Focus on: Plastic imperatives at sea

Regent Seven Seas Cruises has found a novel approach to eliminating two million plastic bottles a year from its fleet. Julie Baxter discovers more

Leading luxury ocean cruise line Regent Seven Seas Cruises is upping its environmental commitment by moving away from water in plastic bottles to a new Vero Water purification system.

Introduced fleetwide from this spring, Vero is said to be the gold-standard on-premise water purification system, and is used by luxury hotels, resorts and Michelin-starred restaurants worldwide. It uses a five-stage nano-filtration process to reduce impurities, chemicals and imperfections – resulting in a perfectly refreshing and smooth taste for both still and sparkling water.

The transition from traditional bottled water to premium Vero will eliminate approximately two million plastic bottles annually across the cruise fleet.

Saving graces

The whole process of purification, chilling and filling takes place onboard, and water will be served in luxury Vero glass bottles. As well as reducing the waste of single-use plastics, the system effectively reduces carbon emissions every time water is served since it saves on plastic manufacture.

Jason Montague, president and chief executive officer of Regent Seven Seas Cruises, says: “The Vero purification system helps reduce our carbon footprint and sustains our beautiful natural resources.”

As part of its Sail & Sustain environmental programme, Regent will be the first luxury ocean cruise line to eliminate singleuse plastic bottles. It has also recently ditched single-use plastic straws.

Vero is a leading provider of topend still and sparkling water to the hospitality industry and is served to over 50 million consumers a year in six countries.

Coming soon

“It’s a privilege to partner with an organisation that is committed to pioneering environmental stewardship in the travel industry,” says David Deshe, Vero Water founder and president.

The partnership will roll out in two phases this year. Phase One focuses on implementing the onboard water service in suites, restaurants, lounges and bars on ships Seven Seas Voyager (by April 5), Seven Seas Explorer (by April 8), Seven Seas Mariner (by June 5) and Seven Seas Navigator (by June 18). In Phase Two, guests will be receive their own reusable Vero Water bottle to use for on-shore experiences and to take home after the voyage as a souvenir. •

The whole process of purification, chilling and filling takes place onboard