“The name Spirit of Glacier Bay not only reflects the itinerary this ship will be sailing, but also celebrates the history of Cruise West and Glacier Bay. Cruise West was one of the pioneers to take guests by ship into this magnificent park,” said Dick West, chairman and managing director. “In 1990, we introduced the 52-guest Spirit of Glacier Bay that sailed a similar itinerary, and this ship was retired in 2001. It just makes sense to reintroduce this name and get back to our roots.”

For the 2008 Alaska season, the Spirit of Glacier Bay will sail three-and four-night Glacier Bay Highlights cruises that will feature two days in Glacier Bay, cruising roundtrip from Juneau. The 4-night cruise also makes a port call at Haines or Skagway. This cruise was previously offered on the 78-guest Spirit of Alaska that will sail the Alaska`s Whales & Wilderness cruise in 2008.

Pamela C. Conover, Seabourn’s president and CEO, placed an un-circulated 2007 U.S. Silver Eagle dollar coin in the keel as the first section of the hull was joined to it. Marco Bisagno, president of T. Mariotti S.p.A., contributed a newly minted Italian one Euro coin to complete the ceremony, which traditionally solicits good fortune for the vessel during its construction and throughout its seagoing life.

The U.S. coin is decorated with an allegorical image called “Walking Liberty,” depicted as a female form striding across the earth in flowing raiment. The Italian Euro coin depicts Leonardo da Vinci’s famous “Vitruvian Man,” symbolically fitting an ideal human form into a well-ordered and geometric universe.

Conover noted that “Seabourn’s Odyssey Class vessels are being born of a time-honored Italian legacy, whereby innovative designers and skilled craftsmen team to create objects of beauty that inspire and bring delight to people over many years.”

According to Bisagno, “Mariotti is honored to build the first of two ultra-luxury yachts for Seabourn, which will no doubt set a new international standard for world-class cruise vessels.”

The sleek hull of Seabourn Odyssey is being constructed at CI.MAR, which is a new alliance between Mariotti and Cimolai Group, a premier firm specializing in sophisticated steel fabrication. Once completed, it will be transferred to Mariotti’s shipyard at Genoa, where they will fabricate the ship’s graceful superstructure. Mariotti is a leader in the construction of intimate cruising vessels and ultra-luxury mega yachts

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Both itineraries feature travel to South America, the South Pacific, Australia, Asia, India and Egypt, with differing European segments. Each voyage will call at a brand new port for Princess — Port Blair in the Andaman Islands in the Indian Ocean. Both itineraries begin with a visit to Grand Cayman and a transit of the Panama Canal on the way to Quito (Manta), Ecuador. There is an overnight stay in Lima (Callao), Peru, where passengers can visit Machu Picchu. A visit to Easter Island follows. Then the ships visit Papeete, Tahiti, and Rarotonga before heading to Auckland and the Australian ports of Burnie (Tasmania), Sydney, Brisbane, and Cairns (for visits to the Great Barrier Reef). Next up are Rabaul (Papua/New Guinea) and Guam, followed by calls to Osaka (for Kyoto), Hiroshima, Seoul (Inchon), Shanghai, Hong Kong, Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam), Sihanoukville (Cambodia) Bangkok, Singapore, and Kuala Lumpur (Port Kelang) in Malaysia. The ships then visit Port Blair and cruise the Indian Ocean to Mumbai, India, Dubai, Salalah in Oman, and two ports in Egypt.

Once the ships transit the Suez Canal, each itinerary heads in a different direction. The Tahitian Princess visits Athens, Sorrento/Capri, Rome, Cannes, Barcelona, Gibraltar and Lisbon before heading north to Ireland for a call at Cork, followed by Paris/Normandy (Le Havre), and then Dover. The Royal Princess will instead head to the Holy Land to visit Jerusalem (Ashdod), and then call at Istanbul, Athens, Sicily, Barcelona, Cannes, and Pisa/Florence (Livorno), before the final stop in Rome. Tahitian Princess passengers can also extend their voyage 10 days to include northern Europe, Scandinavia and a call in St. Petersburg before ending in Stockholm. They can also choose to combine their cruise with a six-day transatlantic crossing from Southampton to New York aboard the Queen Mary 2, for a 113-day voyage. Early booking fares for Princess’ world cruises begin at $21,495 per person, based on double occupancy.