If she fails to enter service as SAGA PEARL II this will be the second cruise program with this ship that Saga has withdrawn, the previous one being the briefly-announced program she was to operate as QUEST FOR ADVENTURE for Saga's Spirit of Adventure brand.

Given the market at present I think this will be a good thing for Saga, lets face it Astoria was never going to be a comfortable running match for Saga Ruby - but then she is now a one off in terms of character, style, quality and look. I understood the original idea of making her Quest for Adventure but the move to Saga never seemed a good match.

Saga should run as is and concentrate on a new build with a second sister to ultimately relace Ruby.

I just can't think of any current vessel which would make an ideal running mate for SAGA RUBY, other than, of course, SAGA ROSE!

See Captain Greybeard's blog

My thanks to Patsy for alerting me yesterday to Saga Pearl II's disappearance from the Saga website

[ 02-06-2009: Message edited by: greybeard ]

Maybe Saga Rose will have a few extra months on the water up to April, and may even make her 40th World Cruise.

quote:

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Originally posted by ahrpd:
I don't think Saga would like to run a one-ship operation which is a particularly expensive issue, but even with the downturn, I would imagine they would still have a huge client base to tap into and to easily fill a second ship. A newbuild will take forever, so a replacement vessel to enter service at the end of the year is probably a priority for them.

I just can't think of any current vessel which would make an ideal running mate for SAGA RUBY, other than, of course, SAGA ROSE!

Tony

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quote:

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Originally posted by Salaison:

agreed....but i think i mentioned that some time back...Mona Lisa/Victoria...would be a nice running mate for Ruby......

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quote:

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Originally posted by Ernst:

This would be entirely useless since she also has to be taken out of service in 2010 - they could then keep Saga Rose.

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Europa - don't think they are ready to build a replacement yet

Prinsendam - she'd look great in Saga colours and could easily be shifted back to single sitting. Doubt HAl want shot of her either.

The S class HAL ships but I don't think they could be adjusted for single sitting dining without a huge refit removing lots of cabins etc and adding additonal galley space. Probably too big anyway.

quote:

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Originally posted by mike sa:
[QB]Prinsendam - she'd look great in Saga colours and could easily be shifted back to single sitting. Doubt HAl want shot of her either.
[QB]

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Wasn't PRINSENDAM actually actively considered by Saga some time ago? I think she'd be perfect!

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Originally posted by Kevin Griffin, London:
PRINSENDAM will be in Dover later this year, just a few miles away from Saga's HQ in Folkestone. We can be pretty sure that a few Saga folk may well want to have a look. She is odd one out in HAL after delivery of DUBBELDAM.

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quote:

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Originally posted by ahrpd:
Wasn't PRINSENDAM actually actively considered by Saga some time ago? I think she'd be perfect! Tony

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A couple of times ISTR, but it was always stated that the asking price was too high.

She would probably need a lot of work to bring her up to Saga's standard, but at least she looks like she is from the same era. Yes, Marco Polo gets my vote. Could Transocean be persuaded to part with her? I wonder how long their lease is?

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Originally posted by Thad:

Is Dubbeldam the name for the 3rd Eurodam class ship?? Is there a 3rd on order? Nieuw Amsterdam is due next year correct?

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Thad there is no Dubbeldam and there is no third ship. The 2010 ship is Nieuw Amsterdam, you are correct.

On topic.

I don't think HAL will sale the Prinsendam already. The Prinsendam is the most popular vessel in the fleet, in passenger numbers and profit.

MikeSA proposal one of the S class vessels fore Saga, is not gonna happen to. They are simply to big, and beside that they are due fore a major refit, upgrade and rebuilding program. They stick with HAL fore the next couple of years to.

It is known that they were ready to sell Prinsendam at one stage. I very much doubt she is the most profitable in the fleet, just given economy of scale that is likely to be Eurodam, Prinsendams fares are just not that much higher given her increased running costs.

That said if they were to sell I am sure they would want top dollar so it unlikey to happen. I don't think an S class would be too big, just not really suited to Saga's style of operation.

Best,

quote:

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Originally posted by mike sa:
Hi Ben

It is known that they were ready to sell Prinsendam at one stage. I very much doubt she is the most profitable in the fleet, just given economy of scale that is likely to be Eurodam, Prinsendams fares are just not that much higher given her increased running costs.

That said if they were to sell I am sure they would want top dollar so it unlikey to happen. I don't think an S class would be too big, just not really suited to Saga's style of operation.

They could name her Sagadam or maybe Saggydam !

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Where have you the information about a possible sale of the Prinsendam.

The Prinsendam is on this moment the most profitable vessel in the HAL fleet. My best friend is on of the assisting food and beverage manager a/b the Prinsendam and have insight in the profits of each vessel in the fleet. She's scoring number 1 in passenger repeat, on board spending, tours etc.

And the last comment oh that was funny.

I found a video on U-Tube of Sagafjord sailing in Transocean colours. It looked strange.

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Originally posted by bcscot:
Sagafjord sailed for a while as Gripsholm under Transocean before becoming Saga Rose. If Saga did buy or charter the Marco Polo, she would not therefore be the first ship to move between these two lines.

I found a video on U-Tube of Sagafjord sailing in Transocean colours. It looked strange.

Graham.

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Here she is in al colors she wear in here career. She looks not bad in the Transocean colors. But better afcorse in NAL/Saga colors.

Frome Simplonpc.

I recently saw a picture of Prinsendam when she was with Cunard. She also looked good. I was surprised to read that Cunard were going to name her 'Mauretania', but changed their minds.

Now, whether she will come on the market, that is another question & it sounds unlikely judging by what I was reading in the other thread, but a good candidate none the less.

Phoenix Reisen is most definitely not interested in losing yet another ship. They're already down to two ships from four last year due to "Maxim Gorkiy's" retirement and "Alexander von Humboldt's" ongoing arrest.

It appears that, as with "Amadea", Phoenix Reisen is now actively involved in "Albatros'" ownership, so it would be their decision to sell her. And they simply won't do it for a number of reasons, unless they get a totally unreasonable amount of money for her that would allow them to acquire a much higher-quality vessel, such as "Prinsendam". And that won't happen, either.

Best,

Raoul

[ 03-26-2009: Message edited by: r.fiebig ]