|
Holland America Line is focussing on vessels of around 110,000gt
with capacity of 3,000 passengers for its next generation of cruise ships,
company executives confirmed.
Interviewed aboard the newly christened Nieuw Amsterdam on a
maiden three-day cruise in the Adriatic, HAL chief executive Stein Kruse
reiterated that fresh orders were still some distance away.
At the same time, the company is examining its options in light of the expected
completion of the Panama Canal expansion project in 2015. ‘Our size restrictions
are driven by the Panama Canal,’ he said.
‘We want to be able to move our ships in an inter-dependent way. If we have a
ship in Europe and we want her to be in Alaska, we want her to be able to go
through the canal.’ After the canal’s enlargement, ‘a 32.8mtr beam will no
longer be an issue. The question then is how big do you go?’
Pieter Rijkaart, the company’s newbuild director, noted that, due to the impact
of the economic crisis, ‘this is the first time we have completed a ship without
having a follow-up order.’
But he added that ‘when the new Panama Canal opens up there will be
opportunities,’ and that 2011 might therefore be the right time to embark on
new, and larger prototype. He said HAL is considering a 110,000gt vessel with
capacity for 3,000-plus passengers and 1,500-1,600 cabins.
Kruse said a number of considerations would play into an eventual decision,
perhaps the most critical of which: ‘Is it true to the brand?’
He said the appeal of HAL’s mid-sized ships rests on personal service, ample
premium space per passenger, and the intimacy of the cruise experience, as well
as a huge palette of port calls, including many smaller, more remote
destinations.
At 86,273gt and with capacity for 2,106 passengers, Nieuw Amsterdam and its
sister Eurodam are now the largest vessels in HAL’s fleet. As Kruse noted,
however, ‘this ship cannot get to Montréal because of issues with the turning
basin and height restrictions.’
Building too big, he said, would threaten the basis of HAL’s brand appeal so any
judgment must be finely calibrated. ‘The ultimate danger to the cruise business
in general is if it becomes commoditised. I don’t want to see our industry go
that way. But so far Carnival has been brilliant at well-communicated brand
differentiation.’ |
|
 |
|
Worldwide Travel & Cruise Assoc., Inc.
150 S. University Dr. Ste E,
Plantation, FL 33324 - USA
Tel: +1 954 452 8800 Fax: +1 954
252 3945
EMail:
sales@cruiseco.com |
