ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT host Mary Hart is confirmed as the godmother of Oceania Cruises’ new cruise ship Marina. Hart will name the ship in Miami at a lavish, invitation-only christening ceremony February 5, which will culminate with a 15-liter Nebuchadnezzar of champagne, custom-made by Armand de Brignac, commemoratively crashing against the hull.   A beloved television personality, this year marks Hart’s final season as host of ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT – the number one syndicated entertainment newsmagazine show in the world, which enters its 30th season th...

The most widely heralded ship to enter the cruise market this year, Celebrity Solstice, departed Meyer Werft shipyard yesterday in Papenburg, Germany, as the largest ship ever built by the longtime shipbuilder. In a milestone event known as "The Conveyance," the 2,850-guest Celebrity Solstice made its way down the River Eems, as tens of thousands of area residents lining the river banks cheered and photographed the historic event. "This is a very momentous occasion for Celebrity Cruises," said the brand's President and CEO Dan Hanrahan. "Celebrity Solstice is the...

Oceania Cruises is pleased to announce the first design details of its new Oceania-Class ships that are scheduled for delivery in 2010 and 2011. The ships, to be constructed in Fincantieri’s Sestre Ponente shipyard in Genoa, Italy, have been designed by the world’s foremost architects of luxury ships, Y&S Architecture and Interior Design of Oslo, Norway. Y&S has been retained to design all of the public spaces, suites and staterooms, and Gunnar Aaserud, a Partner and Executive Architect at Y&S, who has done extensive work on the line’s Regatta-Class ships,...

Oceania Cruises announced that on August 1st a new record for reservations was set as the line’s 2008–2009 Winter Collection of sailings went on sale. Oceania Cruises opened its reservation lines at 8 am on August 1st and took more than 400 new reservations in the first hours. At the close of business the line had bested it previous reservations record by almost 30% and some departures were 50% sold. “With limited availability for our 2008 winter sailings, Travel Agents and Oceania Club members have been eager to learn details of the 2009 winter sailings. Our Travel Partn...

Oceania Cruises announced that it has entered into a memorandum of agreement with Italy’s Fincantieri shipyard that calls for the construction of two 1,260-guest, 65,000-ton ships to be delivered in the fall of 2010 and summer of 2011. The agreement includes an option for a third vessel to be delivered in 2012. The contract price for each vessel is $500 million dollars. “This new class of elegant, mid-size ships will define upper-premium cruising for years to come and demonstrates our commitment to providing our guests and travel agent partners with an extraordinary onboard ...