Avalon Waterways is gearing up to unveil two more Suite Ships this May, at which time the company will christen the Avalon Vista and the Avalon Visionary. Like its prototype, the Panorama, the new vessels each have two full decks of suites, making a total of 185 Panorama and Royal Suites in the Avalon fleet for agents to sell. The suites measure 200 and 300 square feet respectively. While the Avalon Vista is a sister ship to the Avalon Panorama, Avalon Visionary is smaller with 52 suites; she will be deployed on Avalon’s most popular eight-day Rhine River itinerary, while Vista will offer 11- to 15-day cruises on the Danube.
Suites on all three ships have large seating areas adjacent to a wall-to-wall window. The opened 10-by-7-foot, floor-to-ceiling window transforms the entire suite into an open-air balcony.
Enhancements for the new class of vessels include premium L’Occitane products, marble bathrooms and Avalon-branded deluxe bedding. Fitness rooms onboard the Panorama, the Visionary and the Vista are larger, with additional equipment. As with all of the ships in Avalon’s fleet, the new ships have a club, a main lounge, a dining room, a hair salon, a Sky Deck fun pool and an open-air Bistro for outdoor, grilled lunches.
Nicole Mazza executive vice president and chief marketing officer of Travelsavers and Nest publisher, will serve as the Visionary’s godmother.
“After more than 14 years with The American Marketing Group (AMG), I have established and implemented marketing programs to boost sales for our 4,000 travel agency base,” said Mazza. “And one of the most exciting – and inspired – areas of leisure travel sales is happening in river cruising. I’m thrilled to deepen my support of this travel style by becoming the Avalon Visionary’s godmother.”
Mazza has been instrumental in developing AMG’s consumer and trade publishing division. Under her guidance as publisher, The Affluent Traveler (an international luxury travel magazine) and Journeys magazine (a vacation travel magazine) have received awards. Her previous publishing background includes an editorial position at CMP Publications.
Vista will be christened by Canada travel industry insider Vanessa Lee, owner and publisher of the upscale Cruise and Travel Lifestyles Magazine and president and CEO of Cruise Strategies Ltd. (a strategic sales and marketing organization promoting cruising and luxury travel). She is also a partner in Rising Tide Strategic Media, a multifaceted travel media company encompassing television, web and print, celebrates her 35th year in the travel industry this year.
The Visionary and the Vista are Avalon’s 12th and 13th new ships in Europe since 2004. The Visionary will introduce Panorama Suites to the Rhine on the eight-day Romantic Rhine itinerary (starting at $1,849) as well as several Christmastime cruises. The Vista will sail the 11-day Legendary Danube cruise (starting at $1,839) and the 13-day Blue Danube Discovery (priced from $2,249) as well as the 15-day Magnificent Europe itinerary.
“Like the very rivers we travel, Avalon is continually moving forward, making improvements and embracing the world beyond,” said Patrick Clark, managing director of Avalon Waterways. “And it’s this approach – our drive to exceed guest expectations by pushing the boundaries of the river cruise experience – that makes us not only the most contemporary cruise line on Europe’s waters, but also the most consistent.”
The Details
Avalon Waterwayswww.avalonwaterways.com
