Swan Hellenic’s second ship, SH Vega, sets sail for Arctic after Naming Ceremony
The cultural expedition cruise pioneer’s second purpose-designed expedition cruise ship is now on her way to Tromsø for an 11-day maiden Arctic cruise departing the 20th of July.
Nicosia, Cyprus: Today, Monday the 11th of July 2022
Swan Hellenic announced that the Naming Ceremony of its second ice-class cultural expedition cruise ship, SH Vega, had taken place at Helsinki Shipyard. The ship is now on her way to Norway and her first cultural expedition cruise of the Arctic, an 11-day exploration of the Svalbard Archipelago, departing Tromsø on the 20th of July 2022.
The purpose-designed new vessel was named by Patrizia Zito, wife of Swan Hellenic CEO Andrea Zito, in the presence of Helsinki Shipyard Senior Management, the media and members of the cruise and travel industries from around the world.
SH Vega is the second in a series of three elegant, high ice-class, cultural expedition cruise vessels made for premium discovery experiences worldwide, with a strong bias for extreme latitude areas. SH Vega features a 5-megawatt diesel-electric propulsion system with selective catalytic reduction and a PC5 ice-strengthened hull with extra-large stabilisers for exceptional passenger comfort. At 113 m, the 10,600-ton vessel has been specially designed to explore the most inspiring and inaccessible places on the planet.
SH Vega, like her twin sister SH Minerva, has been designed to meet the latest environmental regulations and is completely self-sufficient for up to 40 days or 8,000 nautical miles. Preparations have been made to implement battery technology which would also make it possible to operate silently. The vessels are equipped with exhaust gas cleaning, advanced wastewater treatment systems and the waste storage facilities required for operating in sensitive polar areas.
Providing spacious 5-star accommodation for 152 guests in 76 spacious staterooms and suites, the vast majority with large balconies, SH Vega is operated by an onboard team of 120 to provide the highest levels of personal service.
Soon after the ceremony, she set sail from Helsinki to Tromsø, Norway, for a season of maiden cruises exploring the magic of the Arctic, from the Svalbard Peninsula and Iceland’s landscapes of ice and fire to Greenland’s dramatic majesty, the Northwest Passage and the wilds of Northern Canada. Then, come late Autumn, she’ll make her way down the U.S. East Coast over 12 days, taking in everything from New York, Norfolk and Charleston to Miami.
From November, she’ll be offering a range of 11 to 21-day cultural expedition cruises of Antarctica through until March 2023, when she sails up the West Coast of Africa to the Canary Islands and Western Europe, also immersing guests in the Celtic lands of Britain and Ireland on the way to her second Arctic season. This will end with a crossing from Greenland to Nova Scotia, followed by the Caribbean and then Brazil in October 2023.
SH Vega sailed from Helsinki in the expert hands of industry veterans Captain Tuomo Leskinen and Hotel Director Philipp Reutener, who created the acclaimed Swan Hellenic onboard experience on SH Minerva and will ensure the same distinctive high standards are consistently maintained on her sister ship.
Executive Chef Avhier Singh brings experience in high-end hotels and cruise companies. But even more importantly, he also comes across from SH Minerva, where he brought to life the varied menus of freshly cooked delicacies that include original Italian and Asian fusion dishes created for the iconic company by award-winning Consultant Chefs Andrea Ribaldone and Sang Keun Oh.
After the Naming Ceremony, Helsinki Shipyard Project Manager Jonas Packalén commented
“This is a proud day for us all. SH Vega is every bit as beautiful and elegant as her twin sister! We wish her and her crew fair winds and following seas, with special thanks to everyone involved in the project for their unstinting dedication!”
Swan Hellenic CEO Andrea Zito added:
“I would like to congratulate everyone at Helsinki for their superb work in creating this wonderful new ship. We are delighted with the quality of their work, creating another unique presence on the waves, and very much look forward to taking her first guests to see what others don’t, exploring the Arctic in exceptional comfort and style.”
SH Minerva and SH Vega will be joined early next year by the slightly larger SH Diana, which is already under construction at Helsinki Shipyard.
About Swan Hellenic
Swan Hellenic was relaunched in July 2020 to proudly continue the spirit of cultural expedition cruising the company pioneered in the 1950s. Building on its British roots, the new company has a global cultural cruising outlook dedicated to providing guests with the opportunity to ‘see what others don’t’.
Swan Hellenic's purpose-built ships feature elegant Scandi-design interiors, extensive outdoor spaces and dedicated expedition facilities. SH Minerva and SH Vega, two new 5-star Polar Code PC 5 expedition cruise ships with ice-strengthened hulls, respectively launched in December 2021 and July 2022, each accommodate 152 guests in 76 spacious suites and staterooms, the majority with large balconies. A slightly larger PC 6 ice-class vessel, SH Diana, accommodating 192 guests in the same distinctive comfort and style in 96 staterooms and suites will be arriving in early 2023.
All three ships feature 3 dining venues – the Swan Restaurant, Club Lounge and Pool bar & Grill – and are being built in full compliance with SOLAS Safe Return to Port requirements. Dedicated to guests with a passion for adventure and cultural exploration, the company’s meticulously planned itineraries explore the wild landscapes, wildlife, peoples and unique cultures of the world’s less travelled regions.
The crews each include a team of 12 seasoned expedition guides, expert speakers and lecturers, for a total complement of 120 and 140 persons respectively, offering outstanding staff-to-guest ratios to deliver the highest standards of attentive personal service.
Headquartered in Cyprus with offices in London, Dusseldorf, Monaco, Fort Lauderdale (serving the North America market) and Hong Kong (serving mainland China, Taiwan, Vietnam and South-East Asia), as well as partnerships serving India, Japan and Australia-New Zealand, Scandinavia and Iceland, Swan Hellenic supports the travel trade with specialist local partners to provide customers with expert personal service worldwide.
For more information about Swan Hellenic,
please visit www.swanhellenic.com
For Swan Hellenic, please contact:
Mario Bounas, VP, Marketing:
Mario.bounas@swanhellenic.com
For Press, please contact:
Renato Bodi, TwentyTwenty,
Tel.+41793746887, renato.bodi@twentytwenty.biz
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