Tall ship cruising is getting bigger. Star Clippers’ newest square-rigged vessel launching at the end of 2017 is to be named Flying Clipper. The five-masted barque, carrying 300 passengers and 150 crew, will be the world’s largest ship of its kind.
The ship, under construction at a yard in Croatia, will surpass the line’s current flagship, Royal Clipper, which carries 227 passengers, and its smaller sisters, the 170-passenger Star Flyer and Star Flyer.
Star Clippers, celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, is run by Swedish yachtsman and entrepreneur Mikael Krafft, who is based in Monte Carlo.
Flying Clipper will have three pools – one of which funnels sunlight through the ship’s atrium and into the dining room which can accommodate all passengers at a single sitting. There will be a water sports platform at the stern, and accommodation includes 34 balcony suites and four luxurious owner’s suites.
The vessel will be powered along by 35 sails measuring more than 6,350 square metres.
IN WHAT could almost be a parallel universe, Norwegian Cruise Line has revealed that the 3,900-passenger Norwegian Joy 喜悦号 (Xǐ Yuè Hào) to be launched into the Chinese market in 2017, features a go kart racetrack and an open-air laser tag course.
In a blatant copy of the SeaPlex on Royal Caribbean’s Quantum-class ships, Joy will have hovercraft dodgem cars inside its Galaxy Pavilion – together with a collection of theme park simulator rides.
Joy will have its own 74-suite ship-within-a-ship section – the luxury Haven, where guests will be treated to butler service, their own restaurant and bar, and priority access to the ship’s entertainment and speciality dining venues.
CONCRETE BEACH, a subsidiary of the brewing company that makes Samuel Adams Boston Lager, is to operate a brewery on board Carnival Vista, which launches in the Mediterranean in May.
The on-board brewhouse will produce three varieties – an IPA, a wheat beer, and a stout – to be served in the ship’s RedFrog bar.
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