''Seven Seas Explorer'' is an ''Explorer''-class

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 "s ...

currently operated by Regent Seven Seas Cruises, a subsidiary of

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NCLH) is a holding company that is domiciled in Bermuda and based in the United States. It operates three cruise lines as wholly owned subsidiaries: Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises, and Regent Seven Seas Cr ...

. Debuting in 2016, she became the first new-build ship for Regent in more than a decade and the largest ship to ever operate for Regent.

History

Planning

On 10 July 2013, Regent Seven Seas Cruises announced it had entered into a contract with Italian shipbuilder, Fincantieri, to build a new vessel named ''Seven Seas Explorer''. The ship was initially designed to house 738 passengers, a 5% increase in passenger capacity over existing Regent vessels at the time, and would also be 12% larger, at , providing more space per passenger. As on ''Seven Seas Voyager'' and ''Seven Seas Mariner'', Regent intended to make ''Seven Seas Explorer'' an all-suite ship. The order for the ship reportedly cost US$450 million, with each berth costing over US$600,000, and was scheduled to debut in the summer of 2016. The debut of ''Seven Seas Explorer'' would reportedly mark an increase in Regent's capacity by up to 40%.

Construction

On 15 July 2014, Regent celebrated the steel cutting of the new ship at Fincantieri's yard in Sestri Ponente, near

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

. On 21 January 2015, a coin ceremony was performed for the laying of the ship's keel. Three different coins were welded into the keel: a 1921 Peace dollar, a 1959

Italian lira The lira (; plural lire) was the currency of Italy between 1861 and 2002. It was first introduced by the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy in 1807 at par with the French franc, and was subsequently adopted by the different states that would eventually f ...

, and a commemorative coin minted for the ceremony. On 30 October 2015, ''Seven Seas Explorer'' floated out from the

dry dock A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...

at the shipyard following completion of her exterior outfitting. The remainder of the construction was completed with the ship in wet dock.

Delivery and christening

''Seven Seas Explorer'' was delivered to Regent on 30 June 2016. She was christened in

Monte Carlo Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...

Charlene, Princess of Monaco Charlene (' Charlene Lynette Wittstock; French: ''Charlène'';Since her marriage, her name has been Gallicised by adding a grave accent to her name in French documents. born 25 January 1978) is the princess consort of Monaco and a former Olympic ...

on 13 July 2016.

In media

* ''The World's Most Expensive Cruise Ship'' Channel 5

Design and specifications

''Seven Seas Explorer'' currently features a total of 377 passenger cabins, all of which are suite accommodations. There are also a total of 325 crew cabins, making for a total capacity of 1,360 passengers and crew. She currently has 13 decks, a length of , a draft of , and a beam of . She is powered by a diesel-electric genset system, with four total

MaK Mak may refer to: People *Mak Dizdar (1917 - 1971), Bosnian poet *Muhammad Arshad Khan, Pakistani painter popularly known as "MAK" *Alan Mak (director) (born 1968), Hong Kong film director *Alan Mak (politician) (born 1984), British Member of Par ...

engines, producing a total output of . Main propulsion is via two

Wärtsilä Wärtsilä Oyj Abp (), trading internationally as Wärtsilä Corporation, is a Finnish company which manufactures and services power sources and other equipment in the marine and energy markets. The core products of Wärtsilä include technol ...

propellers, each driven by a electric motor. The system gives the vessel a service speed of and a maximum speed of . The ship features all-inclusive dining establishments, including a steakhouse, a main dining room, and a convertible buffet-restaurant. There is also a two-level theater and different lounges, including an observation lounge and a music lounge. There are multiple suite categories among the offered accommodations, with each category of cabin showcasing different layouts and design elements, as well as including verandas with every cabin.

Service history

Deployments

''Seven Seas Explorer'' set sail on her 14-night maiden voyage on 20 July 2016 from

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

. The ship spent her inaugural season sailing 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 and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

, before re-positioning to

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

for cruises in the

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 ...

. Since then, ''Seven Seas Explorer'' has also visited ports in

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 ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

, and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

. As of February 2020, ''Seven Seas Explorer'' is sailing Caribbean voyages and Panama Canal transits, and will re-position to Europe in April, sailing Northern Europe and Mediterranean itineraries. In the latter half of 2020, she will debut in Asia, before sailing her maiden Alaska season in the summer of 2021. She returns to Asia the following fall before debuting in Oceania in the winter of 2021.

References

External links

Regent Seven Seas Cruises official site page about the ship
NOVA television program about the construction of the ship (aired Feb. 8, 2017) o
PBS
{{DEFAULTSORT:Seven Seas Explorer 2015 ships Cruise ships Ships built in Italy Ships built by Fincantieri