MS Regatta

Regatta in Stockholm, Sweden, August 2007
History
Name:	1998—2002: R Two 2002—2003: Insignia 2003—present: Regatta[1][2]
Owner:	1998—2001: Renaissance Cruises 2001—2006: Cruiseinvest[1] 2006 onwards: Oceania Cruises
Operator:	1998—2001: Renaissance Cruises 2001—2002: laid up 2002—2003: Oceania Cruises 2003: TMR 2003—present: Oceania Cruises[1][2]
Port of registry:	1998—2001: Monrovia,  Liberia 2001—present: Majuro,  Marshall Islands[1]
Builder:	Chantiers de l'Atlantique, St. Nazaire, France
Cost:	£150 million[3]
Yard number:	I31[1]
Acquired:	November 1998[1]
In service:	1998[1]
Identification:	Call sign: V7DM3 IMO number: 9156474 MMSI number: 538001664
Status:	In service
General characteristics [1]
Class & type:	R class cruise ship (as built) Regatta class cruise ship (currently)
Tonnage:	30,277 GT[4] 2,700 DWT
Length:	180.96 m (593.7 ft)
Beam:	25.46 m (83.5 ft)
Draught:	5.95 m (19.5 ft)
Decks:	9 (passenger accessible)[3]
Installed power:	4 × Wärtsilä 12V32 13,500 kW (combined)
Propulsion:	2 propellers[3]
Speed:	18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph)
Capacity:	684 passengers (lower berths) 824 passengers (all berths)[3]
Crew:	386[3]

MS Regatta was built by Renaissance cruises as an R class cruise ship, she is owned and operated by Oceania Cruises where she is part of their Regatta Class. ^[3] She was built in 1998 by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in St. Nazaire, France for Renaissance Cruises as R Two. Between 2002 and 2003 she sailed as Insignia before receiving her current name.^[1]

Concept and construction

Renaissance Cruises had begun operations in 1989, with a series of eight small luxury cruise ships constructed during the course of the next three years.^[2] In the mid-90s the company placed an order for eight identical 30,277 gross ton vessels with Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in France. The first ship in the series, MS R One, was delivered in June 1998,^[5] followed by R Two in November of the same year.^[1]

Service history

Following her delivery to Renaissance Cruises in November 1998, R Two was placed on cruise traffic in the Mediterranean. Renaissance Cruises went bankrupt on 25 September 2001, following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks, and, on 7 October 2001, the R Two was arrested in Gibraltar and subsequently laid up. Six of her sisters were also laid up in Gibraltar,^[1][2] with only MS R Three and MS R Four absent as they were in the Pacific Ocean at the time of the collapse of Renaissance.^[2][6][7] In December 2001, R Two and the other former Renaissance ships laid up in Gibraltar were sold to Cruiseinvest, and subsequently moved to Marseille, France for further layup.^{[1][2][5][8][9][10][11]}

In October 2002, R Two was renamed Insignia, given a $10 million refit and chartered to Oceania Cruises, a new company founded by Frank Del Rio (the former vice president of Renaissance Cruises) and Joe Watters (the former CEO of Crystal Cruises).^[1][2][12] Between 19 April and 14 June 2003, Insignia was chartered to the French travel agency TMR, who marketed the ship under the name Vaisseau Renaissance (her registered name remained unchanged).^[1] On 15 June 2003, the ship returned to Oceania Cruises service, but was renamed Regatta, as the name Insignia had been passed to her sister R One that had also been chartered by Oceania.^[1][2][5]

Design

Exterior design

R Two was built to a somewhat boxy, functional exterior appearance with a large square funnel. In Renaissance Cruises service her hull was painted dark blue, but in Oceania service this was changed to white with a thin blue stripe separating the hull from the superstructure.^[3]

Interior design

The interiors of Regatta are decorated in art deco style similar to the ocean liners of the 1920s and 30s with polished dark wood and warm colours,^[3][13] described by Douglas Ward, author of the Complete Guide to Cruising and Cruise Ships, as being "stunning and elegant".^[3] The ship retains most of her interior decorations from her days with Renaissance Cruises, although the lido area on deck 9 was entirely refurbished before she entered service for Oceania Cruises, while smaller changes were carried out in the cabins and restaurants.^[13]

Decks

The decks plans provided by Oceania Cruises only include the lay-outs of passenger accessible decks.

1. Engine room and laundry fwd
2. various offices
3. Outside cabins^[14]
4. Reception, outside and inside cabins^[15]
5. Boutique, casino, bars, main dining room, lounge^[16]
6. Suites, outside and inside cabins^[17]
7. Suites, outside and inside cabins^[18]
8. Bridge, suites, outside and inside cabins^[19]
9. Card room, gym, spa, internet center, swimming pool, beauty salon, cafeteria, bar, sundeck^[20]
10. Bar/lounge, library, grill restaurant, Italian restaurant, sundeck^[21]
11. Sundeck^[22]

References

External links

• Official website
• Photos and Video of Regatta Cruise ship in Yalta, Ukraine

Ships of the Oceania Cruises fleet Regatta class Insignia Regatta Nautica Oceania class Marina Riviera

R class cruise ships Azamara Club Cruises Azamara Journey Azamara Quest Oceania Cruises Insignia Regatta Nautica P&O Cruises Adonia Princess Cruises Pacific Princess Ocean Princess