Top Headlines

All Leisure group buys UK tour company Page & Moy

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 16 May 2012 16 May 2012

All Leisure group PLC, the UK based destinatiional cruise shipping group, says it has reached an agreement with the shareholders of Page & Moy Travel Group Limited to acquire, on a debt free basis, 100% of the share capital of Page & Moy Travel Group The consideration will be a total of £4.2 million, before deduction of Page & Moy Travel Group’s transaction costs, payable in cash, All Leisure group said in a statement.

Page & Moy Travel Group, a leading tour operator offering holidays to a wide range of overseas destinations, has been offering a broad range of holidays, including touring holidays, city breaks, river and ocean cruises, safaris and classic rail journeys to the over-55s for more than 50 years. It currently trades under 3 brands, Travelsphere, Page & Moy and Just You, selling predominantly directly to its passengers from its dedicated call centre in Market Harborough. In the year to 30 November 2011 the group carried c. 88,000 passengers across its three brands.

All Leisure has a consistent strategy which is to achieve growth by exploiting the increasing demand for destination-led cruise holidays and by providing an increasing choice of other niche holiday products into the over-55 English speaking market. The Directors believe that the Group's chosen niche markets have a number of fundamental attractions:

• Significant barriers to entry. The Directors believe that a growing focus by regulators on safety and consumer protection is raising the barriers to entry for those wishing to enter the Group's markets. This is benefiting established brands with strong balance sheets.

• High levels of repeat business. The Group enjoys significant repeat passenger business, underlining the benefits of customer loyalty.

In realising this strategy, organic growth opportunities will be complemented by strategic acquisitions, reinforcing existing positions as well as increasing All Leisure’s exposure to new and attractive markets.

The Board believes that the acquisition of Page & Moy Travel Group is wholly aligned with this strategy and has excellent commercial rationale, as it both reinforces the Group’s existing positions, offering holidays to customers in the same age profile, and increases All Leisure’s exposure to new markets. The advantages of this transaction include, but are not limited to:

- Page & Moy Travel Group has a large UK customer database which is compatible with All Leisure’s. The enlarged group will have access to a list of nearly 4 million households (mainly 55 and over) and this is expected to lower the cost of customer acquisition

- Opportunities for greater cross selling across brands, particularly to fill All Leisure’s expanded cruise programme

- Reducing dependency on the cruise market, and introducing more balanced global destinations such as China and North America

- Providing numerous synergies across the two businesses - Strong use of scheduled flights will reduce transport costs for fly cruises. Majority of enlarged business will be direct and with both All Leisure and Page & Moy Travel

Group having high level of repeat business.

In the year to 30 November 2011, Page & Moy Travel Group’s revenue was £107.6 million an operating loss of £5.6m and, following the one-off impairment in full of the company’s goodwill of £35.6 million, a loss before tax of £45.1 million. The financial statements for the year ended 30 November 2011 were signed on completion of the deal and will be filed at Companies House within the statutory time limits.

STX Europe warns Cruise & Ferry recovery may take longer than foreseen

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 14 May 2012 14 May 2012

Recovery of its Cruise & Ferry business area may take longer than foreseen, warns STX Europe, the Oslo based unit of the South Korean STX Business Group.

The company builds cruise liners and ferries at two yards in Finland, which it owns in full plus at one in France, in which it has a 66% stake. The Cruise & Ferries business area of the group generated an EBITDA of NOK5 million in the first quarter, an improvement from a figure negative by NOK20 million in the same period last year.

“STX Europe still believes that the industry fundamentals are moving in the right direction, but that the improvements are slower than expected. The market is challenging as the general economic climate continues to influence customers’ decisions especially in relation to new building projects despite an increased interest within the market,” the company said in a statement

The operations of the Cruise & Ferries business area are not satisfactory on an overall basis for the quarter, and there are still challenges for the year ahead due to low order intake.

Accordingly, both STX Finland and STX France are strongly focusing on securing new orders and continuing the improvement programmes initiated in 2010 to improve competitiveness. This includes increased efforts within the other market segments such as vessels for naval operations, offshore related constructions and renewable energy/wind constructions.

The shipbuilding industry and current market situation is quite challenging, especially within the cruise and ferries segment. There are several potential new building projects, but the order activity is constrained by the limitations of funding and the overcapacity within the market, the company said.

