Saga Sapphire Leaves Saga Fleet

Over-50s holiday specialist, Saga, have completed the planned sale of popular ship Saga Sapphire to Turkish cruise line, Anex Tour.

Saga Sapphire joined the Saga fleet in April 2012 and has built a loyal fanbase during her eight years spent cruising under the Saga name. The decision to sell the ship follows the arrival of two new boutique ocean vessels for the cruise line – Spirit of Discovery and the soon-to-launch Spirit of Adventure. 

Farewell cruises for the popular ship have been prevented due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the cruise line instead celebrating by asking customers and colleagues to take part in a ‘2.6 challenge’ to complete the 8,050 nautical miles she was due to sail for her farewell cruise. The fundraising initiative will be launched on Saga’s Facebook page in coming weeks and will see people challenged to complete a challenge linked to the numbers 2.6 or 26, from running 2.6 miles to cycling 26 miles or doing 26 press ups. 

Speaking about her departure, Nigel Banks, Managing Director of Saga Cruises, said: 

“Saga Sapphire has been hugely popular with our guests over the past eight years. She will be missed, but we’re delighted she will be playing a starring role in Anex Tour’s new cruise offer. Launching Sapphire was an important moment, and laid the foundations for our purpose-built boutique cruise offer. We are now looking forward to an exciting new chapter for Saga Cruises as we prepare to welcome the Spirit of Adventure to our fleet in the coming months.”