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CruiseTimes is published three times a year and sent free of charge to cruise line executives worldwide. It is also sent to cruise-only travel agents and many other associated businesses.

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Contents and Editor’s Commentary Princess brings new partnerships onboard the Sun Princess Explora I begins new journey for MSC Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas in a class of its own Introducing Tim Meyer Spirit of Tasmania IV and V take shape at Rauma Marine Constructions

Serving the global cruise industry

Luxury cruises welcome families: Crystal, Explora and Hapag-Lloyd’s new family-friendly approach

Luxury cruise operators have long been reluctant to cater to children, but that picture is quickly changing. Andrea Valentino talks to Keith Cox at Crystal Cruises, Koray Savas of Explora...

Net-zero cruising by 2050: Progress and challenges for leading operators

Post-pandemic wellness travel: How cruises are meeting the demand for personalised experiences

Green hydrogen in cruising: insights from ponant and carnival on clean fuel innovations, queen anne’s maiden voyage: blending cunard’s luxury heritage with fincatieri’s cutting-edge design, international maritime organization (imo) adopts revised strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from international shipping, that’s the spirit, coming to america.

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Addressing misinformation and disinformation in the cruise industry

As the cruise industry continues to recover and evolve, addressing misinformation and disinformation will be crucial to rebuilding and maintaining a positive public perception and ensuring long-term success

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Navigating turbulent waters: the impact of interstate armed conflicts on the cruise industry, managing inflation in the cruise industry: challenges and strategies, extreme weather’s impact on the cruise industry, white papers.

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Queen anne's maiden voyage: blending cunard's luxury heritage with fincatieri's cutting-edge design, luxury cruises welcome families: crystal, explora and hapag-lloyd's new family-friendly approach.

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Future Cruise

Issue 18 | february 2022, in this issue: the state of the industry, 2022 predictions, havila's new hybrid cruise ship, northern xplorer's new eco-friendly ship design, and more..

Future Cruise brings you the latest news and insights from the cruise industry in a stunning, interactive format. Published quarterly and free to read online and on iPads, this digital magazine takes a look at the latest cruise trends, ports and destinations, onboard entertainment and services, as well as ship design and construction, maintenance, safety and security, environmental issues and regulation.

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Port Canaveral's focus on cruising has some business owners concerned about their future

When the average person thinks of Port Canaveral — if they think about the port at all — the first thing to come to mind is likely giant cruise ships.

But while Canaveral is world's second-busiest cruise port, it also supports private and commercial fishing, recreational boaters, cargo shipping, seafood restaurants and even the space industry. And proponents of those activities have been pushing back at growing dominance of the cruise industry at the port, which is chartered by the state to serve a wide variety of constituencies.

Those tensions came to a head recently, when state officials threatened to stop state grants to the port unless the port backed off on plans to build another cruise terminal on the site of a cargo berth on the port's north side, a move opposed by the space industry, which hopes to use that area of the port to support booster recovery and other operations.

Port Canaveral commissioners on Aug. 21 voted to halt plans to build a new cruise terminal on the site of its current North Cargo Berth 8.

But their new course is not certain, because they did not designate a new site for the terminal, and Port Canaveral CEO John Murray said the port will lose new cruise business within a few years by not having a new terminal in place.

Concerns of restaurant, marina owners

The latest turn of events has other port tenants concerned, among them Cove-area restaurant owners and marina operators.

In the budget year that begins Oct. 1, Port Canaveral expects to generate 83.1% of its $210.92 million in projected total operating revenue from cruise ships and cruise passenger parking.

Cruise passengers also generate extensive revenue for local hotels, vacation rentals, restaurants and retail shops that they frequent before or after their cruises, as well as for off-site cruise parking venues, shuttle bus operators, taxis, and Uber and Lyft drivers.

But some local residents who might not be cruise aficionados are concerned about the road traffic and the potential pollution that are byproducts of the cruise ships based at Port Canaveral. They say the port already is making enough money from cruises, and should now focus on doing what benefits local residents.

Change in plans for cruise terminal: Port Canaveral backtracks on plan for new cruise terminal over concerns from state, space sector

Some business owners at the port are concerned as well.

