Tag Archives: cruise expeditions

Exploris One Reportedly Sold at Auction for 4.5 Million Euros

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Exploris One Reportedly Sold at Auction for 4.5 Million Euros

The Exploris One was reportedly sold at an auction that took place in Nantes, France, on January 30, 2026.

According to Ouest France’s Le Marin, the ship was sold for 4.5 million euros, excluding mandatory legal fees.

The bid was considerably below the starting price of seven million euros set by the court, the French newspaper stated.

While the buyer’s name was not officially disclosed, Le Marin said that it is an “existing company that aims to put the ship back into expedition service.”

Originally built in the late 1980s, the Exploris One was designed for exploration cruises in remote and polar regions.

With a capacity for 132 guests, the 6,132-ton vessel was last in service for France-based Exploris Expeditions & Cruises.

Out of service since September 2025, the ship was auctioned as part of the liquidation of the company, which ceased operations in November 2025.

Interested parties were able to place bids for the expedition vessel online via Interencheres, a France-based marketplace for auctions.

According to the website, the sale was subject to a 14 percent premium in court proceedings, in addition to legal fees.

Bidders were also able to arrange visits onboard the vessel, which is currently laid up at the port of Caen in Northern France.

Built at the Rauma-Repola shipyard in Finland, the Exploris One sailed for a range of cruise lines over its 37-year career.

Before being acquired by Exploris in 2023, the ship spent over a decade operating for Silversea as the Silver Explorer and the Prince Albert II.

Other brands that operated cruises onboard the vessel include Society Expeditions, Sally Line, Delfin Risteilyt, Baltic Link and more.

Before being auctioned, the Exploris One was scheduled to undergo a statutory drydock at a shipyard in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.

Cruise Lines to Submit Seasonal Fuel Consumption Data in Antarctica

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For the first time, members of the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) will submit seasonal fuel consumption data.

According to a press release, the initiative is part of the association’s pledge to create a climate change strategy for Antarctic tourism.

The fuel data submission, which will include vessels 9cruise ships) of all sizes, aircraft, and accessory vehicles, will be used within the tourism association to understand the greenhouse gas footprint of the operations in Antarctica, IAATO said.

The results will then be used internally as the basis to monitor and refine emission reduction targets the IAATO membership has collectively agreed to make, it added.

While individual operators are expected and encouraged to go further in their own targets, IAATO operators have also unanimously pledged to track the International Maritime Organization (IMO) target of at least 50 per cent emissions reductions by 2050 compared with 2008 and global goals of net zero before 2050.

This, explained the association, accompanied by an agreement by each member to build their own climate strategy and set their own emission reduction targets, is the start of a collective push to account for and reduce IAATO-Operator emissions.

“Ultimately, we seek to go much further towards net positive impact, but the current challenge in shipping and aviation is that we don’t yet know what future fuels and technologies will be available to us,” said Pam Le Noury, Chair of IAATO’s Climate Change Committee.

“This latest commitment by our Operators to submit their fuel data to the IAATO Secretariat for analysis means that once we have acceleration in the development of sustainable fuels and other technologies, we will be in a strong position to act to reduce emissions further,” she added.

According to IAATO, at its annual meeting, members have open and candid discussions on safety, environmental protection, and self-management with decision-making supported by recommendations developed by the association’s ten dedicated committees and eight working groups.

The meeting concludes annually with the voting in of new commitments and policies on best practices which support the association’s mission.

These latest agreements took place at IAATO’s annual meeting, held in Providence, RI in April, where operators unanimously pledged to build a climate strategy including calculating and reducing industry emissions and setting meaningful and inclusive science-based targets. 

The pledge was shared with the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting in June, where IAATO is an invited expert.

“Cooperative and coordinated international responses are required to understand global climate change and reduce emissions,” said Amanda Lynnes, IAATO Director of Environment & Science Coordination.

“One of IAATO’s strengths is the ability of its diverse membership to take collective action, often over and above what is required by global regulators. Our members remain agile in response to emerging technologies and global recommendations surrounding climate change and are committed to taking powerful steps to act for Antarctica.”

