Nearly 120 people aboard a cruise ship that set sail from Florida this month have fallen ill with norovirus, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The CDC’s Vessel Sanitation Program has identified Holland America Line cruise ship ms Rotterdam as the latest vessel to experience an outbreak this year. The ship is currently on a 12-night Panama Canal cruise that departed from Port Everglades on February 2 and is set to return on February 14.

Norfolk is officially launching year-round cruising, with Carnival Sunshine. The 3,700-passenger ship set sail on its first weekly cruise from the Half Moone Cruise Center, with year-round cruises from the Mermaid City.
City officials including Mayor Kenneth Cooper Alexander and Nauticus Executive Director Stephen Kirkland—celebrated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Norfolk is now a permanent homeport, expecting around 150,000 cruise passengers each year.

The cruise ship Viking Star was forced to alter its itinerary on Monday, February 10, bypassing the popular Greek island of Santorini due to continued seismic activity in the region. Instead, the ship docked at the port of Souda on Crete, allowing its nearly 900 passengers to explore the historic city of Chania.

Costa Cruises is once again setting the stage for an unprecedented musical experience at sea, as the company launches the Music Cruise 2025, celebrating the renowned Sanremo Festival. Departing from Savona on February 8, the cruise will transform the Costa Toscana into a floating concert venue.

For the fourth consecutive year, Costa Cruises is an official partner of the Sanremo Festival. The announcement was made during a press conference hosted by Rai Pubblicità on February 10, where Costa joined other key institutional partners in unveiling plans for the 2025 edition.

TUI Cruises officially welcomed its newest vessel, Mein Schiff Relax, on February 7, 2025, at the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy. 

The handover ceremony was attended by executives from TUI Cruises and Fincantieri, including CEO Wybcke Meier and CFO Frank Kuhlmann, alongside Italian Minister Luca Ciriani. Meier described the event as a "special moment," emphasizing how Mein Schiff Relax ushers in a new era of well-being at sea.

The Swiss singer and last year’s Eurovision Song Contest champion, Nemo, made an unexpected appearance aboard the Allure of the Seas for a special 30-minute performance. The artist was flown in for the 35th Anniversary of the Atlantis gay cruise, marking a rare sighting of the elusive musician.

Nemo’s Low-Key Comeback

Despite the excitement surrounding the event, many attendees reportedly did not recognize the "The Code" star. Nemo’s current management confirmed the performance, stating:

Wisdom is often said to come with age, but that was not the case for a Dutch couple who took their protest against cruises to an extreme by vandalizing a cruise ship in Amsterdam. The duo, a 67-year-old man from Oosterhout and a 56-year-old woman from Amsterdam, were arrested on the evening of their act of defiance.

Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas is finally getting that jaw-dropping, multimillion-dollar facelift we’ve all been waiting for—four years late, but hey, better late than never! Because of the pandemic, the revamp got pushed back, leaving the ship with just routine maintenance. But now, it's game on for a $100 million upgrade as part of Royal Caribbean’s “Royal Amplified” program.

TUI Cruises is reportedly in negotiations with the Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri for the construction of two additional InTUItion class cruise ships, according to Schiffe und Kreuzfahrten. If confirmed, this expansion would bring the total number of ships in the class to four, joining the soon-to-be-launched Mein Schiff Relax and Mein Schiff Flow.

The MSC World America will leave Saint-Nazaire, France, on March 27, heading for Miami, Florida, MSC Cruises confirmed. The ship, capable of carrying 6,774 passengers across 22 decks, is part of MSC’s new LNG-powered World Class series.