While most cruise ships in service have a major refit every two years, some newly built ships will undertake a major refit up to every five years, leading to an increase in refresh contracts.
Maintaining the high standards of the ship interiors between refits is vital to the overall passenger experience. At any time during the ship refit cycle, the passenger expects the same standard of interior furnishing, UK-based marine interior contractor, Trimline said.
Wear and tear is a major factor for cruise lines with several thousand-people boarding their ships each week. Carpets and flooring get worn, dance floors get scratched, wall coverings knocked, upholstery soiled and generally furniture gets damaged.
During a refresh, contractors like Trimline, bring specialist marine trades on board vessels, including joiners, soft furnishers, carpet fitters, hard surface repair experts, french polishers, decorators, etc, to update areas showing signs of wear, returning them to their original condition before passenger awareness.
In addition to the major refits that Trimline has recently undertaken, including ‘Marella Discovery 2’, ‘Zuiderdam’, ‘Arcadia’, ‘Crystal Symphony’ and ‘Saga Sapphire ‘, the company has also carried out several ‘refreshes’ in the last few weeks involving ’Marella Dream’ and ‘Marella Celebration’.
As the market is moving towards longer periods in between major refits, this trend is set to increase, the company said.
