Renaissance Cruises

Last updated

Renaissance Cruises was a cruise ship operating company that was founded in 1989 and owned by Fearnley & Eger Rederi in Oslo, Norway. It was purchased by Edward Rudner (founder of Alamo Car Rental) as the company faltered during the Gulf War. It operated year-round cruise itineraries to the Mediterranean Sea, the Greek Isles, Tahiti and the South Pacific, northern Europe and Scandinavia. The company ceased operations on 25 September 2001, [1] having accommodated up to 220,000 guests in 2000. While the company had been in poor financial health for quite some time, the economic decline resulting from the September 11 attacks in 2001 is credited with the demise of this cruise line. [1] It was headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. [2]

Contents

Fleet

Renaissance class

The company also owned and operated eight Renaissance-class yacht-like ships between 1989 and 1992. The first four of them were built in Cantieri Navale Ferrari-Signani shipyards in La Spezia, Italy, from 1989 to 1991. They were 88.3 metres (289 ft 8 in) long, and 4,077  gross tonnage  (GT) in size, and they carried 100 passengers in 50 cabins, with 72 crew. The other four were built in Nuovi Cantieri Apuania  [ it ] shipyards in Carrara, Italy, in the same period. They were 90.6 metres (297 ft 3 in) long and 4,200  GT in size, and they carried 114 passengers in 57 cabins with 72 crew. The small, intimately sized vessels used Roman numeral designations as part of their names: Renaissance I through Renaissance VIII.

These are the current names, former names and registries of the Renaissance-class ships; Renaissance I, Renaissance III, Renaissance IV, and Renaissance VIII were all chartered and sold in 1998 so the line could concentrate on the larger, newer R class. Before the line folded for the R class, Renaissance V, Renaissance VI, and Renaissance VII were sold to other interests. Renaissance II was renamed Neptune II In 1998 for operations in Singapore before EasyCruise was formed. Current operators of these vessels include Noble-Caledonia, Silversea, and Antarctica XXI.

Renaissance class I

Built at Cantieri Navale Ferrari-Signani shipyard (1989–1991):

ShipImageBuiltIn service
for Renaissance Cruises		 Gross tonnage History and status
Renaissance I Dubawi (cropped).jpg 19891989–19914,077(a) Renaissance I (b) The Mercury (c) Leisure World (d) Dubawi. Now sailing as a yacht. [3]
Renaissance II EasyCruise laid up in Dubai Sep 2015.jpg 19901990–1998(a) Renaissance II (b) Neptune II (c) EasycruiseOne (d) Cruise One. Laid up from 2008–2022. Sold for scrap in 2022. [4]
Renaissance III M V Galapagos Explorer II (88877419) (cropped).jpg 1990–1997(a) Renaissance III (b) Galapagos Explorer II (c) Silver Galapagos (d) Mantra. [3]
Renaissance IV Corinthian turning to Port Side in Tallinn 24 August 2015.JPG 1990–1996(a) Renaissance IV (b) Clelia II (1998), Troodos (c) Orion II (d) Corinthian from 2013, Travel Dynamics Int. [3]

Renaissance class II

Built at Nuovi Cantieri Apuania shipyard (1991–1992):

ShipImageBuiltIn service
for Renaissance Cruises		 Gross tonnage History and status
Renaissance V Kobe spirit of oceanus03s3200.jpg 19911991–19984,200(a) Renaissance V (briefly Hanseatic Renaissance) (b) Sun Viva (1997), Sun Cruise (c) MegaStar Sagittarius (2000), Star Cruises (d) Spirit of Oceanus (2000), Cruise West (e) Sea Spirit (2010), Noble-Caledonia Cruises. [2]
Renaissance VI Dubai Drydocking.jpg 1991–1998a) Renaissance VI (b) Sun Viva 2 (1997), Sun cruise (c) MegaStar Capricorn (2000), Star Cruises (d) Hebridean Spirit (2000) (e) Caledonian Sky (2012), Noble-Caledonia Cruises. [5]
Renaissance VII Corinthian II.jpg 1991–2001(a) Renaissance VII (b) Renai I (c) Island Sun (d) Corinthian II (1991) (e) Sea Explorer (f) Hebridean Sky (2016), Noble-Caledonia Cruises [3]
Renaissance VIII Island Sky IMO 8802894 Tallinn 15 July 2012.JPG 19921992–2001(a) Renaissance VIII (b) Renai II (c) Island Sky (1992), Noble-Caledonia Cruises [3]

