Celebrity Cruises is selling one of its older ships to Ctrip.com, the largest cruise travel agency in China.
Parent company Royal Caribbean Cruises is forming a joint venture with Ctrip to manage the operations of the 1,814-passenger Celebrity Century and “potentially broaden the relationship”.
The sale of the 19-year-old ship will result in a non-cash loss of around $20 million, according to Royal Caribbean Cruises.
Celebrity Century will complete its scheduled sailings until its March 22, 2015, itinerary.
A 15-night, Dubai to Rome sailing on April 5 next year is being reworked into a 14-night sailing from Dubai to Singapore. Passengers booked on the cruise to Rome are being offered full refunds or the option to move to an alternative sailing with onboard credit and compensation to cover air fare change costs.
Ctrip president Min Fan said: “China is becoming one of the largest cruise markets in the world.
“As the largest cruise agency in China, Ctrip has sent over 120,000 guests to cruise trips so far and acquired more than 10% of market share in China. We are excited about the strong growth of the cruise industry and strive to strengthen our leadership in this market.
“We are thrilled about our acquisition of Celebrity Century, which is one of the top-tier vessels in the world. Century will be renovated to provide an outstanding cruise experience to China’s leisure travellers, including premium hotel services, diversified dining options, exciting on-board facilities, varieties of entertainments, and inspiring excursions and tours.
Ctrip will capitalise on our strong brand, large customer base, and superior service quality, as well as our partner’s extensive cruise operating experience, to generate great value to our customers and shareholders.”
Royal Caribbean Cruises chairman and and chief executive Richard Fain said: “Since its inaugural sailing, Celebrity Century has created many wonderful memories for hundreds of thousands of guests, and we expect this successful history to continue as she transitions to the Chinese cruise market.
“The vessel’s sale is an excellent business opportunity for both Royal Caribbean and Ctrip, and will generate strong value for both companies’ shareholders.”
The 71,545-ton ship entered service with Celebrity Cruises in December 1995.