"This is the people's port," said longtime Space Coast restaurateur Rusty Fischer, owner of Rusty's Seafood and Oyster Bar in the port's Cove District.

Fischer is worried about the future of his restaurant and others in the Cove. Fischer's current 30-year lease expires in 2027, and he said the port for now only will agree to extend it until 2031.

"We don't know if we have a future here," said Fischer, who has had a restaurant at the port since 1993 and whose family operated a shrimp-processing business there before that. "It's just the unknowing."

Fischer said he is not naïve about the importance of the cruise industry to the local economy. He estimates that at least 50% of his restaurant's sales are generated by cruise passengers. This includes people arriving at the port before the cruise; about to leave the port after their cruise; on a ship port-of-call stop here; or staying at a local hotel or vacation rental as part of their cruise-focused vacation.

He just wants to know that his 300-seat restaurant — which employs 90 to 120 people, depending on the season ― has a long-term presence at the port.

In a similar predicament is Kenneth Dylan Houck, assistant general manager of Cape Marina, a business his family has run for three generations. The port is not renewing Cape Marina's lease. Instead, the port plans to seek proposals for redevelopment of the marina site, with Houck's family having the option to put in a proposal. The port plans to issue its request for proposals for the marina operations there sometime before the Cape Marina lease expires in February 2026. No specific timeline has been established.

"We are just in the fight of our lives in our family business," said Houck, who contends that Cape Marina has been "a stellar tenant for the last 48 years," and should be allowed to redevelop the site without the project going out for proposals from other entities.

"It's the best solution for everybody involved," Houck said, adding that his marina has been accommodating to boaters of all types, including commercial fishing vessels, fishing charter operators and people who want to have maintenance work done on their boats at the marina site.

Port officials respond

The port initially planned to locate its next cruise terminal at the site of the current Bluepoints Marina in its Marina District — the district where Cape Marina is located.

But Murray announced in May that the port would instead be building its next cruise terminal at the North Cargo Berth 8 site, saying the logistics related to putting a cruise terminal in the Marina District site would take too long to solve in time for the port's near-term cruise needs.

Murray says the owners of Cape Marina are welcome to put in a proposal to redevelop the marina area. But he wants to open the process to all potential applicants. He said the redeveloped marina site needs to be configured efficiently, which he contends is not the case with the current Cape Marina.

Diane Luensmann, the port's vice president of government and strategic communications, said: "This is a once-in-a-couple-of-generations opportunity to make something great, to make something better."

Murray also said, despite ongoing rumors and concerns from restaurateurs, there are no plans to do away with restaurant row in the port's Cove District to make way for another cruise terminal. He said the port doesn't want to sign long-term lease extensions now, so the port can better determine conditions of the restaurants and other properties. Murray said the port would want to address issues related to rundown properties before any new leases are signed.

The former Junkanoo Island Kitchen and Rum Bar along the Cove had been torn down after the restaurant closed during the COVID-19 pandemic and its lease expired. Murray said the site of the former Junkanoo has since been used for various maritime operations, including for smaller space industry vessels and for the operator of boat tours.

But Murray said that will not be the fate of the other restaurants.

Port Commissioner Fritz VanVolkenburgh said he would not support any effort to remove restaurants from the port landscape, because they are popular with Space Coast residents.

"I have to answer to the constituents," VanVolkenburgh said.

Uncertainty over next cruise terminal

In the meantime, the port is going back to the drawing board to figure out what to do about its cruise terminal needs. A record 16 cruise ships will be based at Port Canaveral this winter, up from the previous record of 13. That includes the addition of ships from two lines new to Port Canaveral ― Celebrity and Princess. Port Canaveral is the world's second-busiest cruise port, behind PortMiami.

With only six major cruise terminals at the port, any further proposed expansion of cruise operations could mean the port will have to turn away business without a new terminal. Cruise lines are deploying larger ships into their fleets, and have many more ships in the pipeline scheduled to come into service in the late-2020s and early-2030s.

Murray said some cruise lines have plans to swap out smaller ships with larger ships or increase their frequency of cruises in 2027 and 2028 at Port Canaveral, and the port needs to find ways to accommodate those changes.

