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Kid-free cruises only for Virgin Voyages
New cruise startup Virgin Voyages promised to disrupt the industry, and it certainly plans to do that for cruisers with kids.
It is positioning itself as an adult-only line, meaning all passengers must be 18 years or older to sail.
"We basically decided, ‘Let’s have a blank sheet of paper, let’s create the kind of voyage company that we would like to go on,’ and that’s what we’ve done," said founder Richard Branson.
While it will no doubt dismay many cruising families, there are likely many more cruisers secretly jumping with joy over the prospect of kid-free cruises.
It has now unveiled its ‘shiptease’ after a keel laying ceremony for the first of its three, 2,860-passenger vessels which will cost about $3 billion in total.
The ‘Lady Ships’ have no names yet but the first will sail form Miami in 2020
More than 80% of cabins will have a sea terrace and 93% with ocean views, said Tom McAlpin, president and CEO of Virgin Voyages.
"What we heard loud and clear was that people wanted to be able to set sail in an environment that felt more elevated," McAlpin said.
"We want people to get the sense immediately that we are doing something different here."
Virgin previously announced it is partnering with Climeon, to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by converting heat into electricity.
Now it hopes to turn waste into energy after signing an agreement with Scanship.
Exterior ship renderings were released but have given no specific details yet on cabin design.
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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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