''Hebridean Sky'' is a

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports-of-call, where passengers may go on tours known as ...

owned by London-based cruise company Noble Caledonia. As an ice-rated vessel she has operated as an expedition cruise ship in

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest cont ...

and in the

Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenland), Finland, Iceland, N ...

. She was also known under the names ''Renaissance VII'', ''Regina Renaissance'', ''Renai I'', ''Sun'', ''Island Sun'', ''Corinthian II'', ''Sea Explorer'', ''Sea Explorer I''. In the early 1990s the

Renaissance Cruises Renaissance Cruises was a cruise ship operating company that was founded in 1989 and owned by Fearnley & Eger Rederi in Oslo, Norway. It was purchased by Edward Rudner (founder of Alamo Car Rental) as the company faltered during the Gulf War. It o ...

company commissioned eight small cruise ships, all of which were given numeric names in the form of Roman figures (from I to VIII). The second group of four identical sister ships, ''V'' - ''VIII'', was built in a different yard, and had increased capabilities. Originally named ''Renaissance VII'', ''Hebridean Sky'' was the third ship of the second group. Designed to operate in almost any place of the world, this ship accommodated up to 120 passengers in 59 cabins. The lounge and dining room were both large enough to welcome all passengers at one time. There were also other facilities, such as swimming pool and nightclub. In 1992 ''Renaissance VII'' was chartered by a tour company, Raymond & White, and was renamed ''Regina Renaissance'', cruising for several years in the Caribbean. The charter ended in 1998, and ship was returned to her original name and changed her itinerary for cruising in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

in summer and in the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...

in winter, being presented mainly in North American and European markets. Renaissance Cruises went

bankrupt Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

in October 2001, and ''Renaissance VII'' was sold to a business group that had invested in the company. They renamed the vessel ''Renai I'', but she remained idle, for sale or charter. In 2003 the ship's name was changed to ''Sun'', and the year after, the vessel was bought by International Shipping, who renamed her ''Island Sun'', and then she was chartered by Mauritius Island Cruises. They planned to operate the vessel on a regular basis, making cruises around

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It ...

from

Port Louis Port Louis (french: Port-Louis; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Polwi or , ) is the capital city of Mauritius. It is mainly located in the Port Louis District, with a small western part in the Black River District. Port Louis is the country's e ...

. Unfortunately, the company did not pass through bureaucratic regulations enforced by the government and was forced to cease operations after only a couple of days. During 2004, a company named Around The World Cruises began to promote cruises from Fremantle, Australia, for the coming summer. After experiencing some difficulties, the company finally managed to obtain ''Island Sun'' at a very short notice, and she duly arrived in Fremantle on 26 November. After making only four short cruises the departure that was scheduled for 10 December was cancelled almost before the voyage, and the operating company went bankrupt few days later. A bit later Mauritius Island Cruises also collapsed, and in 2005 ''Island Sun'' was sold to the Danish Clipper Group, and the vessel was chartered to an American company named Travel Dynamics International. They renamed the vessel ''Corinthian II'', refurbished and redecorated her, and for eight years she cruised mainly in the Mediterranean region and later in

. In 2013 the ship was chartered from Clipper Group by Polar Latitudes and Poseidon Expeditions. They operated her in Antarctica and the Arctic. In 2014 the ship was acquired by Noble Caledonia, a company that already owned sister vessels ''Island Sky'' (formerly ''Renaissance VIII'') and ''Caledonian Sky'' (formerly ''Renaissance VI''). The ship was refitted in April 2016.

References

External links

List of voyages to Antarctica aboard Sea Explorer, gallery and deckplan

Complete information of present whereabouts of Sea Explorer

TravelWild Expeditions
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hebridean Sky Cruise ships Ships built in La Spezia 1991 ships