Cunard aims to grow audience with new ship

Cruise news: The historic luxury line’s brand new next-generation vessel – to be launched in 2022 – will combine new features with “the nostalgia Cunard is known for”

Cunard has promised that its new, next-generation ship will cater for both its past and future guests, according to the company’s bosses.

The company’s fourth ship, which will be built by Fincantieri, will be launched in 2022.

Speaking at the recent Abta Travel Convention in the Azores, Simon Palethorpe, senior vice president, Cunard said that the new ship will “keep a lot of features people associate with Cunard but there will be a lot of new features and new experiences to have on board. It’s very much playing to existing guests but with a forward look to the guests we’re going to have in the future.”

Arnold Donald, Carnival Corporation president and CEO, added: “It will have a lot of new features but it will keep the nostalgia and feel that Cunard is renowned for.”

Palethorpe added: “We have only recently marked the 50th anniversary of one of Cunard’s much-loved ocean liners, the legendary QE2. What better way to celebrate her important role in Cunard’s past than by announcing our commitment to Cunard’s future with the commissioning of a new ship. Cunard offers unrivalled luxury ocean experiences and the new ship firmly underpins our plans to continue our growth across international markets.”

According to Fincantieri: “The 113,000GRT ship will carry 3,000 guests and be the 249th to fly the Cunard flag, the first since 2010 when Fincantieri delivered the Queen Elizabeth, three years after the Queen Victoria was built in 2007. Marking the first time since 1998 that the luxury cruise brand will have four ships in simultaneous service.”

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