NCL announces sale of Norwegian Crown To Fred. Olsen cruise lines
London, 25 May 2006: NCL has announced that its parent company, Star Cruises, has agreed to sell Norwegian Crown to Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines in August 2006. Star Cruises will concurrently charter the vessel back from Fred. Olsen and NCL will continue her announced deployment through to November 2007.
Norwegian Crown is currently owned by Star Cruises along with four other mid-sized vessels also operated by NCL and Orient Lines. These vessels are on inter-company charter between Star and NCL. Last week, NCL announced that Norwegian Wind will be transferred in late April 2007 to Star Cruises to become SuperStar Aquarius, based in Hong Kong.
“Although a great ship, Norwegian Crown’s smaller size makes her less suitable for the Star Cruises’ Asian market,” said Francis Riley, General Manager NCL UK. “Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines specialises in operating smaller, high end ships, which means Norwegian Crown will fit perfectly into its fleet.”
This summer and autumn, Norwegian Crown is sailing 7-day Bermuda cruises from Philadelphia and New York, and will sail her popular 14-night South American cruises throughout the 2006/2007 winter season. In summer 2007, she will again offer a full season of Bermuda cruises from New York and Philadelphia and will end her deployment as an NCL ship at the close of the Bermuda season at the end of October 2007.
Norwegian Crown, which entered service in 1988 for Royal Cruise Line, accommodates over 1,000 guests and features six restaurants, six bars and lounges, the Crown Club casino, the Mandara Spa and Fitness Centre, a Kid’s Centre and an Internet Café. Norwegian Crown has also operated in both the Norwegian Cruise Line and Orient Lines brands as Crown Odyssey and Norwegian Crown.
The departure of Norwegian Crown from the NCL fleet is designed to coincide with the scheduled delivery and deployment of the two new purpose built NCL Freestyle Cruising ships, Norwegian Pearl and Norwegian Gem.
For further information and reservations contact NCL on 0845 658 8010 or visit www.uk.ncl.com
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Editors Notes:
For high resolution, downloadable images, please log on to NCL's website at www.ncl.co.uk/image_library
NCL Corporation Ltd. is the holding company for various subsidiary companies involved in owning and operating the ships of Norwegian Cruise Line, NCL America and Orient Lines.
NCL plans to build two new third generation Freestyle Cruising ships for delivery in 2010. NCL today has the youngest fleet in the industry, providing guests the opportunity to enjoy the flexibility of Freestyle Cruising on the newest, most contemporary ships at sea, and has recently added its latest new ship, the 2,400 passenger Norwegian Gem.
Issued by Flagship Consulting
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