LOS ANGELES, Feb. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- For the fourth Consecutive year, Crystal Cruises earned the top spot in Conde Nast Traveler's annual readers' survey for "The Best Cruise Ship in the World" with Crystal Symphony leading 16 other ships in the medium-sized ship category (carrying from 500 to 1,500 passengers). Sister-ship Crystal Harmony won the second best overall score. A complete list of the awards appears in the February issue.

Crystal Symphony and Crystal Harmony outscored all other medium-sizedships in the categories of food, activities, and service, where they tied for a high score of 96.9. The luxury line's newest ship, Crystal Serenity, which launched in July 2003, will join the list of candidates in the same category
next year.

This award is the latest in an extended line of accolades given to the luxury line since its inception, just over fifteen years ago. In 2003, Crystal Cruises received an unprecedented eighth consecutive designation as "World's Best" cruise line (with cruise ships carrying over 400 and 425 passengers) in the readers' surveys conducted by both Travel + Leisure and Conde Nast Traveler magazines, respectively.

"It continues to be a great honor to be rated number one by discerning travelers, and it is a testament to the hard work, dedication and creativity of all of our employees, shipboard and shoreside," says Gregg L. Michel, president, Crystal Cruises. "The high individual scores for both of our ships in the Conde Nast Traveler poll reflect the consistency of our luxury fleet and match the record ratings of our quality assurance surveys completed by our onboard guests."

The Conde Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Awards for "The Best Cruise Ships in the World" represent the culmination of an extensive poll of travel preferences, in which subscribers were asked to rate individual ships on five criteria: itineraries, service, design, food, and activities.

The 940-guest, 50,000-ton Crystal Symphony and Crystal Harmony were joined by the 1,080-guest Crystal Serenity in July of 2003. The newest member of Crystal Cruises' Six-Star-rated fleet, at 68,000 tons, Crystal Serenity features a higher space-per-guest ratio than her sister ships, expanded areas for spa services and other athletic, cultural and intellectual pursuits, an increased number of penthouses and enlarged staterooms.

The line offers an unprecedented 89 sailings in 2004, ranging in length from seven to 106 days. Combined, the three luxury ships will explore 178 destinations in 56 countries this year.

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