The end of the pandemic: cruising restarts
MSC Magnifica is an excellent example of the way cruise ships returned to service after the pandemic. She was one of the pilot-ships when she was pushed back into operation late 2021, but unfortunately was forced to quit sailing her North Sea itinerary when several ports closed down because of new outbreaks of the virus. After a break of 6 weeks she resumed operations and I was onboard one of her first cruises, still with multiple tests before boarding, wearing face masks when moving around the ship and menu’s and bar lists replaced by QR-codes one needed to scan before ordering online.
After the first ”try-outs” proved successful, ships returned to active service at a rapid pace.
Mid 2022 almost 90 % of the world’s cruise fleet had returned to service and at the end of the year with a few exceptions, all of them had been reactivated. Gradually most of the former COVID-related rules had been lifted one by one, like the obligatory face masks, repeated testing, self service in the buffet restaurants was once again possible, leaving only measures like refreshing the air in public rooms at short intervals with the use of special filters in place.
Australia was the last of the main cruise areas to slowly reopen for cruising in 2022 when on April 17th, the ban on cruise ships calling at Australian ports was lifted. P&O Australia’s Pacific Explorer was the first vessel sailing out of Sydney on May 31. Princess Cruises and Royal Caribbean Cruises vessels soon followed.
New cruise lines
Several new companies started operations this year, one of them being Resorts World Cruises, owned by the Lim family, former owners of now the now defunct Genting Hong Kong consortium (owners of Dream Cruises, Star Cruises and Crystal Cruises). They immediately chartered one of their former vessels Explorer Dream and renamed her Resorts World One.
Another new kid on the block was the newly formed Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts cruise division. They will enter the luxury cruise market in 2025 when their first newbuild (40,000GT, building cost $400 mio) will be delivered by Fincantieri. There are options for two sister ships
Exploris, a French operator entered the cruise market as well. They have acquired Silversea’s Silver Explorer which will be handed over December 2023.
Vidanta Cruises, Mexico’s first ever luxury cruise line, started operations with their Vidanta Elegant, the former Crown Monarch of 1990 which has been rebuilt as a luxury vessel, reducing passenger capacity from 500 to 300.
Former HAL vessel Maasdam (1258 pax, 1993) picked up by Seajets during the pandemic was acquired by newly formed French cruise line Compagnie Francaise de Croisieres and will be renamed Renaissance after a refit. CFC targets the French market.
Out of business…
However in 2023, also several cruise lines closed their doors like before mentioned Hong-Kong based Genting, which owned Dream Cruises, Star Cruises and luxury line Crystal Cruises.
Salamis Cruises from Cyprus sold their Salamis Filoxenia for scrap and ended operations altogether.
2022 newbuildings
24 cruise ships were scheduled to set sail in 2022, just four of these were postponed to 2023 (Janssonius, Oceanwide Expeditions, Resilient Lady, Virgin Cruises and SH Diana of Swan Hellenic) or 2024 (Cunard Line – Queen Anne) Two trends continued: the endless stream of (soft-) expedition vessels like for example those entering service for Swan Hellenic SH Vega and for Sunstone, Ocean Odyssey as well as Viking Polaris for Viking Ocean Cruises. Also a new trend, the introduction of ultra luxury cruise yachts went on, 2 of these, Emerald Azzurra, Emerald Yacht Cruises and Evrima, Ritz Carlton Yacht Collection, entered service.
With over 60 vessels on order from 2023 to 2028, cruise lines are profoundly optimistic about the growth potential of the cruise industry.
One of the mega-ships introduced in 2022, MSC World Europa was delivered in October 2022, is one of the most remarkable new large vessels in 2022 because of her many innovations: she is the largest LNG-powered cruise ship afloat, has significantly enhanced ship-to shore power capabilities as well as experimental fuel cell technology onboard, the use of which MSC wants to expand across their fleet where possible in a later phase when it has proven successful.
For an overview of vessels delivered in 2022 and those on order click here
And those scrapped….
In all, 17 cruise ships ended their days in 2022.
Several (historically) significant vessels were scrapped this year, one of these was Home Lines’ first ship, the Homeric, most recently owned by Marella Cruises as their Marella Dream. She was the first ever cruise ship built by Meyer Werft in 1986.
The above mentioned Salamis Filoxenia (ex, Gruziya, Salamis Cruises) also went to the breakers. She was the last survivor of a series of a series of five introduced by the former Soviet Union as ferries, but they were later converted to cruise ships. All of them had long, rather successful careers. She was scrapped shortly after one of her sisters Delphin (ex Belorussiya) which had been languishing in lay up for years had met the same fate.
The Oriental Dragon was also sent to the scrappers. She was one of the trio of ships which started it all for Royal Caribbean Cruises, as Sun Viking. After having sailed for various operators, she spent her final days as casino ship Omar III in Asia.
Rumours that the world’s oldest cruise ship Astoria (known for her collision as Stockholm with the Italian liner Andrea Doria in 1956) which had been in lay up in Rotterdam since her last charterers, now defunct Cruise and Maritime Voyages, declared bankruptcy has been sold to the scrappers are persistent, but she was still in Rotterdam at the end of 2022.
