Tag Archives: Cruise Industry News

Zito: Swan Hellenic Ready for Strong Start-Up

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The CEO of Swan Hellenic, Andrea Zito, said that the company is in a good position ahead of its launch in 2021.

“We are receiving only positive comments from the former customers of Swan Hellenic. The sector is reacting very well to the fact that Swan Hellenic is being resurrected in a way,” Zito told Cruise Industry News.

The first of two new expedition ships, the m/v SH Minerva, debuts into service for the brand in 2021.

The revived Swan Hellenic launched earlier this year. However, the brand is actually 70 years old and was acquired in December 2020.

“One and a half [years ago], the group started the negotiation and placed the order for two ships with Helsinki shipyard for delivery at the end of 2021 and mid-2022. And then the pandemic came. This was not really planned,” Zito said.

The coronavirus pandemic caused Swan Hellenic to postpone any announcements from spring to July. However, otherwise, Zito’s company had adjusted to the challenging conditions.

“It’s a little bit slower, but we are doing things very efficiently. It is amazing to realize how many things you can accomplish without travelling continuously,” he said, describing the challenges of having offices in different European countries.

Zito said that Swan Hellenic offers what seasoned travellers look for.

The company will sail to destinations in New Zealand, Pacific Islands, Russia, and, Zito said proudly, the semi-circumnavigation of Antarctica.

“Our ships are some of the very few ships that have Polar Class 5 … So we can stay longer, we can go deeper in the environment and, most importantly, we can go safer because the characteristics of the ships are of higher safety standards to ensure that passengers are well protected,” he said.

According to Zito, Swan Hellenic’s ultimate goal is to cover the whole world.

“It’s not just a box-ticking exercise, it caters to people who are thirsty for knowledge: they are curious and they want to discover various parts of the world. And the world is still very big.” 

A More Profitable Carnival Corporation Expected To Emerge

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A leaner, more profitable Carnival Corporation is likely to emerge following the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Cruise Industry News’ calculations.

One important aspect will be what now seems like the overdue removal of 18 existing ships from the fleet.

When Carnival Corporation announced earlier this week that it expects to dispose of 18 ships, eight of which have already left the fleet, it also said that the ships represent 12 per cent of the company’s pre-pause capacity, but only 3 per cent of operating income in 2019.

That means that the 18 ships generated only approximately $98.3 million in operating income, compared to approximately $3.2 billion for the other 87 ships (Carnival listed its fleet at 105 ships for the end of its fiscal year 2019).

Assuming that the 18 ships represented their fair share of operating costs at 12 per cent, their removal prior to year’s end 2019 would have cut operating costs by approximately $2 billion, potentially resulting in operating income of approximately $5.4 billion.

Thus, according to Cruise Industry News estimates, Carnival’s operating income and net income could have been $2 billion more for 2019 if the 18 ships had left sooner, with net income of approximately $5 billion instead of $3 billion, or approximately $7.37 per share instead of $4.32 per share.

In addition, the disposed of ships will be replaced by larger and more efficient tonnage that will likely command higher ticket revenues and onboard spending while incurring lower operating costs.

Big Cruise Companies Burning Through $1 Billion a Month

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Anthem of the Seas and Carnival Magic

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Carnival Corporation, Royal Caribbean Group and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings are burning through over $1 billion per month without revenue-generating cruises in service.

According to the 2020 Cruise Industry News Annual Report, the three companies account for approximately 73.8 per cent of the global cruise market share.

Carnival Corporation said that during its pause in guest operations, the monthly average cash burn rate for the second half of 2020 is estimated to be approximately $650 million per month.

At Royal Caribbean Cruises, the company said it estimates its cash burn to be, on average, in the range of approximately $250 million to $290 million per month during a prolonged suspension of operations.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, which has the smallest fleet of the three companies, said its cash burn is approximately $160 million per month during the suspension of operations. The average cash burn per ship per month is $5.7 million