The vessel, which comes from P&O Cruises Australia and was launched in 1988, will be renamed Columbus. Regular cruisers will know the ship in its former guises as Princess Cruises’ Star Princess, MV Arcadia and Ocean Village. It will be based at the Essex port year-round and mainly targeted at the adult-only market.
Columbus will undergo a dry dock refurbishment in Singapore in spring next year with refurbished cabins and public areas. Work will include conversion of the HQ Teen Centre into the maritime themed Columbus Lounge & Library with ocean views, while the current Shark Shack & Turtle Cove Children’s Centre will become Trumps & Aces, a dedicated Bridge and Card Room area and a separate Crafter’s Studio.
Existing facilities include the British themed Taverners Pub & Casino, two heated pools, three fine dining options and a three-deck central atrium. At almost 64,000 tonnes, the refurbished vessel will carry 1,400 mainly British passengers in 775 cabins, including 150 single berths.
The ship will be CMV’s fifth vessel and its largest in terms of passenger capacity. Although mainly aimed at couples, two dates next August will be set aside for family cruises.
CMV chairman and chief executive Christian Verhounig said: “The successful introduction of Magellan (pictured) in 2015 has encouraged our group to accelerate their mid-term growth plans and the addition of Columbus to the fleet in 2017 is another important milestone in achieving our longer term growth objectives.
“The strategic development of the group’s presence in the UK and wider international markets will increase our overall capacity to 125,000 passengers in 2017.”
CMV says it has already sold 85% of its 2016 berths and that the new vessel will increase 2017 bed night capacity by a quarter to 95,000 passengers. Next summer’s programme goes on sale on March 31, with a preview launch edition brochure released on April 7.
