Star Cruises was founded as an associate of the Genting Group of Malaysia,[2] incorporated in Bermuda on 10 November 1993 with its corporate headquarters in Hong Kong.[3] The company's first ships were two cruiseferries acquired from the bankrupt SwedishRederi AB Slite. In the following years, the company purchased several other ships. In 1998, Star Cruises took delivery of its first new build, SuperStar Leo, followed by sister ship SuperStar Virgo in 1999. Star Cruises also acquired Sun Cruises the same year.
In 2000, Star Cruises acquired Norwegian Cruise Line,[4] including its subsidiaries Orient Lines and Norwegian Capricorn Line, becoming the largest global cruise line in the world. Norwegian Capricorn Line (NCL) operations were soon merged into those of Star Cruises. Before the purchase of NCL, Star Cruises had several other new builds either planned or already under construction, but with the merger of the two companies, most of the new ships joined the NCL fleet instead. In 2007, Star sold 50% of NCL to the Apollo Management group.[5] In 2013, following a corporate reorganization and an initial public offering, NCL was made a wholly owned subsidiary of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings. On 3 December 2018, Star and Apollo sold off their remaining stakes in Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, marking the end of a relationship that had lasted more than a decade.[5]
In 2001, Star Cruises founded a new sister company, Cruise Ferries, which began operating its sole ship, Wasa Queen, on short cruises from Hong Kong to Xiamen followed by overnight gambling cruises from Hong Kong and gambling cruises from Port Klang in Kuala Lumpur. Wasa Queen was sold in 2007.
In 2004, SuperStar Leo, was transferred to NCL.[6] The ship became Norwegian Spirit and took over Norwegian Sky cruises.[7] It was rushed into service under NCL America brand because the Pride of America wasn't ready on time due to sinking at Lloyd Werft shipyard.[8] Since 2006, the trend has been for new ships to be built for NCL, and the old ships in the NCL fleet are transferred to the Star Cruises fleet in Asia.
In early 2008, both NCL America and Orient Lines brands were discontinued, with the latter's sole ship, Marco Polo, sold to Greek interests. Also in that year, the first ship from NCL was transferred to the Star Cruises fleet as SuperStar Libra.
Starting from 2011, Star Cruises' ships received new hull art.
It was announced on 27 April 2012 that the Norwegian Dream would join the Star fleet, renamed SuperStar Gemini and would start service in 2012.[9]
On 7 October 2013, Star Cruises announced they had entered into an agreement with Meyer Werft shipyard for the construction of one new cruise ship . The vessel would have capacity for 3,364 passengers at double occupancy.[10] The ship would be delivered sometime in late 2016. Star Cruises announced on 10 February 2014, that a second ship was ordered and would be delivered by late 2017. Both ships will 150,000 GT.[11] On 9 February 2015, the first steel cutting ceremony for Genting World was held at Meyer Werft shipyard.[12] In November 2015, it was announced that the vessels under construction would instead be delivered to Dream Cruises, with a new class of ships planned to be designed for Star Cruises.[13] The company announced in March 2018 that one of its ships, SuperStar Libra, would end her public cruise operations for the company on 27 June 2018.[14] On 8 March 2018, Genting Hong Kong announced that the first Global-class newbuild that was previously allocated to Star Cruises would join the Dream Cruises fleet.[15][16] On 11 September 2018, Genting Hong Kong announced that SuperStar Virgo would move to Dream Cruises in April 2019 and be renamed the Explorer Dream.[17] In November 2018, SuperStar Gemini returned to Malaysia for a six-month deployment.[18]
In January 2022, the parent company of Star Cruises, Genting Hong Kong, declared bankruptcy due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.[19]
In April 2022, following the collapse of the parent company of Star Cruises, Genting Hong Kong; SuperStar Gemini, SuperStar Aquarius & Star Pisces were all sold for scrap. Their smaller sister ship, The Taipan, was sold to OM Ships International in May 2022 and renamed Doulos Hope. Operation Mobilisation affiliate Gute Bücher für Alle accepted the ship in Penang, Malaysia on 25 May and completed her sea trial on July 20. She then sailed to Singapore to continue a refurbishment which should have conclude by the end of 2023.[20][21]
The Star Cruises Trademarks were sold to Genting Group Chairman and CEO Lim Kok Thay.[22]
Entered service for Star Cruises as MegaStar Aries (1994–2012), then renamed Genting World (2012–2013) and The Taipan (2013–2022). Transferred to Operation Mobilisation as Doulos Hope in May 2022.[20]
Transferred to Dream Cruises. Second ship of the Global class. Incomplete lower hull scrapped [32]
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Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) is an American cruise line founded in Norway in 1966, incorporated in the Bahamas and headquartered in Miami. It is the fourth-largest cruise line in the world by passengers, controlling about 8.6% of the total worldwide share of the cruise market by passengers as of 2021. It is wholly owned by parent company Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings.