Abandoning the North Cargo Berth 8 conversion plan means the timeline for building a new cruise terminal is extended because of additional permitting hurdles and the challenge of figuring out traffic issues at a potential new site — once the port has one.

One short-term option is to expand the relatively small Cruise Terminal 5 so it could handle larger cruise ships. But doing construction work at an active cruise terminal presents its own challenges.

Murray said "there could be a significant impact" if Port Canaveral does not have a solution to its cruise terminal facility issues.

"We're going to look at everything that we can do," Murray said.

Not having the new cruise terminal built within a few years will be costly to the port's revenue, port officials say.

"A new terminal would have brought in millions and millions of dollars," VanVolkenburgh said.

Commissioners agree on course change

Port commissioners didn't say much during their Aug. 21 meeting about the letter from state officials that spurred them to abandon plans for a cruise terminal on the North Cargo Berth 8 site.

But, in interviews afterward, commissioners said they understood the state's stance, in light of how important space is to Florida's economy.

Port Authority Vice Chair Wayne Justice said there was nothing to be gained by fighting the state and the space industry over using the North Cargo Berth 8 site for a cruise terminal.

"It is what it is," Justice said. "We have to be part of the state's big picture. We're going to look somewhere else" for a site for a new cruise terminal.

"You're talking big money when you have that kind of investments involved from the space industry," VanVolkenburgh said. "I can't fault the space industry players for being as aggressive as they are" in persuading state officials to protect the space sector's interests at the port.

The port has received $64.4 million in Florida Department of Transportation grants in the last six budget years, most of that for the rebuilding of North Cargo Berths 3 and 4, and is seeking $30.6 million in FDOT grants in the next three budget years. The port also has received $7.6 million in Florida Department of Economic Opportunity grants since 2019.

Gov. Ron DeSantis defended the state's actions related to Port Canaveral during an Aug. 22 news conference in Titusville.

"No one's done more for the cruise industry in this country than me," DeSantis said, referring to the state's legal efforts to get the federal government to give the green light to restart cruises during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Jared Perdue, one of the state officials who pushed back against the new terminal, said it's important for seaports to be diversified, noting that the state made a $13 million investment in North Cargo Berth 8 for cargo operations, and "we just want to see that berth continue to be used for what the investment was intended for."

"We are going to partner on how to continue to grow all of the business at Port Canaveral, along with all of our other seaports," Perdue said, emphasizing the importance of cargo for the state to have "a resilient supply chain."

The port also must maintain good relation with FDOT, not only for grants for projects within the port, but also for major road projects along State Roads 401 and 528.

"Port Canaveral recognizes the value of the space economy to our region and state," Canaveral Port Authority Chair Micah Loyd wrote in a letter to Perdue and Florida Secretary of Commerce J. Alex Kelly. "We fully understand and appreciate that your agencies feel our decision to locate a cruise terminal at NCB8 did not adequately balance our unique obligations and opportunities."

He also reminded them that the port is dealing with more than cruise and commercial space operations.

"Port Canaveral is home to various cargo operations with state and regional significance," Loyd wrote. "The Seaport Canaveral fuel farm supplies transportation-grade petroleum products to most of Central Florida, and jet fuel to Orlando International Airport and Melbourne Orlando International Airport for international flights. Import of aggregate materials support Florida’s road projects, and lumber imports have been crucial to our state and regional housing growth. Further adding to this diversity are the commercial fishing operations that feed our region and are steeped in historical significance to our community."

Still, cargo represents only about 11.2% of the port's projected operating revenue for the next budget year, with space components representing less than 1%.

VanVolkenburgh said, although space is not necessarily a big moneymaker for the port itself, it is a big economic driver for the state as a whole.

But so is cruise for the state's economy, not only for the port, but for other local businesses, creating jobs for local residents and sales tax revenue for the state.

According to a 2023 economic impact study the port commissioned, Port Canaveral has an annual impact on the state of $6.06 billion and is responsible for 42,666 jobs. Of that, cruise alone is responsible for a $4.01 billion economic impact and 30,570 jobs.

VanVolkenburgh said port commissioners are not trying to play favorites by pitting one sector of the port's business against another.

