The owned by GHK ultra-luxury travel brand Crystal Cruises became the latest to suffer due to the insolvency of parent company GHK-Genting Hong Kong.
On Wednesday, January 19, Crystal (acquired by GHK back in 2016) emailed its customers and partners announcing it would suspend the operations of its 3 ocean ships until April 2022, saying that management would use the time to access the situation and develop future plans.
Jack Anderson (Crystal’s President) said that had been "an extremely difficult decision but a prudent one given the current business environment and recent developments" with their parent company. He added in his statement that the company looked forward to welcoming back its valued passengers when it restarts operations.
Crystal’s two ocean ships - Crystal Serenity and Crystal Symphony - are both currently in the Caribbean. The company said the boats would complete their current voyages, disembarking guests in Aruba and Florida this weekend. The 3rd vessel - the expedition megayacht Crystal Endeavor, is currently in Antarctica and scheduled to return to homeport Ushuaia Argentina on February 4.
Crystal said it would suspend the 3 ocean-going vessels’ operations through the end of April. The company also extended the winter lay-up for its European riverboats saying they would return to service in May.
In a notice posted on its website, the company said:
“Suspending operations will provide Crystal’s management team with an opportunity to evaluate the current state of business and examine various options moving forward.”