When Holland America Line recently added a new Culinary Arts Center to the final ship in the fleet, all structural changes originally envisioned for the company’s $225 million Signature of Excellence initiative were complete. The comprehensive Signature of Excellence upgrades announced nearly three years ago (November 2003) triggered an industry trend of fleet rejuvenations and enhancements to meet the demands of an expanding set of discriminating cruise vacationers.

Royal Caribbean International is combining its signature active cruising experience with crocodiles, kangaroos and koala bears, when the cruise line returns to the land of Down Under for the 2007-2008 season. Rhapsody of the Seas will sail a series of new itineraries to the South Pacific, Australia and New Zealand as she heads for her recently announced Far East adventure.

Regent Seven Seas Cruises invites guests to celebrate the holidays amid the sparkling waters and natural splendor of the Caribbean isles, the Mexican Riviera and French Polynesia. The luxury cruise line offers holiday values, Thanksgiving and New Year’s cruises, and enrichment programs for adults and children, making a Regent cruise a truly unforgettable holiday escape or special gift.

Following an incident in which Holland America Line’s Oosterdam sustained damage to one of its two azipod propulsion units on October 8, HAL has altered its current itinerary to Mexico in order to arrive in San Diego one day early to repair the units, the line said. Damage to the portside azipod has resulted in a decreased cruising speed by about 20 percent. The starboard azipod is completely functional and at no time was the safety or security of the vessel in jeopardy, HAL said.

Pearl Seas Cruises joined the Cruise Lines International Association on October 6, becoming its 20th member, said Terry Dale, president and CEO of CLIA. Pearl Seas Cruises, an offshoot of small-ship operator American Cruise Lines, announced in late September that it signed contracts to build two new 165-person luxury cruise ships and has plans to build a third, 210-passenger vessel that would enter service in July 2008 and June 2009, respectively.

Following the debut of the luxury line’s wireless Internet service in September, Crystal Cruises plans to launch cell phone service later this month aboard Crystal Symphony and Crystal Serenity. “Quiet zone” technology enhances the new cell service, allowing select areas of the ship to be cell phone-free. The service is available through SeaMobile and guests will be billed through their own cell phone provider. Other available wireless services include text messaging and use of PDAs such as a Blackberry.