$25m upgrade for Crystal Symphony in Boston

Boston’s Atlantic Marine Shipyard will undertake the US $25m refit of Crystal Cruises’ 1995-built Crystal Symphony this autumn. The work package will take place between 17 September and 1 October and will result in the vessel emerging from the Massachusetts shipyard with upgraded penthouses, pool areas, the Prego Italian Restaurant and Lido Café.

The vessel’s two 982 sq ft Crystal Penthouses will be stripped and transformed with luxurious fabrics, details and finishes. The living areas and bedroom will be enlarged and both the Master and Guest bathrooms will be fitted with rare marbles and designer fittings. The master baths will add a sunken Philippe Stark Duravit Jacuzzi tub with 90 degree sea views, glass mosaics and recessed TVs.

The vessel’s 61 butler-serviced Penthouses and Penthouse Suites will be redesigned, with the bathrooms getting a major make-over.

The Lido Café will be transformed into an upmarket dining location, while the pool areas will be redefined with new spaces, water features and furniture providing more indoor and al fresco dining. The Neptune Pool on the Lido Deck will be removed and replaced with teak decking and al fresco dining and lounging options around the Trident Bar.

During the September refit work will also be undertaken to upgrade the ship’s elevators, fit a new crew restaurant, install a new lighting system and upgrade the onboard medical centre. Sphere: Related Content

Bremerhaven refit for Marco Polo

Bremerhaven’s Lloyd Werft is to carry out the refit of German operator Transocean Tour’s 848 passenger capacity Marco Polo. The work package on the 1966-built vessel, formerly the Russian transatlantic liner Alaksandr Pushkin, includes the fitting of new diesel generators, plus the refurbishment of the vessel’s outer decks, cabins and restaurants. Sphere: Related Content

Busy winter refit period for outfitting specialist Trimline

Southampton, UK-based cruise and ferry outfitting specialist Trimline has had a busy winter refit period so far, working mainly on cruise vessels, but also on the world’s largest fast ferry conversion.

Trimline has completed two major refits aboard Cunard’s QM2 and Thomson Cruises’ Thomson Celebration, while also working on vessels owned by P&O Cruises, Hebridean International, Swan Hellenic and Regent Seven Seas.

Work on the QM2 was undertaken while the vessel was in drydock at Blohm + Voss’ Hamburg facility and included a cleaning job with a difference. Trimline used the expertise of two specialist conservationists to clean a 60 sq m tapestry of the original Queen Mary, located in the ship’s Britannia Restaurant. At the same time 3,000 sq m of carpet was laid in a number of public areas, while the Regatta Bar was totally refurbished with teak furniture made by Trimline’s own joinery factory. 

The refit aboard Thomson Celebration was undertaken while the vessel was in drydock at the UK yard of A&P Falmouth. The work package for Trimline included preparing the ship for her winter cruise season in the Canaries. During the two week refit Trimline upgraded public rooms, including joinery, soft furnishings, and fitting new carpets with passenger suites and lounges. A total of 20 top of the range suites were refurbished with new carpets, curtains, blinds and bedspreads. Al passenger toilets were refurbished, including the fitting of new vanity units and floor tiles.

Meanwhile, a Trimline riding squad flew to Cape Town to join Hebridean International’s Hebridean Spirit, where 600 sq m of new carpets were laid in passenger cabins. The Southampton-based outfitting specialist will also work on fleet mate Hebridean Princess during her refit in Hull, UK this spring. Work on the small luxury vessel includes new carpeting, general joinery and French Polishing. 

Having carried out a programme of cabin upgrades on Swan Hellenic’s Minerva while the ship sailed from Lima, Peru to Boston, USA, Trimline also worked on the ship during her two week refit in Naples, where some 2,500 sq ft of carpet was laid throughout the ship, including 61 passenger cabins. This winter has also seen Trimline work on Regent Seven Seas’ Paul Gauguin in Brisbane, Australia and on P&O Cruises’ Ventura, while operating in the Caribbean. Sphere: Related Content

15 shipyards bid for new Isles of Scilly passenger/cargoship

The UK’s Cornwall County Council is currently is currently drawing up a short-list of shipyards bidding to build the new £20m passenger/cargoship that will maintain a year-round link between the UK mainland port of Penzance and St. Mary’s on the Isles of Scilly.

A total of 15 shipyards, from Europe and the Far East, have expressed an interest in building the new vessel. A decision on the successful shipyard is expected in November this year, with the ship due in service in April 2012. Sphere: Related Content