Here’s What Happened to the Former Crystal Cruises Fleet

Here’s What Happened to the Former Crystal Cruises Fleet

Crystal Cruises’ ocean-going fleet has found new homes. Here’s the latest on the new destinations for Crystal’s ships:

Crystal Endeavor
Year Built: 2021
Capacity: 200 guests
Status: Sold to Silversea Cruises

Silversea Cruises acquired the former Crystal Endeavor earlier this month. Sold for $275 million, the 2021-built expedition vessel will be renamed Silver Endeavour before entering service for the ultra-luxury operator.  

Set to debut in time for the 2022-2023 season in Antarctica, the ship is expected to undergo a minor refit work that includes signage changes, the addition of Silversea’s livery and a few restaurant adjustments.

Crystal Serenity
Year Built: 2003
Capacity: 980 guests
Status: Sold to A&K Travel Group

In June, the Crystal Serenity was sold to the A&K Travel Group at auction for $103 million.

According to the new owners - who also bought the Crystal Cruises brand and other assets - the vessel will be subject to a major refit before resuming service in 2023.

Crystal Symphony
Year Built: 1995
Capacity: 848 guests
Status: Sold to A&K Travel Group

The Crystal Symphony was sold at a judicial auction in June. Like its fleet mate Crystal Serenity, it was bought by the A&K Travel Group, who bought the ship with a bid of $25 million for a 1995-built luxury vessel.

Before resuming service in 2023, the ship will also be subject to a major revitalization, the new owners revealed recently.  

Crystal Esprit
Year Built: 1989
Capacity: 48 guests
Status: Sold to Lindblad Expeditions   

Sold by Crystal Cruises in September 2021, the Crystal Esprit was acquired by Lindblad Expeditions.

Renamed National Geographic Islander II, the 48-guest mega-yacht will offer year-round expeditions to the Galapagos Islands. After a significant refit in Northern Europe, the former Esprit is set to launch service for its operator in August.

Crystal Bach, Crystal Mahler, Crystal Debussy and Crystal Ravel
Year Built: 2017 and 2018
Capacity: 106 guests each
Status: Pending

While all the former ocean-going Crystal ships have now met their fates, the company’s river fleet continues to sit in limbo.  

Built by the MV Werften between 2017 and 2018, the four Rhine-Class sister ships are currently laid up in the Netherlands.

Crystal Mozart
Year Built: 1987
Capacity: 154 guests
Status: Pending

Like its Rhine fleet mates, the Crystal Mozart is also waiting for a decision regarding its future. Rumours suggest the ship has been sold.

Currently docked in Austria, the vessel was built in 1987 and underwent a full revitalization before joining Crystal in 2016. As the biggest river ship in the fleet, it has the capacity for a total of 160 guests.  

Silverseas Acquires Crystal Endeavour for $275 Million

Silversea Cruises has received court approval for the purchase of the ultra-luxury cruise ship Crystal Endeavor. 

Originally delivered to Crystal Cruises in 2021, the ship will be renamed Silver Endeavour when it officially joins the Royal Caribbean Group subsidiary later this month.

 

The purchase price for the vessel was $275 million and was fully financed through a 15-year unsecured term loan, guaranteed by the German export credit agency, Euler Hermes, with no amortization payments in the first two years.

 

The fifth expedition ship in Silversea’s fleet of 11, the vessel is scheduled to begin service in winter 2022/2023, spending its inaugural season in Antarctica starting November 2022.

 

"With Endeavour, we are seeking to grow our world-class fleet to meet the exceptional demand for ultra-luxury expedition cruising, while also enhancing our profitability profile and affirming Silversea’s position as the industry’s leading ultra-luxury and expedition cruise line," said Jason Liberty, president and chief executive of Royal Caribbean Group. 

Built to PC6 polar class specifications, the ship can operate all of Silversea’s current expedition itineraries and is designed to take travellers to remote destinations, including both polar regions.

