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THE RISE AND FALL AND RISE OF LUXURY CRUISE LINES

Yesterday was one of those postings that never ended.  I went on tangential tours and finally crashed to a conclusion as I was falling asleep.  Hope to clean up the typos soon.

I sometimes tend to be spiritual on Sundays, but today will reflect on why luxury cruise lines tend to now and then go bankrupt.  After all, Jesus Christ was born, lived, crucified and was resurrected.


The prime example was the demise of the very successful Crystal cruises.

  • Very early in 2022 I was planning on a fall trip and thought maybe I'd work in a European river cruise with Crystal.  These tend to be be around 10 days long and on Crystal, maybe $12,000 for two.
  • That is the amount we would have lost, although there are indications that you can recover most of that if you take five future trips with them.
  • So here is what went wrong with Crystal.
    • The pandemic was not kind to the parent company of Crystal, Genting Hong Kong.
      • Their first cruise line was Star Cruises in 1993.
      • They purchased Norwegian Cruise Line in 2000, but sold most shares to others over time.
      • Crystal was bought in 2015, and the 
        company expanded into a nightclub and shipyard.
      • In 2020 had a $3.37 billion debt because of the pandemic.
      • Went bankrupt in 2022.
      • Crystal Symphony and Crystal Serenity dropped off passengers in January of that year and suspended operations.
    • The two ships were revamped, with max guest capacity down to 740 from 1040 on the Serenity and 606 from the 960 on the Symphony.
    • First sailing for the Serenity is scheduled for July 31 from Marseilles on a 12-day Mediterranean cruise.  Symphony will also operate in the Mediterranean from September 1.
    • I cruised on Crystal a half dozen times:
      • The first was on the Crystal Harmony from Auckland to Honolulu.  My wife wanted to do this, so we made a reservation many months ahead of time in a mid-level cabin.  When to boarded the ship, we were given a penthouse because occupancy was low.  Probably the best cruise I ever had.
      • Then in May of 2014, enjoyed the Crystal Symphony from Yokohama to Honolulu.  Old friends Joyce and David Patrick were also onboard.
      • In November, it was again on the Crystal Symphony, from Honolulu to Yokohama.  Coincidentally, Joyce and Dave were again on the ship.  I think this was their 26th Crystal cruise.
The Seabourn?  It was announced a year ago that Carnival Corporation was negotiating the sale of most its Fantasy-class ships.  What's going on?  Something wrong with high-end luxury?  Carnival too has had serious pandemic economic problems.  Seabourn has five ships, and since then only the Odyssey, the one we're on, has been sold, this one to Mitsui O.S.K. Passenger Line.  Debuting in 2009, it is the oldest.  Mitsui only has one other cruise ship, but two new ones are in construction.  All told, they own more than 100 ships, mostly containerships.

Then, there is the Regent Seven Seas...surely nothing wrong there.  There were rumors of having past corporate problems, but that was mostly what all cruise companies suffered through because of the pandemic.  Like all cruise lines they stopped sailing for a while, but they're back in good shape.  Both RSS and Oceania have been owned by Norwegian Cruise Lines since 2014.  Until Crystal returns, then, I would say that Norwegian is today my favorite, for they say the cuisine is best on the Oceania (sailed them a long time ago), Regent is an ultimate luxury and the Pride of America in Hawaii is always now and then a one week pleasure.
We have a week left before the Seabourn Odyssey arrives in Honolulu next Sunday.  2345 miles from Taiohae to Lahaina, our next stop, after 5 sea days.  Taiohae is 1220 miles from the equator and Lahaina is 1443. My calculation indicates that we should cross the equator around 7PM on April 24, tomorrow.

Nice day at sea.  Lunch.
Not sure what I was celebrating, but I had three desserts.
We then went for tea at 4PM
Dinner was at The Grill.  There have been of the staff who have been especially invaluable, Bruno, who I mentioned yesterday, and Simone, who is the interface with the main chef.  He promised us grilled tuna collars at the Restaurant Monday night, with o-toro sashimi.  I'll be flabbergasted if this actually happens, but they have been wonderful.
A Raymond Cab.
They always start with this beginning.
Double Oxtail Consomme.
Salad and soup.
Pasta and lamb.
We then went to see Steve Barry.  I saw him after the show and chatted with him.  He was fabulous.  What a voice.
Walked 1624 steps.  A very good overall day.
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