Love Boat to get a makeover

Only weeks after disclosing multi-million pound losses, one of the UK’s leading cruise lines is preparing for a major announcement. Far from being news about cutbacks or savings, it looks like All Leisure Holidays is planning to expand.
The company operates three brands: Voyages of Discovery and its 710-passenger ship Discovery (above); Swan Hellenic, with the 352-passenger Minerva, and Hebridean Island Cruises and the 49-passenger Hebridean Princess.
It has scheduled a briefing on September 1 when it is likely plans will be announced for the introduction of another vessel, the 500-passenger Alexander von Humboldt. All Leisure bought the vessel in 2009 but it has continued to be operated under lease by German travel company Phoenix Reisen.
All Leisure, headed by veteran travel entrepreneur Roger Allard, is adding 18 new cabins and 20 balconies to the vessel.
Travel Weekly is speculating that the briefing will also see proposals to make Discovery – one of several ships which was used in filming TV’s Love Boat – more attractive to a younger market, with the introduction of flexible dining options, and a refit of the Lido restaurant on Sun Deck.
Managing Director Alan Murray told TW: “We will only get a younger age group by being more flexible on dining. This ship was designed in an era of two sittings so we have to put some effort into that. This is one of the big ticket items. But it’s got to be thought out properly. If we can’t do it properly we won’t do it at all.”
At the end of July, All Leisure announced a loss of £4.25 million during the six months to April 30, partly due to the disruption caused to its Nile cruise operations during the political unrest in Egypt.
Occupancy rates on its cruise ships had improved from 76 per cent to 79 per cent, but still run below the figures achieved by bigger rivals.