Customs and Border Protection officials arrested a former Carnival Cruise Line crew member after he allegedly tried to smuggle himself out of the United States.

We have all heard the problems with deck chair hogs – people that wake up really early, claim their loungers by the open deck with a towel, but a brawl among two senior guests to claim a deck chair is something new.

The Royal Caribbean cruise ship Empress of the Seas, decided to cancel scheduled arrival to San Juan due to safety concerns over protests which started yesterday, calling for Puerto Rico Governor Ricard Orossello to step down. According to the latest reports the vessel is being re-routed to Tortola, British Virgin Islands, and all guests will receive refunds for prepaid shore excursions scheduled for San Juan.

The Italian Coast Guard performed medical evacuation of a 31 year old woman from the Philippines sailing on the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Oasis of the Seas.

Silvio Gentile, Carnival Cruise Line Director of Scheduling and Compliance, has passed away from a heart attack ten days ago in Miami, Florida. With the sudden death of Silvio Gentile, Carnival lost a great professional and a visionary, but most of all an exceptional human who has impacted the lives of many onboard Carnival cruise ships.

The Spanish cruise line Pullmantur Cruises has confirmed that their cruise ship “Zenith” will leave the fleet in early 2020. The withdrawal of the Zenith will cause cancellation of the routes to the Canary Islands and Madeira.

Royal Caribbean has started operating a maritime training center in Rotterdam as a result of its contract with the company Simwave. The ultra-modern simulation center will offer Royal Caribbean technical and operational staff training to ensure, develop and maintain safe operations.

The US Coast Guard has ended the search for the crewmember who fell from the cruise ship Carnival Victory. 

A search is underway after a crew member was reported overboard from the cruise ship Carnival Victory. The Man Overboard was reported three hours ago while the cruise ship was sailing back to Miami, some 25 nautical miles northwest of Cuba.

The authorities and the US Coast Guard were immediately notified and a search and rescue operation is currently underway.

We are very sad to report that an Indian crew member employed by the Italian company Costa Cruises, died from a heart attack onboard the cruise ship Costa Luminosa.