Crystal Serenity has just emerged from a four-week dry dock in Bremerhaven, Germany; its most extensive refurbishment ever.
“The scope of this redesign is truly remarkable. Our ocean ships remain at the heart of our brand and our commitment to their continued excellence and success is unwavering,” said Crystal President and CEO Tom Wolber.
The update has mirrored the changes implemented aboard Crystal Symphony in autumn 2017 which boasts:
-New dining options and open-seating dining
-New spacious, butler-serviced Seabreeze Penthouse and Seabreeze Penthouse Suite accommodations
-Redesigned lounge and entertainment venues including the Stardust Club
-Palm Court new production show called Crystal on Broadway, The Show
-New interactive technological amenities
Crystal Serenity set sail from Lisbon on November 10th on her first voyage since the completion of her redesign.
Wolber continued: “The changes aboard Crystal Serenity are a beautiful reaffirmation of Crystal’s timeless style and luxury, which continues to evolve with the preferences of luxury travellers but will always be rooted in the cornerstones of genuine, personalised service, abundant space, superb quality and numerous choices.”
Crystal intended every aspect of the ship’s redesign to anticipate guests’ needs and exceed their expectations, with additional luxurious touches and conveniences that enhance the experience even further.
“The new open-seating dining gives our guests the freedom to dine when, where and with whom they want, while the new restaurant options uniquely showcase and celebrate the flavours of the world we travel in,” Wolber commented.
“The new Seabreeze accommodations are in direct response to guest demand for more suites that, of course, include our personalised butler service. And the redesigned lounges will make spaces that are already favourites among our guests even more versatile and inviting.”
The dry dock began in Lisbon on October 14th as Crystal Serenity made her way to the Lloyd Werft shipyard in Bremerhaven, and it marked the latest milestone for the expanding Crystal portfolio.
Details of the new updates guests will find on board include:
Dining in the Newest, Freshest Way
Open-seating dining will debuts aboard Crystal Serenity where guests will be free to dine where, when and with whoever they choose which will allow more flexibility for evening entertainment.
New venues with reimagined decor will be offering a refreshed selection of globally inspired cuisine, including:
Waterside– centrally located restaurant that will take the place of the Crystal Dining Room and reflect the chic elegance of the main dining venues aboard Crystal River Cruises and Crystal Symphony.
The venue will serve daily changing menus of international classic and modern cuisine with unlimited fine wines, spirits and beers in an intimate seating with tables for two and four.
Guests can expect contemporary finishes, integrated lighting, a new ceiling feature and “tile” treatment that creates a much cosier atmosphere.
There will be the freedom to dine in Waterside for dinner any time guests choose and the dinner menu continues to be offered for room service dining during dinner hours.
Umi Uma–
The rebranded Silk Road & The Sushi Bar will continue to serve the Japanese-Peruvian specialities of Master Chef Nobu Matsuhisa by his personally trained chefs and remains the only Nobu restaurants at sea.
The Marketplace and Churrascaria– an open-kitchen concept with dishes made to order (and the former Lido Café).
An expansive menu of buffet-style breakfast and lunch options are on offer, transforming into Churrascaria during the dinner hours; a Brazilian-style BBQ will welcome guests with a traditional Caipirinha cocktail.
This is before offering a selection of tapas and ceviche, salads and soups, vegetables and freshly grilled meat and seafood brochettes, served the traditional way with a “Crystal” twist.
Silk Kitchen & Bar–
Formerly Tastes in the Trident area of the ship, the Asian-inspired venue serves traditional Chinese comfort food in an elegant al fresco atmosphere.
Family-style favourites are available for dinner, while lunch options include favourites from the noodle bar, wok dishes, traditional dumplings, Chinois soup and a small selection of favourite menu items from Tastes.
Silk also serves Crystal’s late risers breakfast service. Silk offers open seating for breakfast and lunch and requires reservations for dinner.
Stardust Supper Club–
A brand new dining experience reminiscent of the era of the Rat Pack debuts on black-tie-optional evenings in the Stardust Club, featuring a four-course menu, live musical performances from Crystal’s Ensemble and string quartet.
Cuisine reflects specialities served in Waterside, with wine pairings and desserts as well as a vegetarian menu.
