Havila Voyages further delayed.

[hallasm]

Havila Kystruten finds it reasonably certain that the company has a ship in operation in the third quarter of 2021 and that they have two ships in operation in the fourth quarter of 2021.

They expect that the company around July 20 will be able to provide more accurate information about the first round trip from Bergen.  Article from NRK ((Norwegian National Radio) in Norwegian language

Edited July 3, 2021 by hallasm
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[Homerody]

In making my reservations with Havila, I was informed by Havila, that they will be sailing in late August 2021.

 

We shall see what develops in the upcoming weeks on the world scene!

[Homerody]

And their ship interior design sounds very nice (per article on https://www.cruiseandferry.net/articles/interior-view-havila-castor-and-havila-capella-1)

[hallasm]

20 hours ago, Homerody said:

, I was informed by Havila, that they will be sailing in late August 2021.

First available voyage at their web is now September 15 . 

[Homerody]

21 hours ago, hallasm said:

First available voyage at their web is now September 15 . 

I wonder if the delayed start is due to pandemic/lack of tourist demand or ship delivery delays - or both?

 

Hmmm....

[hallasm]

1 hour ago, Homerody said:

I wonder if the delayed start is due to pandemic/lack of tourist demand or ship delivery delays - or both?

Delay in delivery - ships still at the yard in Turkey. 

[Homerody]

On 7/9/2021 at 11:11 AM, hallasm said:

Delay in delivery - ships still at the yard in Turkey. 

Havila Capella has a "splash of paint" according to FB post!

 

Interesting related article on Cruise Industry News on 11 July.

 

They are getting closer to sailing.  Hopefully they will be sailing by the time my reserved sailing date arrives.  😁😊

[hallasm]

There is still uncertainty regarding the final time of delivery of the first Havila ship from the ship yard in Turkey.

 

Once the company has taken delivery of the first ship, Havila Capella, the ship will sail to Norway and it will then take some time to get the necessary certificates in place before the ship can start In passenger traffic along the coast. 

 

The company plans the first round trip between Bergen and Kirkenes to depart from Bergen on September 26, 2021.

 

Uncertainty related to the first departure will be clarified no later than September 1st.
At that time, the company also expects to be able to disclose the expected time for delivery of the second ship, Havila Castor.  Delivery time is now expected to be 6-8 weeks after delivery of Havila Capella.

[twototravel]

We are booked to be on the B-K voyage with Havila Castor in Sept 2022 as part of a bigger Norway tour. The cabin layouts look much nicer than some of the older ships.

[hallasm]

1 hour ago, twototravel said:

The cabin layouts look much nicer than some of the older ships.

Yes, new ships and bigger cabins.

[hallasm]

On 8/29/2021 at 6:41 PM, twototravel said:

We are booked to be on the B-K voyage with Havila Castor in Sept 2022 as part of a bigger Norway tour. The cabin layouts look much nicer than some of the older ships.

Not good news

Based on delays, the company has adjusted the sailing schedule for Havila Capella and  the first round trip from Bergen is planned for 1 December 2021.

 

The delays for Havila Capella also have an impact on the delivery time of Havila Castor.  Based on the expected delivery time, the company is planning its first round trip from Bergen on 20 January 2022.

 

 News at Norway Stock Exchange

[hallasm]

On 7/13/2021 at 12:24 AM, Homerody said:

They are getting closer to sailing.  Hopefully they will be sailing by the time my reserved sailing date arrives

Hope your reservation is in 2022 - se my post #11

Edited August 31, 2021 by hallasm

[Homerody]

16 minutes ago, hallasm said:

Hope your reservation is in 2022 - se my post #11

It is.  As I did not think it would be practical to cruise in 2021 - and guessed that entry into Norway would be highly restricted, if permitted at all in 2021.

[rdowney]

We just booked for July 2023. We learned that Havila uses dynamic pricing, and summer 2023 rates went up 10% last week while we were planning. They are still much cheaper than the competition. We booked directly off the Havila website. The company quickly responded to our emailed questions.

[Homerody]

On 9/20/2021 at 10:20 AM, rdowney said:

We just booked for July 2023. We learned that Havila uses dynamic pricing, and summer 2023 rates went up 10% last week while we were planning. They are still much cheaper than the competition. We booked directly off the Havila website. The company quickly responded to our emailed questions.

For the few sailings I have been watching the avg price has risen by about 700 USD since July.   

 

I had a similar experience with questions  - the company has been very responsive (pre and post booking)! 

[rdowney]

On 10/4/2021 at 11:47 PM, Homerody said:

For the few sailings I have been watching the avg price has risen by about 700 USD since July.   

