On the afternoon of June 6, the high-profile "Aida Modu" slowly sailed out of the dock of the Waigaoqiao Shipyard under the tow of a number of high-powered tugboats, announcing that the first domestic large cruise ship was about to enter the sprint stage of delivery.
According to the schedule, "Aida Modu" will complete a series of system function debugging and the completion and submission of the cruise's unique interior engineering in the next 2 months or so, and will also conduct two sea trials to fully verify the power and propulsion system, as well as firefighting, lifesaving and other functions related to cruise ship safety in the next 2 months or so, in preparation for the final delivery. Next year, the cruise ship will officially operate international routes from Shanghai as its home port for citizens and tourists.
A large cruise ship is an industrial marvel, and running it well is no less difficult than building it. There is no domestic precedent to follow in this regard. Through open cooperation, the Aida Modu will explore a road to customize "a good boat show" for Chinese tourists with international style, Chinese style and Shanghai rhyme.
"This boat show will actually include the entire experience on board, covering eating, drinking, playing, playing, living, shopping and so on. Different from the traditional products of international cruise lines, we advocate the integration of culture and tourism. When witnessing the Chinese shipbuilding industry to build a large cruise ship with international standards, Chen Ranfeng, CEO of CSSC Carnival Cruises, thought most about how the Aida Modu is different from those "Big Macs" under international cruise brands such as Royal Caribbean, Novizhen, and Princess.
The answer is imminent: that is Chinese style, sea rhyme:
"The livery on the hull is inspired by the ribbon from the flying sky of Dunhuang, showing Chinese culture in an elegant way. The next play we want to announce to the outside world is a cultural tourism song and dance drama called 'Magic Capital', which will bring the audience a magical experience of time and space. ”
All of this is tailored to Chinese consumers.
For example, Westerners love sunbathing and outdoor space is large, while the Aida Mordo inclines to the indoor space to create the largest maritime duty-free shop, and the café on board is also unique. "Aida Modu" tonnage of 135,500 tons, can carry 5,246 passengers, 2,125 guest rooms, to meet the dining needs of such a large group of tourists, a variety of restaurants on board are essential, the total number of restaurants and bars is as many as 26, here even hot pot restaurants are arranged!
It is revealed that a set of equipment for fresh beer brewing will be set up on the cruise ship, fresh water will be made through desalination equipment, grain will be ground directly on board, and professional brewers will be hired to make it on site. Fresh beer can be piped to all the bars on board, making for a unique experience.
The slow pace of cruise travel is especially popular with parent-child families. Through cooperation with Bruco, an original brand of Chinese building blocks, the first domestically produced large-scale cruise ship "Aida Modu" will set up a maritime exploration camp that integrates artificial intelligence and STEAM courses, with a total of 6 AiS building block course activities, 2 theme competitions and 1 special activity.
In addition to the AI-STEAM Sea Discovery Camp, the oversized Aida Sea Park also has a variety of amusement facilities for children and teenagers, such as a water slide spanning four floors, a spectacular 360-degree seascape climb, and a realistic and shocking VR amusement center to meet the different leisure and entertainment needs of family guests.
Aida Modu also provides themed children's rooms, children's special catering and theme parties and other intimate services specially designed for children, providing children of all ages with companionship and care throughout the process, bringing a new "family fun and worry-free" travel experience to multi-generation Chinese families.
In the past, the speed and cost of mobile phone Internet access have been complained about. In January this year, CSSC Carnival and China Telecom Shanghai Branch signed a strategic cooperation agreement to build the AIDA Modu into the world's first 5G cruise ship.
Over the past few months, Shanghai Telecom has worked with shipyards and design parties to complete the laying of cables and antennas covering cruise hotspots, and the follow-up team will continue to cooperate with network debugging and testing.
On board operations
"We have made the entire cruise ship into a small local city, laid out a local lightweight 5G core network, 5G network + WIFI + satellite network integration platform of space, space and ground, and the communication inside the cruise ship does not need to be connected back to land." Gong Hao, director of China Telecom's Shanghai Pudong Bureau, said that large cruise ships have always been monopolized by foreign companies from design, construction to operation, and this time China Telecom Shanghai's participation in the digital communication construction of the first domestic large-scale cruise ship is a very meaningful exploration.
