Expedition cruise company Hurtigruten has sent its polar exploration vessel MS Richard With into drydock for a month of renovations. These changes will be the first of a two-step upgrade intended to make the ship more modern and environmentally friendly.
All staterooms and suites aboard the MS Richard With will receive upgrades. On one deck, a number of cabins will be merged to create 14 larger suites, some of these with large bay windows. Elsewhere in the ship, the MS Richard With’s gym will be enlarged, the sauna upgraded and two aft-facing hot tubs added.
The month of renovations will include several changes to the ship’s dining offerings. The aft-facing main restaurant Torget will receive large deck-to-ceiling windows. An upgraded and larger arcade and a new Activity Center will replace the ship’s Brygga bistro. An informal Multe Bakery, serving cakes, pastries, smoothies, ice cream, coffee, tea, juice and sandwiches, will be added.
Over the next two years Hurtigruten will replace the diesel propulsion system with large battery packs and green liquefied natural gas engines on the MS Richard With and at least five other ships. The ship’s technical upgrades during this first month of renovations will include the installment of shore power facilities and a new air conditioning system.
Hurtigruten is an expedition cruise operator that explores destinations in Antarctica, South America, Norway, Svalbard, Greenland, the Northwest Passage and more. The company now operates a fleet of 17 ships.
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