R class

The pride of the fleet were the line's eight brand new 684-passenger R-class ships named R One, R Two, R Three, R Four, R Five, R Six, R Seven and R Eight. The ships in this class were all built between 1998 and 2001. They were all built at the shipyard of Chantiers de l'Atlantique in Saint-Nazaire France and were designed, internally and externally, by British designer John McNeece. Following the bankruptcy of Renaissance Cruises, all of the vessels were chartered or sold to other cruise lines and continue to operate to this day.

ShipImageBuiltIn service
for Renaissance Cruises		 Gross tonnage FlagHistory and status
R One INSIGNIA (34277411284).jpg 19981998–200130,277Flag of Liberia.svg  Liberia Entered service for Renaissance Cruises in 1998. After the bankruptcy of the company, she was sold to Cruiseinvest, but was laid up until 2003, when she was chartered to Oceania Cruises and renamed Insignia. [6] [7] In 2006, Oceania Cruises purchased the vessel. [8] In April 2012, she was renamed to Columbus 2 and sailing for Hapag-Lloyd. In 2014, she reverted to Oceania Cruises after the launch of Hapag-Lloyd's Europa 2, and currently sails as Insignia.
R Two Regatta Stockholm.jpg 19981998–200130,277Flag of Liberia.svg  Liberia Entered service for Renaissance Cruises in 1998. After the bankruptcy of the company, she was sold to Cruiseinvest, but was laid up until 2002, when she was chartered to the newly established Oceania Cruises and renamed Insignia. She was renamed Regatta the following year. [6] [5] In 2006, Oceania Cruises purchased the vessel. [8]
R Three Kreuzfahrtschiff-AzamaraOnward-Portovenere-Ligurien-Italien.jpg 19991999–200130,277Flag of Liberia.svg  Liberia Entered service for Renaissance Cruises in 1999. After the bankruptcy of the company, she was laid up until late 2002, when she was sold to Princess Cruises and renamed Pacific Princess. [9] In 2021, Azamara Club Cruises purchased the vessel joining the Journey, Quest and Pursuit. The vessel was renamed Azamara Onward and began offering cruises in 2022.
R Four Sirena anchored in Sorrento.jpg 19991999–200130,277Flag of Liberia.svg  Liberia Entered service for Renaissance Cruises in 1999. After the bankruptcy of the company, she was laid up until late 2002, when she was sold to Princess Cruises and renamed Tahitian Princess. [10] The ship was renamed again to Ocean Princess in November 2009. [10] It was announced on November 25, 2014, that the ship was to be sold to Oceania Cruises under a definitive agreement. She departed the Princess fleet in March 2016 and underwent a 35-day, $40 million refurbishment in Marseille, France to become Sirena for Oceania Cruises. [11]
R Five MS Nautica 01.JPG 20002000–200130,277Flag of Liberia.svg  Liberia Entered service for Renaissance Cruises in 2000. After the bankruptcy of the company, she was sold to Cruiseinvest, but was laid up until 2002, when she was chartered to Pullmantur Cruises under the marketing name Blue Dream. In 2005, the vessel was renamed Nautica, and Oceania's purchase was finalized in 2006. [6] [8] [12]
R Six Azamara Journey, Geiranger (14863575491).jpg 20002000–200130,277Flag of Liberia.svg  Liberia Entered service for Renaissance Cruises in 2000. After the bankruptcy of the company, she was sold to Cruiseinvest, but was laid up until 2003, when she was chartered to Pullmantur Cruises under the marketing name Blue Star. In 2005 she was renamed Blue Dream, and was sold to Pullmantur the following year. In 2007, she was transferred to Azamara Club Cruises and was renamed Azamara Journey. [13]
R Seven Azamara Quest (ship, 2000) IMO 9210218; Split, 2013-09-29 (1).jpg 20002000–200130,277Flag of Liberia.svg  Liberia Entered service for Renaissance Cruises in 2001. After the bankruptcy of the company, she was sold to Cruiseinvest, but was laid up until 2003, when she was chartered to Delphin Seereisen under the name Delphin Renaissance. In 2006, she was sold to Pullmantur Cruises and was renamed Blue Moon. In 2007, she was transferred to Azamara Club Cruises and was renamed Azamara Quest. [14]
R Eight Corfu Greece-11 (45487360212) (cropped).jpg 20012001–200130,277Flag of Liberia.svg  Liberia Entered service for Renaissance Cruises in 2001. After the bankruptcy of the company, she was sold to Cruiseinvest but was laid up until 2003, when she was chartered to Swan Hellenic Cruises and renamed Minerva II. In March 2006, Princess Cruises announced that they were acquiring Minerva II and the ship debuted in the Princess fleet in April 2007, upon which she was renamed Royal Princess. [15] At the end of April 2011, [16] Royal Princess was transferred to P&O Cruises and was renamed Adonia. In 2015, Carnival Corporation & plc announced the founding of a new brand oriented at social impact, called Fathom, with Adonia being the lead vessel for the brand. [17] When Fathom ended operations in 2017, she was returned to P&O Cruises, but was retired a year later, in 2018, having been sold to Azamara Club Cruises. [18] After an extensive refit, she officially began sailing for Azamara as Azamara Pursuit in August 2018. [19]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Color Line (ferry operator)</span>

