EasyCruise
Encyclopedia
EasyCruise is an enterprise of Greek ferry operator Hellenic Seaways
, sold to them in August 2009 for £9 million by founder and Cypriot
/British
business man, Stelios Haji-Ioannou
. EasyCruise launched their first cruise ship
EasyCruiseOne
in 2005. EasyCruise is registered in Liberia
.
, who has a family background in shipping, decided to form a budget cruise line which he hoped would mirror the success of his budget travel airline, easyJet
.
In April 2004, the initial ship was acquired for an approach to cruising that was aimed at attracting younger customers who wished to spend the majority of their time on shore rather than on board a megaship. The ship would offer the barest of amenities, allowing very cheap prices to be advertised. Value would be added by charging separately for each service aboard which is normally included in the quoted price of other cruise liners. Given the minimal facilities on board, the ship would position from port to port at night or in the early morning as the passengers slept, in order to allow the maximum time in each port ashore.
After a few months of negotiation and refurbishment, the ship, formerly known as Neptune 2, was renamed EasyCruiseOne. On 9 May 2005, the ship finally left for her maiden voyage.
, Cannes
, Nice
, Monaco
, Imperia
, Genoa
and Portofino
in the summer. For Summer 2007 EasyCruise relocated to the Greek Islands for a 14-night itinerary taking in the ports of Piraeus
(Athens), Mykonos
, Paros
, Sifnos
, Poros
, Spetses
, Milos
, Ios
, Amorgos
, Naxos, Folegandros
and Serifos
. Previously it was possible to join the ship at any port and stay for a minimum of 2, to a maximum of 14 nights, but now you can embark solely at the port of Piraeus
where it visits three times in the 14 nights. Therefore you can create a cruise for either 3, 4, 7, 10 or 14 nights. For the winter season EasyCruise has travelled to the Caribbean calling at Barbados
, St Vincent
, Martinique
, Bequia
, Grenada
and St Lucia in 2005-2006, and for Winter 2006-2007 EasyCruiseOne sailed a 1-week itinerary calling at St. Maarten, St. Kitts, Antigua
, Nevis
, St. Barts and Anguilla
calling at St. Maarten twice.
Until August 17, 2007; a second boat, EasyCruiseTwo, a converted river freighter, had a route around the Netherlands, Flanders
, and Belgium
, visiting the cities of Amsterdam
, Rotterdam
, Antwerp and Brussels
.
Prices vary according to cabin type and demand. In a departure from the model employed by EasyJet
it is possible to book via travel agents as well as direct through the EasyCruise website.
For the original fitting of easyCruise One, the cabins were pre-constructed ashore, and time saved by not having to measure the position of portholes and cut matching window spaces. This resulted in none of the interior cabins being fitted with windows - although four "balcony suites" had glass doors leading onto outside balconies. Problems were encountered with the integral shower and toilet cubical design, with the shower water failing to drain correctly and spilling into the rest of the cabin. Passengers also found it difficult to deal with the unremitting orange colour scheme and lack of cabin windows. The shower cubicals were fitted with small barriers, partitioning the shower floor from the rest of the shower/toilet cubical, providing a cheap but adequate fix to the flooding problem.
After the concept was considered proven the ship was refitted, the ubiquitous orange interior was toned down to mere orange accents with charcoal and grey tones and window spaces were cut for the interior cabins. The hull of the ship was repainted from orange to black with orange accents. This theme was continued on "easyCruise Life", currently easyCruise's only ship.
Cabin cleaning and changing of towels and bedding was not included in the base price but could be purchased on board as required, or arranged at a discounted rate at time of booking. For 2009, daily maid service is included in all rates. Prices also now include half board, with breakfast and either lunch or dinner available to guests.
, which was screened on Sky3 in the UK on Friday nights and in the US on The Travel Channel. 'Cruise With Stelios' was broadcast in Belgium (Flanders) as 'Cruiseline' on the public broadcaster 'één
'
In February 2008 EasyCruise made public their plans to sell the EasyCruise One due to "not having enough space", and replacing her with a ship of similar size to the EasyCruise Life.
In August 2009 the single-ship cruise line was sold to Greek ferry operator Hellenic Seaways
for £9 million. Their sole ship was moved to Blue Ocean Cruises to operate as the Ocean Life.
