EasyCruise

Infobox Company
company_name = easyCruise
company_
vector_
company_type = Travel
genre =
foundation = April 2004
founder = Stelios Haji-Ioannou
location_city = Athens
location_country = Greece
location =
origins =
key_people =
area_served =
industry =
products =
parent = easyGroup
owner = Stelios Haji-Ioannou
homepage = [http://www.easycruise.com easyCruise]

easyCruise is an enterprise of Cypriot/British business man, Stelios Haji-Ioannou. easyCruise launched their first cruise ship easyCruiseOne in 2005. easyCruise is registered in Liberia.

Development

In April 2004, the initial ship came in for an approach to cruising that was aimed at attracting younger customers who wished to spend the majority of their time on shore rather than on board a megaship. After a few months of negotiation and refurbishment, the ship, formerly known as "Neptune 2", was renamed "easyCruiseOne". In 9 May 2005, the ship finally left for her maiden voyage. [cite news | first=Pal | last=Hansen | coauthors= | title=Stelios Hadji-Ioannou | date=Friday, May. 11, 2007 | publisher= | url =http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1619553,00.html?iid=sphere-inline-sidebar | work =Time Magazine | pages = | accessdate = 2008-04-24 | language = ]

Itinerary

The service began by operating night-time departures calling between ports in St. Tropez, Cannes, Nice, Monaco, Imperia, Genoa and Portofino in the summer. For Summer 2007 easyCruise is relocating to the Greek Islands for a 14-night itinerary taking in the ports of Piraeus (Athens), Mykonos, Paros, Sifnos, Poros, Spetses, Milos, Ios, Amorgos, Naxos, Folegrandos and Serifos. Previously it was possible to join the ship at any port and stay for a minimum of 2, to a maximum of 14 nights, but now you can embark solely at the port of Piraeus where it visits three times in the 14 nights. Therefore you can create a cruise for either 3, 4, 7, 10 or 14 nights. For the winter season easyCruise has travelled to the Caribbean calling at Barbados, St Vincent, Martinique, Bequia, Grenada and St Lucia in 2005-2006, and for Winter 2006-2007 easyCruiseOne sailed a 1-week itinerary calling at St. Maarten, St. Kitts, Antigua, Nevis, St. Barts and Anguilla calling at St. Maarten twice.

Until August 17, 2007; a second boat, "easyCruiseTwo", a converted river freighter, had a route around the Netherlands, Flanders, and Belgium, visiting the cities of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Antwerp and Brussels.

Prices vary according to cabin type and demand. In a departure from the model employed by easyJet it is possible to book via travel agents as well as direct through the easyCruise website.

Cabins

All of the cabins include a very simple bed and bathroom, with bare amenities. Most of the cabins in size are around convert|110|sqft|m2. Two- and four-passenger cabins are available . Many of the cabins have windows. There are also four suites with balconies available. Cabin cleaning and changing of towels and bedding is not included in the base price but can be purchased on board as required, or arranged at a discounted rate at time of booking.

TV Series

The continuing fortunes of easyCruise are being tracked for an observational documentary called "Cruise with Stelios" produced by the British company Twofour, the second series of which has been screened on Sky3 in the UK on Friday nights and is currently being screened in the US on The Travel Channel. 'Cruise With Stelios' is now being broadcasted in Belgium (Flanders) as 'Cruiseline' on the public broadcaster 'Eén' (One)

Future

The cruise line appeared to have a quite successful first year, and is reportedly contemplating adding other itineraries in various sites throughout the world. The customer base is primarily young passengers from 20-40 years old who seek a more shore-based cruising experience than on traditional cruise ships. The business model apparently includes nearly complete subcontracting of each portion of the service (i.e., coffee shop, sports bar, "hotel" functions on the ship) to provide good service while maintaining attractive prices. The owner, Stelios, appears to be using a co-branding strategy with the rest of his "easyGroup" enterprises to appeal to customers seeking basic but good quality travel and accommodations.

In February 2008 easyCruise made public their plans to sell the "EasyCruise One" due to "not having enough space", and replacing her with a ship of similar size to the "EasyCruise Life". [cite web |url=http://www.cruisebusiness.com/news.php?u=20080212115447 |title=Stelios puts easyCruise One up for sale and axes newbuilding project |accessdate=2008-02-16 |date=2008-02-12 |format= |publisher=Cruise Business Review ]

Current Fleet

*"EasyCruiseOne"
*"EasyCruise Life"

Former fleet

* "EasyCruiseTwo" - Franchised by easyCruise in 2006. Ceased operations in August 2007 due to the financial situation of the owner.

References

External links

* [http://www.easycruise.com easyCruise official website]