At Sea with Doug Newman

I’ve just received the latest copy of Sea Lines, the wonderful magazine of the Ocean Liner Society (if you aren’t a member, join - the magazine alone is worth it!), which contained a lovely review by editor Clive Harvey of his recent cruise aboard Classic International Cruises‘ Athena.

Having been built as Swedish America Line’s Stockholm (of Andrea Doria collision fame) all the way back in 1948, then going on to become the East German Völkerfreundschaft before a period laid-up and as a refugee housing ship, Fridtjof Nansen, she finally had a massive conversion in Italy in the 1990s (similar to the ones that turned a pair of container ships into Costa Marina and Costa Allegra, and taking advantage of the same government subsidies) that made her into the stylishly modern Italia Prima. Her owner, Nina Cruises - formed by the famed Cosulich family - had little success chartering her to numerous tour operators, lastly one that renamed her Valtur Prima in its own honor, and went under in 2001. After a time laid-up in Havana she was again sold in 2003 to Festival Cruises who renamed her Caribe and promptly went out of business as well, before finally winding up with her current Portuguese owners in 2004. Now nearing her 60th birthday - but with nothing but the hull left over 15 years old - this ship, despite her rather odd profile, looks like an absolute delight to sail in. Chartered, like CIC’s other ships, to various tour operators (Clive’s cruise was on a charter to Travelscope that was canceled when his voyage returned), I certainly hope she’s finally found a stable home - something she hasn’t had since the Völkerfreundschaft days of the 1960s to 1980s. Indeed, with many attractive features - a wide range of spacious public rooms, modern Italian decor, single seating dining, a wrap-around promenade and more - she is a ship I’d quite like to sail in.

For some wonderful interior and exterior photos of this ship see here from ShipParade.

In addition to being an interesting ship, her owner is also a very interesting firm; not only the only major Portuguese cruise line but perhaps the only operator of any consequence that’s truly committed to “classic” ships and nothing else. CIC is a company truly driven by one man, its chairman George Potamianos; you can read a fascinating with him here on Luís Miguel Correia’s wonderful “Ships and the Sea” Blog.

According to Clive, Athena is “his kind of ship” and I suspect she might be mine as well - let’s hope this reborn veteran has a long, successful future ahead of her!