LISBON — Royal Caribbean Group may be selling two older ships operating in the Galapagos Islands, but the company is intent on expanding its presence there, Chief Executive Officer Jason Liberty said in Portugal as he attended the naming ceremony for Silversea Cruises’ new luxury ship, the Silver Ray.
With the company Celebrity Xpedition and Celebrity Xploration for sale According to Lindblad Expeditions, Royal Caribbean Group will operate two cruise ships in the Galapagos: Silver Origin and Celebrity Flora. Both ships are relatively new (Flora debuted in 2019, Origin in 2021) and each will accommodate 100 passengers, the maximum allowed in the Galapagos.
The 48-passenger Xpedition and the 16-passenger Xploration were built in 2001 and 2007, respectively, and are ships acquired by Celebrity Cruises. Xpedition has been sailing as Celebrity Cruises since 2004, and Xploration has been sailing as Celebrity Cruises since 2017.
Royal Caribbean Group CEO Jason Liberty said satisfaction rates on Galapagos cruises were “exceptionally high.” Photo credit: Royal Caribbean Group
“We acquired these two ships because they were licensed to operate in the Galapagos,” Liberty said, adding that Xpedition and Xploration “are not very related to the Celebrity brand in terms of experience.”
However, Flora and Origin are brand related. They were built for Celebrity and Silversea. They are popular ships sailing to high demand destinations.
“It’s been a very successful product for us. The ship is always full. Passenger satisfaction is very high,” Liberty said.
Liberty calls the Galapagos cruise “one of the best vacation experiences I’ve ever had.”
“You leave with so many incredible memories and stories,” he said. “It’s really great, but it’s also a very protected place. That’s what makes it so unique and special.”
Liberty called Origin and Flora “floating jewels that take you to all these incredible places.” He said Royal Caribbean Group has the best cruise product in the Galapagos Islands.
“There’s nothing else like it in the Galapagos,” he said. “Everything else is either very old or not up to this level.” [quality]. In terms of amenities, we combine our brand with experiences that guests can’t get anywhere else.”