Hellenic Seaways
Hellenic Seaways is a Greek shipping company operating passenger and freight ferry services in the Aegean and Adriatic Seas. The company is owned by Cyprus based Sea Star Capital Plc.-History:...
, sold to them in August 2009 for £9 million by founder and Cypriot
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
/British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
business man, Stelios Haji-Ioannou
Stelios Haji-Ioannou
Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou , born 14 February 1967) is a British entrepreneur of Greek Cypriot origin, currently a resident of Monaco. He is the scion of a wealthy, shipowning family, but is best known for setting up easyJet, a highly successful and profitable low-cost airline, with start-up funds...
. EasyCruise launched their first cruise ship
Cruise ship
A cruise ship or cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are part of the experience, as well as the different destinations along the way...
EasyCruiseOne
EasyCruiseOne
The EasyCruise One was owned and operated by EasyCruise. It was originally built for Renaissance Cruises as the Renaissance II in 1990. In 1998 it was renamed as the gambling ship Neptune II for operations in Singapore...
in 2005. EasyCruise is registered in Liberia
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
.
Development
SteliosStelios Haji-Ioannou
Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou , born 14 February 1967) is a British entrepreneur of Greek Cypriot origin, currently a resident of Monaco. He is the scion of a wealthy, shipowning family, but is best known for setting up easyJet, a highly successful and profitable low-cost airline, with start-up funds...
, who has a family background in shipping, decided to form a budget cruise line which he hoped would mirror the success of his budget travel airline, easyJet
EasyJet
EasyJet Airline Company Limited is a British airline headquartered at London Luton Airport. It carries more passengers than any other United Kingdom-based airline, operating domestic and international scheduled services on 500 routes between 118 European, North African, and West Asian airports...
.
In April 2004, the initial ship was acquired for an approach to cruising that was aimed at attracting younger customers who wished to spend the majority of their time on shore rather than on board a megaship. The ship would offer the barest of amenities, allowing very cheap prices to be advertised. Value would be added by charging separately for each service aboard which is normally included in the quoted price of other cruise liners. Given the minimal facilities on board, the ship would position from port to port at night or in the early morning as the passengers slept, in order to allow the maximum time in each port ashore.
After a few months of negotiation and refurbishment, the ship, formerly known as Neptune 2, was renamed EasyCruiseOne. On 9 May 2005, the ship finally left for her maiden voyage.
Itinerary
The service began by operating night-time departures calling between ports in St. TropezSaint-Tropez
Saint-Tropez is a town, 104 km to the east of Marseille, in the Var department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. It is also the principal town in the canton of Saint-Tropez....
, Cannes
Cannes
Cannes is one of the best-known cities of the French Riviera, a busy tourist destination and host of the annual Cannes Film Festival. It is a Commune of France in the Alpes-Maritimes department....
, Nice
Nice
Nice is the fifth most populous city in France, after Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse, with a population of 348,721 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Nice extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of more than 955,000 on an area of...
, Monaco
Monaco
Monaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a sovereign city state on the French Riviera. It is bordered on three sides by its neighbour, France, and its centre is about from Italy. Its area is with a population of 35,986 as of 2011 and is the most densely populated country in the...
, Imperia
Imperia
Imperia may be:* Imperia , an Italian city* Province of Imperia, the Italian province of the above city of Imperia* IMPERIA, a vodka produced by Russian Standard* Imperia , a statue in Constance, Germany...
, Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
and Portofino
Portofino
Portofino is a small Italian fishing village, comune and tourist resort located in the province of Genoa on the Italian Riviera. The town is crowded round its small harbour, is closely associated with Paraggi Beach, which is a few minutes up the coast...
in the summer. For Summer 2007 EasyCruise relocated to the Greek Islands for a 14-night itinerary taking in the ports of Piraeus
Piraeus
Piraeus is a city in the region of Attica, Greece. Piraeus is located within the Athens Urban Area, 12 km southwest from its city center , and lies along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf....
(Athens), Mykonos
Mykonos
Mykonos is a Greek island, part of the Cyclades, lying between Tinos, Syros, Paros and Naxos. The island spans an area of and rises to an elevation of at its highest point. There are 9,320 inhabitants most of whom live in the largest town, Mykonos, which lies on the west coast. The town is also...
, Paros
Paros
Paros is an island of Greece in the central Aegean Sea. One of the Cyclades island group, it lies to the west of Naxos, from which it is separated by a channel about wide. It lies approximately south-east of Piraeus. The Municipality of Paros includes numerous uninhabited offshore islets...
