Richard Branson, whose Virgin brand is slapped on everything from mobile phones to megastores and especially airlines is now launching a cruise ship line, to be called...of course...Virgin Cruises.
The line will start operations in 2020 with three brand-new ships, being built in Italy by Fincantieri, which is the largest cruise-ship builder around. They will compete in the mid-size range, with about 2800 passengers and 1100 crewmembers each. The first will go into service in 2020 and will operate from Miami. The other two will sail in 2021 and 2022, homeports to be announced.
In the meantime, Virgin, which likes to build an image for each of its companies as just a bit different from the average, is inviting potential cruisers to tell them what they'd like in a ship. The feedback to www.virgincruises.com will let the company "create something very, very special," according to Tom McAlpin, company president.
With Virgin, Richard Branson is the show, no matter how many experienced cruise executives he's hired. In typical fashion, he arrived at the announcement in a helicopter with a puff of red smoke and a Virgin Cruises flag and a bevy of models.
For more details from Cruisecritic.com, click HERE; other details from Bloomberg News, HERE Photo: Virgin Cruises
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