Still, VanVolkenburgh noted that "I don't want to get into a street fight" with the state.

It remains a challenge to accommodate the various business sectors and to keep local residents happy.

"To me, you can't please everybody," VanVolkenburgh said.

Dave Berman is business editor at  FLORIDA TODAY.  Contact Berman at  [email protected] , on X at  @bydaveberman  and on Facebook at  www.facebook.com/dave.berman.54

How to pick the best cruises to see the northern lights, eclipses, and galaxies, according to an astrophysicist

• Astrophysicist Hakeem M. Oluseyi has seen the stars from many cruises .
• As long as the ships dim their lights, passengers should be able to stargaze from the sea.
• Cruise lines also plan trips for celestial events like eclipses and the northern lights.

Astrophysicist Hakeem M. Oluseyi has been to dark sky parks and observatories all over the world, but some of the best stargazing he's done has been in the middle of the ocean.

As long as cruise ships are mindful of their light pollution, he said, they can be a great way to stargaze .

In the past, Oluseyi partnered with Princess Cruises and Discovery to bring stargazing programs on board the ships. He's seen some spectacular sights on cruises, including the northern lights and other galaxies .

Here are Oluseyi's tips for the best stargazing on cruise lines, including seeing eclipses, galaxies, the northern lights , and meteor showers on your next cruise.

Get a wake-up call for the northern lights.

Oluseyi has been on five cruises in various parts of the world. "The most amazing one was a trip to Norway on a cruise called Chasing the Northern Lights," he said. That's when he saw the aurora borealis , aka the northern lights, for the first time.

"There are certain astronomical phenomena that sort of just brings the universe to your doorstep, and the northern lights, for me, was like that," he said.

The northern lights are only visible at night. To make sure you don't miss them, you can see if your cruise offers wake-up calls when the lights appear. Many cruises do.

Moreover, location and timing are important. The northern lights are visible most often in northern latitudes including Canada, Alaska, and northern Scandinavia.

You likely won't see them year-round, however. The fall and spring equinoxes are the best time for viewing the northern lights, NOAA notes .

Winter can also be a good time, according to a Viking Cruises representative who told BI over email that daylight only lasts a few hours north of Scandinavia during winter time, offering more opportunities to see this spectacular light show.

Choose a destination with clear skies for stargazing.

Some parts of the world have better skies for stargazing than others.

In particular, "the Canary Islands and Chile are some of the best places to stargaze on the globe," Paul Grigsby, Holland Cruise's vice president of revenue planning and deployment, told Business Insider via email.

Both destinations have cultivated reputations as astrotourism sites and have areas that are dark sky reserves. Plus, Chile's latitude puts it right under the Milky Way.

If you don't mind chillier weather, remote destinations like the Arctic and Greenland also take passengers far from cities' light pollution . Keep in mind, though, that the sun sets late during the Arctic summer, so nights are short.

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You might also want to time your trip with a meteor shower, like the Perseids in August . The nice thing about that is that you should be able to see the celestial show from almost anywhere, Oluseyi said.

Though, if epic stargazing is your goal, you should try to avoid areas with notoriously cloudy weather . "I'm not going to cruises in Seattle or London," Oluseyi said.

Chase a solar eclipse from the ocean.

Cruise lines are already gearing up for eclipses in 2026 and 2027.

The 2026 eclipse will be visible in Greenland, Iceland, Spain, Russia, and part of Portugal, according to NASA .

Holland America, Cunard, and Princess are just a few of the cruise lines planning trips near some of these destinations for the 2026 eclipse.

For the 2027 eclipse, Egypt's pyramids will have a spectacular view and Viking is planning a Nile River cruise .

Oluseyi chased eclipses for a decade and said you need to be in the right place and have clear weather. The weather can turn quickly "because of the temperature drop that accompanies the moon shadow," he said.

Being on a boat may offer some flexibility. "The deck team can make decisions to reposition based on weather and visibility reports and will do all they can to ensure guests see these events," Grigsby said.

See something new in the Southern Hemisphere.

For those who live in the Northern Hemisphere, crossing the equator offers some new views of the sky.

