MS Enchanted Capri

Delphin, sister ship of the Enchanted Capri, departing Bremerhaven in 2010
Career
Name: Enchanted Capri: 1998-present
Island Holiday: 1997-1998
Arkadia (Arkadiya[1]): 1996-1997
Azerbaydzhan: 1975-1996[2]
Owner: Demar Instaladora y Constructora, S.A. de C.V.: 2007-present
FLOTEL SERVICES SA: 2008
Faraglioni Ltd.: 2003-2008[3]
Commodore Holding Ltd.: 1998-2003
SeaEscape: 1997-1998
BLASCO: 1996-1997
Black Sea Shipping Company: 1975-1996
Operator: Demar Instaladora y Constructora, S.A. de C.V.: 2007-present
International Shipping Partners: 2005-2007
Commodore Cruise Line: 1998-2003
Port of registry: Ciudad del Carmen Campeche,  Mexico
Builder: Wärtsilä Turku Shipyard, Turku, Finland[4]
Laid down: 1974
Launched: 1975[3]
Completed: 1976
In service: 1976
Identification: Callsign XCJP7
IMO number: 7359474
MMSI number: 345070213
Status: Currently a hotel ship in the Gulf of Mexico[5]
General characteristics (as of 1998)
Class and type:Belorussiya class cruise ship
Tonnage:15409 GRT
Displacement:11319
Length:157 metres (515 ft)
Beam:22 metres (72 ft)
Draught:6.4 metres (21 ft)
Depth:157 metres (515 ft)
Installed power:2 × Wärtsilä S.E.M.T Pielstick 18 PC 2-2V,2 X 9000BHP
Propulsion:2 x KAMEWA CPP W/4 Blades
Speed:20 knots
Capacity:745 passengers
Crew:155
Notes:248 rooms
General characteristics (currently)
Class and type:Hotel Ship
Tonnage:15410 GRT, 3000 DWT,[3] 6401 NT[6]
Displacement:11319 tons
Length:157 metres (515 ft)[6]
Beam:21.83 metres (71.6 ft)[6]
Draught:6.2 metres (20 ft)[6]
Depth:72 feet
Installed power:2 x Wärtilä S.E.M.T Pielstick 18 PC 2-2V,2 X 9000BHP
Propulsion:2 x KAMEWA CPP W/4 Blades
Speed:20 knots
Capacity:937 passengers[6]
Crew:155
Notes:248 rooms

MS Enchanted Capri is a Belorussiya class cruise ship owned by Demar Instaladora y Constructora, Mexico and operated as a hotel vessel for oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico. She was built in 1975 at Wärtsilä Turku Shipyard in Turku, Finland as the 15,409 GRT MS Azerbaydzhan for the Soviet Union-based Black Sea Shipping Company. She has also sailed under the names MS Arkadia and MS Island Holiday.

History

The Azerbaydzhan was built in 1975 as the third ship of the five Belorussiya class passenger ships ordered by the Soviet Union from the Wärtsilä shipyard in Turku, Finland. She underwent refurbishments in 1984 in Bremerhaven, Germany and in 1997 in Freeport, Grand Bahama. In 1996, the vessel was acquired by BLASCO, Ukraine[7] and renamed Arkadia (Arkadiya).

The ship was chartered by SeaEscape, Florida and renamed Island Holiday.

On June 4, 1998, Commodore Cruise Line chartered the vessel, renamed her Enchanted Capri and started 2 and 5 day cruises from New Orleans, USA with this newly refurbished cruise ship whose main emphasis was on gaming. With 248 cabins, including eight suites, and eight passenger decks, the Enchanted Capri offered full cruise amenities such as swimming pools, restaurants, gift shops, bars, lounges, theater, disco, gym, sauna, beauty salon, and complete hospital facilities. Commodore Holdings Limited, the parent company to Commodore Cruise Line, and Casino America, Inc. announced that they had executed a definitive agreement under which Casino America would manage the casino operations aboard this ship. The onboard casino, with slots and a variety of table games, was under the Isle of Capri Casinos banner.

Following Commodore's bankruptcy on January 11, 2001, the Capri made news when she was arrested in New Orleans by the International Transport Workers' Federation on behalf of the crew, who were owed $500,000 in back wages. More than 230 crew stranded on the passenger vessel were sent home to forty different countries in the biggest repatriation operation staged by the ITWF.

The Enchanted Capri was laid up, her owners chartered her to the Mexican company Demar Instaladora y Constructora in 2003 and refurbished the vessel in 2005 to bring her up to the latest SOLAS standards.

At the end of 2007 the Enchanted Capri was totally owned by the Mexican company Demar Instaladora y Constructora.

External links

References

  1. Arkadiya - IMO 7359474
  2. "AZERBAIJAN - IMO 7359474". shipspotting.com. Retrieved 2012-04-28.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Enchanted Capri (7359474)". Equasis. French Ministry for Transport. Retrieved 2012-Apr-28. (registration required (help)). Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  4. Asklander, Micke. "M/S AZERBAIHZAN.". Fakta om Fartyg. Retrieved 29 April 2012.
  5. "ENCHANTED CAPRI photos". Gulf of Mexico: marinetraffic.com. 2011-05-27.
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 "Fleet Information - M/V Enchanted Capri". Archived from the original on 2012-04-28. Retrieved 2012-04-28.
  7. Black Sea Shipping Co. (Black Sea Steamship Co.)