At 12:47PM AEST on 17 December 2024, a 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck Port Vila and surrounding areas. Since this time, there have been multiple aftershocks. There is widespread infrastructure damage, including to roads and buildings, and some areas have also reported landslides. Essential services, including telecommunications, have been disrupted. Transport services, including flights, have been impacted.
What to do
Follow local government and media advice.
Contact your airline, cruise company, travel agent, travel provider etc as they should be able to provide immediate help with rescheduling or providing you with your options.
Not a fan of cruising? The Royal Carribean will change your mind with their two new amazing cruise ships: Harmony of the Seas and the Ovation of the Seas.
Two new billion-dollar cruise ships by Royal Caribbean launched to much fanfare this year. One is the largest cruise ship in the world, and the other will be the largest to visit Australia.
Both mega ships have been designed to cater to a wide range of travellers including multi-generational families and groups looking for non-stop activities and a never ending supply of food.
If you’re in the market for a mega cruise and want to experience what over a billion dollars can offer, check out the Harmony or Ovation for size!
Harmony of the Seas
The Harmony of the Seas launched in May 2016 and is officially the world’s largest cruise ship.
This mega ship has extremely impressive statistics:
Cost $1.38 billion AUD to build
Accommodates up to 6410 guests
Crewed by 2394 staff members
Measures 227,000 gross registered tonnes (1718 tonnes more than previous record holders, the Allure of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas)
362 metres in length from bow to stern
66 metres wide
16 levels of decks
20 dining venues
23 swimming pools
15,000 eggs consumed every day
90,000 square metres of carpet
10,000 plants and 50 trees!
The Harmony of the Seas has 16 amazing levels to explore. Naturally, for a ship of this size, it features many ‘firsts’, including:
The tallest slide at sea with a 30 metre (10 storey) drop called the ‘The Ultimate Abyss’.
A robotic bionic bar which can make 2 drinks per minute (1000 drinks per day).
The Rising Tide Bar that moves up and down three decks while you sip cocktails.
A dedicated satellite providing internet speeds comparable to the fastest speeds on land.
Handcrafted, one-of-a-kind merry-go-round that took a week to install.
The ship is 20% more fuel efficient than its sister ships Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas.
The debut of Tony Award-winning shows like Grease and Cats! on Broadway at Sea.
The Makr Shakr robotic bar can mix, muddle and stir cocktails using 30 different spirits and 20 different mixers
Unfortunately, at three and a half football fields long, our ports just aren’t big enough to be able to host such a huge ship so you’ll have to travel overseas if you want to set sail on the Harmony.
However, with our amazingly mega cruise passenger numbers in the past few years, we haven’t been forgotten!
Just in time for the 2016-2017 Australian cruise season (which officially starts in September) the $1.3 billion AUD ship will arrive in Perth in December 2016.
Ovation of the Seas
The Ovation of the Seas was launched in April 2016 and is one of the most technologically advanced cruise ships to ever sail to Australia.
Its size makes it the equal fourth largest cruise ship in the world (alongside the Anthem of the Seas).
It may be smaller than the Harmony of the Seas, but the Ovation’s statistics are still pretty amazing:
Accommodates 4100 guests
1500 crew members
168, 666 gross tonnage
Length is 346 metres from bow to stern
Width is 41 metres
14 decks
18 dining venues including Jamie Oliver’s restaurant ‘Jamie’s Italian’
Based in Sydney for the 2017 and 2018 Australian cruise seasons
The North Star Observatory, a jewel shaped glass viewing pod more than 90 metres above the ocean which gives passengers 360 degree views.
A robotic bionic bar.
Seaplex, the largest indoor sports and entertainment complex at sea.
A skydiving simulator.
Dynamic dining with no set dining time, no assigned seating and no need for formal nights.
Keyless cabins using radio frequency wristband technology.
A 10 metre tall mama panda and her cub as part of the ship's 11,000 piece contemporary art collection.
The ship also has the Two70 lounge boasting 270 degree ocean views by day, and an immersive multimedia entertainment centre with robotic video screens, digital projections and high-flying aerialists and performers by night.
With so much to see and do on both of these amazing cruise ships, you might need another holiday to recover from your holiday!
Sally is a travel insurance specialist and content writer at Fast Cover who enjoys researching new destinations for the monthly newsletters and Spotlight posts. A dumpling connoisseur and food blogger at heart, she has outlasted everyone at the stand-up desk and is the only reason the office plants are still alive.
