Avalon new vessel has Aussie accent
Thursday, 28 May, 2010
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Centrepiece of Avalon Waterways program launch this week was the unveiling of its new “all-suite” Avalon Panorama which will debut in May next year.
Describing it as a vessel created for Australian travellers, Globus Family MD for Australia, Stewart Williams, said that he’d had significant input into the design of Panorama, with final sign-off at the manufacturer’s shipyards in the Netherlands.
“I’m personally and emotionally involved in this ship,” he said, with key features for the Australian market including bigger cabins (because Aussies tend to prefer the longer river
cruise voyages) and on-board cappuccino machines. “The suites have 30% more internal space than our competitors’ main cabin products,” he said.
Panorama has 68 of its suitestyle cabins filling the two main decks, as well as 17 deluxe staterooms and two ‘Royal Suites’. The cabins feature a so-called “Open Air Balcony” – which is in fact a very large picture window with an 11-foot opening, “inviting Europe into your cabin,” according to Avalon marketing manager Christian Schweitzer. The cabin configuration also
allows for a full sized shower in the spacious marble bathroom, while the queen sized beds face out to the river
Avalon has deliberately chosen not to have external balconies on Panorama because they encroach on cabin space, with the company saying feedback from Australian passengers is that they prefer a larger stateroom.
Williams said the 2011 brochure offers 22 itineraries with “the lowest prices in a long time” due
to the strength of the Australian dollar – including price reductions of up to 21%.And despite the recent fall in the currency Williams said Globus was “still very comfortable” with the pricing in the brochure.
Avalon also claims the ‘youngest fleet in Europe’ with two of its older vessels, the Avalon Artistry and Poetry to be retired at the end of this year as part of its ongoing renewal program, slightly shrinking the fleet to 10 vessels in 201 Australians account for
around 30% of Avalon’s business.
The new vessel will operate on the ‘Magnificent Europe’ itinerary between Amsterdam and Budapest which is very popular with Aussies, as well as special Christmas itineraries in winter
Philip Thorniley
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