Focus on Passenger Vessels

Interestingly, electric-powered vessels figure prominently in this month's focus on the passenger vessel sector, indicating operators' growing preference for low-emission propulsion systems. These vessels include ferries and tour boats in service in Western Europe, India, and New Zealand.

Ferries • Ro-Pax • Marine Tourism • Cruise • River/Lake Operations

Cruise ships are also included in this week's featured vessels. Two are newbuilds for inland sailings in Europe while one is a refitted vessel optimised for a popular island destination in South America.

Vessel Reviews:

• Electric tour boats enter service on India's Peruvannamuzhi Dam
• Hella – First of three new battery-powered double-ended ferries for Norled
• VESSEL REFIT | National Geographic Islander II – Rebuilt Galapagos Islands cruise ship for Lindblad Expeditions
• Spirit of the Rhine – Saga Cruises' 190-guest newbuilds to serve European river itineraries
• Ika Rere – Electric catamaran enters service with New Zealand commuter ferry company
• Antonia vom Kamp – Solar-powered ferry for German Baltic Sea operator

News and Gear:

• Passenger Vessel News Roundup | August 16 – Ferries for the Malacca Strait and Michigan, Chinese cruise ship construction and more
• Boat carrying 21 passengers capsizes following collision in central Bangladesh
• Ferry carrying over 200 passengers runs aground in Iloilo, Philippines
• Hurtigruten cruise ship successfully refloated following grounding in Norway
• Passenger Vessel News Roundup | August 4 – Cruise ship delivery to US operator, Norwegian and South Korean ferry orders and more
• River cruise ship evacuated following explosion, fire in Amsterdam
• Passenger Vessel News Roundup | July 28 – US whale-watching boat and UK river cruise ship newbuilds, Italian ferry's final sea trials and more

Recent Important Features:

OPINION | On water matters: the fate Baltic ferries tell of global order

– "The fate of Baltic ferries may not seem like the most pressing concern in Europe right now, yet they do represent what a liberal international order seeks to protect."

– by Grant Wyeth, a columnist for The Diplomat and newsletter write for Australian Foreign Affairs magazine

Remember to come back every day to see the latest news, opinion and vessel reviews!

Call for content!

Any news or views about the global maritime tourism, ferry and cruise industries? Send it through to editor@bairdmaritime.com ASAP (between now and August 19), so we can add it to this current edition of Passenger Vessel Week!

We are after:

• Vessels – Orders, new deliveries, under construction
• Gear – Latest innovations and technology in the passenger vessel sector
• Interviews – Owners, operators, terminal authorities, passenger vessel associations, etc.
• Reminiscences – Do you have any exciting, amusing or downright dangerous anecdotes from your time in the passenger vessel world? (example here)
• Other – Any other relevant news

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