover. Norwegian Epic, the most eagerly-anticipated new cruise ship of 2010 is going to be a little bit late making her British debut. She should have arrived in Southampton by this morning, ready for a two-day preview cruise for travel agents, press and television. Instead, the 153,000-ton giant is feeling her way gently through the Channel at reduced speed due to a "technical problem" - said to be a failed propellor shaft bearing - which almost led to yesterday's departure from Rotterdam [...]

At the risk of coming over all geeky, here's a picture which shows that Cunard's new Queen Elizabeth (above) will not be a direct copy of sister ship Queen Victoria (top left). OK, they are basically similar - longer versions of Carnival's Vista platform - but Elizabeth crams a few extra cabins in by not having a raked stern. The modification also provides extra space on the aft pool deck and is similar to the amended design of Holland America Lines' Eurodam (centre left) and the Costa Luminosa (bottom left). Cunard's web site declares Victoria's passenger capacity to be 2,000, [...]

Final sea-trials have been completed, hull painting is dry and shiny, entertainment - from Blue Man Group to bowling alleys - is ready for action, wave cabins are being prepared for occupation. Cruise ship Norwegian Epic will finally be handed over by the builders and, barring any more last-minute hitches, will leave the yard tomorrow for the last time. The 153,000-ton ship is probably the most significant launch this year as it will be the only vessel built to a completely new design. Carrying 4,200 passengers, it will be NCL's biggest by far, and its size exceeds almost every other [...]

I completed my tour of all the dining options on board Azura with an evening in the Verona trattoria. A bustling self-service cafe by day, it is transformed into a waiter-service restaurant at night, offering traditional Italian specialities, and imposing a surcharge only for extravagances such as the stone-cooked steak, which passengers grill to choice at their tables. It was a pleasant experience - made better by the fact that we could enjoy watching the sunset from our window table on Deck 15, rather than being stuck at a mid-restaurant table in the Meridian on Deck 6. All in all, [...]