Costa Atlantica to join Costa Victoria in Asia 2013

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 14 May 2012 14 May 2012

Costa Crociere, the Italian unit in Carnival Corp & plc group, will double its capacity in Asia in 2013 by sending the 85,700 gross Costa Atlantica to operate cruises from Singapore, Shanghai, Tianjin and Hong Kong, the Italian news agency ANSA reports. Costa Atlantica will start cruising in the Asian region in May 2013, whereby Costa Crociere will offer 5,074 berths there on the two ships. The company has operated cruises in Asia since 2006 and it has carried about 350,000 passengers in the region, ANSA said.

Oceania Cruises christens Riviera in Barcelona

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 12 May 2012 12 May 2012

Oceania Cruises christened Riviera, the newest entry in the upper-premium cruise ship market, during an invitation-only, gala ceremony in Barcelona on Friday, May 11. The ship's godmother, Chef Cat Cora, the restaurateur, humanitarian, author, and co-host of Bravo's new "Around the World in 80 Plates," named the ship, joined by Deacon Ricardo Rodriguez-Martos of the Barcelona's Apostleship of the Sea, who bestowed the traditional blessings.

The national anthems of the U.S. and Spain, together with a Catalan flamenco performance and a duet of "Barcelona" performed by Soprano Alina Furman and Tenor Giorgio Olmo set a festive atmosphere for the ceremony.

Nearly 1,300 guests, including Xavier Trias, Mayor of Barcelona; Sixte Cambra, president of the Port of Barcelona and Jose Alberto Carbonell, director of the Port of Barcelona, were in attendance. Frank J. Del Rio, the line's founder and chairman, and Kunal S. Kamlani, the line's president, presided over festivities that concluded with a 15-liter Nebuchadnezzar of Champagne (weighing some 114 kilos), custom-made by Veuve Clicquot, commemoratively breaking against the ship's hull.

"Today, the baton as the world's premiere ship has passed to Riviera," said Del Rio. "When asked, I've repeatedly said that it was going to be hard to improve on Marina's perfection, but I didn't say it would be impossible. And we have done just that - improved on perfection."

In thanking the invited guests, local hosts and dignitaries in attendance, Kamlani noted that Barcelona, a city renowned for its charm, diversity of cultures, art and design, was the ideal setting for the christening as, "Riviera is a work of art herself, and designed to bring the beauty of the world to our guests." Barcelona also holds a special significance for Oceania Cruises as the line's first ship, Regatta, was named in Barcelona in 2003.

Like Marina, her sister ship, Riviera also features a Bon Appétit Culinary Center, a Canyon Ranch SpaClub®, luxurious suites by Dakota Jackson, Ralph Lauren Home-furnished Owner's Suites, and a grand Lalique staircase lit from above by a dazzling, custom-made chandelier. Her distinguishing features include a museum-worthy collection of fine art focusing on the works of some of Latin America's most accomplished and admired contemporary artists and an Artist Loft with hands-on instruction.

Following the christening cruise, Riviera begins a 10-day maiden voyage from Venice to Athens, departing on May 16, 2011. From May 16 through November 29, 2012, she will offer a total of 20 Mediterranean voyages, calling at ports in France, Italy, Greece, Spain, Portugal and Turkey as well as Israel, Croatia, Cyprus, Montenegro, Morocco and Monaco, with maiden calls in Cephalonia (Argostoli), Motril (Granada) and the Canary Islands.

Dr. Jan Meyer is new Managing Director of Meyer Werft

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 08 May 2012 08 May 2012

The Meyer Werft shipyard's management team of managing directors Bernard Meyer and Lambert Kruse has welcome a new member. May 01, 2012, Dr. Jan Meyer joined the management as a third managing director. With this, the yard's management will be rejuvenated and extended in order to meet the challenges of the hard international competition.

In the long term, the family business Meyer Werft, founded in 1795 and in the hands of the Meyer family for six generations, is preparing the handover to the seventh generation. Dr. Jan Meyer has been working for the family-owned business since 2008, most recently as the head of the Technical Offices for the entire construction process of the cruise vessels. This task will now be taken over by Mr. Philip Gennotte, who used to be the project manager for the Disney cruise ships built by Meyer Werft.