Focus on Expedition Cruising has Regional Director Alvin Materi Excited for the Future

The Asia region is poised for an outpouring of product development to cater to the growing expedition cruising market. Although not all vessels are scheduled to call Asia home, starting this year we will see the first of 23 expedition ships on order, join the niche market segment. These orders include four new vessels from ultra-luxury expedition lines Ponant, and three from Crystal Expedition Cruises. In addition, there are two new expedition ships from Hurtigruten and Hapag Lloyd on the horizon, as well as a pair of industry newcomers: Scenic and Mystic.

Also unveiled this week is Holland America Line’s announcement they will add zodiacs and new tour offerings to their EXC In-Depth Voyages, providing their guests with the opportunity to gain a closer view of nature or a more immersive experience in Southeast Asia destinations starting in January 2019. Although not specifically designed as an expedition ship (at 1258 guests we would consider the Maasdam mid-sized), adding zodiacs and expedition-focused guest lecturers and tailored excursions, emphasizes the importance of this growing niche market segment.

We see this as a very positive development for the region and Destination Asia has been at the forefront of the expedition cruising market since our inception in 1997. Cruise Asia by Destination Asia is preparing to launch the first of our expedition-specific country features, covering a broad range of information and interests such as photography, natural history, arts and culture, nature and active exploration – all filled with first hand local know-how and information including navigational coordinates, CIQ information as well as product possibilities. For more information and to be the first to receive a copy of our country-specific expedition features, please contact Alvin Materi at:
[email protected]