Cruise News

Cruise Ship Renovations: The Complete Schedule

This article has been updated for April 2013.

Through the course of a year we spend a lot of time at sea.Some of our favorite voyages are those we embark upon aboard brand new cruise ships.  These beauties may not quite waft that “new car” smell, but newer vessels usually have the latest bells and whistles and best address the industry’s current trends in dining, activities and entertainment, along with featuring the latest in design and safety.

Conversely, we don’t like boarding an older ship and finding dated décor, ragged furnishings or malodorous accommodations. If we find out during a cruise that our ship is headed for a refurbishment a few weeks or months later, we can’t help being a bit disappointed.

Cruise lines work to keep their product fresh and appealing and, accordingly, most ships go in for a two-week dry dock overhaul every three years or four years.  The ship is taken out of the water for a thorough cleaning of the hull (hence the name dry dock),while engine room maintenance, interior and topside upgrades are also addressed.

While some dry dock refurbishments may involve little more than a deep cleaning and replacement of carpet and paint as needed, others can be more extensive, adding additional cabins and decks, or in some cases even extending the ship by adding a new midsection.

Into that latter category falls Carnival Destiny, a 101,000-tonvessel that first went to sea in 1996 as the largest ship afloat. Destiny entered an extended dry dock in February, 2013 for a reconfiguration that promises to be substantial, involving 182 new cabins, new restaurants, new bars, and the addition of the popular adults-only Serenity Adult Retreat, an overhaul that will add up to a $155 million price tag, according to Carnival (not including additional work to improve the ship’s redundancy systems added to the schedule following the Carnival Triumph incident). While the final result won’t exactly be a news hip, the work is so extensive that, when Destiny emerges from the surgery onMay 5, 2013, she’ll carry a new name, Carnival Sunshine.

These days, we’re hearing a lot about cruise line facelifts.Why? From design to construction to delivery, it takes upwards of three years to build a new cruise ship, and today there are fewer new ships on order than at any time in recent history. For instance, although Carnival Breeze debuted in June 2012, it will be four years before a new Carnival ship comes on line, the longest stretch between new ships for the company in more than three decades. Holland America’s Nieuw Amsterdam came on line in 2010, but the next new-build won’t arrive till 2015. Celebrity Cruises put Reflection to sea in 2012, but no new ships are on order; the line’s oldest vessel, Celebrity Century, is headed fora renovation in 2014—an overhaul we predict will be fairly substantial.

The lengthy world recession encouraged cruise line honchos to keep their pocketbooks in check. As a result, we’re seeing the major lines investing more of their resources in renovations than in replacing ships,extending the life of older vessels by a few years.

This is likely a cyclical blip, but who wants to be on atired vessel past its prime? Instead, before booking a cruise vacation check our charts listing planned dry docks for the major cruise lines. Keep in mind:Renovations schedules change regularly. Before committing a nonrefundable deposit on a yet-to-be remodeled ship, verify recent renovations with your travel agent or with the cruise line directly.

We can’t promise that new car smell when these ships emerge from refurbishment. But after a certain age, we think a little nip and tuck provides a welcome sense of rejuvenation.

+to be renamed “Sunshine”

Line/class	Name	Entered service	Last dry dock	Next dry dock
Solstice class	Celebrity Reflection Celebrity Silhouette Celebrity Eclipse Celebrity Equinox Celebrity Solstice	Oct 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008	2010	May 2016 Apr 2015 Apr 2014 Nov 2016
Millennium class	Celebrity Constellation Celebrity Summit Celebrity Infinity Celebrity Millennium	2002 2001 2001 2000	Apr 2013 Jan 2012 Dec 2011 May 2012	Feb 2015 Nov 2014 Apr 2015
Other	Celebrity Century Celebrity Xpedition	1995 2001	2010 Sep 2012	Mar 2014

Line/class	Name	Entered service	Last dry dock	Next dry dock
Various	Queen Elizabeth Queen Victoria Queen Mary 2	2010 2007 2004	Dec 2010 Dec 2011	tbd

