Transcend Cruises has introduced the first river cruise ship developed exclusively for the charter and group market, the Connect, following the ship’s official naming ceremony and inaugural sailing from Dordrecht to Zaandam, Netherlands. “With the Connect, we are completely redefining river cruising for groups. Every detail of this ship has been purpose-built for meetings, incentives, conferences and exclusive events,” said Gregg Marston, CEO of Transcend Cruises. In the long term, the company plans to operate a fleet of up to 12 river cruise ships purpose-built for the charter market. At the same time, Transcend Cruises continues to strengthen its presence in Europe and has focused on German-speaking markets with the appointment of Mauro Tramacere as the Europe CFO and Johannes Jungwirth as director of sales, Europe.