Celebrity Cruises is building a new cruise ship for the Galapagos Islands which is set to debut in 2019. The new vessel named Celebrity Flora will have a capacity of 100 passengers and a tonnage of 5,739 gt, will be the largest cruise ship in the Galapagos Islands and will receive luxurious equipment in style of a large yacht. The ship is being built in the Dutch shipyard De Hoop, which is actually better known for river cruise ships construction.

A grandiose name for a truly grandiose cruise ship. MSC Cruises first vessel of the Meraviglia Plus Class will be named MSC Grandiosa. The name was announced during the steel-cutting and coin ceremony for the Meraviglia-class ship MSC Bellissima in the STX shipyard in St. Nazaire, France.

The cruise ship Carnival Triumph fail to pass the recent USPH Inspection.  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Inspectors boarded the vessel on November 11, at the port of New Orleans, Louisiana, and found multiple violations. CDC has not yet released an official report on their website, however, several crew members have reported that the final USPH score was 78. An 85 or lower on the CDC's 100-point inspection scale is considered failing grade.

Carnival Inspiration crew member was reported missing on Thursday, November 9, just before the cruise ship arrived at the homeport of Long Beach, Los Angeles. The missing crew member is identified as Symron Santana Almeida for Goa, India who was working as a Wiper in the Engine Department.

The cruise ship Carnival Inspiration arrived on Friday, November 10, at the homeport of Long Beach, Los Angeles with one crew member less. 

Costa Cruises and AIDA Cruises have canceled all cruise ship calls to Madagascar due to the pneumonic plague on the big island. Madagascar is currently facing an unusual epidemic affecting geographically extensive areas on the island with new cases reported in recent days.

U.S. Coast Guard executed medical evacuation of a Carnival Triumph crewmember on the Mississippi River near Venice, on Monday, November 6. Ship’s officers notified the Coast Guard Sector New Orleans watchstanders that a male crew member was experiencing symptoms of appendicitis aboard the cruise ship. The crew member was evacuated just hours after Carnival Triumph left New Orleans for a 5 Night Western Caribbean voyage. 

This is the audio from the PA system on the NCL Gem. The captain is informing passengers and crew about the engine breakdown. All the passengers are flying home and the ship will sail to Granada before reaching Barbados where passengers will disembark. Norwegian Gem disembarkation in Barbados will be on Friday and Saturday.

The cruise ship MSC Divina scored 93 points during its recent United States Public Health (U.S.P.H.) inspection which took place at the Port of Miami on November 4, 2017.

Norwegian Cruise Line has announced it will cancel the following Norwegian Gem 10-Night Eastern Caribbean voyage sailing out from New York. The cruise ship is experiencing technical problems with the Azipod propulsion system and is currently sailing with restricted speed.