"What's really dramatic about the Southern Hemisphere is the galactic sky that you don't really get in the Northern Hemisphere," Oluseyi said.

In the Southern Hemisphere, the star-packed center of the galaxy, the galactic bulge , is directly overhead.

There are also two satellite galaxies — the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds . The first time he saw them, Oluseyi said he couldn't stop staring. They're "so dang big, bright, and ever-present," he said.

Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, and Viking all offer cruises to Australia and New Zealand, southern Africa, and South America. You can see the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds year-round but keep in mind that the best southern hemisphere stargazing occurs in March through September when the sky is dark for longer.

You can also get a better view of objects in the night sky during a new moon when there's no moonlight to drown them out.

Stargazing only works with the deck lights off.

Cruise ships can have their own light pollution , which significantly diminishes how well you can see the stars. "The lights can be so bright that you can't really see the dimmer objects, and most of the cool stuff is dim," Oluseyi said.

When the lights are down, the unobstructed view can be spectacular. "I have been literally all over the world to dark sky locations," Oluseyi said, "but, man, being out in the middle of the ocean — and when they turn off the deck lights — it is one of the best."

Some ships turn off their deck lights so passengers can see the skies better. You may want to inquire before you book about the cruise line's policies on this practice.

Viking's rep said the cruise line's special bird-safe lighting mode helps keep birds from flying into windows but also allows passengers to see stars.

If your ship is dark enough, you might still want some help seeing the stars. You can probably leave your telescope at home. The waves make it too unstable to view objects well. However, wide-field binoculars will let you see more than your naked eye, Oluseyi said.

Oluseyi's general tips for stargazing wherever you are.

Once it's dark, you want it to stay dark. "Eye adjustment is a very precious thing," Oluseyi said. It takes 30 minutes for your eyes to acclimate to the darkness, according to The BBC .

Avoid peeking at your bright phone screen because once that light hits your eyeballs, they'll have to readjust again.

You can also use your phone's settings to apply a red filter, which will help your eyes stay adjusted to the night sky.

You'll want to prepare to be outside for a while.

"It can get cold at night," Oluseyi said. His advice for stargazing from an observatory is to dress warmly and bring snacks. But it applies anywhere. You'll want to stay comfortable and awake so you don't miss the view.

"You'll find yourself freezing," he said. "You'll find yourself sleepy, but it's so worth it."

• Main content

Port Canaveral-based Carnival Vista cruises canceled, modified due to cruising speed issues

Thousands of people who were planning sail on a southern Caribbean cruise aboard the Port Canaveral -based Carnival Vista this week instead stayed home. Their eight-night cruise was canceled because of ongoing propulsion issues the ship has been experiencing.

"Carnival Vista's engineering team is working to resolve a technical issue that limited the ship’s cruising speed," said Matt Lupoli, Carnival's senior manager of public relations. "The ship is out of service this week for the repair, and we have every reason to believe we will operate the next cruise as planned on Sept. 15."

Lupoli said passengers on the cruise that was schedule to leave Port Canaveral on Sept. 7 received a refund, plus a future cruise credit.

Previous sailings affected, too

Conflicts over cruise dominance: Port Canaveral's focus on cruising has some business owners concerned about their future

Mechanical issues related to the Vista date back to Aug. 10, when Carnival changed its eight-night itinerary on the ship from a southern Caribbean cruise to a Bahamas cruise because of the ship's reduced cruising speed. Some passengers didn't find out about the change until they boarded the ship for their cruise.

A video of upset passengers confronting Vista crew members was broadcast on the television newsmagazine "Inside Edition," with the show describing the confrontation as being "on the verge of a mutiny."

Lupoli said the confrontation was taken out of context.

"Video taken on Aug. 10, when guests first learned of a revised itinerary, did not capture the fact that guests were given a choice of disembarking with a full refund, or staying for the cruise and receiving an onboard credit plus a future cruise credit," Lupoli said. "The vast majority chose to stay onboard and continue with the cruise."

Lupoli said, when it was determined that additional work would be required, the ship’s Sept. 1 itinerary also was partially revised, with passengers receiving a future cruise credit.

