Orient Lines

Orient Lines Fate Brand closed Founded 1991Defunct 2008Location Industry Cruise shiptraffic Key people Gerry Herrod Former Parent Norwegian Cruise Line(1998—2000)
Star Cruises(2000—2008)

For the company sometimes referred to as "Orient Line", see Orient Steam Navigation Company

Orient Lines was a cruise line specialising in exotic destinations that was in operation 1993—2008. The brand was founded in 1993 by Gerry Herrod, who had previously owned Ocean Cruise Lines.[1] Orient Lines was sold to Norwegian Cruise Line in 1998,[2] and ceased operations ten years later.[3]

1 History
2 Ships
3 References
4 External links

History

The history of Orient Lines began in 1991 when Shipping & General Ltd, owned by Gerry Herrod, acquired the cruise ship Alexandr Pushkin from Far Eastern Shipping Company.[1] Herrod had previously operated Ocean Cruise Lines, but had sold that venture in 1990 to Paquet Lines.[4] During the next two and a half years the Alexandr Pushkin was almost entirely rebuilt and emerged in 1993 as the Marco Polo for the new Orient Lines brand, embarking on a varied program with cruises all around the world.[1][5][4]

In 1998 Norwegian Cruise Line acquired the successful brand.[2] In 1999 NCL itself was acquired by Star Cruises.[6] Following this NCL's Norwegian Crown joined the Orient Lines fleet in May 2000 under the name Crown Odyssey.[7] In March 2001 Star Cruises announced that their SuperStar Aries would be joining the Orient Lines fleet in mid-2002 as the Ocean Voyager. This plan was shelved however,[5] and in 2003 Orient Lines reverted to operating with just one ship when the Crown Odyssey returned to the NCL fleet.[5][7]

On 4 June 2007 NCL announced that the Marco Polo had been sold to the Greece-based Global Maritime, with a delivery date on 31 March 2008. This meant the end of the Orient Line brand, as no ship was brought in to replace the Marco Polo.[3][8] Global Maritime in turn chartered the Marco Polo to the Germany-based Transocean Tours.[3]

Ships

Ship Built In service for Orient Lines Gross Register TonnageStatus as of 2008 Marco Polo1965 1993—2008 22080 GRT Since 2008 sailing for Transocean Tours Crown Odyssey1988 2000—2003 34242 GRT Since 2008 sailing as Balmoral for Fred. Olsen Cruise Line

References

^ a b c Ship Profile: MV Marco Polo. Cruisepage.com. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ a b Ward, Douglas (2006). Berlitz Complete Guide to Cruising & Cruise Ships 2006. Berlitz, page 384. ISBN ISBN 981 246 739 4.
^ a b c Newman, Doug (2008-03-31). The End of Orient Lines. At Sea with Doug Newman. Retrieved on 2008-04-01.
^ a b Jay Carson. Marco Polo: History. Sealetter Cruise Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ a b c Ian Boyle. Orient Lines (1992-2008). Simplon Postcards. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ (Swedish) Micke Asklander. Kloster Cruise / Norwegian Cruise Line. Fakta om Fartyg. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ a b (Swedish) Micke Asklander. M/S Crown Odyssey (1988). Fakta om Fartyg. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ NCL Announces Farwell Season of Marco Polo. Orient Lines press release. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.