Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

#CruiseLiners - A crewman has died during a safety drill on the world's largest cruise liner in the Mediterranean, as AFP reports. The Filipino was one of five crew members from the Harmony of the Seas who were on board…

#CruiseLiners - Millions of euros worth of damage has been inflicted at a marina on the island of Sicily by a 'mini-tsunami' caused by the engines of a manoeuvring cruise liner. Video from Mail Online shows the moments when the…

#WindsofChange – Afloat.ie has monitored Mein Schiff 5 movements noting the new cruiseship less than two months in service was forced to change its first ever call to an Irish port today, writes Jehan Ashmore. It transpired that high winds…

#NewestShip – Afloat.ie has tracked another big brand new cruiseship, Mein Schiff 5 that is to make a first call to an Irish port tomorrow, reflecting the growing demand for such visits and related infrastructural developments, writes Jehan Ashmore. Mein…

#ProposedTerminal - According to CruiseEurope authorities in Liverpool last month approved a £950,000 (€1.12m) feasibility study into a proposed new cruise terminal development. The west coast UK port has long held ambitions to expand its offer with the construction of…

#GalwayAnchorage – Holland America Line’s Prinsendam continues her 28 Day Celtic & Bourgundian Explorer Cruise with an anchorage call on Galway Bay today, writes Jehan Ashmore. Prior to the cruiseship's arrival off Galway Port, Prinsendam so far has visited Dublin,…

#FinalCaller – Five masts, each 221ft towered above Dun Laoghaire Harbour’s Carlisle Pier as US luxury operator, WindStar Cruises motor sail-assisted flagship Wind Surf made the last call of the season, writes Jehan Ashmore. The 14,000 gross tonnage Wind Surf…

#HALcall – Holland America Line’s Prinsendam berthed in Belfast Harbour this morning as part of a 28 Day Celtic & Bourgundian Explorer Cruise, writes Jehan Ashmore. This was the second call of HAL's Prinsendam to Belfast this season as she…

#CruiseNorth – Saga Cruises, part of the wider Saga brand that caters for UK consumers over 50, has been calling to ports in counties, Donegal and Down, contributing to boosting tourism in these northern regions, writes Jehan Ashmore. The caller on…

#BiggestCaller -  Welsh ferryport of Fishguard which is managed by Stena Line which operates to Rosslare (see rare call), also welcomed the largest cruiseship ever to the Pembrokeshire harbour. The German cruiseship AIDAVita dropped anchor last Thursday, writes Milford Mercury, and…

#CunardDonegal - Two of the most famous names in British royalty are coming to Donegal - but it’s not members of the royal family; rather, it’s two massive 'Vista' class cruise ships named “Queen Elizabeth” and “Queen Victoria”! The famous…

#CruiseFirsts - Irish Sea port of Barrow-in-Furness, operated by Associated British Ports / ABP Ports welcomed the largest cruise vessel ever to call to the Cumbrian port in north-west England.  MS Braemar became the second cruiseship to visit Barrow in…

#Inquiry - An investigation has been initiated by Bermuda, writes Irish Times, into how a “mega-class” cruise ship with almost 4,500 people on board spent nine hours drifting without power in the Irish Sea As reported on Afloat earlier this month,…

#Ferry2Cruise – A cruiseship with an unconventional background called into Dublin Port this morning, Ocean Majesty, which in another guise was a car ferry built fifty years ago to serve Spanish island services, writes Jehan Ashmore. The veteran vessel, an…

#CruiseLiners - A power failure on board a large cruise liner rendered the vessel adrift in the Irish Sea for nine hours earlier this week, as The Irish Times reports. The "technical glitch" on the Caribbean Princess cut power to…

#CruiseTallShip – Standing out more than most, German premium brand, Sea Cloud Cruises ultra-luxury ‘windjammer’ Sea Cloud II, overnighted in Dublin Port as part of turnaround cruise, writes Jehan Ashmore. The Hamburg based five-star operator of the modern yet majestic…