Crystal Serenity
Encyclopedia
Crystal Serenity is a cruise ship
Cruise ship
A cruise ship or cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are part of the experience, as well as the different destinations along the way...

, owned by the cruise line, Crystal Cruises
Crystal Cruises
Crystal Cruise Lines, most commonly seen as Crystal Cruises, is a Japanese luxury cruise line founded in 1988 and notable for its two medium-sized, high-end ships, Crystal Symphony and Crystal Serenity, which each hold about 1,000 guests. The line is a wholly owned subsidiary of the large Japanese...

. Crystal Serenity was built in 2003 in STX Europe in St. Nazaire. She operates together with her older fleetmate, Crystal Symphony
Crystal Symphony
Crystal Symphony is a cruise ship owned and operated by Crystal Cruises. She was built in 1995 in Kvaerner Masa-Yards in Turku, Finland. She is the only fleetmate of Crystal Serenity and "Crystal Harmony"....

, offering around the world voyages.

Concept and construction

By March 2000, Nippon Yusen Kaisha, parent company of Crystal, started negotiations with the French shipyard, Chantiers de l'Atlantique
Chantiers de l'Atlantique
Chantiers de l'Atlantique is part of the South Korean STX Shipbuilding Group and one of the world's largest shipyards, based in Saint-Nazaire, France...

, for the construction of a third ship for Crystal Cruises. Crystal Serenity was then ordered in Chantiers de l'Atlantique
Chantiers de l'Atlantique
Chantiers de l'Atlantique is part of the South Korean STX Shipbuilding Group and one of the world's largest shipyards, based in Saint-Nazaire, France...

 (now STX France Cruise SA) in 7 November 2000, together with the signed Letter of Intent. In 12 December 2000, the official contract was then signed by NYK and Chantiers, for the construction of Crystal Serenity, with an expected delivery by June 2003, which was 6 months ahead of the original plans. By March 2001, Crystal Cruises unveiled the designs for the upcoming Crystal Serenity. The keel of Crystal Serenity was laid on 9 July 2002 in Chantiers de l'Atlantique in St. Nazaire, France. She was then christened in 3 July 2003, by Dame Julie Andrews
Julie Andrews
Dame Julia Elizabeth Andrews, DBE is an English film and stage actress, singer, and author. She is the recipient of Golden Globe, Emmy, Grammy, BAFTA, People's Choice Award, Theatre World Award, Screen Actors Guild and Academy Award honors...

, in Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...

, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

.

The lead designer of Crystal Serenity was Robert Tillberg of Tillberg Design. The other designers were the Italian Garroni Designers Company, Japanese Okada & Associates, American Nix Firestone Associates and II by IV design Associates, British Stephenjohn Design and was internally designed by Brennan Beer Gorman Monk (BBGM) of New York.

Operational history

The maiden voyage of Crystal Serenity was on July 7, 2003, 4 days after her christening. It was a 14-day round-trip cruise, departing Southampton and cruising Northern Europe. During her inaugural season, Crystal Serenity held summer cruises in Europe, the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...

, and a transatlantic crossing. It was followed by two Caribbean/Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...

 voyages and a combined Christmas/New Year Mexican Riviera cruise, round-trip from Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

.

On January 14, 2004, she embarked on her first world cruise; a 106-day voyage departing Los Angeles, which concluded on May 5, in New York City.

Further reading


External links

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