Oceania Cruises takes delivery of newbuild from Fincantieri

Oceania Cruises yesterday officially took delivery of Marina, its first newbuild cruise ship. The handover took place at Fincantieri’s Sestri Ponente shipyard near Genoa, where a sister ship, Riviera, is currently under construction for delivery in April 2012.

Oceania Cruises, with headquarters in Miami, is owned by Prestige Cruise Holdings. Prestige Cruise Holdings was formed in 2007 to manage select assets in Apollo Management’s cruise investment portfolio and offers nearly 4,000 berths between the Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises brands, a number the company expects will grow to approximately 6,500 berths by mid-2012 with the addition of the two Fincantieri deliveries.

The 66,000 grt, 1,250 passenger, 15 deck Marina is an upper premium vessel with a length of 782 feet, breadth of 105 feet and draft of 24 feet. Cruising speed is 20 knots. The ship has two controllable twin-screw pitch propellers, fin stabilizers and bow thrusters.

Marina promises to become a favorite among foodies. It offers no less than ten dining alternatives, including Master Chef Jacques Pepin’s first namesake restaurant at sea.

The Bon Appetit Culinary Center  -  the only one of its kind at sea, the culinary center aboard Marina features 24 fully equipped workstations so guests get a hands-on learning experience. A roster of master chefs and rising culinary stars will be hand-selected by Bon Appetit magazine.

According to Frank Del Rio, the founder of Oceania Cruises and chairman & CEO of parent company Prestige Cruise Holdings, “Marina is unlike any ship built in the past 50 years and is destined to be a game-changer in the industry. The superb gourmet restaurants and exquisite residential interiors reflect the best of what makes Oceania Cruises such an unrivaled experience.”

“The new Marina is not only beautiful, but one of the most elegant ships we have built in the last years,” stated Giuseppe Bono, CEO of Fincantieri.

The new flagship of the Oceania Cruises fleet will set sail on her maiden voyage from Barcelona, Spain, on January 22. When she arrives in Miami on February 4, she is expected to receive a celebratory welcome that will last through the weekend.

January 20, 2011