The local 5G core network means that it is possible to deploy rich local content services such as video, voice, and games on cruise ships. These value-added services based on large bandwidth are not limited to in-room TV and IPTV services, relying on high-quality cruise local wireless networks, tourists can also experience local high-quality multimedia resources through mobile terminals such as mobile phones and PAD.
The "Aida Modu" will also realize the unified authentication of local WIFI and 5G networks, including flow control and unified billing, as well as docking with shipboard operation systems. 5G coverage in hotspot areas not only allows tourists to enjoy convenient network services, but also makes the intelligent management of the whole ship have a higher starting point.
As a new cruise brand, the team of Aida Cruises will be highly international. Working with the leaders in the industrial chain is the strength of Aida Modu to aspire to prevail later. Chen Ranfeng revealed that it has cooperated with the world's largest ship management company, and before the first sea trial, the main person in charge of the engine and deck will go to the Waigaoqiao shipyard, and the hotel director will also arrive in advance.
About three weeks before the cruise ship starts operations, more than 1,000 crew members will assemble in Shanghai. The working language on board the ship will still be English, but the proportion of Chinese-savvy crew members on the Aida Mordu will be significantly higher than that of international brands. In Chen Ranfeng's view, it is also a huge challenge to twist the team comparable to the "small United Nations": "It is a difficult task to manage this team well, the process of each service project is very detailed, how to greet guests, what kind of service to provide, and even you serve a plate, how many bowls of dishes are put on each plate, this is to be standardized, and the speed of serving is also written in our workflow." ”
After the resumption of international cruise routes, the strong demand of domestic tourists is there. However, it will take a lot of time for international cruise lines to adjust their scheduled schedules, such as Royal Caribbean, which announced that it will return to the Chinese market in April next year. This means that when the Aida Mordo starts operating from Shanghai as its home port early next year, it is likely to gain a certain first-mover advantage.
Wang Yanguo, deputy general manager of CSSC Cruise Technology Development Co., Ltd., said that he hopes to make tourists shine: "The original cruise products are basically imported products, the first domestic cruise ship, made in China, international standards, Shanghai characteristics." The performing arts have happy twists that everyone likes to see, and the catering adopts more flavors Chinese prefers. Regarding the layout of artworks, we use Tsinghua Academy of Fine Arts as the general contractor, and we are also contacting the China Art Museum in Shanghai to jointly build a cruise ship that reflects traditional Chinese culture. ”
In China, for China.
The Aida Modu will open up new distinctive styles, and if it can be recognized by the market, the international brand will also change.
The cruise market is worth looking forward to.
Interview notes: "This is a city card"
The overall design of the "Aida Mordu" is derived from Costa Vista's VISTA-class cruise ship, the first ship in the series, the Venice, which moved St. Mark's Square, the Grand Canal and the gondola to the ship.
What Shanghai elements can be seen on the Modu? Chen Ranfeng revealed that it will not be a concrete reproduction like this, but there will be unexpected surprises at any time. For example, he cited a public area decorated with an ancient Tang dynasty painting, which was given by the designers of Tsinghua Academy of Fine Arts as Art Deco, or Art Deco representation.
"You know what? Shanghai is known as the capital of oriental decorative arts. Speaking of which, his eyes are glowing. When I get on the boat later, I will have to look for this painting.
Taking the name of the magic capital is a tribute to the birthplace, and it also means magic, magic and modernity. Climb aboard this floating mobile city and you may find Internet celebrity food without waiting in long lines; Popular performances, constantly renewed; Galleries and artworks, linked to the onshore art season. What kind of chemical reaction Shanghai's Performing Arts World, Grand Museum Project, and Grand Art Museum Project can have with the Aida Modu is infinitely reverie.
This will be a maritime city business card of Shanghai, integrating the four major brands of "Shanghai Service", "Made in Shanghai", "Shanghai Shopping" and "Shanghai Culture". To polish this business card, each aspect has its own responsibilities and opportunities.