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B M & T ••• March/April 2018 ••• www.blackmeetingsandtourism.com 26 C R U I S E N E W S Due to its overwhelming popularity, Holland America Line is bring- ing O's Reading Room to all 14 ships in the fleet around the world. Introduced as part of special onboard programming developed in part- nership with O, The Oprah Magazine, by May 2018, guests on all ships regardless of cruising region will have the opportunity to read the latest book club selection and participate in discussions on board. The first novel to go fleetwide – "An American Marriage" by award- winning author Tayari Jones - was recently announced as the latest selection in Oprah's Book Club. Guests on board Holland America Line ships will share the same expe- rience with millions of readers. "Our guests are fanatical readers, and O's Reading Room quickly became one of the most popular activities on ships with O, The Oprah Magazine programming," said Orlando Ashford, president of Holland America Line. "We're excited that we can now offer this experience to all of our guests. Oprah's personal passion for reading is evi- dent by the books she chooses, and we're privileged to feature the same selection as Oprah's Book Club." Jones is the author of several other novels, including "Leaving Atlanta," "The Untelling" and "Silver Sparrow." Her writing has appeared in Tin House, The Believer, The New York Times and Callaloo. A member of the Fellowship of Southern Writers, she is a recipient of the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, Lifetime Achievement Award in Fine Arts from the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, United States Artist Fellowship, NEA Fellowship and Radcliffe Institute Bunting Fellowship. Jones is scheduled to join Holland America Line's March 3, 2018, O, The Oprah Magazine's Adventure of Your Life Cruise to the Caribbean aboard Nieuw Amsterdam. She embarks with a collection of the magazine's editors and visionaries who will share stories, inspire guests and impart their knowledge through special programming. O, The Oprah Magazine's books editor Leigh Haber will be on board to lead the discussion of "An American Marriage" with Jones during O's Reading Room. On non-theme cruises, guests who are interested in participating in O's Reading Room can bring "An American Marriage" on board. Book club discussions are led by a member of the ship's staff, and selections change periodically throughout the year. The latest O's Reading Room selection is listed on Holland America Line's website on the O, The Oprah Magazine's Year of Living Well page. HOLLAND AMERICA LINE AND O, THE OPRAH MAGAZINE LAUNCH O'S READING ROOM FLEETWIDE FEATURING OPRAH'S BOOK CLUB'S LATEST SELECTION 'AN AMERICAN MARRIAGE' BY AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR TAYARI JONES O's Reading Room On All Ships by May 2018 CARNIVAL CORPORATION ORDERS THIRD NEW SHIP FOR AIDA CRUISES The company's leading cruise brand in Germany continues fleet enhancement strategy and significant expansion of passenger capacity to meet accelerating demand for cruise vacations New vessels to debut between 2018 and 2023 featuring industry-first "green-cruising" design enabling cruise ships to be fully powered in port and at sea by LNG, the world's cleanest burning fossil fuel Carnival Corporation& plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), the world's largest leisure travel company, recently announced it has signed a shipbuilding contract for a third next-generation cruise ship for its rapidly growing AIDA Cruises brand, the leading cruise line in Germany, which is the largest and fastest-growing cruise market in Europe. Scheduled for delivery in 2023, the new 180,000-ton ship, being built by leading German shipbuilder Meyer Werft GmbH at its ship- yard in Papenburg, will include an estimated 2,700 staterooms and extensive selection of popular onboard features. Featuring Carnival Corporation's exclusive "green cruising" design and the marine industry's most advanced fuel technology, the ship will also be fully powered at sea and in port by Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), the world's cleanest burning fossil fuel, which will significantly reduce air emissions. With this announcement, AIDA Cruises now has a total of three LNG ships on order. AIDAnovais scheduled to join AIDA Cruises' fleet in December as the first ship of its new generation of LNG vessels, and the first-ever cruise ship in the world to be fully powered by LNG. The second ship of this series will be christened in the spring of 2021. The three next-generation LNG ships for AIDA Cruises are part of Carnival Corporation's ongoing fleet enhancement strategy with 20 new ships scheduled for delivery between 2018 and 2023 – cre- ating excitement in the vacation market and continuing to exceed guest expectations while accelerating demand for cruising, the