Yesterday, Disney announced some new itineraries for not only the Disney Wonder as expected, but also the Disney Magic.  For the past few weeks, there has been much speculation about what Disney would do with the Wonder since it cancelled several Mexican Riviera itineraries next December.  Alaska has been profitable for Disney, but we have seen continued sales and discounts for the Mexican Riviera.  

About a week ago, the buzz began that the Disney Wonder would homeport in Miami, and yesterday it was confirmed.  The Wonder will be doing a mix of 4 and 5 day itineraries to the Bahamas and Western Caribbean respectively.  Most include a stop at Disney's private island, Castaway Cay, but a few substitute a stop in Grand Cayman (a poor substitution, in my opinion).  The Wonder will still be heading back to Alaska in the summer of 2013 with Panama Canal cruises offered for repositioning.

Perhaps more exciting are the itineraries for the Disney Magic, which will be returning to the Mediterranean with different, yet amazing itineraries. Cruising from Barcelona, most of the Magic's itineraries will be 7 night cruises with stops in Villefranche, LaSpezia, Civitavecchia and Naples, which are really the highlights of their previous Med itineraries.  They are also offering four special 12 night sailings with 2 stopping in Venice, Dubrovnik and Malta and the other 2 stopping in Athens(Piraeus), Kusadasi, Mykonos and Malta.  There are also a couple of 4 day cruises with stops in Villefranche and Palma de Mallorca.  

I must admit to drooling when I read about both of the 12 day itineraries in Europe.  The first one with Venice contains all ports that I have previously visited, but they are all truly amazing ports. It is particularly suited for first time visitors to Europe as it hits all the highlights: Rome, Florence, Naples, Venice, a The second one with Athens, Turkey and Mykonos holds even more appeal since those are ports I have yet to see, but you do lose Naples, which is a great stop.  Still, there are some great choices there, and I imagine that they will sell quite well for Disney since they are new itineraries.  And, of course, if you are booking one of these cruises, you can find port info here on our site, detailing how to do each of these ports on your own. Feel free to email us with any questions [email protected]

The port of Valletta, Malta has seen an increase in cruise visitors this year with a fifty percent increase in the month of July, and a nine percent increase for the year so far overall. Transport Malta has spent 500,000 euros in improvements to the cruise terminal to allow for larger ships. The Grand Princess had a maiden call to Valletta in July, and Malta hopes to attract more large ships.
Malta is one of the easiest ports to visit in the Mediterranean, and is adding services such as water taxis and direct water transportation to Gozo in the near future. It is one of the few Mediterranean ports which has a terminal mall, lining the quay. With its historic sites, ease of travel, and the fact that English is the prominant language spoken in Malta, its appeal should continue to rise in the Mediterranean as more Americans cruise in Europe.