Collette Gets "People-to-People" Permission for Nine-Day Cuba Tour 5/14/2013 A conga line of tour operators anxious to sell the Caribbean’s last unexplored frontier (for American travelers, that is) is forming as the U.S. Department of the Treasury granted Collette Vacations a “people-to-people” license to run its nine-day Rediscover Cuba - A Cultural Exploration tour....

Holland America Rebrands Alaska Cruise-Tours as Land+Sea Journeys 5/13/2013 Holland America Line is rebranding its Alaska cruise-tours as Land+Sea Journeys. The packages combine a cruise with a land stay in Alaska

New Banana Coast Cruise Port in Honduras Books More Calls 5/13/2013 Starting next year, the cruise industry will have a new port to visit on the Western Caribbean in Central America. The Banana Coast cruise port, now under construction on mainland Honduras, said Holland America Line is the first cruise line to schedule regular calls. The 1,260-passenger Ryndam...

Norwegian Breakaway’s New York Debut 5/12/2013 I was aboard last week when Norwegian Cruise Line officially introduced Norwegian Breakaway, which at 4,028 passengers double occupancy and 146,600 gross register tons is the largest ship ever to be permanently home-ported in New York City. The christening ceremony, held last Wednesday in the ship's...

InterContinental Hotels Group to Open Holiday Inn in Quito 5/12/2013 InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) will open a Holiday Inn hotel in Quito, Ecuador in 2016, the company announced. The 130-room

Carnival Cruise Lines to Deploy Second Ship in Australia in 2014 5/10/2013 Carnival Cruise Lines will deploy 2,124-passenger Carnival Legend in Australia next year for a seasonal program beginning Sept. 24, 2014, said Vance Gulliksen, a company spokesman. Carnival Legend will be based in Sydney and offer eight- to 12-day cruises visiting Pacific destinations including...

Jazz, Film and Tours: Tauck’s Ken Burns Jazz Event 5/09/2013 This past March I had the opportunity to participate in the Tauck Ken Burns Event in New Orleans, a program of activities created by Tauck in partnership with documentary filmmaker Ken Burns. The event is based roughly on Burns’ conception of jazz as put forth in his 10-part, 19-hour PBS film series...

Norwegian Breakaway "Rocks" New York During Christening Event 5/08/2013 Norwegian Cruise Line, on a rainy May 8 in New York City, officially introduced its new 4,000-passenger Norwegian Breakaway, built by Germany's Meyer Werft shipyard. The New York-themed ship, which was christened by Radio City’s Rockettes, will begin Bermuda sailings on May 12, and then will offer...

Carnival Cruise Lines’ Carnival Triumph to Depart Mobile Wednesday 5/08/2013 Carnival Cruise Lines’ Carnival Triumph was scheduled to depart Mobile, Ala. under its own power for Freeport, Bahamas Wednesday,

Wyndham Hotel Group to Open Its First Hotel in the U.A.E. 5/06/2013 Wyndham Dubai Marina -- through an agreement with Sigma III Limited, a subsidiary of British-owned developer The First Group.