, Sifnos
Sifnos
Sifnos is an island municipality in the Cyclades island group in Greece. The main town, near the center, is known as Apollonia home of the island's folklore museum and library. The town's name is thought to come from an ancient temple of Apollo on the site of the church of Panayia Yeraniofora...
, Poros
Poros
Poros is a small Greek island-pair in the southern part of the Saronic Gulf, at a distance about 58 km south from Piraeus and separated from the Peloponnese by a 200-metre wide sea channel, with the town of Galatas on the mainland across the strait. Its surface is about and it has 4,117...
, Spetses
Spetses
Spetses is an island and a municipality in the Islands regional unit, Attica, Greece. It is sometimes included as one of the Saronic Islands. Until 1948, it was part of the old prefecture of Argolidocorinthia, which is now split into Argolis and Corinthia...
, Milos
Milos
Milos , is a volcanic Greek island in the Aegean Sea, just north of the Sea of Crete...
, Ios
Ios (Island)
Ios is a Greek island in the Cyclades group in the Aegean Sea. Ios is a hilly island with cliffs down to the sea on most sides, situated halfway between Naxos and Santorini. It is about 18 km long and 10 km wide, with an area of about 109 km² . Population was 1,838 in 2001...
, Amorgos
Amorgos
Amorgos is the easternmost island of the Greek Cyclades island group, and the nearest island to the neighboring Dodecanese island group. Along with several neighboring islets, the largest of which is Nikouria Island, it comprises the municipality of Amorgos, which has a land area of...
, Naxos, Folegandros
Folegandros
Folegandros is a small Greek island in the Aegean Sea which, together with Sikinos, Ios, Anafi and Santorini, forms the southern part of the Cyclades. Its surface area is about and it has 667 inhabitants....
and Serifos
Serifos
Serifos is a Greek island municipality in the Aegean Sea, located in the western Cyclades, south of Kythnos and northwest of Sifnos. It is part of the Milos peripheral unit. The area is 75.207 km² and the population was 1,414 at the 2001 census. It is located about ESE of Piraeus...
. Previously it was possible to join the ship at any port and stay for a minimum of 2, to a maximum of 14 nights, but now you can embark solely at the port of Piraeus
Piraeus
Piraeus is a city in the region of Attica, Greece. Piraeus is located within the Athens Urban Area, 12 km southwest from its city center , and lies along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf....
where it visits three times in the 14 nights. Therefore you can create a cruise for either 3, 4, 7, 10 or 14 nights. For the winter season EasyCruise has travelled to the Caribbean calling at Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
, St Vincent
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is an island country in the Lesser Antilles chain, namely in the southern portion of the Windward Islands, which lie at the southern end of the eastern border of the Caribbean Sea where the latter meets the Atlantic Ocean....
, Martinique
Martinique
Martinique is an island in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of . Like Guadeloupe, it is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. To the northwest lies Dominica, to the south St Lucia, and to the southeast Barbados...
, Bequia
Bequia
Bequia is the largest island in the Grenadines. It is part of the country of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and is approximately 15 km from the nation's capital, Kingstown.-Geography:The island capital is Port Elizabeth...
, Grenada
Grenada
Grenada is an island country and Commonwealth Realm consisting of the island of Grenada and six smaller islands at the southern end of the Grenadines in the southeastern Caribbean Sea...
and St Lucia in 2005-2006, and for Winter 2006-2007 EasyCruiseOne sailed a 1-week itinerary calling at St. Maarten, St. Kitts, Antigua
Antigua
Antigua , also known as Waladli, is an island in the West Indies, in the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region, the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua means "ancient" in Spanish and was named by Christopher Columbus after an icon in Seville Cathedral, Santa Maria de la...
, Nevis
Nevis
Nevis is an island in the Caribbean Sea, located near the northern end of the Lesser Antilles archipelago, about 350 km east-southeast of Puerto Rico and 80 km west of Antigua. The 93 km² island is part of the inner arc of the Leeward Islands chain of the West Indies...
, St. Barts and Anguilla
Anguilla
Anguilla is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union in the Caribbean. It is one of the most northerly of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles, lying east of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and directly north of Saint Martin...
calling at St. Maarten twice.
