Buenos Aires-based Pampa Cruises has revealed that it is the charterer of the 15,400-gt cruiseship Salamis Filoxenia (built 1975), which TradeWinds reported last week as having been sold by Salamis Lines to undisclosed interests.
Fronted by South American cruise industry veteran Milton Sanches, who previously worked for Pulmantur and Brazilian cruise company CVC, Pampa was formed in the early part of this year and originally set its sights on a five year bareboat charter of the 15,200-gt Delphin (built 1975) from India’s Vishal Cruises.
Both cruiseships are identical sisterships, but Sanches told cruise media yesterday that it opted for the Salamis Filoxenia as the ship is still in active service and very recently underwent dry-docking in Greece. The Delphin has been laid up for the past two years.
Salamis Lines told TradeWinds last week that it would hand over its ship this month. Pampa appears to be wasting little time getting the ship up and running, with its first cruise planned to start on 23 January. It will divide its time between Argentina and Brazil on a seasonal basis.
The ship will be renamed Arrecife before setting sail on its first voyage for Pampa.
Salamis said that it booked a €3.95m ($4.5m) accounting gain from selling the vessel and planned to by another ship before its summer Eastern Mediterranean cruise season begins next summer.
This article has been amended since publication to reflect that Pampa was to be the charterer of the Salamis Filoxenia.