Color Line AS is the largest cruiseferry line operating on routes to and from Norway. The company is also one of the leading operators in Europe. Color Line provides transportation for people and cargo, hotel accommodation, shopping, restaurants and entertainment. The company currently employs 3500 people in four countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swedish American Line</span> Defunct Swedish cargo and passenger shipping company (1915-84)

Swedish American Line was a Swedish passenger shipping line. It was founded in December 1914 under the name Rederiaktiebolaget Sverige-Nordamerika and began ocean liner service from Gothenburg to New York in 1915. In 1925 the company changed its name to Svenska Amerika Linien / Swedish American Line.

<i>Star Pisces</i>

MS Star Pisces was a cruise ship owned by Star Cruises and did short cruises from Hong Kong. She was originally built as the cruiseferry MS Kalypso in 1990 at Masa-Yards Turku New Shipyard, Finland for Rederi AB Slite for use in Viking Line traffic. The ship was designed by Per Dockson. Star Pisces had a sister ship, Pearl Seaways.

MS <i>SuperStar II</i>

The MS SuperStar II is a ferry owned by the Greek/Cypriot Seajets, and operated on their service between Sandefjord and Strömstad from 16th June 2000 until 20th November 2022. She was built in 1985 as MS Peder Paars by Nakskov Skibsværft, Nakskov, Denmark for DSB Færger. Between 1991 and 2000 she sailed as MS Stena Invicta for Sealink Stena Line and Stena Line. In 1998 she was chartered to Silja Line under the marketing name MS Wasa Jubilee. In May 2000 the Stena Invicta started operating for Color Line and received the name MS Color Viking.

<i>Azamara Onward</i> Cruise ship

MS Azamara Onward, formerly R Three and Pacific Princess, is a cruise ship owned and operated by Azamara Cruises since 2022. She was built in 1999 by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France for Renaissance Cruises. In 2002, following the failure of Renaissance Cruises, the ship was sold to Princess Cruises and renamed Pacific Princess. On 21 January 2021, Carnival announced the ship had been sold to an unnamed buyer, later revealed to be Azamara Cruises.

<i>Azamara Quest</i> Cruise ship

Azamara Quest is an R-class cruise ship that entered service for Azamara Cruises on 24 October 2007. She was built in 2000 for Renaissance Cruises as R Seven. Following the collapse of Renaissance Cruises in 2001 she was laid up for two years, until chartered to the Germany-based Delphin Seereisen as Delphin Renaissance.

