Crystal Serenity
 Crystal Serenity mooring in Antwerp | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Crystal Serenity |
| Owner: | Crystal Cruises |
| Port of registry: |
Nassau,  Bahamas |
| Ordered: | 7 November 2000 |
| Builder: | STX Europe Chantiers de l'Atlantique, St. Nazaire, France |
| Cost: | US$350 million |
| Laid down: | 9 July 2002[1] |
| Christened: | 3 July 2003[2] by Dame Julie Andrews |
| Maiden voyage: | 7 July 2003 |
| In service: | 7 July 2003 |
| Identification: |
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| Status: | In service |
| Notes: | [3][4][5] |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Cruise ship |
| Tonnage: | 68,870 GT |
| Length: | 820 ft (249.94 m) |
| Beam: | 106 ft (32.31 m) |
| Draught: | 25 ft (7.62 m) |
| Decks: |
|
| Installed power: | 25 knots |
| Speed: |
|
| Capacity: | 1,070 passengers |
| Crew: | 655 |
| Notes: | [3][6] |
Crystal Serenity is a cruise ship owned by Crystal Cruises. Crystal Serenity was built in 2003 in STX Europe in St. Nazaire.[7] She operates together with her older fleetmate, Crystal Symphony, offering around the world voyages.
Concept and construction
By March 2000, Nippon Yusen Kaisha, parent company of Crystal, started negotiations with the French shipyard, Chantiers de l'Atlantique, for the construction of a third ship for Crystal Cruises.[1] Crystal Serenity was then ordered in Chantiers de l'Atlantique (now STX France Cruise SA) on 7 November 2000, together with the signed Letter of Intent.[8] On 12 December 2000, the official contract was then signed by NYK and Chantiers, for the construction of Crystal Serenity, with an expected delivery by June 2003, which was 6 months ahead of the original plans.[9] By March 2001, Crystal Cruises unveiled the designs for the upcoming Crystal Serenity.[10] The keel of Crystal Serenity was laid on 9 July 2002[1] in Chantiers de l'Atlantique in St. Nazaire, France. She was then christened on 3 July 2003, by Dame Julie Andrews, in Southampton, United Kingdom.
The lead designer of Crystal Serenity was Robert Tillberg of Tillberg Design.[3] The other designers were the Italian Garroni Designers Company, Japanese Okada & Associates, American Nix Firestone Associates and II by IV design Associates, British Stephenjohn Design and was internally designed by Brennan Beer Gorman Monk (BBGM) of New York.[3]
Ports of call
The maiden voyage of Crystal Serenity was on July 7, 2003, 4 days after her christening. It was a 14-day round-trip cruise, departing Southampton and cruising Northern Europe. During her inaugural season, Crystal Serenity held summer cruises in Europe, the Mediterranean Sea, and a transatlantic crossing. It was followed by two Caribbean/Panama Canal voyages and a combined Christmas/New Year Mexican Riviera cruise, round-trip from Los Angeles.[2]
On January 14, 2004, she embarked on her first world cruise; a 106-day voyage departing Los Angeles, which concluded on May 5, in New York City.[2]
Crystal Serenity was the largest cruise ship ever to navigate the Northwest Passage. Starting on 10 August 2016, the ship sailed from Vancouver to New York City with 1,700 passengers and crew, taking 28 days for the journey. In the Canadian Arctic it successfully made stops at Ulukhaktok and Cambridge Bay on Victoria Island, then passed up Franklin Strait and through the narrow Bellot Strait, adjacent to Zenith Point, most northerly extension of North America. It explored Beechy Island where Franklin overwintered, followed by seldom visited fjords on the south side of Devon Island, plus fjords on Baffin Island and the village of Pond Inlet. On Sept. 5, 2016 it sailed for Disko Bay in Greenland.[11]
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References
Notes
- 1 2 3 Crystal Cruises Announces Commitment to Build Third Ship. Press Release. Crystal Cruises. 8 March 2000. Retrieved 10 May 2010
- 1 2 3 Dame Julie Andrews Christens Crystal Serenity Amid a Flurry of Color. Press Release. Crystal Cruises. 3 July 2003. Retrieved 10 May 2010
- 1 2 3 4 Crystal Serenity Fact Sheet. Crystal Cruises. Retrieved 9 May 2010
- ↑ Crystal Serenity cruise review and photos ShipParade. Retrieved 8 May 2010
- ↑ Crystal Serenity - 9243667 marinetraffic.com. Retrieved 8 May 2010
- ↑ Luxury Cruises - Travel Cruise Deals & Vacation Packages Crystal Cruises. Retrieved 8 May 2010
- ↑ Technical information - STX Europe AS - Crystal Serenity STX Europe AS. Retrieved 8 May 2010
- ↑ Crystal Cruises Orders New Build. Press Release. Crystal Cruises. 7 November 2000. Retrieved 10 May 2010
- ↑ Crystal Cruises Signs Contract for New Ship. Press Release. Crystal Cruises. 12 December 2000. Retrieved 10 May 2010
- ↑ Crystal Cruises Unveils Design Plans for Third Ship. Press Release. Crystal Cruises. 6 March 2001. Retrieved 10 May 2010
- ↑ http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/vancouver-maritime-museum-northwest-passage-1.3709993
Bibliography
- Plowman, Peter (2007). Australian Cruise Ships. Dural, NSW: Rosenberg Publishing. ISBN 9781877058509.
- Saunders, Aaron (2013). Giants of the Seas: The Ships that Transformed Modern Cruising. Barnsley, South Yorkshire, UK: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 9781848321724.
- Smith, Peter C. (2010). Cruise Ships: The World's Most Luxurious Vessels. Barnsley, South Yorkshire, UK: Pen & Sword Maritime. ISBN 9781848842182.
External links
- Official website
- "Dance With the Crystal Stars - and the Glenn Miller Orchestra - on Big Band Transatlantic Voyage" - PRNewswire
- "Relishing routine on board and off Crystal Cruises' Serenity" - Mercury News
- "On Crystal Cruises attention to detail, luxury are crystal clear" - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
- Integrated Automation System for cruise vessel Retrieved 8 May 2010
- "Crystal Serenity" – review by Douglas Ward in The Daily Telegraph, London.
- "SERENITY From Sea To Sea, Part One", "Part Two", "Part Three", "Part Four", "Part Five" – review by Peter Knego in Maritime Matters