''Marella Discovery 2'' is the lead ship of the of

cruise ships 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 "s ...

originally operated by Royal Caribbean International. With a gross tonnage of , the ship can carry 2,074 passengers. Its maiden voyage was May 16, 1995. The ship's facilities include a rock climbing wall, a mini-golf course, dining areas and bars, an atrium, two pools, a theatre and a fitness centre.

Career

As ''Legend of the Seas'', it was the most-traveled ship in the Royal Caribbean fleet, having been based in Asia, Australia and New Zealand, the South Pacific,

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

, Central America,

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

, the

Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages * Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originati ...

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 and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

and the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

during her 19-year career at sea. Starting in the winter of 2009 she was based in Asia on a year-round basis. After the

2011 Tōhoku earthquake Eleven or 11 may refer to: *11 (number), the natural number following 10 and preceding 12 * one of the years 11 BC, AD 11, 1911, 2011, or any year ending in 11 Literature * ''Eleven'' (novel), a 2006 novel by British author David Llewellyn *''El ...

, almost all of her North Asia routes were canceled. In 2013 she returned to Europe to offer cruises in the Mediterranean Sea. During the winter period the ship was based at

Fort Lauderdale A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

for Caribbean cruises. In the summer period in 2014, she offered cruises to

Northern Europe The northern region of Europe has several definitions. A restrictive definition may describe Northern Europe as being roughly north of the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, which is about 54th parallel north, 54°N, or may be based on other g ...

where she visited port in the Baltic Sea and

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. On 2 June 2016, Royal Caribbean sold ''Legend of the Seas'' to the UK based

Thomson Cruises Marella Cruises (formerly Thomson Cruises) is a British cruise line operated by TUI UK, offering cruise holidays around Europe, the Caribbean, and Asia. History The company had initially entered the cruise market in 1973, but due to rising fue ...

. ''Legend of the Seas''s last scheduled cruise with Royal Caribbean ended on 26 March 2017 before the ship was transferred to Thomson. She first appeared as the ''TUI Discovery 2'' in Malaga, Spain on 14 May 2017. Following the announcement on 9 October 2017, that Thomson Cruises would be renamed Marella Cruises,

TUI Group TUI Group is a German leisure, travel and tourism company. TUI is an acronym for ''Touristik Union International'' ("Tourism Union International"). TUI AG was known as Preussag AG until 1997 when the company changed its activities from mining to ...

also announced that ''TUI Discovery 2'' would adopt the name ''Marella Discovery 2'' at the end of October 2017. On 28 October 2017, ''TUI Discovery 2'' was renamed ''Marella Discovery 2'' in a ceremony held at the port of Tenerife by members of the ship's crew chosen as 'outstanding performers' by the company, together with the Captain. ''Marella Discovery 2'' is the sister ship to (formerly ''Splendour of the Seas'').

References

External links

Thomson/Marella Cruises

Marella Discovery 2 Cruise Ship
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marella Discovery 2 Cruise ships Ships built in France 1994 ships