Royal transferred her to their UK startup, Island Cruises and she enjoyed a successful career there until she was removed from service and put up for sale in 2015. [10], On 3 December 2015, it was reported that the vessel had been sold and was on her way to Brest, France for dry-docking, to be renamed Ocean Gala. Island Escape docked at Ajaccio, Corsica. What Made It Special: SuperStar Libra debuted in 1988 as Norwegian Cruise Line's Seaward. The itinerary leaves roundtrip from Cairns QLD and visits the Great Barrier Reef's Escape Reef and Ribbon Reef (Day 2), Lizard Island/Dyiigurra (Day 3), Stanley Island and Cape Melville's Bathurst Bay (Day 4), Forbes Island/Wuthara (Day 5), Thursday Island/Waiben (Day 6), Restoration Island/Maalpiku (Day 7), Davie Cay and Howick Island (Day 8), anchoring at Ribbon Reef 9's lagoon (Day 9), Cooktown/Gangaar and Undine Cay (Day 10), arrival/debarkation in Cairns (Day 11). His first ship was the Norwegian Majesty. In 2009, Rhapsody was sold to Israel-based Mano Maritime, and operated cruises from Haifa under the name Golden Iris. You would probably be looking at something like $80 per ton, for example, he added. The 2021-built cruise yacht Island Escape is a 30-passenger ship owned by Seasons Shipping Co Ltd ( (Jongno-gu/Seoul, South Korea-based, 2020-founded company registered in Hong Kong China) and operated under demise/bareboat charter by the New Zealand-based company and travel brand Island Escape Cruises Ltd. Bareboat charter is an arrangement for This is why her stern is so angular and steep. The vessel (IMO number 9903994) is currently France-flagged (MMSI 538009093) and registered in Majuro/Marshall Islands. When it emerged, it boasted a new midsection complete with a new dining room, new bars and lounges, and additional passenger accommodation. The ship is widely expected to head to India for scrapping after being observed underway from its anchorage and waiting for a transit position at the Suez Canal. After short stints with A'Rosa, AIDA, and Ocean Village, Crown Princess ended up with P&O Australia as its Pacific Jewel. It was the second newbuild ever for Celebrity Cruises, and was designed for upscale cruising from North American destinations. The Beachcomber Restaurant provided 24-hour self-service buffets. Operating short two-night cruises to Freeport from West Palm Beach, Grand Celebration also took on a number of humanitarian roles, most recently aiding the people of Grand Bahama Island in the wake of 2019's Hurricane Dorian. In 1988, Home Lines merged with Holland America Line, and Homeric became Westerdam. It is what got us into cruising and we had fond memories of our trip on her in spite of the Star being a tired ship. She joined the fleet of Thomson Cruises in April 2009, but retained her name. MS Island Escape had 3x restaurants, two of them buffet-style. After several drydock conversions, the vessel was last rebuilt to passenger capacity 1760 (plus 540 crew). The ship had a long career with Carnival, serving until 2009 with the line and acting as relief housing during Hurricane Katrina. On June 23, Costa Victoria arrived in Piombino, Italy for scrapping after being purchased by Genova Trasporti Marittimi. I think it was the worst cruise ship I have ever been on. Due to the Coronavirus crisis, the construction process was hampered (lockdowns, restrictions, supply chain disruptions) and the yacht's delivery was delayed ~7 months. On August 26, the ship officially embarked on its last journey, sailing from Willemstad, Curacao, to Aliaga, Turkey, where it will be broken up. While these pioneers had been outclassed by . The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". Cabin grades number: 13. Sadly, Astor was sold for just $1.7 million at auction, and was beached in Turkey on November 24, 2020 for scrapping. All Rights Reserved. We have built a yacht which goes above and beyond the future global standards for emission, but we want to go further. The ship was then renamed Feodor Dostoevskiy for Transocean Tours between 1988 and 1995 before regaining its original name from 1995 onward. When MS Scandinavia was launched in 1982, she was one of the world's largest passenger ships, and cruising out of homeport NYC New York to The Bahamas. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". On September 20, 2022, Marella Celebration was confirmed beached for scrapping. [11] MS Island Escape (Thomson Cruises), Viking Serenade (Royal Caribbean ), MS Stardancer (Royal Admiral Cruises), MS Scandinavia (DFDS Seaways). ISLAND ESCAPE The current position of ISLAND ESCAPE is at West Australia reported 3 mins ago by AIS. On March 1, 2021, it was reported that Columbus was headed east after being sold by Seajets for a tidy profit. What Made It Special: The third Fantasy Class cruise ship ordered by Carnival, Sensation debuted in 1993 and served the line for nearly three decades. Photo: Peace Boat, Sovereign departing Civitavecchia, the port for Rome, at sunset (Photo: Aaron Saunders/Cruise Critic), SuperStar Aquarius, the ex-Norwegian Wind (Photo: Star