Saga to Retire Ruby

The classic Saga Ruby will be retired in 2014, according to reports.

The 25,000-ton ship is the oldest in the Saga Cruises fleet, recently being joined by the newer Saga Sapphire.

It was also confirmed the line will add the Quest for Adventure back to the Saga brand as the Saga Pearl II.

The 25,000-ton, 655-passenger ship will celebrate its 40th (ruby) anniversary with one final round the world cruise at the start of 2013.

Meanwhile, the line has announced Quest for Adventure will revert back to its former name of Saga Pearl II once its published cruise calendar is complete in 18 months. It will also no longer offer adventure itineraries.

The move means that Saga will be back to a two-ship fleet in 2014, and the line has hinted at plans for a new-build ship, most recently at the European Cruise Council meeting in Brussels.

A U.K. spokesman has confirmed that Saga would like to expand the fleet, but he denied any order had been placed for a new-build.

Robin Shaw, Chief Executive of Saga Shipping said: "Saga Ruby has delighted cruise-goers for some 40 years, but operating a ship of this age to meet the exacting standards we and others set is becoming an increasing challenge. We have therefore decided that she should be gracefully retired in 18 months. Saga Ruby will in her ruby anniversary year visit many of the ports where she been warmly welcomed over the years.

"We believe that Saga cruising has a great deal of potential and we have invested over the last few year well over £100 million on our fleet and we continue to look for opportunities to expand and improve our classic cruise experience."

Saga Ruby was built in 1973 at Jarrow Shipyard on Tyneside, and has sailed under two previous incarnations: Vistafjord and Caronia, when it became part of Cunard's fleet. Saga bought the vessel in 2004 and spent £17 million refurbishing it.

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Two ‘New’ Ships Underway for Saga Cruises

Saga Cruises' Saga Sapphire has finally embarked on a much-delayed maiden voyage –- if it can still be called that -- after two previous attempts at an inaugural cruise had to be scrapped due to engine trouble.

The 706-passenger, 33,819-ton ship left Southampton on Sunday (06/05/12), bound for the Baltic, after emergency repairs had to be carried out in Valencia in April. The original maiden voyage was cut short and passengers flown home when an engine failed, and the revised second itinerary was cancelled when repairs took longer than expected.

The inauguration of Saga Sapphire isn't the only change for the company. The ship that arrived in Southampton at the weekend as the 446-passenger, 18,591-ton Saga Pearl II was rapidly converted into Quest for Adventure, its new name painted onto the ship's dark blue hull before the vessel embarked on Sunday on a round-Britain and Ireland voyage.

Quest for Adventure replaces the old Spirit of Adventure, a smaller, aging ship that, after six years of service for Saga, has been sold to a German company. Both vessels are the side of Saga's cruising product it calls ‘Adventure Cruising' (as opposed to the ‘Classic Cruising' offered by Saga Sapphire and Saga Ruby).

Quest differs slightly from the ‘Classic' ships in that the minimum age for passengers is 21, not 50, and a selection of shore excursions, which varies according to the length of cruise, is included in the price. Many of the crew from Spirit have transferred to Quest, including the captains, cruise director and some hotel staff. But essentially, it's Saga Pearl II with a new name and new itineraries; we haven't heard of any plans for changing the interiors, and in any case, the ship underwent a £14 million refurbishment when Saga acquired it in 2009.

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