"We appreciate our guests’ understanding, and sincerely apologize for the necessary changes to the ship’s sailing schedule," Lupoli said. 

The Carnival Vista has a double-occupancy capacity of 3,934 passengers; a full capacity of 4,977 passengers; and a crew of 1,450. It began sailing in 2016.

Dave Berman is business editor at  FLORIDA TODAY.  Contact Berman at  [email protected] , on X at  @bydaveberman  and on Facebook at  www.facebook.com/dave.berman.54

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United Airlines offers Mileage Plus members free copies of its last print magazine

United airlines offering free hemispheres magazines.

United Airlines’ in-flight Hemispheres magazine offered entertaining articles while en-route. Features like its “Three Perfect Days” articles — which offered itinerary-style city profiles — gave readers inside info on destinations . Additional topics included sports, entertaining, business, and culture. 

In August, United announced the discontinuation of Hemispheres’ print version, bringing a 30-plus-year tradition to an end. While that disappointed many, the airline will offer free copies of the final edition. Here’s how to get one.

United will offer 50,000 free copies of the last Hemispheres magazine

For Hemispheres fans who want to commemorate its decades-long run, United will offer 50,000 free editions. But to snap one up, you need to be a Mileage Plus member and follow the instructions on the carrier’s website. Copies are limited to one per customer, and the promotion ends on 9/27 at 9:00 a.m. CST.

On the Mileage Plus website , there’s a web form where you can request Hemisphere’s last print issue. The page says, “We’re offering select MileagePlus members the exclusive chance to get their own free copy of the final print issue of Hemispheres magazine while supplies last.” As of this writing, 39,099 copies remain, with a little over two weeks left in the promotion.

While the print version of Hemispheres is disappearing, a digital version will continue in its place. The “Three Perfect Days” articles will also go on, along with new features. 

United isn’t alone in removing print in-flight magazines. During the pandemic, Delta Air Lines removed its Sky magazine, and American Airlines canceled its American Way magazine. 

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• Southwest Airlines reintroduces its Companion Pass promo for a limited time
• United Airlines begins using eco-friendly fuels from Chicago hub
• Visiting Sonoma? This airline will check your wine for free — but is it worth it?

With its new First Class in Every Way promotion, Regent Seven Seas Cruises offers free first-class airfare on select itineraries. Passengers from the U.S. and Canada can enjoy a free first-class plane ticket for certain 2024 and 2025 voyages to Alaska, New England, Canada, and the Caribbean. The promotion is good for bookings made between Sept. 1 through Oct. 31. Fly first-class for free on your way to an epic cruise Sitka, Alaska Regent Seven Seas Cruises

The First Class in Every Way promotion lets guests experience unparalleled luxury from start to finish, with the comfort of first-class air travel and The Most Inclusive Luxury Experience aboard four of Regent’s stunning ships. Add in amazing destinations and many ports of call, and passengers are set for a trip to remember.

Beginning in the summer of 2025, American Airlines will add five new European routes. Not only will the routes reach new destinations, but they’ll allow travelers to explore Europe more easily. The new offerings include flights to Edinburgh, Scotland (EDI) — where the airline hasn’t flown since 2019 — and service to Rome (FCO); Madrid (MAD); Athens, Greece (ATH); and Milan (MXP). In summer 2025, explore Europe with American Airlines The Parthenon, Athens, Greece Dimitris Kiriakakis via Unsplash

The flights begin on March 30, 2025, with daily service from Chicago (ORD) to Madrid (MAD). Philadelphia (PHL) follows on May 23, flying each day to Edinburgh, Scotland (EDI) and Milan (MXP). Next is Charlotte, North Carolina (CLT) on June 5, with a daily route to Athens, Greece (ATH). On July 5, Miami (MIA) joins, with daily flights to Rome (FCO). Travelers can purchase tickets for the new routes beginning Sept. 9. 

