Cruise & Maritime takes on 1,250-passenger Magellan as its new flagship

British-based Cruise & Maritime Voyages (CMV) has acquired Grand Holiday which will begin ex-UK operations under the CMV livery in spring 2015.

She will be re-named Magellan and at 46,052grt will carry about 1,250 passengers becoming the new flagship of the CMV ocean fleet operating as an adult-only (16 years plus) ship alongside Marco Polo (800 passengers), Astor (600) and Azores (550). 

The ship originally entered service in 1985 as Holiday, sailing under the Carnival Cruise Line flag, and she still has the trademark Carnival whale-tail funnel - although CMV plan to carry out major surgery as the artists's impression (above) shows. More recently, she sailed for the Spanish operator Iberocruises, and earlier this year was used to provide hotel accommodation at the Sochi Winter Olympics.

Chris Coates, Commercial Director, said: “We are delighted to have secured this excellent addition to our fleet which we believe will be very well suited to our core British market. The introduction of Magellan will increase UK capacity by 40 per cent to 74,000 passengers. Having already sold 65 per cent of capacity for next year we remain confident that Magellan will help satisfy the growing demand for our product”.

Christian Verhounig, CEO and Chairman of CMV added: “The introduction of Magellan to our growing ocean fleet is another important milestone in the expansion and strategic development of the group’s presence in the UK and wider international markets which will increase overall capacity to 115,000 passengers. The CMV brand is now creating much wider recognition and we remain confident that our medium to longer term growth objectives will be achieved”.

A new 2015 special launch edition brochure will be released tomorrow (4 November) detailing Magellan’s inaugural CMV summer 2015 and winter 2015-16 programme. Special introductory fares with savings of up to 50 per cent plus a 25 per cent single supplement deal for the solos market will be on offer to launch the programme. The maiden CMV voyage will be a 12-night cruise to Iceland and the Faroes for the Solar Eclipse and Northern Lights sailing from London Tilbury on Sunday 15 March. She will also be sailing from Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

Other programme changes include an Azores ex-Liverpool summer season and an 11 night Autumn Mediterranean fly cruise series plus a second Marco Polo 34 night Autumn Commemorative voyage to Canada. Magellan will be cruising to the Amazon in winter 2016 while Marco Polo will embark on a new 54 night voyage to Brazil, Argentina & Chile and Tierra del Fuego. 

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From Shining Century to Admirable Equinox

Southampton has played host all week to the new Celebrity Equinox, the second of the cruise line's Solstice-class ships and the first to be named in the UK.

And the initial review, feedback and gossip all suggest one thing - this is a HUGE success for Celebrity that brings them firmly back into the front rank of cruise ship hierarchy once again. Back in the limelight, and loving it!

I vividly remember all the hype and hoopla around their Century class ships back in 1995/96, when then Celebrity chief John Chandris led various press trips to the superb Meyer Werft shipyard at Papenburg, Germany.

The Century itself, quickly followed by the slightly larger Mercury and Galaxy (the latter of which is now sailing for TUI Cruises as Mein Schiff), proved to be something of a revolutionary vessel, breaking the existing mould of other new-builds at that time which were either horribly traditional and dull (P&O, NCL) or outrageously garish (Carnival).

For the first time, here was a new, European-styled cruise ship which was completely modern and stylish but also kept things in perspective, maintaining a solid cruise tradition with some revolutionary touches like their AquaSpa, expansive Sky Suites and a grand, two-level main Dining Room that offered a truly classic touch.

The Century was a beautiful ship to sail on, big enough to provide a choice in almost evertything you did but small enough to be comfortable and highly quality-conscious. You never felt you were on a vessel of 70,000-plus tons, and her two sisters were equally impressive.

The follow-up Millennium-class quartet slightly lost the plot, however. They weren't massively bigger at 91,000 tons compared to 71,000/77,000 but there was something horribly bulky and blockish about their design. The smooth, refined service which was a notable feature of the Century-class vessels wasn't quite so smooth and the standout feature of their main dining and alternative dining didn't measure up the line's Chandris-era standards.

Celebrity needed a game-changer to put them back at the forefront of the current welter of new-builds (greater quality from Carnival; more glitz from Costa; huge diversity from NCL; extra glamour from Holland America; and more of everything from Princess) and they opted to go for the bigger-still policy.

November 2008 saw the advent of the 122,000-ton Celebrity Solstice, a kind of combination of the original Century series and Royal Caribbean's massive Voyager-class. But this time, instead of just enlarging the blueprint and losing the focus, Celebrity kept things sharply in line, adding new features like their AquaClass staterooms and manicured Lawn Club (a surprisingly attractive novelty) and a truly indulgent alternative dining line-up.

Now, without allowing any grass (ho, ho) to grow under their feet, the line has made sure their new series is showcased firmly for the UK audience, hence the 7-day Southampton prelude to her first full inaugural sailing.

And it really looks like they have a massive hit on their hands. The travel trade has been suitably wowed, the grand Southampton naming ceremony was a complete headline-grabber and a 'taster' cruise for an assemblage of cruise and travel writers also seems to have been wamly received.

There is a good reason for this, of course. In April 2010 the third of these glamorous new-builds, Celebrity Eclipse, will hove into view and take up semi-permanent residence in Southampton for a seven-month season, becoming a 'British' ship in all but name (Equinox is off for a summer season in the Med shortly).

Celebrity badly needed Equinox to blaze an impressive trail for Solstice to follow. And, by the look of the past 7 days, they have achieved all that, and more besides.

An admirable Equinox indeed.

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