Our post about Crystal’s woes sparked all sorts of responses, from tears among Crystal’s current and former employees to past guests and travel advisors expressing hope for Crystal’s survival.
While the fate of Crystal River Cruises remains unclear, let’s take a moment to remember what Crystal gave its guests. To kick things off, here’s a wonderful story from Ricki Lyon le Vine, who often cruised Crystal on the oceans with her husband David. Ricki posted this story on Facebook and gave us permission to republish here.
The love for Crystal must be at a deeper level in the heart and in the brain. My first two cruises on Crystal were with my mom in 1997 and 1999. She LOVED Crystal, and spent her honeymoon on Crystal at age 82. Unfortunately, she developed dementia, and sadly, spent the last three months of her life in a memory care facility.
She was sitting in a wheelchair at the nurses station one day, when she spied us coming down the hall. “Are we in port?” she asked.
.”Yes, Mom.”
“I’m having a great cruise!” mom responded. “I’ve met the Cruise Director ( the Activities Director ) though I haven’t met the Captain. But I’ve never been on a cruise where people fall asleep at the dinner table. It’s certainly not Crystal!”
We love you Crystal! Thank you for the amazing crew, staff and officers, and for the enduring friendships. May you continue to sail! ❤️❤️❤️❤️
My personal Facebook feed is filled with comments from fans and former employees of Crystal. “So much success achieved by smart, talented, dedicated people; there will never be another brand to achieve such success,” wrote former Senior Vice President of Marketing & Sales for Crystal. “[Crystal’s demise] should have never happened,” he added.
“My heart goes out to the amazingly attentive crew who have been through so much in the past two years, the guests who are so justly passionate about Crystal, and the wonderful travel counselors who have been so supportive in the face of two years of angst in the travel industry,” commented Mimi Weisband, former director of public relations for Crystal.
Indeed, too many talented and passionate employees and fans to let Crystal sink. Crystal’s simply too good to fail. Let’s hope that Crystal has only stumbled and will get up and dust itself off and continue on bringing joy to many for years to come.
This is so so sad. After going on our first river cruise in November 2021 with Crystal, we are doubting any cruise line could compare. We are so dubious to try another. We can only hope Crystal survives this debacle and is able to sail again very soon. All things crossed.