The cruise ship dominoes keep falling in the final days of 2020 with another beloved cruise
ship heading to the scrapyard this time it's the former P&O cruise ship Pacific Dawn currently
named Satoshi which will soon make her final voyage to the beaches of India's Alang scrapyards.
Satoshi started her career as a Regal Princess. Built at the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone,
Italy the ship entered service for Princess Cruises in 1991. Regal Princess was the second
ship of her class ordered by Sitmar Cruises. Her elder sister was named Crown Princess and entered
service a year earlier. Famous architect Renzo Piano designed both ship's exterior profiles
and both Regal and Crown Princess sported dolphin-inspired styling on their forward
superstructures giving them a highly recognizable profile. Although designed for Sitmar,
both ships were completed for Princess Cruises after Princess's then parent P&O acquired Sitmar's
cruising business. Regal Princess sailed for Princess Cruises until 2007 when the ship was
transferred to P&O Australia. Renamed Pacific Dawn she became a popular member of the P&O
cruises fleet. Pacific Dawn was at the time the largest ship to sail for the Australian brand.
She introduced a suite of amenities such as a spacious Waterfront restaurant, a multi-story
atrium, extra tariff restaurants, and even an onboard circus performed on a raised stage
positioned on the ship's top deck. In 2009 Pacific Dawn was joined by her sister ship Pacific Jewel
the former Crown Princess. Together the two ships lifted the profile of P&O Cruises in Australia,
operating cruises from Australia's east coast to the South Pacific, that were characterized
by their casual and fun onboard atmosphere. While Pacific Jewel left the fleet in 2019
to become Karnika for Jalesh Cruises, Pacific Dawn remained, having been refurbished and
upgraded with the addition of an onboard water park complete with large water slides. Despite
her ongoing popularity, in 2019 P&O Australia revealed that Pacific Dawn would leave the fleet,
as the brand was set to welcome two Grand Class ships into the fleet. But Pacific Dawn's future
seemed secure with CMV set to require the ship in early 2021. However the devastating global cruise
shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, led to the collapse of CMV in July 2020. As such P&O
sought a new buyer for the laid up Pacific Dawn. An unconventional buyer was found when Ocean
Builders acquired the ship. Renaming her Satoshi, the ship was scheduled to sell to Panama where
Ocean Builders plan to use her as a floating hub for the cryptocurrency community. Satoshi
was sent to Gibraltar where work was done to repaint and refurbish the ship. She set sail for
Panama on the 2nd of December, however during her voyage plans to utilize the ship were abandoned,
with Ocean Builders citing the inability to insure the ship for use in her static role as the reason
for the about face. She has since been sold for scrap. Anchored near the Atlantic entrance to the
Panama Canal it is expected that Satoshi will sail to India for scrapping in the coming weeks. When
she arrives at her final destination the former Regal Princess will join her near identical sister
ship Karnika the former Crown Princess which was sold for scrap in November, after India's
Jalesh Cruisers ceased operations. It is expected that both ships will be broken up side by side,
a sad sight for the many thousands of people who have sailed on board these two ships during their
30-year careers. Before I end the video here are a few extra retired cruise ship updates for you.
CMV's former ocean liner Astoria has made the short journey from the UK to Rotterdam, where
she remains laid up and there is no confirmed news about her future. Marco Polo has now arrived
in the U.A.E and is anchored some 30 miles off the coast of Dubai, awaiting orders. While the
recently retired Marella Dream is anchored off the coast of Greece. Another retired cruise ship that
we've been keeping an eye on is Grand Celebration, rumored to be heading to India's scrapyards. The
ship is currently on route to Port Luis, cruising at a sluggish speed of 6 1/2 knots she is expected
to arrive in Mauritius on the 30th of December... And then finally some good news, well sort of,
Royal Caribbean recently announced the retirement of their oldest and smallest cruise ships,
the 1990s era Empress of the Seas and Majesty of the Seas. While their departure from the RCI fleet
is sad for their fans, and details of their buyer remains elusive, the good news is the ships are
expected to resume cruising in Asia once the cruising pause ends. 2020 has certainly been
a brutal year for cruising, from the unprecedented cruise pause, that has lasted most of this year,
to the historic number of cruise ships sold and scrapped, it has been a year none of us will
forget. However with the resilience of the cruise industry shining through and vaccines now being
approved there's hope that 2021 will bring much happier times for those of us who love cruising,
as well as the thousands of people who make their living at sea and from the cruise industry.
Thanks so much for watching and I hope you found the video interesting?
If you did please give it a thumbs up and don't forget to subscribe and hit the notification bell
so you don't miss future videos. I hope you all have a fantastic and safe festive period,
and when it is safe to do so, I hope to see you on board
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