With every step through its stunning landscapes, every taste of its delicious cuisine, and every encounter with its rich history, Italy captures both heart and soul. From the sun-soaked shores of the Amalfi Coast to the rolling hills of Tuscany, this country offers a diverse range of experiences that cater to every type of traveler. Here are some of the best places to visit in Italy. 1. Tuscany

Tuscany is the epitome of Italy’s romantic charm. With its rolling hills, picturesque vineyards, and charming medieval towns, this region offers a slice of la dolce vita that’s hard to resist. Florence, the capital of Tuscany, is the birthplace of the Renaissance and home to some of the world’s greatest artistic treasures, including Michelangelo’s David and Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus. Beyond Florence, you can explore the medieval streets of Siena, sip on world-class wines in Chianti, or soak in the thermal hot springs of Saturnia. Tuscany’s blend of culture, history, and natural beauty makes it a must-visit region. 2. Amalfi Coast

BT Luxe Autumn – the travel issue

• Evan Kwee of Capella Hotel Group. PHOTO: DARREN GABRIEL LEOW

IT’S time to gear up for the year-end vacation season, and in the latest issue of BT Luxe, we take you around the world for some fresh travel perspectives, whether it’s a novel look at a much-visited city or exploring new destinations.

At the same time, we also put the spotlight on global players – namely, Singaporean personalities who are making an international impact in their respective fields. First up is Evan Kwee, vice-chairman of Capella Hotel Group, who tells us how he grew his hospitality business from one property in Sentosa to eight properties and counting, while being recognised by Travel + Leisure magazine as the world’s best hotel brand for two years in a row.

We also meet Soh Jun Wei, the second-generation leader of Redwood Interior, a global leader in luxury retail interiors, who shares how he’s building on his father’s legacy. And speaking of building, that’s what Leong Yong Shin, co-founder of robotics firm Augmentus, is doing as the company blazes its trail across the world with its robot programming that is simplifying the way manufacturers work with their machines.

Meanwhile, join our tour of places to eat around the world, see different sides of Japan, and find out how one designer’s mountain-climbing experience shaped the design of his Thai meditation retreat.

For a colourful journey, don’t miss your copy of BT Luxe in Friday’s edition of BT.

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Watch: joe biden's senior moment of the week (vol. 25), multimillionaire obamas haven't donated to joe biden's campaign, dialing it in, obamas make offer for multimillion-dollar martha's vineyard estate, tim walz's china travel business was dissolved for failing to pay $26 operating tax, records show, as governor of minnesota, walz oversaw some of the most aggressive corporate tax hikes in the country.

Corporate tax hike advocate Tim Walz had his China travel company shut down by the Nebraska government for failing to pay a minor business operating tax in 1998, according to corporate records.

Educational Travel Adventures, Inc., which Walz founded with his wife in 1995 to run group trips to China, was dissolved by Nebraska’s secretary of state for "non-payment of occupational taxes"—just $26 annually—in April 1998. The company was left defunct for years, even as Walz continued to organize group tours to China.

In 2008, after Walz was elected to Congress, he repaid 10 years of back taxes and interest, amounting to $235, to get the company reinstated, records show.

The tax slip-up is at odds with Walz's policies as governor of Minnesota, where he oversaw some of the most aggressive hikes on businesses in the country. House Republicans are investigating his former company, Educational Travel Adventures, as a potential target of Chinese government influence operations.

Walz continued to lead student exchange trips to China for four years after the company was shut down, before founding another corporation with the same name in Minnesota in 2002. News reports indicate that he stopped running the trips one year later.

Nebraska corporate attorney J.L. Spray said Nebraska businesses are required to pay the occupational tax to remain in good standing. He said business owners sometimes fail to pay the fees due to "negligence, and the fact that they’d just as soon have the company dissolved."

The registered agent for Walz's company, Nebraska attorney Terry Curtiss, did not respond to a request for comment.

Walz’s company, Educational Travel Adventures, Inc., has drawn scrutiny from House Republicans. Oversight Committee chairman James Comer said he was concerned about reports that the student exchange trips were subsidized by the Chinese government and that Walz may have been "targeted by or recruited for CCP influence operations."

Allen Shepherd, a former history professor at Chadron State College who traveled to China with Walz in 1998, told the Washington Free Beacon that it was "quite an eye-opening tour for all of us to be over there and see how much of the rest of the world lives."

Shepherd said Walz organized the trip because he "had the contacts over there" in academia and government.

