Cruise & Ferry Review - Autumn/Winter 2021

4 4 Crystal River Cruises’ vessels have resumed service on the Rhine INTERV IEW Time to shine Crystal’s Jack Anderson discusses the outlook for the luxury cruise line with Rebecca Barnes I n a post-pandemic world, there’s no doubt that luxury cruise ships have certain advantages over mainstream lines, namely fewer passengers and an abundance of space. The luxury sector has certainly not been immune to the challenges of the past 18 months, however, but thanks to the loyalty of Crystal’s guests and crew, the line’s president Jack Anderson is optimistic about the future. “This has been an unprecedented time in the cruise industry as we continue to deal with the impacts of Covid-19,” he says. “However, we are blessed to have the most loyal following of guests and the devotion goes both ways. We refer to ourselves as the Crystal Family – the meaningful connections between our guests and crew are one of the things I love most about Crystal.” With things changing day to day, one of the greatest challenges, says Anderson, has been navigating the landscape of guidelines and regulations for each country and port. “There has been a tremendous amount of collaboration with our destination partners to ensure that we are aligned on the requirements for each country, and that we are helping to manage the process and logistics for guests,” he explains. “We have learned that you must be flexible and ready to pivot to keep up with the changes. We have always worked closely with our shoreside partners, but we have found these close working relationships to be more critical than ever.” The health and safety of everyone onboard, both guests and crew, is a top priority. Crystal has been working with the latest data and recommendations by “ There was tremendous pent-up desire to return to Crystal”