Silverseas, the ultra-luxury cruise line purchased by Royal Caribbean between 2018 and 2020, has acquired the former Crystal Cruises expedition vessel Crystal Endeavor.
The company has already filed patents with the United States Patent and Trademark Office to market and rename the ship.
Silverseas has been expanding significantly in recent years, buoyed by the financial backing from parent company Royal Caribbean. One area where Silverseas has been particularly active is in the expedition market. The addition of Crystal Endeavor will significantly impact the luxury cruise line.
Crystal Endeavor To Become Silver Endeavor
Crystal Endeavour, more a megayacht than a traditional expedition ship, will be continuing her career with Silverseas. Crystal Cruises went down with parent company Genting Hong Kong at the start of this year.
While no buyers have been announced for the two luxury Crystal cruise ships, it is no surprise that Crystal Endeavor was under considerable industry attention.
The expedition industry has been one of the fastest-growing parts of the cruise industry worldwide. With more than 20 ships released in 2020, 2021, and this year, thousands of guests are finding their way to the polar regions and other little-explored areas of our planet.
Silverseas has been particularly active in the expedition market. The company operates four ships, Silver Wind, Silver Cloud, Silver Explorer, and Silver Origin. This already makes the Royal Caribbean-owned company one of the largest operators. The addition of Silver Endeavor will only solidify that.
Silver Endeavor was registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office earlier this week after the company acquired the ship amongst heavy competition.
The World’s Largest Ice-Class Expedition Yacht
Genting Hong Kong’s expansion knew no limit for several years, culminating in Crystal Endeavor’s release. The luxury expedition yacht set the standard for luxury cruising in out-of-reach areas.
The vessel features a fleet of 18 zodiac boats which can be used to explore the remote areas the ship visits even further.
There is also a U-Boat Worx Cruise Submarine 7-300 that has seating for up to six guests plus a pilot, 14 kayaks, and an ROV that can be used to explore what is going on underneath the ship.
While visiting places such as Antarctica and the North Pole areas, guests could lavish themselves on lobster and steaks, sip champagne on the open decks, or visit the luxury spa onboard.
However, the fun only lasted for a short year. Released in June 2021, the vessel sailed her maiden season in and around Iceland.
After a repositioning that included a visit to the Caribbean, the ship sailed the winter of 2021-2022 to Antarctica from Ushuaia, also known as the world’s most southern town.
Crystal Endeavor completed her last voyage to Antarctica in February of this year, just weeks after it became known that parent company Genting was under severe financial stress. The vessel sailed to Uruguay and subsequently Gibraltar, where she still is today.
For now, it is unclear how much Silverseas paid for the vessel. The total cost of the world’s largest PC-6 ice-classed megayacht was more than 195 million USD.