 

Even with the price increase, we are saving over $7000 per couple compared to Hurtigruten. That's on a sea view cabin for 12 days/11 nights.

[Homerody]

Agreed,  I had a Hurtigruten booking that was impacted by a Hurtigruten ship change as well as a couple of Covid cancellations.  

 

Then I discovered Havila and their ships looked great (I know....marketing brochures) but between the cost savings, great looking ships, similar sailings and excursions, I requested a refund from Hurtigruten after the last cancellation.

 

Eventually I booked with Havila, in a much better cabin and a significant chunk of change leftover.

 

Havila has had some significant issues getting ships and getting started - but the delays have no impact on my reservation.  (so far...😁).  One thing I note, but in my pre and post booking emails with Havila they have been quick and frank in responding.

 

As they say. the proof will be in the sailing.  (or something along these lines) 

 

[hallasm]

6 hours ago, Homerody said:

...in a much better cabin

I believe the cabins are more 'Cruise ship like'.

I plan to book a voyage in January just to get a feeling of the new Havila ships compared to Hurtigruten.

Just want to see that the ships are actually in operation by then.

Originally the crews should be transferred from the four Hurtigruten ships replaced by Havila ships but I do not know if Covid has had an impact on the transfer - at lease a year late..

[Homerody]

14 minutes ago, hallasm said:

I believe the cabins are more 'Cruise ship like'.

I plan to book a voyage in January just to get a feeling of the new Havila ships compared to Hurtigruten.

Just want to see that the ships are actually in operation by then.

Originally the crews should be transferred from the four Hurtigruten ships replaced by Havila ships but I do not know if Covid has had an impact on the transfer - at lease a year late..

I cannot wait to see your trip report and hear about your experience.

 

Your informed viewpoint has been invaluable to me and many others in this forum!

[PeterGavin]

Lurking here too, waiting for Havila to hit the water and hear a report, and no better person to report than hallasm. Planning for September 2023.

[rdowney]

1 hour ago, PeterGavin said:

Lurking here too, waiting for Havila to hit the water and hear a report, and no better person to report than hallasm. Planning for September 2023.

Depending on which fare type you choose, the cancellation penalties are not bad. With prices going up, you might be better off booking sooner rather than later. For us, the last price increase was greater than the cancellation penalty so we should have booked sooner. We booked the middle price tier so that we have some flexibility.

Edited October 8, 2021 by rdowney
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[Homerody]

1 hour ago, rdowney said:

Depending on which fare type you choose, the cancellation penalties are not bad. With prices going up, you might be better off booking sooner rather than later. For us, the last price increase was greater than the cancellation penalty so we should have booked sooner. We booked the middle price tier so that we have some flexibility.

Good advice.

[PeterGavin]

On 10/9/2021 at 8:42 AM, PeterGavin said:

Lurking here too, waiting for Havila to hit the water and hear a report, and no better person to report than hallasm. Planning for September 2023.

All done! Bit the bullet! The 50 Degrees North team in Melbourne helped a lot - Booked 17th September, 2023 Round Trip, on Castor. Living in Australia/NZ adds to the degree of difficulty when booking - a 24 hour flight is just the beginning! Have to be able to pull together a lot of other items to make a trip worthwhile... not just the one cruise! HAPPY now!

[hobbsie65]

18 hours ago, PeterGavin said:

All done! Bit the bullet! The 50 Degrees North team in Melbourne helped a lot - Booked 17th September, 2023 Round Trip, on Castor. Living in Australia/NZ adds to the degree of difficulty when booking - a 24 hour flight is just the beginning! Have to be able to pull together a lot of other items to make a trip worthwhile... not just the one cruise! HAPPY now!

I am waiting to book also but the site can not accept UK bank/credit cards atm. They have held a good cabin for me so once fixed I will press the button 🙂 

[hallasm]

I sense it might be difficult to keep to the schedule. Update from Havila today to Oslo Stock Exchange:
The preparation for delivery of Havila Capella has taken longer time than estimated.  The company has therefore implemented measures where a larger part of the education and training of crew take place in Turkey.
More of the preparation to receive passengers onboard is also taking place at the shipyard and planned to be performed during the voyage to Norway.

As an effect of the measures that have been implemented, the company maintains the sailing plan for Havila Capella with the first round-trip from Bergen on 1 December.

The delivery date for Havila Castor has not been clarified with the yard and the company now assumes that the sailing schedule may have to be adjusted somewhat compared to 20 January.

The company will inform the market about expected adjustment of the first round-trip for Havila Castor as soon as such information is assumed to be reliable.