Royal Caribbean Group has acquired the ultra-luxury cruise ship Endeavor.
Originally delivered to Crystal Cruises in 2021, the ship – now renamed Silver Endeavour, has officially joined the Group’s wholly owned subsidiary, Silversea Cruises’ fleet on 18 July.
Jason Liberty, President and CEO, Royal Caribbean Group, said: “With Endeavour, we are seeking to grow our world-class fleet to meet the exceptional demand for ultra-luxury expedition cruising, while also enhancing our profitability profile and affirming Silversea’s position as the industry’s leading ultra-luxury and expedition cruise line.”
Silver Endeavour was designed specifically to take travellers to the world’s most remote destinations, including both Polar Regions.
The ship will enter service in November 2022, replacing Silver Explorer from the 2022/2023 Antarctica season – including the highly popular Antarctica Bridge sailings.
Roberto Martinoli, President and CEO, Silversea Cruises, said: “The expedition cruising industry is poised to resume accelerated growth driven by demand among high-end, affluent customers for travel to remote and hard-to-access destinations.
“This ship will be the fourth vessel to join Silversea’s fleet since 2020, which demonstrates our commitment to growth.”
Barbara Muckermann, Chief Commercial Officer, Silversea Cruises, said: “To honour the spirit of expedition travel, we have renamed the ship Silver Endeavour – paying testament to one of history’s most famous vessels.
“Aboard Silver Endeavour, travellers will channel the same sense of discovery that guided pioneering explorers, such as James Cook, in bygone eras.”
Silver Endeavour offers the highest standards in the industry in terms of space-per-guest ratio, and crew-to-guest ratio, as well as top-notch accommodations and public areas.
The ship’s state-of-the-art expedition amenities are some of the most immersive and luxurious, with a fleet of zodiac boats for remote exploration, kayaks, and cutting-edge navigation and exploration technology, including a remote gimbal camera system, among other amenities.
Endeavour will maintain Silversea’s trademark level of luxury, with a crew-to-guest ratio of approximately 1:1.
Spread over eight public decks, the all-suite Silver Endeavour offers guests the most spacious accommodations in expedition cruising, said the cruise line in a statement.
There are multiple restaurants, bars and lounges; an expansive spa; a two-storied solarium with a swimming pool and whirlpool; and an array of indoor and outdoor observation areas.
With an intimate onboard atmosphere, guests can discover destinations like Antarctica in depth, with great interaction between travellers and Silversea’s expedition experts.
As part of the ongoing RCL Cares program, Royal Caribbean Group will protect the deposits of guests who were originally booked on Crystal Endeavor.
“Delivering the best vacations in the world, responsibly, is Royal Caribbean Group’s purpose,” Liberty said.
“While our acquisition only covers the physical vessel, we want all of our guests to know we go above and beyond to take care of them.”
“We believe those Crystal guests will receive back their deposits, but we want to give them added assurance,” Liberty added.
To the extent the Crystal Endeavor guests do not receive their deposits back from Crystal or other sources, the Royal Caribbean Group will refund any amount paid on their new booking up to the amount of their lost deposits from Crystal.
Complete terms of the offer will be provided on each brand’s website soon.
Silver Endeavour is scheduled to begin service in winter 2022/2023, spending its inaugural season in Antarctica starting November 2022.
For more information, please visit Silversea.com.
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