China Cruise Line Staffs Up, Anticipating Restart

The Chinese cruise industry may be ready to start sooner than later, as CSSC Carnival China Cruise Shipping, which will operate as Adora Cruises, is staffing up in the sales department.

The company is a joint venture between China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) and Carnival Corporation.The company announced the appointment of Chen Yinglan as the sales director of the East China region, Lin Binbin as the sales director of the South China region, and Sun Wen as the sales director of the North China region.

Chen Ranfeng, CEO of CSSC Carnival, said in a translated statement: “The three are ‘senior cruise people’ who have been deeply involved in the industry for many years. They are also leaders in the cruise sales field. They have rich experience in marketing and a solid industry foundation in their respective regions. Maintain long-term and good cooperative relations with partners in the same industry. I believe they will play an important role in the market expansion of CSSC Carnival.”

The company said it will use a multi-vessel multi-homeport operation strategy and operate international routes in East Asia and Southeast Asia throughout the year. The company will focus on homeporting ships in China but is also committed to selling international departures as well, according to a statement.

As far as ships, the Costa Atlantica and Mediterranea previously transferred to Carnival’s joint venture in China prior. A new building is scheduled to be delivered from a shipyard in Shanghai this year.

Chinese Eye 80,000-Ton Cruise Newbuild

n 80,000-ton cruise newbuild concept in China has obtained a China Classification Society in Principle approval certificate, a key item needed in moving forward with the construction process.

The ship was designed and developed by China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) and its CSSC Cruise Technology Development subsidiary.

CSSC announced last week that its homegrown domestic Chinese brand, in partnership with Carnival Corporation, will launch service soon under the name Adora Cruises.

While two 135,000-ton Vista-class new ships are slated for Adora Cruises, this 80,000-ton ship could also join the brand should construction commence.

According to a statement, the ship is 293.5 meters long and features a high proportion of balcony cabins with approximately 70 per cent of accommodations featuring a balcony.

Next, CSSC will complete the basic design of the ship and submit plans to the China Classification Society for final approval.

First Carnival China Newbuild Cruise Ship Floats Out

The first Carnival China Cruise Shipping newbuild was floated out last week at Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC).

“We at Carnival are committed to supporting to CSSC and our joint venture CSSC Carnival which is the foundation of Carnival’s China strategy,” said Arnold Donald, CEO of Carnival Corporation, in a video address celebrating the float out of hull 1508.

“We are committed to building CSSC Carnival into a successful and fully functioning Chinese-flagged cruise company,” Donald continued. 

The ship is one of two on order for Carnival’s joint venture brand with CSSC, where Carnival is a minority partner. The brand will serve the domestic Chinese market and has already taken ownership of Costa Atlantica and Costa Mediterranea.

The new ship touched water for the first time in Shanghai, and will now move to an interior fit-out stage before her delivery in 2023. A sister ship will follow in 2024; there is an option for four additional ships on the contract.

The new builds are on the Carnival Vista-class platform, with CSSC working in partnership with Fincantieri.