The historic expedition cruise company is making a comeback with a fleet of three new ships that will be launched between November 2021 and 2022, sailing to exotic destinations.
Article from CruisesNews magazine no. 55 – December 2020
Founded in 1950 as Swan Tours, the company went through different phases in its history, being bought by P&O in 1983 and dropped in 2007 by Carnival Corporation, after which it was revived by Lord Stirling together with All Leisure Group until its bankruptcy in 2017.
G Adventures acquired the company at that time with the intention of reviving it, but it wasn't until 2020 that a management team led by Andrea Zito, a former V.Ships executive, announced its purchase of the brand and plans to build three new ships at the Helsinki Shipyard. The financial backing for such a massive undertaking was provided by Vodohod, the Russian river cruise company and subsidiary of Volga Shipping Company.
The first two ships, called the Vega Class, will have a capacity for 152 passengers served by 120 crew members, with a length of 115 meters, a beam of 23 meters, and 9 decks. Their hulls will be of the Polar 5 Class, allowing them to sail year-round in polar regions, one of the most fashionable expedition destinations today. The third ship will be slightly larger, with a capacity for 192 passengers, and will arrive at the end of 2022.
The released images show stylish ships with hulls and chimneys painted green, straight bows with a lookout point at the top, and several Zodiacs stored at the stern, just one deck below the infinity pool.
The first ship of the new Swan Hellenic will be called Minerva and will be launched in November 2021.
Once at our destination, we'll use Zodiacs to disembark, after first stopping at Basecamp, a changing area where we'll receive assistance putting on and taking off our expedition gear. This gear will be cleaned and disinfected upon our return to prevent biological cross-contamination. Basecamp is by no means an inhospitable changing room; its elegant decor also makes it a place to socialize, over coffee, with other expedition members.
The proposed routes include Antarctica, New Zealand, New Guinea, Indonesia, the Philippines, Japan, and eastern Russia.
One deck higher is the reception area, with its clean, elegant lines, light woods, and soft colors, where you begin to glimpse the Scandinavian style that dominates the entire ship—unsurprisingly, Tillberg Design of Sweden is responsible for the interior design. Adjacent to the reception, the Swan Restaurant is a space dominated by light wood slats that run along the ceiling and define different areas of the room. During the day it may seem informal, but as night falls, the lighting transforms it into a sophisticated luxury restaurant.
The second ship, still unnamed, will arrive in April 2022, and a third, slightly larger one, at the end of that same year.
Decks 5 and 6 are dedicated to cabins, while deck 7 houses most of the public lounges, starting with the Observation Lounge forward. This luxurious space features large windows, plush sofas, and abundant floral decor, all within a beige and gray color scheme accented with cinnamon brown and mint green. It boasts a large LED screen for conferences, as well as a piano and pop-up screens for entertainment and a variety of other uses.
The second ship will visit the British Isles, Iceland, Svalbard Islands, Siberia and the Arctic,
and the Caribbean in summer.
Aft, before accessing the exterior deck, is the Club Lounge, another space for relaxation and socializing, but geared more towards light meals, as the various seating options are arranged around tables. A sophisticated holographic fire dominates the space, undoubtedly adding a touch of warmth to polar voyages. Outside, there's a luxurious heated infinity pool, usable even in the coldest regions, and the lounge chairs closest to the bar are equipped with heaters to keep you warm outdoors.
On deck 8, in addition to the bridge and officers' cabins, we have the panoramic sauna and outdoor jacuzzi, along with the gym and a small spa for body treatments.
The cabins:
As befits a ship of this category, there will be no interior cabins, although there are 16 cabins with windows on deck 4. Most of the cabins on decks 5 and 6 are balcony cabins (54 in total), along with 4 L-shaped suites and 2 premium suites. The decor of all the cabins follows the ship's overall style: light woods, touches of marble, beige and gray tones with bolder pops of color. But what truly sets them apart from any other cabin in the industry are the holographic fire fireplaces that all of them will have, adding an extra touch of warmth and luxury.
The interior design was done by Tillberg Design of Sweden and is characterized by beige and gray tones with touches of color.
The routes:
The first ship in the new Swan Hellenic fleet will be named Minerva, like two other ships previously operated by the brand. It will be inaugurated in November 2021, and its sister ship will arrive a few months later, as the company has scheduled cruises for the second vessel starting in April 2022.
One of the Minerva's first voyages will depart from Buenos Aires on November 27, 2021, heading south to visit the Falkland Islands, witness a solar eclipse en route to Antarctica, and conclude in Ushuaia after exploring the frozen continent and Elephant Island. Following this, the ship will offer five cruises to Antarctica and the Falkland Islands with different itineraries, and then embark on a 34-day circumnavigation of Antarctica, arriving in Dunedin, New Zealand, in mid-March 2022. The next cruise will depart from Dunedin and end in Auckland, having thoroughly explored both the South and North Islands, and even Stewart Island.
The prices aren't for everyone, but they include practically all the extras in the rate.
After that, the Minerva will head north, visiting the idyllic archipelago of Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands, before ending in Rabaul, Papua New Guinea. It will then explore the entire island of New Guinea before venturing into the Raja Ampat Islands, Indonesia. From there, it will travel to the Philippines, the Amami Islands, and Japan, followed by several cruises in Japan and a route to Kamchatka and the Aleutian Islands in eastern Russia. It's certainly difficult to decide which part of this journey is the most exciting.
Meanwhile, the Minerva's sister ship, still unnamed, will begin its voyage with a cruise around the British Isles on April 16, 2022, embarking in central London and ending in Dublin. This will be followed by a Dublin-Leith (Edinburgh) voyage, a Leith-Reykjavik voyage, a Reykjavik-Reykjavik voyage, a Reykjavik-Longyearbyen voyage, and four cruises in the Svalbard Islands before setting sail for Dudinka, Siberia. From there, it will embark on a series of Arctic explorations, from Iceland to the Canadian Arctic, before heading south to the Caribbean in October 2022.
Both the Club Lounge and all cabins will have holographic fire fireplaces.
Truly an exciting and exclusive cruise program, with prices for those with deep pockets, but also with many extras included, such as pre-cruise hotel nights, excursions, drinks, basic WiFi, parka and boots for excursions in polar areas, as well as service and port taxes.
