- Cruise lines are heavily investing in older vessels and adding more capacity.
- Aside from new dining venues, lines like Celebrity Cruises, Holland America Line, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Lines have added more suites onboard.
- Cruise Passenger’s Peter Lynch was recently onboard the Norwegian Spirit, a ship which underwent a US$100 million bow-to-stern refurbishment.
Several cruise lines are investing heavily in refurbishing older vessels in their fleet to attract cruisers to try new offerings on familiar favourites.
Cruise Passenger’s Peter Lynch was recently onboard the Norwegian Spirit, a ship which underwent a US$100 million bow-to-stern refurbishment as part of The Norwegian Edge program.
The announcement came in 2019, with the ship returning to local waters for the first time in 2022 with new dining venues, staterooms and public areas.
Silversea’s Silver Muse last year emerged from drydock with a seven per cent increase in new staterooms, as well as adding the line’s S.A.L.T. Kitchen and S.A.L.T. Bar.
The ship now features a pickleball court, putting green and a simulator experience. The pool deck received new furnishings as part of the renovation.
New Medallion Suites were added to the accommodation inventory. These suites include a veranda, bathroom with double vanity, bathtub and walk-in shower, plus a bedroom area with a king-size bed.
Since then, lines like Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises, Carnival Cruise Lines and MSC Cruises have also announced huge investments into updating their fleets.
MSC Cruises recently announced it would be adding the MSC Yacht Club to two additional ships, MSC Musica and MSC Orchestra. The line’s ship-within-a-ship concept will now be across all four vessels in the Musica class.
Celebrity Cruises too recently announced a USD$250 million refurbishing all five ships in the Solstice Series over the next five years.
As part of the refurbishment, there will be eight new experiences, including four new-to-sea spaces, and many redesigned favourites.
The first ship to undergo refurbishment will be Celebrity Solstice, a favourite amongst Australian cruisers. Onboard Celebrity Solstice, there will be four brand-new stateroom categories – The Panoramic Infinite Veranda Suite, Deluxe Panoramic Oceanview Suite, Panoramic Ocean View Suite and Deluxe Panoramic Ocean View.
Other lines are also adding a significant number of staterooms to existing ships which will add capacity.
Holland America’s Westerdam not just emerged with new public spaces but also 11 new Ocean View Staterooms on decks one and seven, increasing guest capacity. The refresh also included new carpeting in all Verandah staterooms on decks five through 10, as well as in Neptune, Signature and Pinnacle suites.
Ovation of the Seas will see an additional 40 new staterooms which will take over space that is currently occupied by public areas.
Royal Caribbean’s Harmony of the Seas is set to enter drydock in April which will see the ship with an additional 91 staterooms. The line’s Liberty of the Seas will also see an increase of 68 new staterooms.
Norwegian Cruise Line will continue The Norwegian Edge program by adding 26 additional staterooms to Norwegian Bliss. The increase in staterooms is also like the projects carried out onboard the Norwegian Joy and the Norwegian Encore in 2024.
The Pride of America saw the addition of 26 new staterooms during a drydock in May.
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