Saga celebrates its 10th anniversary down under

John · 03-07-2007, 03:24 PM

A glittering black-tie dinner was held on board Saga Rose in Sydney last night to celebrate her meeting with sister ship Saga Ruby and the 10th anniversary of the Saga Shipping Company.

Passengers and guests were served outstanding wines from New Zealand’s Marlborough region with a first course of seafood, followed by filet of beef in a chanterelle crust with asparagus tips and Parisienne potatoes and papaya creme brulee.

Afterward they were taken by ferry to the Sydney Opera House for a performance of Handel’s ‘Alcina’ and a champagne reception.

The evening, orchestrated by Steve Lloyd, chief executive of Cruiseco, the sole distributor of Saga products Down Under, raised A$107,000 (US$83,144) for the New South Wales branch of Diabetes Australia through ticket sales and a raffle for a 14-night cruise for two from London to Barcelona on August 15 aboard Spirit of Adventure that included the return flights.

Saga Group chief executive Andrew Goodsell and his wife, Virginia, and Saga Shipping Company md Jim Clench and his wife, Ann, came to Australia for the event.

Clench told Seatrade Insider that Cruiseco, which became the company’s representative on the eve of Saga Rose’s 2006 world voyage, is growing the Australian market.

‘It is small at the moment, but it is growing,’ Clench said. ‘Australians love our ships and we love Australian passengers.’

Saga Rose (the former Sagafjord) and Saga Ruby (ex-Vistafjord and Caronia) resume their respective world voyages from Sydney this evening.

Saga Rose will visit Australia again on her 100-night 2008 world voyage that departs Southampton on January 5.

(Seatrade)