 

As part of the ongoing RCL Cares program, Royal Caribbean Group will protect the deposits of guests who were originally booked on Crystal Endeavor and make a new booking on one of its brands – Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Silversea Cruises. 

 

To the extent the Crystal Endeavor guests do not receive their deposits back from Crystal or other sources, the Royal Caribbean Group will refund any amount paid on their new booking up to the number of their lost deposits from Crystal.

Crystal Cruises’ new adventure ship emerges from shipyard

Crystal Cruises’ new adventure ship emerges from shipyard

 

The latest Crystal Cruises’ adventure ship Crystal Endeavor has been rolled out of a German shipyard eight months before it is due to enter service.

The 200-passenger polar class expedition vessel touched water for the first time at the MV Werften yard in Stralsund.

The all-suite ship is due to set off on its first cruise from Tokyo on August 10, 2020.

Crystal Endeavor will feature helicopter pads and a submarine capable of carrying seven passengers 980ft under water.

Other facilities include chef Nobu Matsuhisa’s Umi Uma & Sushi Bar; a spa and fitness centre; mud rooms and a helicopter lounge.

Itineraries available until early 2023 range from the Arctic, Antarctica and Australia to Africa, Europe and Indonesia.

Crystal Cruises’ president and chief executive Tom Wolber said: “Each milestone marked in the journey to introducing Crystal Endeavor to the world becomes more thrilling, as we know that the most adventurous luxury travellers are eagerly awaiting the unforgettable experiences that lie ahead, just as we are.

Exciting new ships are on the horizon

Crystal Endeavor will be the line’s latest megayacht

Scenic Eclipse, Crystal Endeavor, and Seabourn Ovation join the luxury set, while Ponant will offer its passengers underwater lounges on four additions to its fleet.

New ships, new ports of call and a voyage around the world in 180 days are on the horizon over the next two years.

Megayachts Scenic Eclipse and Crystal Endeavor will be among the newcomers, while Seabourn is launching Ovation.

Ponant is gearing up for four new ships, all with an underwater lounge.

Scenic is hailing Eclipse as ‘the world’s first discovery yacht’. It will launch in August next year to carry 228 guests – down to 200 while in the Arctic and Antarctic. Each of the 114 suites will have a private veranda, lounge and butler service.

While guests will have the choice of nine dining options, the smallness of Eclipse – at only 16,500 tons – means it will be able to dock in more remote ports. But it’s big enough to boast two helicopters and a submarine.

Seabourn Ovation will be joining the fleet in May 2018

Ponant is set for a busy couple of years with the arrival of Le Lapérouse and Le Champlain in 2018 and Le Bougainville and Le Dumont d’Urville in 2019. All will have 88 cabins and four suites, each one with a balcony. The ships will also be the first in the world to have an underwater lounge, the Blue Eye.The 25,000-ton Crystal Endeavor will launch in 2019, cruising polar regions during the summer and autumn and following the route of migrating whales to Antarctica during the winter. A remote-operated vehicle will allow passengers to see sunken galleons, warships and liners such as Titanic.

Seabourn is introducing its latest ship – Ovation – in May 2018. Like Encore, launched this year, it will carry 600 guests, all with a private veranda, and measure 40,350 tons. “Seabourn Ovation will carry on the standard of ultra-luxury cruising that can only be found on Seabourn. We can’t wait to welcome our guests on board,” said company president Richard Meadows.

After some delay in construction, Star Clippers will finally say hello to Flying Clipper, the largest sailing ship in the world, with five masts and room for 300 guests, next year.

Many luxury lines are adding new destinations and overnight stays in the next two years. But the ultimate cruise for 2019 must be the 180-day world voyage on Oceania Cruises ship Insignia. It will travel 45,000 nautical miles across two oceans and 16 seas while visiting 90 destinations in 36 countries.

Two of Ponant’s new ships, Le Lapérouse and Le Champlain, will be launched next year

Bob Binder, the president and CEO of Oceania, said: “Our exciting 2019 Around the World journey offers guests an expertly crafted route spanning the four corners of the globe, touching on nearly 100 captivating destinations and dozens of UNESCO World Heritage sites. It is truly the journey of a lifetime.”

