River cruise line in Southeast Asia and India, Pandaw announced it has secured new funding to see it through to September 2022 when it anticipates restarting operations on Asian waterways. The statement said: “Following the announcement last month that Pandaw would close due to lack of funds, as a result of COVID-19, the company was inundated with hundreds of goodwill messages from regular passengers. In addition, several would be investors emerged keen to acquire this iconic brand.”
The Strachan family, who own Pandaw, have managed to secure further finance to cover the lay-up and vessel refurbishment costs for a restart next autumn, the statement noted. “They plan to keep the business in the family and relaunch marketing activity as soon as all remaining travel restrictions have been lifted.”
Paul Strachan, Pandaw’s founder, said: “If it weren’t for the support of members of the Pandaw community with so many kind words evoking memories of incredible experiences with us, I think we would have thrown in the towel. A big thank you to all our supporters for raising morale after nearly two years of hell.”
Bookings for season 2022-2023 have been strong, the line said, adding that many departures are sold out as those previously booked on past scheduled voyages canceled due to COVID-19 have been using their future cruise credits to rebook.
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