New ship joins UK cruise fleet

The UK’s All Leisure Group, which already operates specialist cruise ships Discovery, Swan Hellenic’s Minerva, and Hebridean Princess is growing its fleet even further, with the purchase of MV Alexander von Humboldt.
The ship, previously operated by the Dutch company Club Cruises, was sold at Tilbury by sealed bids. It will undergo an extensive upgrade and re-fit, bringing All Leisure’s total spend on the vessel to about £12.5 million, before sailing under her new colours for the first time in summer 2011.
Built in Spain in 1990, the ship has been known as Jules Verne, Walrus, and Crown Monarch. At 15,271 tons, it has 250 passenger cabins, a main restaurant seating 280, and a music lounge accommodating 300.
Roger Allard, chairman of All Leisure Group, said today “We are always looking to expand our specialist small ship cruise fleet and our latest acquisition fits perfectly with both the profile of our fleet and our destination-led product offering, especially given the high number of outside cabins. This acquisition underpins the confidence that we have in the potential of our destination-led small ship niche cruise offering.”
What has not yet been announced is which of the All Leisure brands Alexander von Humboldt will be joining – Swan Hellenic, Discovery or Hebridean. Which ever it is to be,If the ship is to follow they style of her new sisters, I would expect the re-fit to include extending the modest library, and I can’t see the small disco surviving in its present form.