Gulangyu International Cruise

Background

Gulangyu is a luxury cruise under Star Cruises (Xiamen), part of China Cruises. China’s first self-operated international luxury cruise; ~70,000 gross tonnage, ~2,000 passengers. From 2025, China Cruises became the controlling shareholder of Adora; Gulangyu, Adora Magic City, and Adora Mediterranean form a multi-homeport fleet in East/South/North China and Hong Kong.

Project overview

Project: Gulangyu “Job Chinese + Vocational Skills” full-chain training for non-Chinese crew
Partners: Star Cruises, Xiamen Ocean Vocational College, National Language Service Export Base
Target: Cabin, F&B, housekeeping, security, engine room staff
Highlight: First national pilot for Belt and Road international cruise crew training and certification

Challenges

• International crew: 30+ countries and regions; diverse languages
• Chinese passenger service: Need for Chinese communication
• Chinese standards: Training and certification under China Maritime Safety Administration (MSA)
• Precedent: No prior case of non-Chinese crew learning job Chinese and taking MSA training in Chinese
• Gap: No job Chinese crash training system for non-Chinese crew

Solution

In 2024, under Xiamen MSA and FTZ, Gulangyu introduced the Baizor platform for “Job Chinese + Vocational Skills” training:

1. Job Chinese crash training — Baizor AI assessment; job-scenario Chinese content; real-time speech assessment and correction; multi-L1 support.

2. Vocational training — Basic safety; passenger ship special training; security awareness; cruise job skills; short-term Chinese cooking.

3. Certification — Training and exams in Chinese at same standard as Chinese crew; MSA-issued certificates; legal qualification for non-Chinese crew on Chinese cruises.

4. Mobile learning — Fragmented time; offline mode; real-time progress.

Core technologies

• Speech recognition and assessment (multi-accent, ≥95%); adaptive recommendation; scenario dialogue generation; multi-dimensional assessment; learning analytics

Results

• Precedent: July 2024, two youth from Benin completed training and exams and received MSA certificates — first national success case
• Standards: International Cruise Crew Job Chinese Tutorial; job Chinese training standards for non-Chinese crew
• Employment: Non-Chinese crew with Chinese certificates; broader employment in international cruise market
• Efficiency: Crash job Chinese shortened language preparation before deployment
• Service: Better service quality and satisfaction for Chinese passengers

Outlook

Xiamen MSA will use Gulangyu as a pilot to train high-quality cruise crew with professional skills, language ability, and cross-cultural communication. Baizor will continue to support China Cruises fleet crew Chinese training and expand cooperation with Belt and Road countries in crew training — a benchmark for “Job Chinese + Vocational Skills” in the international cruise industry.