Variety Cruises’ boss has vowed to take a 1% share of the world’s cruise market by 2050 with a 60-boat fleet.
The Greek line currently operates eight boats, but chief executive Filippos Venetopoulos has ambitious plans to add 52 vessels over the next eight years and achieve carbon neutrality.
He has identified two vessels in the existing fleet – Callisto and Galileo – that he wants to fit with electric engines, and he intends to put solar panels on the line’s Harmony G ship (pictured).
Panorama and Panorama II will also enter drydock in 2022 as part of the line’s sustainability push.
Venetopoulos took over the Greek line in 2020 after joining from tour operator Intrepid Travel, where he set up its cruise division, and also quickly announced plans to create a 60-ship fleet.
Speaking at World Travel Market in London last week, he said: “We want to take 1% of the cruise market by 2050. We currently have eight boats, but we want to have 60.
“We’re looking to grow sustainably in an economic sense. We’re going to touch up our product. I want us to become an experiential, sustainable small ship line.”
He added that eventually he wants Variety’s vessels to operate in Alaska, the Galapagos Islands, and the polar regions.
“Croatia has more than 200 ships, Greece has five and they’re all ours,” he said. “We do have minor competition, but the reality is there’s massive potential in Greece. We want to operate our eco-fleet there.”
Business is split evenly between charter cruises and scheduled sailings, but Venetopoulos wants to offer more itineraries that are not privately chartered.
“We want to go 70:30 in favour of our scheduled cruises,” he added.
The line claims to have been the first operator to join the Tourism Declares Climate Emergency initiative this year.
Tourism Declares brings together companies and devises a plan to work together, reduce carbon emissions and protect the planet.
Venetopoulos said: “We’re going to draw up an action plan about how we’re to reduce our carbon emissions.
“We’ve measured our carbon footprint and are finding ways to reduce our carbon emissions and be net zero by 2030.”