Crystal is making a comeback with a $150 million refurbishment of its ship and a new 2025 world cruise see what it'll be like traveling to 31 countries over 123 nights
Brittany Chang
- Crystal just announced a 123-night world cruise in 2025 on its recently refurbished Crystal Serenity.
- The cruise line was acquired by Abercrombie and Kent in 2022 following its dramatic shutdown.
Crystal, formerly known as Crystal Cruises, is back with a 2025 123-night world cruise. And for those who like a luxurious flair, this upcoming global sailing will be facilitated by a cruise vessel fresh off of a $150 million refurbishment.
To the unassuming traveler, this could be any typical world cruise. But if you're familiar with the cruise line, you might recall its jarring and dramatic fall from grace. In 2022, Crystal shut down its US operations while facing both serious financial problems and the arrest of two of its ships.
Shortly after, Abercombie and Kent (A&K) acquired Crystal Cruises and its Serenity and Symphony ships.
The travel company is known for its luxury and "small group" itineraries, which include world tours on private jets. Before A&K — which Crystal now calls its "sister company" — Genting Hong Kong owned the cruise line.
Now, the cruise line could be out of choppy waters.
In its new era with a rebrand to just "Crystal," the high-end cruise line is again welcoming travelers to the high seas.
And what better way to come back than by launching world cruises?
Last year, Crystal announced a 2024 world cruise as well.
Across the industry, global and long cruise sailings have been seeing "record-breaking" success over the last two years.
On January 7, 2025, Crystal says its cruise vessel will depart Fort Lauderdale, Florida on a 123-night journey around the world.
Throughout the four months, the ship has plans to hit over 31 countries and 62 ports.
From Florida, the cruise line says the vessel and its guests will head south to destinations like Belize and Colombia before heading through the Panama Canal.
From there, a press release explains the ship will sail down western South America with stops like Ushuaia, Argentina — the world's southernmost city and a frequent departure point for trips to Antarctica — before heading back up the continent with a pit stop at Rio Carnival.
Then, it'll embark on its South and East Africa leg — think Namibia and Tanzania — before sailing to South Asia and the Middle East with stops like Egypt and overnight in Mumbai.
If all goes according to Crystal's plan, the ship will then journey to Europe before concluding the global sailing in Barcelona.
To facilitate this global trek, guests will be vacationing aboard the 740-guest Crystal Serenity.
The vessel recently underwent a $150 million refresh, a spokesperson for the cruise line said in an email. This refurbishment gave the ship updates like larger suites, a new spa, and pickleball courts.
The 13-deck Serenity has typical cruise amenities like live performances, bars, and lounges.
But unlike the average family cruise vessel, the ship has ultra-refined add-ons like a lecture room and a restaurant created by chef and entrepreneur Nobuyki Matusuhisa of Nobu.
But these nice amenities come at a price.
In true luxury, the 820-foot-long vessel has an almost one-to-one crew-guest ratio. Just get ready to cough up the cash for it: A double stateroom starts at $66,200, the spokesperson said.
Looking ahead, Crystal's second ship — the Symphony — will also resume sailing on September 1 following its own refurbishment.
With due time, it could feel like Crystal's previous troubles were just a small blip in its operations.
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