Released on: November 6, 2007, 11:39 am

Press Release Author: NEWSS

Industry: Financial

Press Release Summary: Stelios Haji-Ioannou plans to introduce a second ship to the
Greek islandsand extend the season to 10 months

Press Release Body: AN UNMET demand for low-cost cruises in Greece is being eagerly
filled by easyCruise\'s founder, Stelios Haji-Ioannou, of easyJet fame. So much so,
that Stelios has now decided to turn his back on the French and Italian Riviera, as
well as the Caribbean, and focus just on Greece.

It was proving expensive to go back and forth between the Caribbean and the French
Riviera for a seasonal switch, Stelios (as he prefers to be called) told the Athens
News. Moreover, the occupancy of the 200-passenger easyCruise One in Greece this
year has been at 99 percent most of the season. \"The challenge was how to find a way
to extend the season in Greece,\" he said.

\"As we know, the weather is hot here for six months of the year, but we needed to
find a way to extend this to nine or 10 months and attract foreigners and expat
residents in Greece to take a weeklong holiday off-season. My view was that the best
chance is via a programme focusing on ancient architecture. In fact, you don\'t enjoy
going around the Acropolis or Delphi at 40 degrees Celsius. But when it\'s not quite
so warm, many passengers choose to follow architectural guided tours,\" he said.

To this effect, Stelios this week launched the Classical Greece cruise - a seven-day
itinerary that offers all-in tours by experts in the Classics, which will run until
April.

There are also 12 themed weekend cruises. An Easter cruise that kicks off on \"Megali
Pempti\" (Easter Thursday) is designed to lure Greeks off-season.

New ship

To meet the demand for the Greek islands, the group is converting a second vessel.
The cruise line had planned to build a new ship, but this will take too long
(possibly 2011). Therefore, easyCruise Life has been acquired and is being
refurbished and will be ready for launch in April.

The new vessel is two-and-a-half times bigger than easyCruise One and has a capacity
for over 500 passengers, as opposed to the current ship\'s 250. There will be more
emphasis on luxury - with 260 cabins, including 46 suites with balconies, around 50
superior cabins and approximately 100 standard cabins, he said. Stelios said he aims
to buy a new ship each year and refurbish it to easyCruise standards.

Approximately one-third of passengers are Greeks, who tend to opt for last-minute
plans in contrast to UK citizens, who often book a year ahead. \"We sold out too
early last year. We did keep some cabins back for the Greeks but come June there was
practically nothing available to book until September,\" he said.

Prices were so low that he conceded easyCruise \"could probably have charged a bit
more\".

Like easyJet, prices work on a demand basis with the lowest prices offered to those
who book early. Cabins are small and basic (with the exception of the suites), which
enables prices to be lower than conventional cruises. One reason costs can be kept
low is that distances between most of the islands are short and, therefore, fuel
costs are low, Stelios said.

One expat UK couple now living in Mani called it \"luxury back-packing around the
islands\" and welcomed the fact that the ship stays in port overnight. Their only
criticism was that they would also prefer to arrive earlier at destinations (most
destinations have an arrival time of around 11.30am).

The Athens News asked the serial business seller if he would sell easyCruise in the
next few years. \"Everything has a price,\" he replied, \"as long as the buyer was
highly reputable. The entrepreneur likes to see his enterprises \'go to a good
home,\'\" he added.

A more likely scenario, however is to list the cruise line within the next couple of
years, he said.

In 2006, the initial investment in the business stared with $20 million, which
included all the refurbishments for the first ship. He did not disclose the price of
the new acquisition.

easyHotel

Another of Stelios\' leisure businesses, easyHotel, could also come to Greece -
although government bureaucracy concerning hotel regulations does not make it easy,
he said.

The successful franchise firm could also see an IPO \"at some stage soon\", he told
us. Revenue is still quite low, however, as rooms are cheap and easyHotels is a
franchise business, Stelios stressed. easyHotel has moved away from owning its own
hotels to the franchise model in which the owners in each country own their chains,
he noted. easyHotel was expecting this week to sign contracts with master
franchisees in Austria and Portugal, Stelios also told this newspaper. Budapest
easyHotel also opened its doors two weeks ago. easyHotel has either franchises or
cooperation agreements with 20,000 hotels in more than 100 countries.

Web Site:

Contact Details: Athens, Greece