Australian cruise operator Coral Expeditions’ new 5,600-gt expedition cruiseship Coral Adventurer has been handed over by shipbuilder Vard and will depart Singapore on its first voyage on Wednesday.
The 120-passenger ship was completed earlier this month by the Vard Vung Tau shipyard in Vietnam.
It is the first large cruiseship that Vard has built, and also the first cruiseship built in Vietnam.
Remarkably, given these firsts, the ship was delivered on schedule.
This has not been the case for several newbuildings contracted for the burgeoning expedition cruise market.
The first of Norwegian operator Hurtigruten’s series of five 20,900-gt hybrid expedition cruiseships building at Kleven Verft is already about a year behind the initial delivery schedule.
Similarly, Australian expedition cruise operator Scenic Cruises is also facing delays of almost a year for its two 17,100-gt expedition cruiseships because of a myriad of problems incurred by Croatian shipbuilder Uljanik.
Hapag Lloyd Cruises was recently forced to cancel the April maiden voyage its 16,100-gt expedition cruiseship Hanseatic Nature, which is building at Vard in Norway, as it is a month behind schedule.
The Coral Adventurer is a relatively uncomplicated ship when compared to the ice-classed vessels of Hurtigruten, Hapag Lloys and Scenic, which in some cases are being fitted with new eco-technology that has caused some of the delays.
Last December Coral Expeditions’ commercial manager Jeff Gillies told TradeWinds that the Coral Adventurer project was so successful that the company would consider going for more orders at Vard in Vietnam.
The company will operate the Australian-flagged Coral Adventurer in the remote areas of northern Australia, such as the Kimberley and Cape York, as well as to Papua New Guinea and Indonesia.
