FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Silversea Cruises contracted with the T.
Mariotti shipyard in Genoa, Italy, to build two all-suites vessels.
The ships are slated for delivery in July 2000 and May 2001. The
combined cost for the new builds exceeds $300 million, the line
said.
At the same time, the Florida-based luxury cruise operator took
options for two additional ships to be delivered in 2002 and
2003.
T. Mariotti was the builder of the line's current fleet --
Silver Cloud and Silver Wind.
The ordered vessels will weigh 25,000 tons and carry 396
passengers -- bigger than Silver Cloud and Silver Wind, each of
which is in the 16,800-tons, 296-passenger range. More than 85% of
the new ships' 198 staterooms will have private verandas.
Like their predecessors in the Silversea fleet, both will offer
one-seating dining, with an alternative, smaller theme restaurant.
Among the features in the design of the new ships are a computer
center, a conference center and a cigar lounge.
As was the case with Silver Cloud and Silver Wind, the hulls of
the new builds will be laid at the Francesco Visentini Yard in
nearby Donada and the construction of the interiors of the ships
completed at the Mariotti premises.
The line's current fleet operates worldwide itineraries. Silver
Cloud sails the waters of South America, the Caribbean, Africa,
Mexico, Hawaii, the British Isles, northern Europe, New England and
Canada, while Silver Wind offers itineraries featuring South
Africa, India, Southeast Asia, the Mediterranean and the South
Pacific.