Cruises), SuperStar Gemini, the ex-Norwegian Dream (Photo: Star Cruises). In August 2016, Ocean Gala was put up for sale for EUR 17,8 million (~USD 20M). In February 2022, Carnival announced that Ecstasy would take over itineraries from Mobile for Carnival Sensation before being removed from the fleet in October 2022. Top 10 Largest Ships in the World [2022 EDITION]. The onboard Gym is excellent for resistance and cardio training. Some vendors may process your personal data on the basis of legitimate interest, which you can object to by managing your options below. Its interiors were designed by long-time Carnival architect Joe Farcus, who gave Ecstasy an overload of neon, glitz and 1990's colors that have been subtly -- but not overly -- toned-down in the intervening decades. Island Escape Cruises. Things when silent and she reappeared in the Middle East late last year and now its been confirmed that she is currently enroute to India. Here's our running tally of the ship's we've lost in the past few years. It also features separate female and male saunas. Tropicale had no direct sister-ships; subsequent newbuilds for Carnival revolved around the similarly-patterned Holiday Class and the Fantasy Class, which all shared some design characteristics but without total commonality. Sovereign of the Seas was transferred to Pullmantur in November of 2008 and embarked on its first voyage for the line in the spring of 2009. Marella Cruises (formerly Thomson Cruises) is a British cruise line operated by TUI UK, offering cruise holidays around Europe, the Caribbean, and Asia. Sad news here. And in that time, we've seen relatively young ships head to the breakers with no chance for a farewell cruise or proper send-off. The ship -- a one-off with no other direct sister-ships -- was noted for its abundant open deck spaces and windowed public rooms. The ship transferred to Norwegian Cruise Line in 1991 and sailed for a period of time as Westward. At this point the end was near. The 1982-built MS Ocean Gala cruise ship (best known as "MS Island Escape") was constructed by Dubigeon Normandie SA ( Nantes France) as the world's biggest cruiseferry at the time. Did the new carnival Vista but shocking "no chips" on the buffet menu, all rice and jacket potatoes. She was finally renamed MS Ocean Gala 1 before being scrapped in 2018. The second of Royal Caribbean's three-ship Sovereign class, Monarch was, for a time, one of the most trendsetting ships on the seas. The ex-Tropicale is another former Carnival Cruise Line ship scrapped in 2021. Shame Ocean village left us as we enjoyed that one. In February 2016, Migrationsverket (the Swedish Migration Agency) announced it was close to signing a deal with US Shipmanagers charter company to bring Ocean Gala to Sweden. Kanesaki was murdered in the same manner as Karen Waltz 18 years earlier. Migrationsverket insisted that the agreement to house asylum seekers on Ocean Gala had been null and void since July. Whether you're a veteran cruiser or looking to set sail on the sea for the first time, everyone is welcome on our forum to participate in the hottest conversations in the cruising world. If the vessel has to be recycled in compliance with a regulation of the European Union, you would probably be looking in Turkey for something like $200 per ton equivalent because of their very limited capacity of the yards, which are compliant with European regulations, Chatziginnis explained. TUI Group, which owns Marella, would not comment at the time on whether the ship would be sold to another line or sent to the breakers. Norwegian Dream sailed for Norwegian Cruise Line until 2008, when it was laid up until its 2012 transfer to Star Cruises. Length: 53.5 metres. Palmys kids club is entertaining and imaginative, offering the best childcare and daily activities. Details for the ship Island Escape , IMO 8002597, Passenger ship, Position Mediterranean Sea with current real time AIS position and ship photos by vesseltracker.com. The elimination of single use plastic is our goal. On Day 11, from Milford Sound is complimentary provided a helicopter transfer to Queenstown. Between January and June 1991, she was converted into a full-time cruise ship at the former[7] Southwest Marine Shipyard in San Diego, California. To honor the ships that have met their ultimate fate, here is some history on nine vessels that got scrapped in 2020. The roundtrip from Broome WA visits the Buccaneer Archipelago's Horizontal Waterfalls (Day 2), Doubtful Bay and Sale River cruising towards Red Cone Creek (Day 3), Careening Bay (Day 4), Naturaliste Island's Mitchell Falls (Day 5), Jar Island's Vansittart Bay (Day 6), King George Falls and encourage in Faraway Bay (Day 7), cruising along Sand and Cassini Islands and anchoring in Swift Bay (Day 8), wildlife watching in Swift Bay (Day 9), cruising through Prince Regent National Park and King Cascade/terraced waterfall (Day 10), Montgomery Reef (Day 11), Hidden Island's Silica Beach and anchorage at Mission Bay/tour of Cygnet Bay Pearl Farm (Day 12), arrival/debarkation in Broome (Day 13). In May 2022, the ship was confirmed sold for scrap following the bankruptcy of Genting Hong Kong's cruise holdings, which included Star Cruises and luxury brand Crystal Cruises. Fun fact is, that in 2002, Island Escape was featured in a UK TV mini-series documentary. Cabin types include Owners Suite (1), Horizon Suites (6), Solo Suites (2), Ocean Suites (5) and Ocean Twin Suites (3). Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. After a short reprieve, the ship was beached at Alang in late November 2022. The ship was the first foray into cruising for low-cost European air carrier EasyJet. The boat had 11 decks, of which 9 were passenger-accessible and 7 with cabins. Some of these larger cruise ships (are) being laid up in locations like Greece, for example, until more spaces are available to digest in Turkey.. On November 30, 2021 the former Costa NeoRomantica was confirmed to be destined for a Pakistani shipbreaker. Note: Island Escape Cruises Ltd has a 20-year permit (through 2042) from the NZ's government to operate in the entire Fiordland (Te Wahipounamu) - listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1990. Ship Data. The third ship of the pioneering Royal Viking Line spent many years as a German cruise ship named Albatros and just recently was also sold for scrap. Its whimsical Joe Farcus-designed interiors were wild, bright, and vibrant, and wholly unique from Carnival Fantasy's later sisters. Vard Vung Tau. What Made It Special: Originally built as a Baltic cruise-ferry, Star Pisces was purchased by Star Cruises in 1994 and sailed for Singapore. Unusually for a film, the ship is actually referred to in the movie as the "M/S Westerdam", and many scenes were filmed aboard the actual vessel. Thomson's Island Cruises brand (presented by the cruise liner Island Escape) was providing an affordable resort-style vacation package with numerous onboard attractions for UK travelers as well as friendly ambience and informal dress code. At the time of construction, it was the world's largest cruise ferry. Horizon managed to avoid the breakfers for two years, but was finally beached in late August 2022. If it looks similar to another ship regularly based in the UK, that's because the ship was built to almost mirror the Astor of 1981, which most recently sailed as Saga Pearl II for Saga Cruises. The vessel joined Thomsons fleet in April 2009. Join the forum today by. Especially when you have to respect other regulations (like the EU ones), Chatziginnis said. It marks the end to one of the most initially optimistic, and then saddest, developments for any vessel over the course of the pandemic. In April 2020, Marella announced that it would immediately remove Marella Celebration from service. The summer homeporting in Palma de Mallorca (Balearic Spain) offering fly-cruises from the UK made the ship also attractive for families. Watersports equipment (water toys/kayaks and paddle boards), snorkeling and fishing gear are also provided complimentary. The government agency was in a race to find new beds before spring when winter contracts signed with hundreds of hotels and campsites to house asylum seekers expire. The latter was scrapped in 2017, but Holiday continued to sail on as Magellan for now-defunct Cruise and Maritime Voyages. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. A record-breaking 46 cruise vessels could enter service in 2021: 30 ships that are set to debut and 16 more ships that were delivered in 2020 but have yet to enter revenue service. Lets say youre taking delivery of a cruise vessel and, lets say, from Piraeus. [2] When we boarded we had a letter in our cabin to say that 'due to operational reasons' we wouldn't be doing this. [19] The next port turned out to be Khalifa, Abu Dhabi, for continued service. Take care, Helen Originally based out of New York, the ship has had a number of homeports over the intervening 26 years. It was beached for scrapping in July 2022. Retired from the Holland America fleet in 2002, Westerdam went on to serve a short stint with Costa Cruises as Costa Europa before landing in the Thomson/Marella family in 2010, first as Thomson Dream before being rebranded as Marella Dream in 2017. Since 2002, the renamed ship (MS Island Escape) was deployed in the Mediterranean (during summers) and in South America (in the winters). The other sad consequence of the pandemic is that many relatively young cruise ships are getting scrapped. The voyage features an overnight in Queenstown, bus transfer to Fiordland NP's Milford Sound (Te Anau Lake, for a 20-minute helicopter tour and joining the yacht in Doubtful Sound), stopping in Pickersgill Harbour (Dusky Bay), cruising Dusky Sound and Breaksea Sound (Disappointment Cove, Sunday Cove, Third Cove), cruising Moana Uta (Wet Jacket Arm's marine reserve, up to Herrick Creek), overnight anchorage off Oke Island, navigating Vancouver Arm (bay) and Broughton Arm (Southland, Murihiku), then continuing north to the Fiordland sounds Nancy and Charles (Day 8), Caswell and George (Day 9), Bligh and Milford (Day 10).