Until August 17, 2007; a second boat, EasyCruiseTwo, a converted river freighter, had a route around the Netherlands, Flanders
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
, and Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, visiting the cities of Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
, Antwerp and Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
.
Prices vary according to cabin type and demand. In a departure from the model employed by EasyJet
EasyJet
EasyJet Airline Company Limited is a British airline headquartered at London Luton Airport. It carries more passengers than any other United Kingdom-based airline, operating domestic and international scheduled services on 500 routes between 118 European, North African, and West Asian airports...
it is possible to book via travel agents as well as direct through the EasyCruise website.
Cabins
All of the cabins include a very simple bed and bathroom, with bare amenities. The bathroom for most cabins consists of a glass walled area containing both toilet and shower. Most beds consist of a mattress placed on the floor with a simple fitted bed sheet and duvet. Most of the cabins in size are around 110 square feet (10.2 m²). Two- and four-passenger cabins are available, and a limited number of "luxury" suites.For the original fitting of easyCruise One, the cabins were pre-constructed ashore, and time saved by not having to measure the position of portholes and cut matching window spaces. This resulted in none of the interior cabins being fitted with windows - although four "balcony suites" had glass doors leading onto outside balconies. Problems were encountered with the integral shower and toilet cubical design, with the shower water failing to drain correctly and spilling into the rest of the cabin. Passengers also found it difficult to deal with the unremitting orange colour scheme and lack of cabin windows. The shower cubicals were fitted with small barriers, partitioning the shower floor from the rest of the shower/toilet cubical, providing a cheap but adequate fix to the flooding problem.
After the concept was considered proven the ship was refitted, the ubiquitous orange interior was toned down to mere orange accents with charcoal and grey tones and window spaces were cut for the interior cabins. The hull of the ship was repainted from orange to black with orange accents. This theme was continued on "easyCruise Life", currently easyCruise's only ship.
Cabin cleaning and changing of towels and bedding was not included in the base price but could be purchased on board as required, or arranged at a discounted rate at time of booking. For 2009, daily maid service is included in all rates. Prices also now include half board, with breakfast and either lunch or dinner available to guests.
Television series
The fortunes of EasyCruise were tracked by a three series observational documentary called "Cruise with Stelios" produced by the British company TwofourTwofour
Twofour is a UK independent media group that was founded in 1988 by Charles Wace, a former TV news producer and brother of financier Ian Wace. It has grown to become one of the largest independent media groups in the UK, employing over 350 people internationally....
, which was screened on Sky3 in the UK on Friday nights and in the US on The Travel Channel. 'Cruise With Stelios' was broadcast in Belgium (Flanders) as 'Cruiseline' on the public broadcaster 'één
EEN
EEN may refer to:* Eastern Educational Television Network, the original name for American Public Television.* Elemental Energy, a Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game booster pack.* Emerald Energy, an oil company...
'
Future
The cruise line appeared to have a quite successful first year, and is reportedly contemplating adding other itineraries in various sites throughout the world. The customer base is primarily young passengers from 20–40 years old who seek a more shore-based cruising experience than on traditional cruise ships. The business model apparently includes nearly complete subcontracting of each portion of the service (i.e., coffee shop, sports bar, "hotel" functions on the ship) to provide good service while maintaining attractive prices. The founder, Stelios, used a co-branding strategy with the rest of his "EasyGroup" enterprises to appeal to customers seeking basic but good quality travel and accommodations.In February 2008 EasyCruise made public their plans to sell the EasyCruise One due to "not having enough space", and replacing her with a ship of similar size to the EasyCruise Life.
In August 2009 the single-ship cruise line was sold to Greek ferry operator Hellenic Seaways
Hellenic Seaways
Hellenic Seaways is a Greek shipping company operating passenger and freight ferry services in the Aegean and Adriatic Seas. The company is owned by Cyprus based Sea Star Capital Plc.-History:...
for £9 million. Their sole ship was moved to Blue Ocean Cruises to operate as the Ocean Life.
Former fleet
- EasyCruiseOneEasyCruiseOneThe EasyCruise One was owned and operated by EasyCruise. It was originally built for Renaissance Cruises as the Renaissance II in 1990. In 1998 it was renamed as the gambling ship Neptune II for operations in Singapore...
- (2005–2008) - EasyCruiseTwo - (2006–2007) Franchised by EasyCruise in 2006. Ceased operations in August 2007 due to the financial situation of the owner.
- EasyCruise Life - (2008-2010)
