Adding to Crystal River Cruises' Rhine-class of luxury river vessels will be the new pair of Crystal Debussy and Crystal Ravel, whose keels were recently laid.
The two riverboats are scheduled to set sail in spring 2018 along Europe's Rhine, Main and Danube.
On May 24, 2017, at the MV WERFTEN shipyard in Wismar, Germany, the all-balcony, all-suite ships' construction was celebrated in the company of Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay, Chairman and Chief Executive of Genting Hong Kong; Jarmo Laakso, Managing Director of MV WERFTEN; Josef Lumetsberger, Crystal River Cruises' General Manager of Operations; Manfred Korous, Managing Director of Future Development and Director, Crystal River Cruises; Harry Glawe, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern's Economics Minister and other special guests.
"We are pleased to celebrate this important milestone, the start of the block assembly, for two more ships for our brand Crystal River Cruises today at our own shipyard. These ships will offer their guests the highest standards in luxury cruising on Europe's most beautiful river routes," said Tan Sri Lim at the ceremony.
Tan Sri Lim and Minister Glawe were on hand to place traditional coins on the keel blocks prior to the 170-ton ship sections being lowered.
"This ceremonial act represents a tremendous achievement for Crystal River Cruises and the entire Crystal fleet, as we introduce the next chapter of the continuing story of Crystal innovations throughout the travel and hospitality industry," added Crystal CEO and President, Edie Rodriguez.
Besides being all-balcony, all-suite ships, the Rhine-class riverboats are also all-butler across all accommodations. Plush amenities will also extend to balcony-window-facing king-sized beds, walk-in closets and dual vanity bathrooms in most categories, plus ETRO robes and slippers, flat-screen HD televisions and Nespresso machines.
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Elsewhere onboard will be several Michelin-inspired dining venues: Waterside Restaurant, Bistro and Vintage Room. The signature Palm Court observation lounge will also be along for the ride.
When finished, the Crystal Debussy and Crystal Ravel will carry 106 guests and measure 135 meters long and 11.5 meters wide. They will sail on seven-, 10- and 14-day cruises between Amsterdam, Basel and Vienna beginning in spring 2018.
Altogether, Crystal Cruises will build four riverboats in addition to the Crystal Endeavor mega-yacht as well as its first of three Exclusive-class ocean ships (Crystal Residences) by 2022.
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