Skip to main content

Brilliant of the Seas to Enter the Chinese Cruise Market

Diamond Cruise International announced that its new ship will be the 836 passengers Brilliant of the Seas, former Celestyal Odyssey, built in 2001 as Olimpic Explorer. Diamond Cruise, formed in July 2015, is a subsidiary of the Chinese company, Suzhou Taihu International Travel Ltd, located in Shanghai. Former Celestyal Odyssey, is now undergoing a refit in Shanghai. The cruise ship under its new name Brilliant of the Seas is expected to begin cruises from Shanghai in March 2016.

There is uncertainty for the name of the ship because Brilliant of the Seas is too similar to the name of the 2,112-passenger Royal Caribbean cruise ship, Brilliance of the Seas. To avoid confusion we assume that another name (or perhaps another translation of a Chinese name) will be chosen before it actually enters service. Diamond Cruise is reported to be looking to acquire another three or four ships over the next five years, in an attempt to trace its position in the Chinese cruise market in rapid evolution.