CLIA: Cruise Industry Continues to See ‘Steady Growth’

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The worlds largest cruise ship, the 361 metres long, Harmony of the Seas, arrives in port for her mayden voyage, in Southampton, Britain May 17, 2016. REUTERS/Peter Nicholls

The worlds largest cruise ship, the 361 metres long, Harmony of the Seas, arrives in port for her maiden voyage, in Southampton, Britain May 17, 2016. REUTERS/Peter Nicholls

The international cruise industry is continuing to see a steady pace of cruise travel interest and significant investment in the industry, according to the Cruise Lines International Association’s 2017 State of the Cruise Industry Outlook report.

In the report, released Friday, the world’s largest cruise industry association says cruise travel is expected to continue to increase in 2017, with an estimated 25.3 million passengers expected to cruise during next year. This represents a strong surge from the 15.8 million passengers who took cruises just ten years ago, in 2007, CLIA says.

More ships are set to set sail in 2017 as well. CLIA reports that cruise lines are scheduled to debut 26 new ocean, river, and specialty cruise ships in 2017 representing a total investment of $6.8 billion. Over the next ten years, the industry is expected to introduce a total of 97 new cruise ships, marking an estimated investment of $53 billion through 2026.

“The cruise industry is responding to global demand and we are highly encouraged by both the short-term and long-term outlook,” said Cindy D’Aoust, president and CEO, CLIA. “From technological advancements and deployment of new ships to new ports and destinations around the world, the industry continues to respond to desires of today’s travelers resulting in steady growth and strong economic impact around the world.”

In 2015, cruise industry expenditures generated $117 billion in total output worldwide, supporting 956,597 full-time equivalent employees collectively earning $38 billion in income, according to new figures released by CLIA.

Along with the new data, CLIA also provided its list of the top eight cruise travel trends to watch next year. The list is provided below:

  1. New Generation Takes to the Water – A recent study found that younger generations—including Millennials and Generation X — will embrace cruise travel more than ever before, rating it as better than land-based vacations, all-inclusive resorts, tours, vacation house rentals, or camping.
  2. Travel Agent Use Increases – According to the American Express Spending & Saving Tracker, consumer use of a travel agent increased nearly eighty percent from 2015 to 2016. Supporting this, CLIA is forecasting that travel agents will continue to be the matchmakers between travelers and cruise lines in 2017. Today, there are more than 25,000 CLIA-member travel agents globally compared to 12,000 in 2010. CLIA also found that cruisers report high levels of satisfaction with their travel experience when assisted by an agent.
  3. River Cruise Demand Increases – River cruises offer travelers a unique and intimate travel experience. Due to demand, CLIA cruise line Members currently deploy 184 river cruise ships with 13 new river cruise ships on order for 2017, an increase of about 7 percent.
  4. More Private Islands on Cruise Itineraries – As more cruise lines introduce private island destinations, travellers are responding and booking these itineraries. In 2017, cruise lines offer ports on a total of seven private islands.
  5. New Cruisers Will Take to the Sea – Interest in ocean cruising is projected to remain strong in 2017. When asked what kind of vacations might be of interest in the next three years nearly half (48 percent) of non-cruisers expressed interest in taking an ocean cruise while a striking 85 percent of cruisers also expressed interest.
  6. Drivable Port Locations in Favor – The cruise industry offers a variety of small and large market port location options across the United States and internationally. Citing the advantages of a myriad of locations seven out of ten (69 percent) non-cruisers believe the greatest benefit is cost savings and three quarters (74 percent) of cruisers like the convenience of driving to a cruise ship.
  7. Lure of Celeb Chefs – Cruise travelers are embracing specialty dining and will continue to consider cruise dining experiences based upon celebrity chefs. This year, several cruise lines feature restaurants and dishes created by famous chefs including Guy Fieri, Nobuyuki “Nobu” Matsuhisa and Geoffrey Zakarian.
  8. Demand for Expedition Cruises – According to the Adventure Travel Trade Association, adventure travel is growing at a record pace and CLIA is reporting that cruise expeditions are seeing the impact. In fact, itineraries for Antarctica regularly sell out.