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MS ''Vistafjord'' was an
ocean liner An ocean liner is a passenger ship primarily used as a form of transportation across seas or oceans. Ocean liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes (such as for pleasure cruises or as hospital ships). Ca ...
that was built as a combined liner/cruise ship in 1973 by
Swan Hunter Shipbuilders Swan Hunter, formerly known as Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson, is a shipbuilding design, engineering, and management company, based in Wallsend, Tyne and Wear, England. At its apex, the company represented the combined forces of three powe ...
in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
for the
Norwegian America Line The Norwegian America Line ( no, Den Norske Amerikalinje), was a shipping line, originally an operator of ocean liners and cargo ships. Founded in 1910, the company ran a regular transatlantic service between Norway and the United States, and late ...
. In 1983 she was sold to
Cunard Line Cunard () is a British shipping and cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, Cunard and its three ships have been registered in Hamilton, Berm ...
, retaining her original name until 1999 when she was renamed ''Caronia''. In 2004 she was sold to Saga and sailed as ''Saga Ruby'' until sold in 2014 for use as a floating hotel and renamed ''Oasia''. This never came to fruition. Her owners went bankrupt, and in April 2017 she arrived at
Alang Alang is a census town in Bhavnagar district in the Indian state of Gujarat. Because it is home to the Alang Ship Breaking Yard, Alang beaches are considered the world's largest ship graveyard. Demographics As of the 2001 Indian census, Al ...
, India for scrapping.


Concept and construction

''Vistafjord'' was ordered by
Norwegian America Line The Norwegian America Line ( no, Den Norske Amerikalinje), was a shipping line, originally an operator of ocean liners and cargo ships. Founded in 1910, the company ran a regular transatlantic service between Norway and the United States, and late ...
(NAL) from
Swan Hunter Shipbuilders Swan Hunter, formerly known as Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson, is a shipbuilding design, engineering, and management company, based in Wallsend, Tyne and Wear, England. At its apex, the company represented the combined forces of three powe ...
,
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
,
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
. She was based on the company's 1965-built , but with an enlarged hull, additional superstructure deck and improved interior layout. However, as the cost of building ''Sagafjord'' had put her builders, Forges et Chantiers de la Mediterranee, out of business, ''Vistafjord'' had to be built at a different shipyard. She was launched on 15 May 1972 and delivered to the Norwegian America Line exactly a year later on 15 May 1973. She is the last cruise ship to have been built in the United Kingdom.


Service history


Norwegian America Line

On 22 May 1973, ''Vistafjord'' set on her maiden voyage, a
transatlantic crossing Transatlantic crossings are passages of passengers and cargo across the Atlantic Ocean between Europe or Africa and the Americas. The majority of passenger traffic is across the North Atlantic between Western Europe and North America. Centuries ...
from
Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...
to
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
. In early 1980, the vessel was famously chartered by car manufacturer
British Leyland British Leyland was an automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed in the United Kingdom in 1968 as British Leyland Motor Corporation Ltd (BLMC), following the merger of Leyland Motors and British Motor Holdings. It was partl ...
to internally launch the
Austin Metro The Metro is a supermini car, later a city car that was produced by British Leyland (BL) and, later, the Rover Group from 1980 to 1998. It was launched in 1980 as the Austin mini Metro. It was intended to complement and eventually replace the M ...
to its British dealer network. Although their ships were high-rated, Norwegian America Line had trouble making profit.


Cunard Line

In 1983 Trafalgar House, the owners of legendary
Cunard Line Cunard () is a British shipping and cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, Cunard and its three ships have been registered in Hamilton, Berm ...
, purchased NAL and in October 1983 ''Vistafjord'' joined the Cunard fleet together with her fleetmate ''Sagafjord''. She retained her original name and the grey NAL hull colour, but received Cunard Line funnel colours and was re-registered to the Bahamas. Despite the flag change she retained Norwegian command staff.Ulrich. pp. 188-189 During this time, both ''Vistafjord'' and ''Sagafjord'', were considered to be amongst the most luxurious cruise ships in the world, sharing the top 5 in ''Berlitz Complete Guide to Cruising'', together ''Sagafjord'' and
Royal Viking Line The Royal Viking Line was an upmarket cruise line that operated from 1972 until 1998. The company was the brain child of Warren Titus and had its headquarters at One Embarcadero Center in San Francisco. History The First Ships Each of the lin ...
's ''
Royal Viking Star MS ''Black Watch'' was a ''Royal Viking Star''-class cruise ship. She was built by Wärtsilä Hietalahti shipyard, Helsinki Shipyard, Finland for Royal Viking Line as ''Royal Viking Star'', entering service in 1972 as the lines first ship. She ...
'', ''
Royal Viking Sky MV ''Boudicca'' (also known as Royal Viking Sky, Sunward, Birka Queen, Golden Princess, SuperStar Capricorn, Hyundai Keumgang, SuperStar Capricorn and Grand Latino) was a ''Royal Viking Star''-class cruise ship that last served as accommodation ...
'' and '' Royal Viking Sea'' for several years. In 1999 the decision was made to rename ''Vistafjord'' with a more traditional Cunard Line name. On 10 December 1999 she was renamed ''Caronia'' and re-registered in the United Kingdom.


