It’s been a busy week for luxury cruise lines.
Crystal is continuing its major brand expansion with the official start of construction for two of its new river cruise ships, Crystal Debussy and Crystal Ravel. The new ships will set sail in Europe in spring 2018 in the Netherlands, Germany, Austria and Hungary. The new ships are just the latest step in Crystal’s expansion, which has seen the company launch the new Crystal Esprit luxury yacht, as well as new luxury air itineraries set to take flight this year. Plans also call for the launch of new Crystal Exclusive Class Polar ice-rated cruise ships.
In ocean news, Seabourn Encore, the first new all-suite ship from Seabourn since 2011, is sailing on its inaugural voyage. Protravel International Director of Cruise Sales Marni Becker had a chance to check out the new ship during its recent naming ceremony over the weekend. Guests on the new vessel can expect the new The Retreat private cabana area, as well as two new restaurants: The Grill by Thomas Keller and Sushi.
Viking Cruise Line has announced a series of 13 new itineraries through 2019 designed to capitalize on the launch of its new ships. By the end of 2019, Viking said it hopes to be the largest small-ship ocean cruise line with six 930-passenger ships. By the end of 2017, it will add two new Longships to its Europe river cruise offerings.
According to a report released this week by travel aggregator CruiseCompete, the new ships are just the latest luxury trend hitting the waves this year and beyond. Soon luxury travelers could have a private robot butler in their cabin, a feature already being piloted in a Los Angeles luxury apartment building opening this year. Other notable trends include new mobile apps and room keys (think Carnival Corp.’s recently-announced Ocean Medallion class), plus new, experiential offerings on the ship and ashore.
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