By
Anthony Pearce |
“These are indeed exciting times for Dream Cruises and I feel deeply honoured to be entrusted to lead and take this journey together with my fellow colleagues in growing the Dream Cruises brand in Asia and beyond,” says Michael Goh, the new president of Dream Cruises and head of international sales at Genting Cruise Lines.
Based in Singapore, Goh reports to Kent Zhu, president of Genting Cruise Lines, the operator that counts Dream Cruises, Crystal Cruises and Star Cruises among its brands. Its parent company, Genting Hong Kong, also operates Resorts World Manila and the MV Werften shipyards in Germany, which will build new ships for Dream Cruises. Goh takes the helm at an exciting time for the line, which is aimed at the Asian market, saying that the line began “its global aspirations in 2019, sailing beyond Asia for the very first time with our pathfinder ship, Explorer Dream, in Australia and New Zealand.”
“I’m looking forward to the new possibilities and opportunities as we create new milestones in driving the growth of the Dream Cruises brand through our expanding fleet, extensive unique offerings and wider footprint beyond Asia,” he adds.
Goh notes that Dream Cruises has launched three ships since introducing its first, Genting Dream, in November 2016. World Dream debuted in November 2017 and Explorer Dream in April 2019. The first two were originally ordered for Star Cruises and are in the same category as Norwegian Cruise Line’s Breakaway-class, while Explorer Dream was built in 1999 as SuperStar Virgo, also for Star Cruises. Next to join the fleet in 2021 will be Global Dream, a 208,000gt Global-class ship that is the first to be purpose-built for Dream Cruises by MV Werften. A yet-to-be-named sister ship will join the fleet in 2022.
Goh, who has been at Genting Hong Kong for almost 20 years, is well placed to oversee this period of growth. “[This time] has enabled me to develop a comprehensive and growing understanding of the cruise and travel industry from the business landscape to the operations, sales and marketing and other sections of the company,” he says.
“Most importantly, I understand the DNA of the group as I have been part of that DNA for two decades. I am proud to say no other company understands Asian cruisers like we do and at the very core, what puts Dream Cruises ahead of its competitors is our commitment and ability to offer quality and unique products and services that are Asian at heart and international in spirit.”
Goh adds: “The future is global and Dream Cruises is living the dream as we continue to expand beyond Asia.” One of his immediate priorities as president of Dream Cruises has been to ensure the line boosts demand and expands its reach with the current fleet across the region and beyond, in anticipation of the added capacity of the Global-class ships in 2021 and 2022.
“By 2022 with the completion of the second Global-class ship, Dream Cruises’ five-ship fleet will be the youngest and most modern in the world,” says Goh. “As the only global cruise line with all ‘Made in Germany’ cruise ships, Dream Cruises’ fleet will feature the highest safety standards, build quality, speed, power and luxury finishes.
“Dream Cruises is also excited to begin a new chapter in its story with its Global-class ships, which will allow us to take Asian travellers around the world on grand voyages within Asia and also to Australia, New Zealand, the Baltic Sea and the Mediterranean in the near future.”
The current older ships will continue to provide a stellar service too. “In 2020, Genting Dream will continue to homeport year-round in Singapore, sailing to new destinations like Christmas Island in Australia and Belitung in Indonesia, as well as popular hotspots in Phuket, Penang, Palawan, Langkawi, Kota Kinabalu, Koh Samui and more.”
This article was first published in the Spring/Summer 2020 issue of Cruise & Ferry Review. All information was correct at the time of printing, but may since have changed.
Subscribe to Cruise & Ferry Review for FREE here to get the next issue delivered directly to your inbox or your door.