Ambassador Cruise Line purchases second ship, to be named Ambition
Signalling its confidence in the British tourism and cruise market, Ambassador Cruise Line has announced the purchase of its second ship, to be named Ambition, entering service in 2023.
Ambition, like her sister ship Ambience will offer no-fly sailings predominantly targeting the 50-plus market with a premium-value, authentic cruise experience.
In addition to London Tilbury, she will also offer a summer 2023 programme of regional departures from ports such as Newcastle, Dundee, Belfast, Liverpool, Bristol and Falmouth, enabling guests across the UK to have a shorter distance to travel before experiencing Ambassador’s onboard service. The full programme is being finalised and will be on sale from Q2 2022.
Ambition will carry up to 1,200 guests in considerable comfort and space in her 714 cabins, 125 of which have balconies and 113 are suites with up to 62m² of living space. She has two main restaurants and speciality dining options, a more casual bistro style café, four bars and lounges and a pub. These will be complemented by a tiered main theatre, casino, card room, library, and craft studio. Guests will also be able to enjoy the wellness centre, gymnasium, two swimming pools and a range of retail shops, all designed to create a friendly atmosphere on board and cement Ambassador’s reputation for creating a “community at sea”, whilst giving all guests room to breathe.
The ship has been purchased outright from Costa Crociere which operated her under their AIDA brand, as AIDAMira, mainly targeting the German market.
Prior to entering service with Ambassador Cruise Line, she will undergo similar extensive upgrades as her new sister ship, Ambience, including the installation of the latest emission reduction technologies to secure IMO Tier III compliance. This will reduce nitrogen oxide emissions by approximately 95% compared to current standards.
Along with installing updated ballast and sewage water treatment systems, both ships in the Ambassador Cruise Line fleet will be among circa 10% of the current world cruise fleet authorised to sail in strictly environmentally protected seas. These investments are a key part of the Ambassador Cruise Line strategy of operating with a high level of environmental responsibility as well as meeting the increased demands of guests who want to enjoy all the benefits of travel whilst making the lowest possible impact on the destinations they travel to.
CEO, Christian Verhounig said: “We are delighted with the warm reception given to the introduction of Ambassador to the market – a new brand, proposition and our first ship. This announcement of the addition of Ambition to the fleet reflects our confidence and willingness to invest in the future of Ambassador and the cruise sector. We are particularly excited to be offering regional departure options for Ambition in 2023, whilst also offering guests who travel from London Tilbury a greater choice of sailings and ships on which to enjoy them. Clearly, we are all focused on the success of Ambience’s maiden season which commences in April this year, but we believe existing and new guests, as well as our trade partners, will be thrilled to hear about Ambassador’s growth plans”.
The full programme of itineraries and enticing offers from Ambassador Cruise Line will be detailed in a bumper 2023-24 season brochure.
Ambition’s maiden voyage itineraries will be unveiled during Q2 2022
Gross tonnage: 48,123
Guest capacity: 1,200
Cabins: 714 cabins: (including 125 balcony cabins, 113 suites/mini suites, 473 (66%) balcony view)
Space ratio: 40 (gross tonnage divided by number of guests, a metric for space on Ambition per guest)
Crew: 500
Guest/crew ratio: 2.40
Classification Society: Rina, Italy
Previous names: Mistral, Grand Mistral, Costa neoRiviera, AIDAmira
Built in 1999