Norwegian Spirit is a Leo-class cruise ship operated by Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL). She was built in 1998 for Star Cruises as SuperStar Leo by the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany. In 2004 she was transferred to NCL and renamed Norwegian Spirit.
Norwegian Dawn is a cruise ship that entered service in 2002 and is in operation with Norwegian Cruise Line.
MS Dreamward was a cruise ship owned and operated by Star Cruises. She was built in 1992 by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in St. Nazaire, France as MS Dreamward for traffic with Norwegian Cruise Line. In 1998 she was lengthened at Lloyd Werft in Bremerhaven, Germany and renamed as Norwegian Dream. In late 2012, she was transferred to the fleet of Star Cruises and renamed SuperStar Gemini.
Norwegian Star is a Dawn-class cruise ship operated by Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL). Ordered by and intended for Star Cruises, it was originally named SuperStar Libra before being transferred to NCL. Norwegian Star is a Panamax cruise ship; its 294-meter-length (965 ft) and 32.2-meter-beam (105.6 ft) nears the limit for ships transiting the Panama Canal through the original set of locks.
Norwegian Sky is a Sun-class cruise ship owned and operated by Norwegian Cruise Line. She was originally ordered by Costa Cruises as Costa Olympia from the Bremer Vulkan shipyard in Germany, but she was completed in 1999 by the Lloyd Werft shipyard in Bremerhaven, Germany for the Norwegian Cruise Line under the name Norwegian Sky. Between 2004 and 2008, she sailed as Pride of Aloha for NCL America.
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.
MV Zenith was a cruise ship built in 1992 by Meyer Werft, Papenburg, Germany for Celebrity Cruises. After a career for Pullmantur Cruises and Croisières de France she was sold for scrapping at Alang, India in 2022.
SuperStar Libra was a cruise ship owned and last operated by Star Cruises. She was built in 1988 at Wärtsilä Marine Perno Shipyard in Turku, Finland as Seaward for Norwegian Cruise Line. In 1997 she was renamed Norwegian Sea, remaining in NCL fleet. In 2005 she was transferred to the fleet of Star Cruises. In May 2022, the ship, renamed Libra, arrived in Turkey for demolition.
Resorts World One is a Leo-class cruise ship operating for Resorts World Cruises. The ship most recently operated with Dream Cruises as Explorer Dream. She was built in 1999 by the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany as SuperStar Virgo for Star Cruises.
MS Windward was a cruise ship that was built in 1993 by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in St. Nazaire, France for Kloster Cruise as Windward. In 1998 she was lengthened at Lloyd Werft in Bremerhaven, Germany and renamed Norwegian Wind. In 2007 she was transferred to the fleet of Star Cruises as SuperStar Aquarius. The ship remained in passenger service for the cruise line until the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown in 2020. The ship was sold for scrap as Arius in 2022 following the liquidation of the cruise line's parent company after filing for bankruptcy, which also led to the demise of Star Cruises.
Genting Hong Kong Limited was a holding company that operated cruise and resort businesses. It was headquartered in Ocean Centre (海洋中心), Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. It was part of the Genting Group, whose chairman Lim Kok Thay was also the chairman and majority shareholder of Genting Hong Kong with 69% ownership of April 2020. It also owned the cruise lines Crystal Cruises, Dream Cruises and Star Cruises, Resorts World Manila, and the MV Werften and Lloyd Werft shipyards.
Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay is a Malaysian Chinese billionaire businessman. He is the chairman of Genting Group, a casinos, resorts and palm oil conglomerate with a market capitalization of almost MYR40 billion, and the second son of fellow billionaire Lim Goh Tong, the company's founder.
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Norwegian Encore is a Breakaway Plus-class cruise ship operated by Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL). She is the fourth Breakaway Plus-class ship in the fleet, following sister ships Norwegian Bliss, Norwegian Escape, and Norwegian Joy, and debuted in November 2019.
MV Werften was a Hong Kong–German shipbuilding company that operated three facilities in eastern Germany to construct cruise ships for parent company Genting Hong Kong.
The Global class is a class of cruise ships constructed by the German shipbuilder MV Werften for Genting Hong Kong. With Genting’s bankruptcy in 2022, the future of the Global class was in doubt. On November 16, 2022, Disney Cruise Line confirmed it acquired the unfinished Global Dream. The second unfinished ship has been scrapped.
Disney Adventure is an upcoming eighth cruise ship owned and operated by Disney Cruise Line, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, due to enter service on December 15, 2025. Disney Adventure is the first and only ship of the Global class, with her then-planned sister ship scrapped due to Genting Hong Kong, Star Cruises, Dream Cruises, and MV Werften all filing for bankruptcy from January to June 2022. She will enter service in 2025. The other seven ships in the Disney fleet are Disney Magic, Disney Wonder, Disney Dream, Disney Fantasy, Disney Wish, Disney Treasure, and Disney Destiny.
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