CMV To Acquire Two More Ships For 2021 Season – Other Cruise News: Bremen To Become Viva Cruises’ Seaventure – Valiant Lady To Be Virgin’s Second Ship
by Kevin Griffin
Cruise & Maritime Voyages last week announced the acquisition of two more ex-Carnival Group cruise ships to become fleet-mates of the three they already own – the Columbus, Magellan and Vasco da Gama. Elsewhere, it has now been announced that Scylla Cruises’ Bremen, to be renamed Seaventure, will be operated by Viva Cruises starting in May 2021. And Virgin will name its second new ship the Valiant Lady.
THIS WEEK’S STORY
CMV To Acquire Two More Ships For 2021 Season
Cruise & Maritime Voyages (CMV) has acquired two ships to add to its fleet in 2021 as the cruise line heads for 200,000 passengers per annum. CMV will take delivery of P&O Australia’s Pacific Dawn on March 2 and Pacific Aria on May 2, 2021, in Singapore.
The Pacific Dawn (Courtesy P&O Cruises Australia)
Both ships will enter service that summer following drydockings in Singapore for minor upgrades and re-livery works before setting off on CMV positioning cruises to northern Europe.
Pacific Dawn, which will have around 1,400 passenger berths, will offer year-round cruises from Tilbury alongside the line’s existing ship Columbus. Both were initially ordered as Sitmar ships.
Pacific Aria will sail meanwhile under the TransOcean brand name in the German market. CMV is the parent company of TransOcean Kreuzfahrten.
Pacific Dawn sporting her new livery and house colours for 2021 (Cruise and Maritime Voyages, 28th November 2019)
The 1,100-berth ship will sail alongside sister ship Vasco da Gama and replace the line’s Astor, which is being renamed Jules Verne and re-deployed to the French market.
The new names for Pacific Dawn and Pacific Aria will be revealed in December.
CMV chief executive Christian Verhounig said: “The introduction of two more ships to the global ocean fleet is the next exciting chapter of our strategic growth objectives. This will enable us to service increasing market demand for our traditional brand of cruising generated by our expanding international network of in-house sales offices and developing source markets.”
The Pacific Aria
“We have now acquired five cruise ships in just five years and are firmly on course in carrying 200,000 passengers in 2021.”
Chris Coates, group commercial director, added: “As the CMV brand continues to evolve, the growing popularity of our traditional product, classic ships and destination focused cruise programs has encouraged us to accelerate plans to add capacity to the two top European cruise markets in the UK and Germany, which represent 85% of our business.
“These two fine cruise ships perfectly complement our existing fleet providing trade partners and consumers alike with much needed extra capacity.”
For 2020, they expect close to 70% of capacity to be sold by year end 2019, providing an ideal platform for the early introduction of new tonnage and opportunities for summer 2021 with a focus higher yield business.
OTHER CRUISE NEWS
Bremen To Become Viva Cruises’ Seaventure
River cruise specialist Viva Cruises will enter the expedition market with its new ship Seaventure, which until now has sailed until now as Hapag-Lloyd Cruises’ Bremen.
Hapag Lloyd’s Bremen
The Seaventure is set to enter service in May 2021.
Viva Cruises now offers four-star expedition cruising for just 164 guests, on board the Seaventure. Seaventure’s maiden voyage will depart Amsterdam on May 15, 2021, arriving in Warnemünde May 21. The ship will then sail on thirteen different itineraries from the rugged coasts of Iceland to the Brazilian Rainforest.
Andrea Kruse, chief operating officer of Viva Cruises, said: “We have always aimed to offer our customers a different perspective on the destinations they visit and the launch of our expedition cruises takes this one step further.”
Seaventure (Artist impression)
As a small ship, the Seaventure has just eighty-two cabins and suites and allows guests to re-discover the world from an entirely new perspective.
The Seaventure has been specially designed for its unique itineraries; her size allows her to enter remote harbours and winding rivers, not to mention its manoeuvrability, enabling her to change course at short notice to observe animals and nature.
A fleet of twelve Zodiacs enable guests to explore uncharted territories and view nature at close hand, and the hand-picked experts on board will not only guide guests on excursions, but present a series of interesting talks and lectures relevant to each destination.
Viva’s UK arm is based in north London and is an accredited body member of Hays Travel Limited, who recently took over much of Thomas Cook’s retail activities, including hundreds of shops and employees.
Valiant Lady To Be Virgin’s Second Ship
Rendering of Virgin Voyages’ second ship, Valiant Lady (Courtesy Virgin Voyages)
Richard Branson’s new Virgin Voyages will officially welcome another ship into its growing fleet. In a recent announcement by the cruise line, Valiant Lady was named as its second ship, due to join the fleet in 2021.
“We are thrilled to unveil the name of our second ship Valiant Lady and to deliver on our commitment to offer travellers a sea change in how they can experience cruising in this fantastic part of the world,” said Virgin Voyages’ ceo Tom McAlpin in a statement.
“Our Sailors will fall in love with the places we go and the moments and memories they will be able to create on our gorgeous ship. After all, there is no better way to sail the seven seas than doing it the Virgin way.”
Sir Richard Branson and Captain Wendy (Courtesy Virgin Voyages)
According to a press release from Virgin, Valiant Lady will be based in Barcelona, and will offer three-separate 7-night Mediterranean itineraries. With a focus on overnight and late night calls across European destinations including France, Italy and Spain, every itinerary will also include a Friday overnight stop on the island of Ibiza.
According to Virgin, Valiant Lady will continue in the spirit of Virgin Voyages’ ‘Scarlet Squad’ program which is aimed at “recruiting, supporting and mentoring female shipboard talent,” as well as “growing opportunities to access leadership roles in onboard areas such as marine, technical and hotel management that statistically show low numbers of female leadership.”
(Kevin Griffin is managing director of The Cruise People Ltd and a director of specialist cruise operator Culture Cruises Ltd, both of London, England. For further information concerning cruises mentioned in this article readers can visit his blog)
