Why they kept building Cruise Ships during the Pandemic?

Learn how long it takes to build a cruise ship. Find out why cruise lines kept ordering, building and accepting brand new cruise ships into their fleet in 2020/2021, even when there are no passengers to cruise on them due to the Cruise Shutdown! Here’s a link to my 2020 video about New Build cruise ships: https://youtu.be/vnu9umQwnuE Here's a link to my video about scrapped cruise ships: https://youtu.be/1UyiCaEKWJI Here's a link to Stephen Payne's QM2 Book: https://amzn.to/2NXqYef (not sponsored) Here's a link to Stephen Payne's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/navalarch2 (not sponsored) ▶ SUBSCRIBE for regular cruise ship updates & maritime history: https://bit.ly/38BR2DK​ ▶ READ: My Maritime History books: https://bit.ly/3nISs3w​ ▶ COLOUR IN: Cunard & P&O Cruises Colouring Books: https://bit.ly/3nISs3w​ ▶ FOLLOW ME on Instagram: https://bit.ly/3qg1AOR​ ▶ CONNECT WITH ME on Facebook: https://bit.ly/39sBKQP​ ▶ CHECK OUT my Cunard history website: https://www.chriscunard.com/​ ▶ LEARN MORE about me: https://www.chrisframe.com.au/​ In this video you will learn: ▶ How brand new Cruise Ships are ordered: New cruise ships are ordered years in advance of their delivery. The cruise ships being built and delivered during the cruising shutdown were ordered years ago. ▶ What steps are involved in ordering, designing and building a cruise ship: At a cost of over US$900m ordering a cruise ship like Iona isn’t something that’s done on a whim. Iona is a vital part of the long-term fleet renewal at P&O. The cruise ship was ordered in September 2016. The ship is an excellence-class cruise ship – many of which have been ordered for various Carnival Corp brands, the interior is unique to Iona, so time is spent completing interior designs and other design work even after the ship has been ordered. For a ship which is first in class, or on a one-off design such as QM2, this process can take a bit longer as cruise ship designers work to perfect the dimensions, stability and performance of the ship. ▶ What other components are involved in building a cruise ship: Heavy engineering items for example, can have long lead times, so things like engines, stabilisers, thrusters, generators and air-conditioning units need to be ordered, built and delivered quite often before the shipyard can start putting the ship together. ▶ What impact COVID and the Cruise Shutdown has had on cruise ship's being delivered: Cruise ships were due to enter service during 2020. Due to the pandemic, that hasn’t happened yet. The cruise pause has impacted new cruise ships such as Carnival Mardi Gras, Iona, Scarlet Lady, Celebrity Apex and Enchanted Princess. ▶ How shipyard and ship building delays have impacted the delivery of new cruise ships: With many of the major shipyards in Europe, there have been numerous delays in the construction of cruise ships. Normally this would be bad for cruise lines, but given the shutdown it’s actually – in a strange way – worked out for them because there’s absolutely no rush to accept and finish paying for new ships while the industry is shut down. ▶ Why new cruise ships are still being ordered in 2021: Viking Cruises is an example - their newest order for an Egyptian based river cruise ship reflects the fact that river cruising has already having an easier time than ocean cruising – thanks largely to the smaller ships, fewer passengers and limited itineraries that don’t need to – in many cases – cross international borders… all working together to make river cruising seem even more likely to rebound strongly in a post-pandemic world. ▶ Why cruise lines haven't cancelled new cruise ship orders: Cruise ships are still being built even while older ships are scrapped because cruise lines need the new ships for their long term future – and they’re not being cancelled because there is strong confidence in the industry rebounding once the pandemic is brought under control. Photographic Acknowledgements: Image support thanks to: Andrew Sassoli-Walker - https://www.solentphotographer.com Render of Iona: P&O Cruises. First Thumbnail Image: Celebrity Edge - Andrew Sassoli-Walker Alt. Thumbnail: Iona (courtesy P&O Cruises). Music: YouTube Audio. #cruisenews #cruiseship #cruiseline