Genting Cruise Lines took a big risk as the first major cruise operator to resume cruise operations last July, gambling with serious reputational damage if things had gone wrong.
The bet has paid off, according to Michael Goh, president of Genting’s Dream Cruises brand.
Goh, who is also head of international sales at Genting Cruise Lines, stresses that the company did not intend to gamble with the safety of its passengers and crew, and only restarted after careful consultation with industry experts and government authorities.
Two of Dream Cruises’ ships are sailing on what are deemed domestic cruises out of Taiwan and Singapore.
To date, neither ship has reported a single Covid-19 case.
“When we first restarted, we had a good but cautious response from consumers, who had concerns on whether it was safe,” Goh says.
“After a lot of education and a good track record there has been a big change in consumer confidence. Since April, we’ve been hitting full capacity,” he adds.
Taiwan restricts the number of passengers to 1,800, while Singapore limits it to 50% of a ship’s lower berth capacity.
Cruise business models are based on full ships and high on-board spending, and some observers have questioned whether Genting is able to turn a profit at these occupancy levels.
Goh says it forced the company to take a serious look at how it operated the ships.
The biggest toll lay-up takes on a cruiseship is on its plumbing. Dormant piping accumulates stagnant water and deteriorates rapidly due to rust. This results in burst pipes and water damage or worse when the system is repressurised. Cruiseships in warm lay-up deploy crew on a daily basis to flush toilets and turn on taps throughout the ship to prevent this from happening.
“We have to be very efficient and maximise resources to lower costs without compromising on safety and quality. We have been managing very well in this respect,” he says.
While Goh does not reveal figures, he says that putting the ships back into operation significantly reduced the cash burn rate of keeping them in warm lay-up with crew on board and systems operating.
Putting modern cruiseships into cold lay-up is not an option as remobilising costs would be astronomical. Their advanced systems and mechanical infrastructure are not designed to be completely shut down.
Genting will reactivate ships from its Star and Crystal brands over the upcoming months for cruising from Malaysia, Europe and the Bahamas.
