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Easycruise orders two 500-berth ships
Easycruise has signed a letter of intent with a Greek shipyard group for two 500-berth cruise-ships and the option to buy two more.
The ships are being built by Neorion Holdings and will not be ready until 2008.
In the meantime the no-frills cruise operator is exploring franchise opportunities for other vessels and hopes to launch cruises in Greece next year.
Newly appointed CEO Gwyn Hughes said it was also considering the Bahamas, southern Caribbean and the rest of the Mediterreanean.
“We’re looking fairly broadly at where ships can get to quite easily,” he said.
Easycruise currently has one 170-berth cruise vessel, which switches from its winter Caribbean itineraries to cruises around the French and Italian rivieras on May 13.
Later in the summer it will start trips along the rivers and canals of Holland and Belgium with a franchised river and canal cruiser.
“The existing ship was always intended to be a test market,” added Hughes. “We wanted to work out how large a ship would be suitable for the easyCruise concept.”
Easycruise is in the process of upgrading its onboard dining facilities, adding more outside cabins, and updating its livery on its existing vessels.
By Bev Fearis
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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