Cruise & Ferry Review - Spring/Summer 2021

6 8 INTERV IEW Sophisticated elegance In November this year, the classic British cruise ship Minerva will be reborn. Jon Ingleton asks Swan Hellenic’s Andrea Zito how he is reviving the vessel’s original expedition cultural spirit W hen All Leisure ceased trading back in 2017, the cruise industry lost Minerva, an iconic ship with a rich heritage. Four years on and Andrea Zito, the man who managed the original Minerva during his time with V-Ships in the 1990s, is bringing back the Minerva spirit. Minerva’s rebirth comes following the wider renaissance of the Swan Hellenic brand. “I knew the brand deeply, having being involved with it in my time with V-Ships,” explains Zito, who is now CEO of Swan Hellenic. “We were delighted when the brand became available – we managed to secure control early this year.” Originally established in the 1950s, Swan Hellenic earned a reputation for being quite different to commercial cruise lines. An expedition brand through and through, it frequently visited unusual destinations, affording guests the opportunity to explore places that at the time remained unknown to the intrepid traveller. “At that time, such a journey was indeed an adventure – and it appealed to a lot of academics, lovers of history and people willing to enrich their lives through travel,” says Zito. “The brand was incredibly successful, and eventually built the Minerva vessel in the mid-1990s. Its light ice-class hull allowed the vessel to perform several expeditions in Antarctica and in the Iceland-Greenland Arctic regions.” It’s the totality of this heritage that Zito wants to revive. “Bringing back the original expedition cultural spirit is an incredible opportunity, and will allow us to differentiate from others. We want to take our guests to see what others don’t,” he explains. This is no exaggeration. While traditional expedition companies tend to “ Bringing back the original expedition cultural spirit is an incredible opportunity”