Celestyal Cruises has announced it has sold its flagship vessel to an undisclosed buyer due to “current market conditions resulting from the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic”.

The line will now continue to operate Celestyal Crystal and the Celestyal Olympia.

Guests currently booked on Experience will be contacted by Celestyal and re-accommodated on sailings on Celestyal Crystal.

In a statement, Celestyal Cruises said: “After careful thought and consideration, the company has sold the Experience and will continue to operate the same-sized fleet that has served it well prior to the pandemic.

“The decision to sell the Experience will also provide the company with enhanced liquidity, which in combination with zero third party debt forms the continued solid financial foundation to ensure a successful restart in March 2022.

“Celestyal will continue operating the Celestyal Crystal and the Celestyal Olympia.

“Both vessels have seen significant investments in recent years, which have not only improved the guest experience but have aligned the vessels with Celestyal’s brand vision.

“The move to defer the company’s capacity growth allows the business to focus on regaining its momentum in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, while continuing to explore opportunities for its fleet rejuvenation ambitions when the time is right.”

The line announced in August plans to restart cruise operations next March.

At the time Celestyal said the decision to postpone autumn and winter sailings had made been due to “current travel restrictions in place and the continuing evolution of additional restrictions coming into play”.

Celestyal Cruises CEO Chris Theophilides added: “Celestyal continues to draw a large portion of our guests from a number of global source markets that each have their specific preferred travel period, and it became apparent to us that these core markets have become less interested in being inconvenienced by the current and ongoing travel restrictions in place, particularly for shorter duration trips in the autumn and winter.”