Crystal Cruises’ 1,080-passenger Crystal Serenity has emerged from a $17 million redesign, boasting new penthouses and dramatically transformed indoor/outdoor casual dining spaces.
The Lido Cafe was demolished and rebuilt to increase space for all-new service and seating areas. The dining area has been redesigned — buffet counters have been replaced with modern food islands, and more tables for two and a new open kitchen and bakery have been installed. Custom-made ceramics, gold leaf-speckled mosaic tile from Italy, internally lit sculptures and bronze pendant lights create a romantic ambience.
Serenity’s indoor pool and surrounding dining areas were removed to create new indoor/outdoor casual dining and lounging spaces with expansive ocean views. Dining options include a Tastes restaurant with an open kitchen, a Scoops ice cream bar, a Tastes Bar and a Trident Grill. In the evening, Tastes becomes a casual eatery, featuring a global menu that was created in association with Sapphire Restaurants in Laguna Beach, Calif. The space is subdivided by garden walls, olive trees and an herb garden used by Crystal chefs. A retractable glass ceiling provides cover for the outdoor seating area.
The interiors of the Crystal Penthouse residences were also completely reconfigured. The dining area is now adjacent to the penthouse’s floor-to-ceiling windows, providing ocean views, and the private outdoor deck and the former dining room have been converted into a den/library/media room with a sleeper sofa and closet.
In a first for the cruise industry, Crystal transformed 70 of Serenity’s deluxe verandah staterooms into hypoallergenic accommodations, with a seven-step patented air and surface purification process in each room to remove allergens and reduce the risk of irritants. A medical-grade air purifier was installed to filter out 99.9 percent of all airborne impurities.
The newly transformed Serenity will sail Crystal’s annual World Cruise, an 89-day cruise from Los Angeles to London, starting Jan. 18.
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