Crystal = 'World's Best Large-Ship Cruise Line'

[Jason]

Crystal Cruises Wins 11 Consecutive Years of Travel + Leisure's Readers' Poll for 'World's Best Large-Ship Cruise Line'

Unmatched Record of #1 Wins in the Cruise Industry

LOS ANGELES, July 10 /PRNewswire/ -- For an 11th consecutive year, Crystal Cruises has been voted the "World's Best Large-Ship Cruise Line" in Travel + Leisure magazine's annual readers' survey. Crystal Cruises is the only cruise line, resort or hotel -- and one of only three travel companies -- to have won the prestigious award each year since the awards' inception.

"Travel + Leisure readers have an eye for style and excellence. We are enormously pleased that Crystal Cruises' unparalleled formula of choices, space, quality and service is so consistently voted best in class by these savviest of travelers," says Gregg Michel, president, Crystal Cruises. "With reputation a key factor in making a travel decision, this is an important validation. I am very proud of the tremendous efforts, consistency of execution and talents of our shipboard and shore-side staff."

Travel + Leisure Editor-in-Chief Nancy Novogrod referred to the awards as "a powerful gauge of the interests and tastes of sophisticated travelers."

Crystal Cruises' luxurious, award-winning fleet consists of the 940-guest, 50,000-ton Crystal Symphony and 1,080-guest, 68,000-ton Crystal Serenity, which cruise worldwide on itineraries of seven to 109 days.

[schatje]

Crystal is not for the average traveler because of the cost but it must be nice to beable to travel in luxury.

[Joanandjoe]

What's the competition? Unless you regard Cunard as being a luxury line for its upper class PAX, Crystal is the only luxury line that uses large ships. Regent has 700 PAX ships, but that's not considered a large ship. Everyone else in the luxury field-Seabourn, Sea Dream, Silversea-uses ships with under 300 PAX.

We may try Crystal some day if the price is right, even if it lacks some of the things that other luxury ships have, such as flexible dining, drinks included, no tipping, etc. Until they got rid of their oldest ship, Crystal was the only luxury line with inside cabins. They're still the only luxury line that has lots of "obstructed view" cabins. Having said that, they are supposed to have excellent food and service, and the only large scale shows on luxury liners.