MV <i>Ocean Life</i> Cruise ship

The MV Ocean Life was a cruise ship for a number of cruise lines, including Hellenic Seaways and Blue Ocean Cruises, under a number of names. She was sold for scrap in 2014.

Home Lines was an Italian passenger shipping company that operated both ocean liners and cruise ships. The company was founded in 1946, and it ceased operations in 1988 when merged into Holland America Line. Although based in Genoa, Home Lines was an international company with ships registered in Panama, while the original company chairman Eugen Eugenides was Greek. By the time Home Lines was merged into Holland America, they were one of the most highly regarded cruise lines in the world.

MS <i>Stockholm</i> (1941)

MS Stockholm was the name of two near-identical ocean liners built by Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico, Monfalcone, Italy between 1936 and 1941 for the Swedish American Line. Neither of the ships entered service for the company that had ordered them—the first ship was entirely destroyed by fire during construction in 1938, while the second was completed in 1941 but immediately sold to the Italian government as a troopship. The second ship served for three years in the Regia Marina and Kriegsmarine under the name MS Sabaudia, until sunk by British bombers outside Trieste in 1944. It is unknown if she was ever actually used as a troopship.

MS <i>Superspeed 1</i>

MS Superspeed 1 is a fast ro-pax ferry owned and operated by Color Line. She was built by Aker Finnyards, Rauma, Finland in 2008, and entered service on the Kristiansand—Hirtshals route on 13 March 2008.

<i>Belorussiya</i>-class cruiseferry

The Belorussiya-class was a class of cruiseferries that were built by Wärtsilä Turku Shipyard, Finland in 1975–1976 for the Black Sea Shipping Company, Soviet Union. The five ships in the class were originally used in cruiseferry service around the Black Sea. During the 1980s all ships in the class were rebuilt into cruise ships. During the end of the 1990s all ships in the class were sold to other operators. The remaining ships in this class ended service in 2020. All ships as of 2022 have been scrapped except for the Enchanted Capri, which was shipwrecked on the Gulf coast of Mexico and only has partially been dismantled.

MS <i>Regatta</i>

MS Regatta was built for Renaissance Cruises as an R-class cruise ship, she is owned and operated by Oceania Cruises where she is part of their Regatta class. She was built in 1998 by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in St. Nazaire, France, for Renaissance Cruises as R Two. Between 2002 and 2003 she sailed as Insignia before receiving her current name.

MS <i>GNV Cristal</i>

MS GNV Cristal is a cruiseferry owned by the Italy-based SNAV and operated by their Grandi Navi Veloci brand. She was built in 1989 by Schichau Seebeckwerft in Bremerhaven, West Germany as MS Olau Hollandia for Olau Line. From 1994 to 2005 she sailed as MS Pride of Le Havre for P&O ferries. From 2005 to 2017 she operated as the SNAV Sardegna between Civitavecchia, Palermo and Olbia.

MS <i>Mega Express Four</i> Fast roll-on/roll-off ferry

Mega Express Four is a fast roll-on/roll-off ferry owned by Corsica Ferries - Sardinia Ferries and operated on their routes from Nice and Toulon to Ile Rousse. She was built in 1995 by Schichau Seebeckwerft in Bremerhaven, Germany for Superfast Ferries as Superfast II. Between 2003 and 2006 she sailed for TT-Line as Spirit of Tasmania III.

MS <i>Baltic Queen</i> 2008 ferry

MS Baltic Queen is a cruiseferry owned by the Estonia-based ferry operator Tallink. The ship was built by the STX Europe shipyard in Rauma, Finland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Festival Cruises</span> Greece-based cruise line that operated between 1994 and 2004

Festival Cruises was a Greece-based cruise line that operated between 1994 and 2004. It was founded in 1992 by the Greek entrepreneur George Poulides using second-hand ships. The company acquired three new-built ships between 1999 and 2002, but was forced to declare bankruptcy in 2004.

MS <i>Nautica</i> Cruise ship

MS Nautica is a cruise ship built for Renaissance Cruises as part of their R class. As part of their Regatta Class, Nautica is now owned and operated by Oceania Cruises. She was built in 2000 by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France, for Renaissance Cruises as MS R Five. She sailed for Pullmantur Cruises between 2002 and 2004 before entering service with her current owners in 2005.

