By
Rebecca Gibson |
Meyer Werft has laid the keel for Saga Cruises’ new Spirit of Adventure, the second of two boutique newbuilds that will join the fleet by 2020.
Held at Meyer Werft’s yard in Papenburg, Germany on 3 June, the keel-laying ceremony marks the official start of the construction project for the 999-passenger ship. Executives placed a commemorative coin stamped with Spirit of Adventure’s name, keel-laying date and her identification marker (S715) under the first keel block. The 58,250gt ship will eventually have 54 keel blocks and be 774.3 feet long and 102.4 feet wide.
“These are exciting times for Saga and the occasion marks a key stage in the construction of our second newbuild cruise ship,” said Robin Shaw, CEO Saga Travel. “Our decision to build two new boutique cruise ships – Spirit of Discovery and Spirit of Adventure – for our guests heralds a new era in the history of Saga cruising. We are proud to be working with Meyer Werft again, and it will be an honour and a pleasure, to celebrate the delivery of this ship in summer 2020.”
Spirit of Discovery and Spirit of Adventure are the first small, luxury ships to be built by a British company, for the British market in more than four decades. The former is completing sea trials ahead of her delivery on 20 June 2019, while the latter will debut in summer 2020.