Prego–
The speciality restaurant continues to serve regional specialties of Italy in the cosy, authentic atmosphere guests have come to love.
Guests are required to make dinner reservations for Crystal’s speciality restaurants, including Prego.
Public Spaces
Palm Court–
This favourite spot on board for gatherings of all sorts has been reimagined with an intimate atmosphere. The stage has been relocated to an “in-the-round” concept, with a new modernised bar.
More tables for two and intimate seating areas, new finishes, lighting, carpeting and furniture reflect the understated modern luxury of the Palm Court on Crystal Symphony.
New touches to expect include a combination of cocktail tables and chairs, dramatic wingback chairs with footstools, sofas and coffee tables.
Palm Court has long been known for traditional afternoon teatime and refreshments, and has become a dedicated culinary space for fresh pastries and snacks with sweeping views through the floor-to-ceiling windows.
The Stardust Club–
The very popular nighttime spot for drinks and dancing with a brand new dance floor, new bar finishes and a refreshed décor with a lighter and more spacious feel.
It is a multi-functional space in order to host the Stardust Supper Club and large gatherings from bridge tournaments to live evening entertainment.
Pulse and the Resorts World Casino at Sea are also areas that have been updated with new modern and warm-toned coloured carpet and furnishings.
In the Galaxy Lounge, passengers will see a new Broadway-style production show called Crystal on Broadway, The Show featuring songs from hit musicals.
The show debuts on the December 7th “Pacific Coast Panorama” cruise as a result of the partnership with Kevin McCollum, the multi Tony Award winning producer of Rent, Something Rotten! and the most recent Broadway revival of West Side Story.
New Seabreeze Penthouses
Head to deck 10 for 36 new Seabreeze Penthouses and two Seabreeze Penthouse Suites now occupying the space of former Deluxe Staterooms with Verandah.
The same personal butler service will be offered as well as speciality services, walk-in closets, spa-like bathrooms and spacious square footage as the other Penthouses on board (367 sq. ft. and 491 sq. ft, respectively, including the verandah).
Customised, contemporary design and décor will feature with gemstone-coloured velvets, natural materials and brushed brass touches with marble details.
The Seabreeze Penthouses also feature unique entries which are shared between two suites and recessed from the hallway.
This means there is a seamless design for connecting two suites for larger families upon request and there’s some fantastic enhanced services including in-room speciality dining and unlimited reservations at specialty restaurants.
The ship’s capacity has been reduced from 1,070 guests to 980 guests, while the number of crew on board remains the same; welcome to one of the highest per-guest space and service ratios in the industry!
Technological Enhancements
New, state-of-the-art HD flat-panel TVs have been added in all rooms (public and guest suites) that feature technology giving access to a variety of information including
-Onboard folios
-Crystal Life Spa & Salon menus
-The Connoisseur Wine menu
-Daily restaurant menus
The new on-demand system also offers a vast library of blockbuster films and entertainment, as well as live views from the ship, broadcasts of ship lectures, presentations and destination information.
Upgraded, pervasive Wi-Fi coverage throughout the ship is delivered via dedicated antennae in every suite and all public areas and open decks.
Crystal Connect- the new guest portal is also now live and can be found on the landing page of onboard Internet service.
Guests can access it from their smartphones, tablets or computers and instantly find shipboard and itinerary info, daily menus, shore excursions and port maps, daily issues of Reflections and an array of complimentary global newspapers and entertainment library.
Crystal Serenity’s spacious enrichment facilities were also redesigned, and the Computer University@Sea has received new carpeting, seating and computer equipment, along with 70-inch TVs.
The multifunctional enrichment room, The Studio, has been divided to offer a classroom for language, art and other instruction and a separate dance studio for private lessons.
Here’s every Crystal cruise in one place!
What do you think of Crystal Serenity’s refurbishment? Are you impressed with the wide variety of dining options? Or is it the Penthouse Suite that’s grabbing your eye? Let us know below…
Crystal Pulls Back The Red Curtain On The Design Of A Diamond-Class Ships Luxury line Crystal has spilled the first details about its new Diamond-Class ships, including renderings of the exterior design…
The World’s Largest Megayacht Is About To Go On Sale: Where Luxury Roams Freely The Crystal vessel will head out on its maiden voyage later this year as the world’s first purpose-built mega-yacht with…