MS <i>Amadea</i> Cruise ship built in 1991

MS Amadea is a cruise ship owned by Amadea Shipping Company and operated under charter by the Germany-based Phoenix Reisen. She was originally built in 1991 by the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries shipyard in Nagasaki, Japan as MS Asuka for Nippon Yusen Kaisha. In 2006 she was replaced by the Asuka II and sold to her current owners and entered service with Phoenix Reisen. The ship is known as the setting for the German TV series Das Traumschiff which is also filmed onboard.

Phoenix Reisen is a Germany-based travel agency that also operates a fleet of cruise ships. The company first entered the cruise business in 1988 by chartering the Soviet Union-owned cruise ship SS Maxim Gorkiy.

MV <i>Ancona</i> Car-passenger ferry

MS Ancona was a car-passenger ferry owned by Blue Line International and operated on it service linking Ancona in Italy to Split, Croatia. She was built in 1966 by Lindholmens varv in Gothenburg, Sweden, for Rederi AB Svea as MS Svea. As Svea, she was used on the joint Sweden–United Kingdom service operated by Ellerman's Wilson Line, Swedish Lloyd and Rederi AB Svea. In 1969 Svea was sold to Swedish Lloyd and renamed MS Hispania. In 1972, she was renamed MS Saga. In 1978, she was sold to Minoan Lines following the closure of Swedish Lloyd's passenger services and renamed MS Knossos. In 1998, she passed to Diler Lines, becoming their MS Captain Zaman II. In 2003, she was sold to Blue Line and was renamed Ancona. She was sold for scrap in October 2010 and breaking up was commenced on 15 December 2010.

References

  1. 1 2 Reynolds, Christopher (2001-09-26). "Renaissance Cruise Line Halts Ships, Operations". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  2. 1 2 "About Us". Renaissance Cruises. 7 March 2000. Archived from the original on 7 March 2000. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 cruises/ "Renaissance Cruises". Shipping Today & Yesterday. Retrieved 2022-11-13.
  4. ↑ Boonzaier, Jonathan. "Ship that launched Sir Stelios' EasyCruise dream gets cut up for scrap in Dubai". TradeWinds. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  5. 1 2 Asklander, Micke. "M/S R Two (1998)". Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 2 August 2012. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
  6. 1 2 3 Boyle, Ian. "Renaissance". Simplon Postcards. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
  7. ↑ Asklander, Micke. "M/S R One (1998)". Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 30 July 2012. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
  8. 1 2 3 Jainchill, Johanna (2007-03-04). "Private equity firm to acquire Oceania Cruises for $850M: Travel Weekly". Travel Weekly. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  9. ↑ Asklander, Micke. "M/S R Three (1999)". Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 1 August 2012. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
  10. 1 2 Asklander, Micke. "M/S R Four (1999)". Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 30 July 2012. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
  11. ↑ "Ocean Princess Sold to Oceania". Cruise Industry News. 25 November 2014. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  12. ↑ Asklander, Micke. "M/S R Five (2000)". Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
  13. ↑ Asklander, Micke. "M/S R Six (2000)". Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 1 August 2012. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
  14. ↑ Asklander, Micke. "M/S R Seven (2000)". Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 31 July 2012. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
  15. ↑ "Princess Acquires Swan Hellenic's Minerva II". www.cruisecritic.com. 2006-03-09.[ dead link ]
  16. ↑ Jainchill, Johanna (2011-02-24). "Shirley Bassey tapped as godmother to Adonia". Travel Weekly. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  17. ↑ Sampson, Hannah (June 4, 2015). "Carnival launches fathom, a new "social impact travel" brand". Miami Herald. Retrieved May 4, 2016.
  18. ↑ "Azamara Signs for Ownership of Pursuit". Cruise Industry News. 2018-03-14. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  19. ↑ Bond, Mary (2018-01-08). "Azamara announces UK refit and maiden voyage for third ship, Pursuit". Seatrade Cruise News. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.