Cunard Crown may not be known as Crown much longer. This past summer the Crown Monarch was withdrawn from service and sold by its owners, Effjohn, to new owners in Singapore. In the latest development, the Crown Jewel has also been sold and goes to Star Cruises in Singapore.
Cunard Crown is left with the aging 750-passenger Cunard Countess and Cunard Princess, and the last of the new Crown ships, the 800-passenger Crown Dynasty, which is also owned by Effjohn.
Cunard said that it has entered into a long-term agreement with Effjohn to lease the Crown Dynasty and assume all operations.
It now makes sense to rename the ship Cunard Dynasty and drop the Crown association.
In the 750- to 800-passenger range, the Cunard Crown ships do not offer the economies of scale that make the larger cruise lines profitable, however.
It is also noticeable that Cunard was not able to lease or acquire the Crown Jewel to at least continue to market a modern, full fleet Cunard Crown brand. That would seem to count Cunard out of a recently rumored newbuilding program.
The sale of the two Crown ships and the fact that Effjohn is seeking to sell its other cruise operation, Commodore Cruise Line, also underscores that company’s withdrawal from the cruise market.
Effjohn’s near-term goal instead includes the lease of the Crown Dynasty to Cunard; the Leeward (formerly the Sally Albatross) to Kloster Cruise; and the Nautican (formerly the Crown Monarch) to a Singapore-based company.