By
Rebecca Gibson |
Fan Min has been appointed as chairman and CEO of SkySea Cruise Line, a new joint venture between Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd and Ctrip.com International.
Min, who currently serves as CEO of Ctrip, will oversee the management of the new cruise line, which will be targeted at the Chinese market.
Royal Caribbean and Ctrip will each own 35% of the new company, with the balance being owned by SkySea management and a private equity fund. The transaction was expected to close before the end of November, while sales and marketing activities have commenced.
“By cooperating strategically with Royal Caribbean, we will be able to tailor the best cruise ship experiences to the needs of Chinese customers,” said Min. “Skysea Cruise Line will definitely become the pillar of the rapidly-developing Chinese cruise ship market.”
In September, Royal Caribbean revealed it would sell Celebrity Century, which has been operated by its subsidiary Celebrity Cruises since December 1995, to Ctrip’s holding company Exquisite Marine. The vessel will begin service in March 2015, while Ctrip aims to build the fleet gradually to meet the demands of its customers.