Line/class	Name	Entered service	Last dry dock	Next dry dock
Various	Disney Fantasy Disney Dream Disney Wonder Disney Magic	Apr 2012 2011 1999 1998	Sep 2011 Oct 2010

Line/class	Name	Entered service	Last dry dock	Next dry dock
Signature class	Nieuw Amsterdam Eurodam	2010 2008	April 2011
Vista class	Noordam Westerdam Oosterdam Zuiderdam	2006 2004 2003 2002	Summer 2010 Summer 2010 Dec 2012
Rotterdam class	Amsterdam Rotterdam Zaandam Volendam	2000 1997 2000 1999	Dec 2010 Dec 2012 Jan 2010 Mar 2011	Dec 2013 Oct 2013 2014
Statendam class	Veendam Ryndam Maasdam Statemdam	1996 1994 1993 1993	Apr 2011 Nov 2012 Apr 2010 Apr 2010	Jan 2013
Other	Prinsendam	1998	2009

Line/class	Name	Entered service	Last dry dock	Next dry dock
Breakaway class	Norwegian Getaway Norwegian Breakaway	Jan 2014 Apr 2013
Epic class	Norwegian Epic	2010
Jewel class	Norwegian Gem Norwegian Jade Norwegian Pearl Norwegian Jewel	2007 2006 2006 2005	Dec 2010 Dec 2011 Nov 2010	2014 2014
Dawn class	Norwegian Dawn Norwegian Star	2002 2001	May 2011 2010
Sun class	Norwegian Sun Norwegian Sky	2001 1999	Jan 2011 May 2009	Sep 2013
Other	Pride of America Norwegian Spirit	2005 1998	Apr 2013 Oct 2011	Mar 2013 2014

Line/class	Name	Entered service	Last dry dock	Next dry dock
Royal class	Royal Princess	Jun 2013
Grand class	Ruby Princess Emerald Princess Crown Princess Sapphire Princess Caribbean Princess Diamond Princess Star Princess Golden Princess Grand Princess	2008 2007 2006 2004 2004 2004 2002 2001 1998	Dec 2011 Dec 2012 Nov 2011 Feb 2012 Nov 2011 Nov 2010 Dec 2011 May 2012 May 2011	Nov 2013
Coral class	Island Princess Coral Princess	2003 2002	Oct 2010 Oct 2009	Feb 2013
Explorer class	Pacific Princess Ocean Princess	1999 1999	Jan 2010 Oct 2012
Sun class	Sea Princess Dawn Princess Sun Princess	1998 1997 1995	Sep 2012 May 2012 Apr 2010

Line/class	Name	Entered service	Last dry dock	Next dry dock
Oasis class	Allure of the Seas Oasis of the Seas	2010 2009		Oct 2014
Freedom class	Independence of the Seas Liberty of the Seas Freedom of the Seas	2008 2007 2006	May 2013 Jan 2011 Mar 2011	2016 2016
Radiance class	Jewel of the Seas Serenade of Seas Brilliance of Seas Radiance of Seas	2004 2003 2002 2001	Apr 2011 Dec 2012 May 2013 June 2011	2016 2017 2016
Voyager class	Mariner of the Seas Navigator of the Seas Adventure of the Seas Explorer of the Seas Voyager of the Seas	2003 2002 2001 2000 1999	Apr 2012 2007 May 2009 Jan 2010 May 2009	Mar 2014 Jan 2014 Mar 2014 2015 Apr 2014
Vision class	Vision of the Seas Enchantment of the Seas Rhapsody of the Seas Grandeur of the Seas Splendour of the Seas Legend of the Seas	1998 1997 1997 1996 1996 1995	Nov 2010 Dec 2012 Mar 2012 May 2012 Nov 2011 Feb 2013	Oct 2013 2017 2017 2017 2016 2018
Sovereign class	Majesty of the Seas	1992	Mar 2012	2015