"It was my impression that our guides were somehow connected with the government," said Shepherd.

"To a certain extent I think you have to have touch with the government over there, because the government didn’t just let you walk around the country."

Shepherd said the tour was largely educational, and he and Walz met with Chinese academics who were seeking advice on how to build their country’s university system.

After Educational Travel Adventures was shut down, Walz continued to organize student trips to China, including at least two tours in 1998 and 2001. In 2002, he incorporated another company under the same name in Minnesota but stopped the trips a year later.

When Walz ran for Congress in 2006, he highlighted his record as a local businessman who "established a small business called Educational Travel Adventures, Inc. through which he conducts annual educational trips to China for high school students," according to an archived version of his campaign website.

One year after he was elected to Congress, Walz cleaned up the tax error by paying 10 years of back-taxes and interest to get Educational Travel Adventures reinstated in Nebraska. He then immediately filed an application to dissolve the company, according to corporate records.

Walz has a long record of pushing for aggressive tax hikes on businesses. In a speech to labor unions this month, Walz said the government needs to force "corporations [to] pay their fair share."

As governor, he "doubled down on [Minnesota’s] status as a high-tax state even as most states have moved in a different direction," according to the Tax Foundation, becoming the only governor to institute a surtax on capital gains income, and raising taxes on corporate foreign income, wages, and transportation.

Walz’s tax policy led the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy to name Minnesota’s tax system as the most "progressive" in the United States.

Published under: China , Minnesota , Nebraska , Tax Hikes , Tim Walz

Cruise Industry News Annual Report and Industry Growth Forecast

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The  Cruise Industry News Annual Report 2022  is the only information resource of its kind — presenting the  entire worldwide cruise industry  in 400 pages with  cruise industry analytics and statistics , in print and PDF formats.  Click here to order.

About the Annual Report:

The 400-page report covers everything from new ships on order to supply-and-demand scenarios from the early 1990s through 2027+. 

Plus there is a future outlook through  2027 , completely independent  cruise industry statistics , growth projections for each cruise line,  cruise industry market reports , and detailed ship deployment by region and market, covering all the cruise lines.

Projections for capacity growth going forward take into account pandemic effects, ship delivery timeline adjustments and more.

Bought by suppliers, ports banks, financial analysts, cruise lines, and more. Useful in planning budgets and for key industry stakeholders for future forecasting.

There is also a comprehensive directory of cruise lines as well as their key executives. There is also historical data exclusive to  Cruise Industry News’   30+ years in the business.

If you are looking for a complete past, present and future global briefing on the cruise industry, look no further.

All this and more for $1195 in the United States; $1295 to all international destinations.. In addition, a PDF version is available. 

The Annual Report has been published since 1988.

Preview Pages of the Annual Report  |  2022 Table of Contents  | 

•  If you are a cruise line executive:  CINA 2022 gives you a  total and objective  overview of the industry, including  profiles and growth forecasts  for all the cruise lines through at least 2027.

•  If you are a financial analyst : CINA 2022 gives you  independent company and market growth forecasts, including supply/demand scenarios through 2027.

•  If you are a port executive : CINA 2022 tells you about each line’s  ship deployments  in your region, and tracks the growth of each port and each sailing region.

•  If you are a supplier : CINA 2022 gives you the  information  you need to make informed decisions about your involvement in the cruise industry.

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Who buys this report?  Cruise lines, ports, suppliers, accounting firms, consulting companies, investment banks, think-tanks, universities and many more!

Macro Level:  Big picture data and cruise industry analytics for the major and minor players, showing their footprints in 2021 and projected out through 2027.

Micro Level:  Additional data includes just about everything pertaining to deployment, berth breakdown, capacity projections, historical trends and much more. 400 pages of detailed information at your fingertips.

Brand Level Data : CINA goes ship by ship, brand by brand, with data reflecting market capacity, berths, market share and more.

Ship by Ship:  Every ship in the global cruise fleet is accounted for in our research, from the latest mega ships to niche expedition vessels.

Region Analysis:  Each major cruise region is broken down by brand, with number of ships, projected market capacity and market shares, with past data showing trends.

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