TIM eMagazine Vol.4 Issue 1
On International
Women’s Day, A
Historic Cruise Industry
Achievement: Captain
Serena Melani will be
First Woman Captain
to Launch a Brand New
Cruise Ship
Captain Serena
Melani, making her
the first woman in
cruise industry
history to captain a
new ocean cruise ship
at launch
Credit: rssc.com
C
aptain Melani Will Lead Seven Seas Splendor™ When Ship
Launches in February 2020
Regent Seven Seas Cruises®, the leading luxury ocean
cruise line, today announced that Captain Serena
Melani will helm the cruise line’s newest ship, Seven
Seas Splendor™, making her the first woman in cruise
industry history to captain a new ocean cruise ship at
launch. Watch the announcement here.
Captain Melani, 45, has progressed quickly in her nearly 30-year career
to roles of cruise ship leadership. She began her nautical career at age
16 as a cadet while attending school working on cargo ships in her
hometown of Livorno, Italy, along the Tirrenian Sea in the Tuscany region.
After graduating from Nautical College in 1993, she was one of only a few
females to hold roles of increasing responsibilities on oil tankers, cargo
and container vessels. Captain Melani joined Regent in 2010 as a Bridge
Officer, then served as Navigation Officer, Safety Officer and Staff Captain
on Seven Seas Voyager. She became the company’s first female Master
Captain in 2016 and has led Seven Seas Explorer, Seven Seas Mariner and
Seven Seas Navigator during her tenure.
“Captain Melani has distinguished herself as a trailblazer in the
maritime and cruise industries,” said Jason Montague, president and chief
executive officer of Regent Seven Seas Cruises. “She is an international
role model and admired by our guests and crew. We are proud to appoint
Captain Melani as the industry’s first female captain to deliver a new
cruise ship and look forward to her many future successes leading Seven
Seas Splendor™ in the years ahead.”
“There is a growing number of very talented female captains emerging
in our industry, and we’re proud to be pioneers for those women who
aspire to lead the Bridge,” Captain Melani said. “Exploring the world and
leading ship teams has been a love of mine and I enjoy sharing this
passion with everyone who sails with us. I’ve always believed in the motto
that the cure for everything resides in salt water -- sweat, tears and the
sea.”
Captain Melani, who lives with her husband on the quaint Croatian
island of Korcula when not sailing the world, will spend much of this year
in the Ancona, Italy shipyard where Seven Seas Splendor™ is being built,
collaborating with engineers and designers to ensure the ship’s form and
function is perfect from a captain’s perspective. In this capacity she will
have an influential role in the ship that perfects luxury, even before she
sets sail.
At approximately 55,000 gross-registered tons and carrying only 750
guests, Seven Seas Splendor™ will boast one of the highest space ratios
and staff-to-guest ratios in the cruise industry. She features the Regent
Suite, which will be the largest suite constructed on a luxury cruise ship
with more than 3,000 square-feet of interior accommodations and a 1,300
square-foot wraparound veranda, complete with an in-suite spa retreat
showcasing a personal sauna, steam room and treatment area with
unlimited spa treatments, unobstructed 270-degree views over the ship’s
bow and a glass-enclosed solarium sitting area on top of the Bridge for
a Captain’s view. Regent Suite guests enjoy a dedicated personal butler
to manage all the details of the guests’ experience, a personal car with
driver and guide in every port, and the exquisite comfort of a custom,
hand-crafted $200,000 Vividus bed from the renowned Hästens brand.
The comfort and style found in the Regent Suite sets the tone for all
suite categories on board, where guests will enjoy the most indulging
accommodations and the largest balconies in the cruise industry. The 14
other suite categories range from 300 square-feet to 2,100 square-feet
– all elegant, plush and stunning. Throughout the ship, abundant crystal
chandeliers, vibrant paintings and sculptures, imported Italian marble
and custom-designed, hand-crafted furnishings will create captivating
surroundings for guests.
https://www.rssc.com/
About Regent Seven Seas Cruises
Regent Seven Seas Cruises offers an unrivaled experience to luxury
travelers. The cruise line’s modern four-ship fleet visits more than 450
iconic and immersive destinations around the world, and will add Seven
Seas Splendor™ in 2020 and then grow by a sixth ship in 2023. All luxuries
are included in Regent voyages, such as all-suite accommodations, round-
trip business-class air on intercontinental flights from U.S. and Canada, the
largest collection of unlimited shore excursions, unlimited internet access,
highly personalized service, exquisite cuisine, fine wines and spirits,
gratuities, ground transfers and one-night, pre-cruise hotel packages for
guests staying in Concierge-level suites and higher. In 2018 the cruise line
concluded a $125 million refurbishment program of Seven Seas Mariner,
Seven Seas Voyager and Seven Seas Navigator to elevate the fleet’s
elegance to the benchmark set by Seven Seas Explorer.
***A limited number of suites are available for sailings during Seven Seas
Splendor’s inaugural season. To learn more, please visit www.RSSC.com,
call 1-844-4REGENT (1-844-875-8477) or contact a professional travel
advisor.
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