Tauck World Discovery christened the Swiss Sapphire river cruise ship in Antwerp, Belgium, on April 3, making it the second river cruise ship to carry the Tauck name.
Lee Tauck, Chairman Arthur Tauck Jr.’s ex-wife and mother of five Tauck children (the third generation of the family-owned and operated tour business) was the Swiss Sapphire’s godmother.
Lee Tauck christened the ship during a ceremony attended by daughter Kiki Tauck-Mahar and Kiki’s husband, Dan Mahar, Tauck’s CEO and board director; daughter Liz Tauck Walters, a board director and managing director of Tauck’s nonprofit arm, the Tauck Foundation; and sons Chuck and Peter Tauck, both former executives at Tauck who left the company to pursue personal interests.
Antwerp Vice Mayor Philip Heylen spoke at the christening ceremony, welcoming the Swiss Sapphire as well as the booming river cruise business to the Belgian city.
Also in attendance were members of the Reitsma family, a ship-building family that built the Sapphire as well as Tauck’s first ship, the Swiss Emerald, launched in May 2006.
The 361-foot-long, 37-foot-wide Sapphire can carry up to 118 passengers in its 59 outside-facing cabins. The ship’s 14 suites, located on the top Diamond Deck, are all 300 square feet and include sliding-glass doors, walk-in closets and bathtubs as well as standing showers. The remaining 45 cabins range between 150 and 183 square feet.
All cabins have a plasma television, mini-bar, radio, safe, air conditioning, hair dryer, terrycloth robes and L’Occitane toiletries.
The Sapphire features a whirlpool, fitness center, massage treatment room, gift shop, restaurant, the Lido Bar (a more casual dining alternative to the restaurant, located at the stern of the ship) and a bar and lounge. The ship also has Wi-Fi Internet access as well as Internet access on a common computer in the Lido Bar. Laundry and ironing services are available onboard.
Beer is complementary with lunch and wine with dinner.
The new river ship will sail six itineraries in 2008: the 15-day Budapest to Amsterdam; the 13-day Blue Danube; the 12-day Budapest to the Black Sea; the 24-day Grand European Cruise; the 10-day Holland and Belgium in Spring; and the 20-day Prague to the Black Sea.
To contact reporter Michelle Baran, send e-mail to [email protected].