[2] The new company has announced major refurbishments and enhancements for the two ships in a Fincantieri shipyard in Trieste, Italy, including increasing the number of butler suites and reducing guest capacity, and resumed service in July 2023 with shore excursions organized by Abercrombie & Kent.
Its parent company Genting Hong Kong had suspended payments to creditors citing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The new 200-passenger Crystal Endeavor was under construction at the time, with delivery scheduled for November 2020; that was delayed for a year because of the suspension of operations at the MV Werften shipyard in Germany.
[17] Some destinations expressed concerns with the company's announcement, lack of consultation with local stakeholders, and negative impact to their existing tourism economy.
[18] Following the insolvency of Genting Hong Kong, Crystal suspended operations of all its cruise ships in January 2022.
[22] On June 22, 2022, it was announced that A&K Travel Group, owned by Manfredi Lefebvre d'Ovidio and Geoffrey Kent had bought the bankrupt line's brand and two ocean vessels, Crystal Serenity and Crystal Symphony, intending to return the ships to service in 2023.
[31] On January 15, 2018, the company cut steel for Crystal Endeavor at MV Werften, part of a family of shipyards known for their passenger-ship, icebreaker, and private-yacht building expertise.
Crystal Endeavor has a displacement of 20,200 GT and would operate polar expeditions and voyages in remote tropical regions.