Royal Caribbean is expanding its fleet by adding one of defunct company Crystal Cruises’ former ships to its family of vessels.
Royal Caribbean has received the green light to purchase the Endeavor for $275m. The ship – which was built for the recently bankrupted Crystal Cruises last year – will be delivered this month.
The ship will be renamed Silver Endeavor and will be used by its new owner on its Silversea Cruises roster around the Arctic and Antarctic.
Royal Caribbean plans to explore the waters of Antarctica with the new ship in November.
“With Endeavor, 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,” said Royal Caribbean president and chief executive Jason Liberty.
Royal Caribbean has also said it will protect the deposits of guests originally booked for itineraries onboard the ship during its short time under Crystal Cruises.
If the guests don’t receive their deposits back from Crystal, Royal Caribbean will refund the amount paid on their new booking up to the amount of their lost deposits.
“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,” said Roberto Martinoli, president and chief executive of Silversea Cruises. “This ship will be the fourth vessel to join Silversea’s fleet since 2020, which demonstrates our commitment to growth.”
Crystal Cruises’ parent company Genting Hong Kong went bankrupt earlier this year. Crystal’s other two ships – the Crystal Symphony and Crystal Serenity – have already been bought, with A&K Travel Group paying a combined $128m for the pair.