For the first time in the history of Crystal Cruises, both Crystal Symphony and Crystal Serenity will embark on world cruises next year, offering travellers four separate global itineraries.

With the ships meeting in Sydney on February 17, 2018, guests can switch vessels for a new route. Ranging from 97 to 129 nights, the voyages will travel to a combined 111 destinations in 45 countries with 50 overnights.

Silversea is sailing a 132-day world cruise in 2019, with Silver Whisper calling at 52 ports in 31 countries across five continents.

Nine writers, including Paul Theroux and Pico Iyer, will be invited on board to create short stories inspired by the destinations.

Cunard has launched its Oceans of Discovery programme for January to May 2019, including the cruise line’s first return to Alaska in more than 20 years with Queen Elizabeth. Queen Victoria will do a full 107-night western circumnavigation of the globe.

Regent Seven Seas is offering world cruises next year and in 2019 on Seven Seas Navigator. Looking even further ahead, it has announced a 131-night world cruise on Seven Seas Mariner, departing from San Francisco on January 24, 2020

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Crystal Cruises to renovate Serenity and Symphony again

The Crystal Symphony in Hong Kong. 

Crystal Cruises said it will make major improvements to its two oceangoing vessels, Crystal Serenity and Crystal Symphony.

In 2017 and 2018, the Serenity and Symphony will receive "massive enhancements" similar to the $52 million makeover Serenity got in 2013 and the $20 million redesign of Symphony in 2014, Crystal said.

One feature will be to reconfigure dining so that full open seating is available. A criticism of Crystal is that it doesn't have dining capacity to accommodate all of its guests in one seating. Crystal also said there will be more suites.

The luxury line has announced plans to build three new-generation "Exclusive" class ships with high space ratios and residences on the top deck. The first of those was initially to be delivered in 2018, but that had been pushed back first to 2019, then to 2021 and now is scheduled for the first quarter of 2022.

Crystal also pushed back the delivery date of the 200-passenger Crystal Endeavor expedition ship from 2018 to 2019, but said that it plans to build two additional such ships for 2020 and 2021. In addition, it has rebranded Crystal Yacht Cruises as Crystal Yacht Expedition Cruises.

In the air, Crystal said it plans to add a second Global Express Jet to its Crystal Luxury Air fleet in 2017 due to the "popularity of the existing charter options, and travel partners and guests' wishing to customize their vacation experiences with all things Crystal."

On land, Crystal plans a marketing branch office in Sydney to open in 2017. An office in Amsterdam to support the operations of its river cruise fleet will officially open Nov.21, and a display center in Miami's Boulevard Shops near downtown will open in spring 2017.

Crystal Cruises to build polar yacht

FORT LAUDERDALE — Crystal Cruises will add to its growing stable of luxury travel options by building a 200-passenger yacht with polar capabilities.

The 600-foot, 25,000-gross-ton Crystal Endeavor is scheduled to debut in August of 2018.
Crystal said the vessel will be the first purpose-built Polar Code-compliant yacht in the world with a PC6 Polar Class designation. As such, it would be able to cruise in polar regions during the summer and autumn in "medium first year ice which may include old ice inclusions," Crystal said.

Crystal, which plans to build three 1,000-passenger ocean ships starting in 2018, already has a 62-passenger cruising yacht called Crystal Esprit.

Company president Edie Rodriguez announced the new yacht at the Seatrade Cruise Global conference here. She said Crystal Endeavor will come with a complete range of “toys” that are not commonly found on today’s mega-yachts, including two helicopters and two landing pads for flightseeing expeditions as well as two seven-person submarines, eight electric amphibious Zodiacs, personal watercraft, kayaks, fishing facilities, paddleboards, snorkeling and scuba equipment, a recompression chamber, a dive support tender and a multi-person ATV