By
Rebecca Gibson |
Genting Hong Kong has contracted long-time partner Almaco Group to outfit the cabins and crew areas onboard two new Global Class ships that are being built for its Dream Cruises brand.
In signing one of its largest contracts to date, Almaco has agreed to install and outfit almost 1,000 cabins for crew and passengers, as well various crew public areas and staircases on the ships. Almaco will immediately head to MV Werften’s shipyard in Germany to start work on the first of the two 204,000gt ships, which will be delivered by 2020. The second vessel will be completed in 2021.
“Almaco has been a close partner of the Genting Group supporting all the brands throughout the past 20 years,” said Esko Karvonen, Almaco’s president and CEO. “Almaco has been involved in the modernisation and building of galleys and cabins on the Star Cruises fleet, on both Dream Cruises newbuilds, as well as on recently delivered Crystal Cruises’ river ships, and we are strengthening the partnership even further with this latest contract.”
Designed to accommodate around 5,000 passengers, the Global Class ships will feature accommodation and onboard venues and innovations that reflect the tastes of Asian passengers. They will include a cineplex, theme park, Asian spa, multiple Asian dining experiences, fast-casual food alternatives, shopping facilities, and the cruise industry’s first-ever escalators. Dream Cruises will also harness artificial intelligence (AI) to offer facial recognition when embarking and disembarking passengers, and when taking onboard payments. AI will also be used to provide contextual marketing across ship facilities.