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YOUR VOYAGE

TRAVEL WITH PURPOSE

'To travel is to immerse yourself’ - VARIETY CARES™ is a creative non profit foundation that ties together a like minded community of worldwide travelers who share the notion that 'to travel is to immerse yourself, with the destination and her people at heart. Our three guiding principals are:

CLEAN OCEANS 4ALL
Our ocean is the natural playground that keeps us alive and allows us to experience the world at its most beautiful pace. We owe it our love.

GENDER EQUALITY 4ALL
Gender equality means human equality; from women empowerment to accepting our gender spectrum differences we create a stronger world for all.

EDUCATION 4ALL
The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page. Join us as we share our love for education with youth worldwide lacking access to such.
"We don't just believe in giving back, we believe in giving." Lakis Venetopoulos
OUR MISSION IS TO PROVIDE A SUSTAINABLE SEA-GOING PLATFORM FOR ENGAGING OUR GUESTS IN MEANINGFUL COMMUNICATION AND EXCHANGE OF VALUES WITH THE LOCAL COMMUNITIES WE VISIT.
OUR
MISSION
HISTORICAL MILESTONES
Diogenis Venetopoulos Port Captain
1949
Diogenis Venetopoulos unveils Zeus Tours; The first floating travel immersion company supporting archaeological sites
A black and white photo of the Zeus Tours ventures at Sea as Zeus Cruises
1968
Zeus Tours ventures at Sea as Zeus Cruises + Collaborations with local causes throughout the Mediterranean begin
View to Santorini's Caldera
1990
Zeus Cruises joins Santorini's Akrotiri archaeological site in support
Photo with native people and Variety Cruises' tourists
2005
Variety Cruises expands worldwide immersing into new communities
A tourist meeting local people
2011
Variety Cruises takes on its fully fledged Education Prototype & Lamin Koto Shool is launched in The Gambia under Lakis Venetopoulos’ leadership
Black and white photo of a small ship in the sea with tropical islands in the background
2012
Variety Cruises pledges support to the Seychelles Archbishop Scholarship
Variety Cruises - LGBT-friendly small ship cruises, a couple huging and smiling
2013
Variety Cruises pledges support to the LGBTQI+ community + VARIETY PRIDE is developed
Tourist with girls from local school
2015
Variety Cruises pledges its first Student Scholarship in The Gambia
People watching cinema
2016
Variety Cruises supports children's education with Kuntaur Film Festival
A group of local kids in Africa
2017
Variety Cruises pledges to become a leader of environmental sustainability
United Nations photo with the flags
2019
VARIETY PRIDE honors THE TREVOR PROJECT at the UNITED NATIONS
Black and white photo of an african kid staring a wall with children's photos
2019
Variety Cares celebrates LAMIN KOTO SUPER SCHOOL
Small boat's exterior
2020
VARIETY CARES celebrates The Gambia with the INSIDE OUT ART INITIATIVE
2021
VARIETY CARES joins TOURISM DECLARES CLIMATE EMERGENCY
2022
VARIETY CARES joins the efforts of THE EXPLORERS CLUB for WORLD OCEANS WEEK
OUR
ACTIONS
No single use of plastic logo

1. MINIMIZING OUR IMPACT

Single-Use plastic reduction: One of our guiding principles is to positively impact the areas in which we explore. That is why we are proud to have successfully completed a single-use plastic reduction program across our entire fleet, minimizing single-use plastic items. Packaging from single-portion items such as butter cups, jams or yogurts will be eliminated.

 

Clean Fuel: Our ships run on Marine Diesel Oil, unlike larger ships that use non refined Heavy Fuel Oil which is polluting and highly toxic. We are currently proactively engaged with environmental agencies that help us measure and lower our carbon emissions and footprint with the goal to be carbon neutral by 2050.

Tourists with local peoples

2. RESPONSIBLE & CARING

It is our philosophy to embrace local communities and provide resources to the local industries we visit with the dual mission of providing our guests an authentic local experience as well as to support the communities sharing with us their landscapes, nature, culture, and infrastructure. We source local services including excursions, guides, tour leaders, agriculture products and local resources. In addition sourcing local food and supplies from the local seasonal markets allows for an authentic local experience with fresh cuisine and handicraft products. Last but not least we support local cultures by employing local teams onboard our vessels at every opportunity, sustaining our culture of diversity and our global philosophy.

Local kids smiling

3. COMMITMENT TO SAFETY

Built under the latest International “Safety of Life At Sea” (SOLAS 2010) regulations and classified by IACS Classification Societies, our vessels provide the ultimate sea going experience with safety and comfort with international standards in mind. Our commitment to safety is a fundamental part of our philosophy and encompasses not only our vessel’s technical safety and state of the art navigation, but also all involved including our guests and staff well being, the communities we visit, and the sustainability and support of the environment we share. The highest of safety standards is what permits our ships to be positioned anywhere in the world.

As of January 1, 2022,  5 EUROS of each passenger cruise participation go towards our efforts via VARIETY CARES, creating a better world at Sea one cruise at a time. On behalf of our team, the destinations, and the communities we visit a big THANK YOU for your contribution striving for clean oceans, gender equality, and education for all - find out more at www.VarietyCares.org
Local people and tourists
TRAVEL WITH
PURPOSE
TEAM
Constantinos Venetopoulos, founder of Variety Cruises
Constantine Venetopoulos
Director of Corporate Social Responsibility
Ioanna Giantsi - Operations Manager for Variety Cruises
Ioanna Giantsi
Board of Directors Advisory
Dimitris Vassilakis - CEO – Founding Partnerof Variety Cruises
Dimitris Vassilakis
Advisory Director
Malvina Vonta Chief Commercial Officer
Malvina Vonta
Press Relations
Christina Venetopoulou - Cruise Director for Variety Cruises
Christina Venetopoulou
Human Resource Management
Filippos Venetopoulos Chief Executive Officer at Variety Cruises
Filippos Venetopoulos
International Relations
Tourism awards 2019 gold winner logo on a white background
TOURISM AWARDS 2019 / “Best in Responsible & Sustainable Tourism “
Cruise Critic 2018 award with "Best for Small Ship Cruises" text
CRUISE CRITIC CRUISERS’ CHOICE 2018 / “Best in Eastern Mediterranean”
Variety Cruises - Best Boutique Cruise Line logo
USA TODAY 10Best READER’S CHOICE 2016 / “World's Best Boutique Cruise Line”
Gold medal with "Tourism Awards 2016" logo
TOURISM AWARDS 2015 & 2016 / “Best for Small Ship Cruising in Greece “
Greek Tourism Awards 2016 Gold Award with "Best Small Ship Cruise Company" text
TOURISM AWARDS 2017 / “Best for Small Ship Cruising in Greece “
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