Australian-based Scenic Tours officially welcomed its newest river cruise ship last Friday. Costing an estimated $27 million dollars, the 169-guest Scenic Jewel becomes the seventh ship in the Scenic fleet.
Expanding on the line’s popular “Space Ship” concept, Scenic Jewel takes things up a notch. In fact, the ship boasts so many new innovations and niceties that the remaining six vessels – some of which are only 18 months old – had to undergo an extensive refurbishment process in order to be brought up to similar standards.
Staterooms aboard Scenic Jewel feature full-size, step-out balconies that can be converted into a sort of indoor solarium with the touch of a button, thanks to a glass partition that closes to allow the balcony to be utilized in any weather condition.
Also noteworthy are the 32-inch high-definition Samsung displays that are linked to Apple Mac Mini computer systems that integrate the video-on-demand system with the ship’s Wi-Fi system, itself also upgraded to use both satellite and mobile telecommunications systems.
If that sounds like a lot of gobbledegook, know this: Internet systems on many river cruise ships are based solely off of cellular-style connectivity, and can be frustratingly slow. The ability of Scenic’s ships to use either system is a major improvement.
From the “that’s cool” department: An onboard GPS system provides commentary relevant to the areas the ship is sailing in.
But the good times won’t stop with the Scenic Jewel: The Scenic Gem is already under construction and is due to set sail in 2014 along France’s Seine River. Scenic founder Glen Moroney is excited about what the future holds for the line, stating this latest vessel “is truly at an unprecedented level of luxury for the experience of all-inclusive luxury river cruising.”
More information on Scenic Tours can be found by viewing our complete Scenic Tours profile here on River Cruise Advisor.
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