Saga Rose in Auckland, New Zealand, February 2008 |
|
| Career | |
|---|---|
| Name: | 1965—1996: Sagafjord 1996—1997: Gripsholm 1997 onwards: Saga Rose[1] |
| Owner: | 1965—1983: Norwegian America Line 1983—1997: Cunard Line 1997 onwards: Saga Shipping[1] |
| Operator: | 1965—1983: Norwegian America Line 1983—1996: Cunard Line 1996—1997: Transocean Tours 1997 onwards: Saga Cruises[1] |
| Port of registry: | 1965—1983: Oslo, Norway 1983 onwards Nassau, Bahamas[1] |
| Builder: | Société Nouvelle des Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée, France |
| Cost: | $30 million |
| Launched: | 1965 |
| Maiden voyage: | 1965 |
| In service: | 1965-October 2009 |
| Out of service: | October 2009 |
| Identification: | IMO number: 6416043 |
| Fate: | Scrapped in China, 2010 |
| General characteristics | |
| Tonnage: | 24,474 GRT |
| Length: | 189 m (620.1 ft) |
| Beam: | 24.4 m (80.1 ft) |
| Draft: | 8.25 m (27.1 ft) |
| Capacity: | 584 (double occupancy), 620 (full occupancy) |
| Crew: | 350 |
| Notes: | Data from 'Cruise Reviews'[2] and 'Passenger Ship Society'[3] |
MS Saga Rose was an ocean liner formerly owned and operated by Saga Cruises on worldwide cruises targeted at the senior market out of the United Kingdom.[2][2] She was built in 1965 by Société Nouvelle des Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée for Norwegian America Line as the combined ocean liner/cruise ship MS Sagafjord. Between 1983 and 1996 the Sagafjord was operated by Cunard Line. In 1996—1997 she was shortly operated by Transocean Tours as MS Gripsholm prior to being sold to Saga. She was retired from service in October 2009.
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The Sagafjord was built by Société Nouvelle des Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée, France, who received the original plans and specifications for the vessel from the as the Norwegian America Line during the summer of 1960. The build contract was undertaken on 24 September 1962 and the keel finally laid on 19 June 1963 before her launch on 13 June 1964. She underwent sea trials from May until September in 1965 and was finally christened on 18 September 1965 Sagafjord in Toulon. The construction of the Sagafjord was so expensive that it put the shipyard out of business.
The Sagafjord undertook her maiden voyage from Oslo to New York on 2 October to 11 October 1965. At the time she was built to set the mark of luxury. She sailed with Norwegian America Line until 1983, when the company was taken over by Cunard Line. The ship retained her original name through-out her service with Cunard.
In 1996—1997 the Sagafjord was chartered to Transocean Tours as part of a 6 month deal.[4] While in service with Transocean Tours she was renamed MS Gripsholm. During this time she was damaged by fire. She was sold to Saga Shipping in 1997, who renamed her MS Saga Rose. The ship was refurbished prior to entering service with her new owners.[3]
On 11 June 2008 during a visit to Southampton the second bosun died after entering a ballast tank which had a reduced oxygen atmosphere due to corrosion.[5]
The Saga Rose was retired from service in October 2009 due to her not fulfilling the requirements of the new SOLAS 2010 regulations[6] and was left with an uncertain future.[7]
On 21 February 2010, Saga Rose was reported as setting out from Gibraltar, where she had been laid up since her final cruise with Saga Cruises, with her destination listed as Kenya. Rumors circulated about a possible sale for use as an accommodation ship. The stories proved false, as the ship was merely repositioned to a new anchorage and remained in Gibraltar.
In early April, Saga Rose finally put to sea, with Port Elizabeth, South Africa listed as her destination. Once again, rumours of a conversion to a hotel ship circulated. On 29 April, Saga Rose docked in Durban for refuelling, and was under-way again with her destination now reported to be Maputo, Mozambique. Rather than dock again in Africa, Saga Rose next headed into the Indian Ocean, with Saga Cruises refusing to comment on the ships' possible sale for scrap or any other use. By 23 May, the ship was off the Taiwanese coast with her destination being reported as Japan.
On 27 May, Saga Rose reached the harbour of Shanghai, China. After a few days at anchor, she continued further inland up the Yangtze River, docking in the Jiangyin district on May 29, seemingly confirming speculation that the ship had been sold for scrap, as Jiangyin is home to the Changjiang Ship Recycling Yard, China's largest ship dismantling facility. In 2003, the same yard scrapped Sea World, the former King Alexander and Nanny, a 245,000 ton oil tanker that ranked as the 4th largest ship ever built. In October, 2011 scrapping had begun [8].
The Saga Rose currently holds the record for the most World Cruises ever completed by a ship with 44 altogether. Even surpassing the RMS Queen Elizabeth 2.[9][10]