Black Watch near Cuxhaven, Germany |
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| Career | |
|---|---|
| Name: | 1972-1991: Royal Viking Star 1991-1994: Westward 1994-1996: Star Odyssey 1996-present: Black Watch |
| Operator: | 1972-1991: Royal Viking Line 1991-1994: Norwegian Cruise Line 1994-1996: Royal Cruise Line 1996-present: Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines |
| Builder: | Wärtsilä Helsinki New Shipyard, Finland |
| Yard number: | 395 |
| Launched: | May 12, 1971 |
| In service: | June 26, 1972 |
| Homeport: | 1972-1988: Oslo, Norway 1988-1997: Nassau, Bahamas 1997-2001: Hvitsten, Norway 2001-present: Nassau, Bahamas |
| Status: | In service |
| General characteristics (as built) | |
| Tonnage: | 21,847 gross register tons (GRT) |
| Displacement: | 3,595 metric tons deadweight (DWT) |
| Length: | 177.70 metres |
| Beam: | 25.19 meters |
| Draught: | 7.30 metres |
| Propulsion: | 4 × Wärtsilä-Sulzer 9ZH 40/48 diesels combined 13240 kW |
| Speed: | 21 knots |
| Capacity: | 539 passengers |
| General characteristics (after 1981 refit) | |
| Tonnage: | 28,221 GRT |
| Displacement: | 5656 DWT |
| Length: | 205.47 metres |
| Beam: | 25.19 metres |
| Draught: | 7.30 meters |
| Propulsion: | 4 × Wärtsilä-Sulzer 9ZH 40/48 diesels combined 13240 kW |
| Speed: | 21 knots |
| Capacity: | 758 passengers |
| General characteristics (currently) | |
| Tonnage: | 28,221 GRT |
| Displacement: | 5656 DWT |
| Length: | 205.47 metres |
| Beam: | 25.19 metres |
| Draught: | 7.30 metres |
| Propulsion: | 4 × MAN 7L32/40 diesels combined 14000 kW |
| Speed: | 22 knots |
| Capacity: | 820 passengers |
MS Black Watch is a cruise ship, currently owned and operated by Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines. She was built by Wärtsilä Helsinki New Shipyard, Finland for Royal Viking Line as Royal Viking Star, entering service in 1972. She has also sailed for Norwegian Cruise Lines as Westward and Royal Cruise Line as Star Odyssey.
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Royal Viking Line was established in 1970 as a joint project between the American businessman Warren Titus and three Norwegian shipping companies (including Kloster Cruises,[1] the owner of Norwegian Cruise Line). The aim of the new company was to offer luxury cruises to destinations around the world as an alternative to Caribbean cruising. For this end the company ordered three purpose-built luxury cruise ships from Wärtsilä Helsinki New Shipyard in Finland.[2]
The first of the new ships, named Royal Viking Star, was launched on May 12, 1971 and entered service on June 26, 1972.[3] Her sisters, Royal Viking Sky and Royal Viking Sea, followed in 1973.[4] The Royal Viking Line brand was clearly a success and the elegantly furbished ships were considered to be amongst the five most luxurious cruise ships in the world at the time, alongside Norwegian America Line's Sagafjord and Vistafjord.[2] In 1981 the Royal Viking Star was lengthened by 27.77 metres at Seebeckwerft, Bremerhaven, Germany.[3]
As the 1980s progressed it became clear that the luxury cruise lines such as Royal Viking could not survive without the support of a larger company, with the operating costs of a handful of luxury ships being too high to be truly profitable.[5] Royal Viking Line was acquired by Kloster Cruises in 1984, but its operations were initially kept separate from those of Norwegian Cruise Line.[4]
In April 1991 the Royal Viking Star was transferred from the Royal Viking Line to the Norwegian Cruise Line and renamed Westward.[3] With NCL the ship was used for cruising from New York to Bermuda and on the Caribbean.[6] In April 1994, the ship was transferred to the fleet of NCL's subsidiary Royal Cruise Line, renamed Star Odyssey and used for cruising around the Mediterranean.[3] Here the ship joined her sister Royal Viking Sea that had sailed as Royal Odyssey since 1991.[7] The career of the Star Odyssey was to prove short however, as Norwegian Cruise Line was facing financial difficulties in the mid-1990s and were forced to sell off various assets.[8] In October 1996 the ship was sold to Fred Olsen.[3]
The ship was renamed Black Watch (a traditional name in Fred Olsen fleet) and entered service for Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines on 15 November 1996. In February 1997 the ship suffered engine problems while outside Marmaris, Greece, and had to be docked for two weeks at Valletta, Malta for repairs.[3] From April 2005 onwards, the ship was docked for two months at Blohm & Voss, Hamburg, Germany. During this time her engines were upgraded and interiors refurbished.[3] In July 2007, the ship was the subject of a Legionnaires Disease outbreak which affected a number of passengers in their seventies and eighties.
The Neptune Lounge is the main show lounge on board, with a stage and dance floor. Entertainment on board includes comedians, musicians and dancers. In the daytime this space is also used for lectures, bingo, etc. Cabaret-style performances can also take place in the Lido Lounge, which also has a dance floor, and the Observatory Lounge above the bridge. The dance shows are usually themed by port destination, from Russian dancing in St Petersburg to Flamenco in the Canary Islands.
The Braemar Room, which occupies the aft-starboard quarter of the original dining room, is a quieter lounge for reading and conversation, with groups of plush chairs and couches and a small bar. The enormous figurehead from the SS Braemar, a former member of the fleet, occupies the inboard wall.
Opposite the Braemar Room on the port side and amidships is the Braemar Garden Cafe (the ship's buffet restaurant) and the Orchid Room, a small dining room offering the same menu as the main restaurant. The latter, known as the Glentenar Restaurant, occupies the space of the ship's pre-expansion restaurant and has buffet stations along its fore and aft walls. There are two seatings for lunch and dinner, and a late-night buffet is offered in the Garden Cafe only.
A small bar called the Piper's Club is decorated with memorabilia of the Black Watch Regiment for which the ship is named.
A cinema, forward on the lowest two passenger decks, is the only double-height space on board. When the ship was built, there was a dedicated chapel just forward of the cinema, but this has been replaced by cabins. Religious services are now held in the cinema.
A fitness center, with sauna and massage room, was added during the ship's Kloster ownership. It is located amidships on the top deck. It is only accessible by outdoor stairways, and features floor-to-ceiling windows on two sides.
The deck plans provided by Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines only include decks accessible to passengers; therefore the precise layout of decks 1 and 2 is unknown.
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