Saga Cruises

She continued service with Cunard until November 2004, when she was sold to
Saga Cruises Saga Shipping, also known as Saga Cruises, division of the Saga plc, is a cruise line headquartered in Folkestone, England. Saga Cruises exclusively markets to and operates for people aged 50 and over. History 1997–2005: Development In 1 ...
. Following a £17 million refit at
Valletta Valletta (, mt, il-Belt Valletta, ) is an Local councils of Malta, administrative unit and capital city, capital of Malta. Located on the Malta (island), main island, between Marsamxett Harbour to the west and the Grand Harbour to the east, i ...
,
Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
''Caronia'' reappeared as ''Saga Ruby'' in March 2005. In the Saga Cruises fleet she joined her former Norwegian America Line fleetmate ''Sagafjord'' (now named '' Saga Rose''). It was reported in 2012 that
Saga Cruises Saga Shipping, also known as Saga Cruises, division of the Saga plc, is a cruise line headquartered in Folkestone, England. Saga Cruises exclusively markets to and operates for people aged 50 and over. History 1997–2005: Development In 1 ...
would retire ''Saga Ruby'' in 2014 and the ''Quest for Adventure'' would move back into the fleet as ''Saga Pearl II''.


Farewell Voyage with Saga

She sailed her final world cruise in the first months of 2013. However it was marred by technical difficulties which kept the ship in Southampton until late February, which led to the cruise being renamed the 'Grand Voyage' visiting South America and South Africa. It was reported that ''Saga Ruby'' would depart on her final cruise with Saga Cruises on 7 December 2013 round trip from
Southampton, England Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Por ...
on a 31-day voyage to the Caribbean. While on her final cruise she was forced to change her itinerary to a Western Mediterranean cruise finally returning to Southampton on January 7, 2014. The cruise returned to Southampton late due to poor weather in the Bay of Biscay, eventually arriving on 9 January 2014, with passengers disembarking on 10 January.


Floating Hotel ''Oasia''

In January 2014 she was sold for $14M USD to Millennium View Ltd, a privately held company based in Singapore. The new owners planned to convert her into a floating hotel in Myanmar. In mid-February 2014 she sailed from Gibraltar as ''Oasia'' under Bahamas flag and management of FleetPro Ocean. In February 2017, it was announced that ''Oasia'' was being sold for scrap. This came as quite a surprise to many, as the ship, still SOLAS compliant, had recently undergone a US$10 million overhaul as a hotel and museum ship. She was found in Thailand, awaiting tow to scrapping, after having US$20 million invested in her.


Design


Exterior design

''Vistafjord'' was built with a very traditional ocean liner profile, with the funnel placed amidship and a notable sheer on her hull. The superstructure is terraced both at the fore and aft of the ship. In two refits during her Cunard Line career additional structures were added to the rear and top of the superstructure. In Norwegian America Line service ''Vistafjord'' carried the traditional NAL livery, with a grey hull, white superstructure, yellow mast and a yellow funnel with red, white and blue (colours of the
flag of Norway The national flag of Norway ( nb, Norges flagg; nn, Noregs flagg; ) is red with a navy blue Scandinavian cross fimbriated in white that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style ...
) stripes. Following the sale to Cunard she retained the grey hull colour, but her funnel was painted in the red/black Cunard colours and her mast white. A red "Cunard" text was later added to her superstructure. Coinciding with her renaming into ''Caronia'' in 1999 the ship's hull was repainted black. As ''Saga Ruby'' her hull was repainted dark blue and her funnel yellow, with a dark blue top and a narrow white stripe separating the two colours.


Filming

''Vistafjord'' was featured in the 1986 episode ''Countdown'' of
MacGyver Angus "Mac" MacGyver is the title character and the protagonist in the TV series ''MacGyver''. He is played by Richard Dean Anderson in the 1985 original series. Lucas Till portrays a younger version of MacGyver in the 2016 reboot. In both po ...
as the cruise ship SS ''Victoria''.


References


External links


Saga Ruby official siteshort video clips of Saga RubyVistafjord on Chris' Cunard PageSaga Ruby at PiraeusNewham Council Planning Application
{{Cunard ships Cruise ships Ocean liners 1972 ships Ships built by Swan Hunter Ships built on the River Tyne