Plans for Queen Elizabeth 2 put on hold

Cunard Cruises epic ship Queen Elizabeth 2

was reportedly sold to Dubai company Nakheel for a sum of £50 million, but it seems the Middle East is not impervious to the recession as plans to transform Cunard Cruises iconic ship have been put on hold.

Britain’s most famous ship offered luxury cruise holidays to passengers for over 40 years and ended its service with Cunard Cruises late last year when the company could not justify the expense it would cost to bring the ageing ship up to the new health and safety standards introduced to the cruise industry.

It was intended that QE2 would undergo a complete refurbishment, included turning the engine room into a large entertainment suite and removing the famous red funnel to be replaced with an enormous glass structure which would house the hotel’s grandest suites and penthouse.

It seems that a few months down the line the ambitious plans have ground to a halt and could even be shelved completely. The Dubai hotel company Nakheel have commitments to other hotel deals in Palm Jumeirah and the construction of Trump Tower, which seem to be priority at the moment.

We’ll keep you posted of any further developments; hopefully plans for Cunard Cruises best known queen will not be cast adrift.

Princess Cruises bookings surpass last years result in first 2 months of 2009

Princess Cruises have reported a boom in bookings during the first two months of the year, surpassing the same period last year by nearly 6 per cent. Princess Cruises have put this down to lower prices and travel agents who have maximised the cruise line’s sales support tools to generate business in the current economic climate.

"Travel agents gave us a record-breaking reservations day in January, and this further result shows that they continued to sell Princess cruises at an extraordinary rate throughout the first two months of the year," said Jan Swartz, Princess Cruises executive vice president of sales, marketing and customer service.

"Agents understand that the best strategy at this time is to promote what's selling--and Princess is selling. We want to thank, and congratulate, our travel partners for their exceptional efforts. Despite the headlines we see every day, now is a great time for agents to build their cruise business. And we're there to help agents do this not only with attractive fares, but also with great tools."

Amongst the promotional offers available was the Princess Balcony Bonanza, with free upgrades to a balcony stateroom at the price of a standard ocean-view stateroom and the Alaska cruises Wilderness Sale featuring four new Seattle based cruise tour options that included air and bus transfers, plus a free stateroom upgrade.

MSC Poesia rocking all the way to Jamaica

MSC Cruises are set to showcase a number of rock’n’roll acts on board their MSC Poesia ship in November, it has been revealed.

The events will take place between the 15^th and 20^th November, in which time MSC Poesia will sail from Fort Lauderdale in the US to Jamaica and Grand Cayman.

Among the bands that will be playing is StoneRider, Stereoside, enderafteR, Broken Teeth and Skid Row. There will live concerts as well as plenty of other activities to entertain guests throughout the cruise, including karaoke sessions, Guitar Hero tournaments, contests, charity auctions and Q&A sessions with the artists.

One of MSC Cruises newest ship, MSC Poesia was christened in Dover last year and will be making a voyage to Israel later on in the year, calling in at Rome, Turkey, Greece and Croatia.