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Edwin W. Stephan, founder of RCCL, passed away

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 11 November 2019 11 November 2019

Edwin W. Stephan, the founder, long time-president, and vice chairman of the board of Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, on Friday, November 8. He was 87.

Following the acquisition of Celebrity Cruises in 1997, the company changed its name to Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (RCCL) and its contemporary market unit became known as Royal Caribbean International.

“In 1969 Stephan founded the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, and his contributions helped create the modern cruise industry we know today. Under his leadership in 1970, the company launched Song of Norway, the first ship purpose-built for warm-water cruising. Since that initial voyage, Stephan's fledgling company has grown into the world's second largest cruise line, a multi-billion-dollar global company of six brands, operating 63 ships across seven continents,” RCCL said in a statement.

“During Stephan's tenure, the company saw many industry firsts, including our wide, open-air decks, and it was Stephan's idea for the round, cantilevered Viking Crown Lounge that made Royal ships stand out from the crowd. Royal Caribbean was also the first to stretch a major cruise ship by inserting an additional mid-section into Song of Norway in 1978,” RCCL continued.

"Ed was an inspiration and a great friend to many in the company. He was an honorable man who loved his family, his work, and his community," said Richard D. Fain, chairman and CEO of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.

Tallink and Viking Line had better third quarter than in 2018

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 08 November 2019 08 November 2019

Two listed ferry companies in Northern Europe have reported an improvement in their third quarter interim results, a period that includes the key summer holiday season that plays a major role for their financial fortunes.

Tallink, the listed Estonian cruise ferry company that operates under the Tallink and Silja Line brands, increased net profit to €54.6 million from €46.1 million in the third quarter of last year. Operating income (EBIT) rose to €59.4 million from €51.3 million and revenues rose to €287.8 million from €283.6 million.

The company said common theme for the economic environment across all its home markets in the third quarter was slowing economic growth combined with a still robust labour market. The continued streak of weakening of Swedish Krona (SEK) continued to hurt our sales to the Swedish market.

“The developments in the economic environment reflected in the contraction of the cargo market while passenger operations, despite clearly lower demand from Swedish customers, remained more robust with the help of customers from outside home markets,” Tallink said.

“Given the economic environment and tight competition we consider the third quarter’s 1.5% revenue growth achieved on a mature market a good result. We are even happier about the fact that the improvement in the net result was not driven by lower fuel cost alone,” Tallink said.

Meanwhile, the Mariehamn based Viking Line also reported an improvement in its third quarter performance compared to the same period last year. Net icome rose to €19.9 million from €16.6 million, while operating income increased to €26.2 million from €21.3 million. Revenues, by contrast, only increased by a farction, to €152.8 million from €152.3 million.

During the third quarter passenger volumes were on the same level as for the same period last year, but thanks to better sales per passenger, the company achieved increased sales and higher net sales revenue. At the same time, operating expenses decreased, which resulted in higher operating income

Competition in Viking Line's service area entails continued pressure on prices and volumes, which will have an adverse effect on net sales revenue per passenger. “The currency trend for the Swedish krona affects the Group’s results. Fixed-price agreements related to a portion of the Group’s bunker consumption for 2019 mitigate the risk of higher bunker costs. Overall, operating income for 2019 is expected to be better than operating income for 2018,” Viking Line said. Its 2018 operating income was €9.3 million.

Crystal dedicates European river cruise ship to Asian market

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 07 November 2019 07 November 2019

Crystal International Asia, in collaboration with Crystal River Cruises, has launched a river cruise line using Crystal Mozart specifically for discerning guests from across China and Asia. “The experience will provide Asian-friendly features for the growing number of guests from the region who are interested in exploring the many wonders of Europe but who may feel more comfortable travelling with some of the comforts of home,” Crystal said in a statement.

The company, which has its headquarters in Los Angeles, is part of the Genting Cruise Lines unit of Genting Hong Kong.

“We are excited to be able to offer our guests the option to sail with Crystal River Cruises and experience the splendours of Europe without having to forgo the comforts of home,” said Michael Goh, president of Dream Cruises, and head of international sales for Genting Cruise Lines, said in a statement.

“With the Asian cruise market currently enjoying unprecedented growth, our more experienced cruisers are looking for new and exciting destinations and adventures outside of local waters and Crystal Mozart is the ideal option for an intimate journey into the heart of Europe.”

Beginning in March 2020, Crystal Mozart’s voyages will be anchored by the cities of Vienna, Austria and Budapest, Hungary and will feature a variety of 6, 7 and 10-night all-inclusive itineraries on the Danube River including special Christmastime Market cruises to truly embrace the festive holiday season.

The catamaran hull Crystal Mozart is Europe’s most spacious river ship, at twice the width of any other, and offers an unrivalled number of social spaces, restaurants and the largest spa on the rivers, Crystal said.

“As part of Crystal Mozart’s new focus on the Asian traveller, in addition to her all-inclusive elegance highlighted by a welcoming lifestyle on board along with immersive experiences ashore, a host of new Asian-friendly features will provide a comforting familiarity to guests from the region,” Crystal said.

“Dedicated English and Chinese speaking butlers will be available to pamper guests with world-renowned service while Michelin-inspired cuisine featuring the finest International and Asian dishes is sure to please even the pickiest of palates. To ensure that everyone can discover the beauty and charm of each port of call, enriching shore experiences will be led by professional English and Chinese language tour guides and designed to deepen the understanding of Europe’s iconic landscapes, historic cities and quaint villages.”

Costa Firenze floated out at Marghera

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 07 November 2019 07 November 2019

Costa Firenze, the second of two 135,500 gross ton cruise ships Costa Crociere to be launched this year, was floated out at the Marghera yard of Fincantieri, the Italian shipbuilder on 6 November, the shipbuilder said in a statement.

It is sister ship of Costa Venezia that was launched at Monfalcone in March. Both ships are intended to serve the Chinese market and they have a capacity of 5,200 passengers each.

Costa Firenze and Costa Venezia are the biggest ship introduced by Costa to the Chinese market, where the Italian company was the first to start operating in 2006 and is currently the leader. They are part of an expansion plan that includes a total of 7 ships being delivered to the Costa Group by 2023, for a total investment of over €6 billion.

Costa Firenze is due for delivery to Costa Crociere, which is part of the Carnival Corporation & plc group, in September 2020.

Saga Cruises to order river cruise newbuilding

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 04 November 2019 04 November 2019

Saga Cruises, which is part of the UK based travel to financial services group Saga plc, plans to order a 190 passenger capacity river cruise ship that is scheduled to debut in 2021.

To be known as Spirit of the Rhine, the ship is planned to offer 95 cabins, each with a floor space of 17 square metres. It will be built at the Vahali shipyard in the Netherlands.

The ship will offer cruises in the Rhine, Main, Moselle, Main and Danube rivers. Saga Cruises also offers cruises in the Ukraine, Russia, Spain, Portugal and Italy.

Spirit of the Rhine is the first river cruise newbuilding of the company and it follows two ocean going ships, Spirit of Discovery that entered service this year and Spirit of Adventure that is due to replace the 1981 built Saga Sapphire next summer.