Cruise ShipsFred Olsen Cruise LinesNorwegian Cruise Line (NCL)Past and Present

MV Balmoral – Past and Present

IMO Number: 8506294

MV Balmoral

ex Crown Odyssey, Norwegian Crown, Crown Odyssey, Norwegian Crown

© Brian Fisher

© Brian Fisher

Steel twin screw motor vessel built in 1988 by Jos L Meyer Werft, Papenburg, Germany (Yard No 616) for Royal Cruise Line, Piraeus, Greece . 

Technical Data

  • Original Cost: $178 million
  • Length on deck: 187.71m (615.9 ft)(overall), 217.91m (2008)/155.81m (between perpendiculars), 186.0m (2008)
  • Breadth of hull: 28.20m (92.5 ft), 32.3m (extreme)
  • Depth: 15.22m, 14.6m (2008)
  • Draught: 7.25m (23.8 ft)
  • Tonnage: 34,242 gross, 43,537 (2008)/15,401 net, 19,985 (2008)/5,186 deadweight
  • Engines: Two 8-cylinder and two 6-cylinder MaK Maschinenbau diesels
  • Propulsion/Propellers: 21,752 bhp: 16,000 kW/2
  • Speed: 22.5 knots
  • Capacity: 1,209 passengers, 1,428 (2008)
  • Crew: 470
  • Navigation Officers: European/Norwegian
  • Passenger Decks: 10
  • Call Sign: C6II4
  • MMIS Number: 308785000
  • IMO Number: 8506294
  • Registry: Piraeus/Greece 🇬🇷, Nassau/Bahamas 🇧🇸

Current AIS Location


Please note that this specific vessels AIS position data may be over an hour old and that the vessels position will only be displayed when it is within range of the VesselFinder AIS system. The AIS transponder/ship position data featured on this page is intended for information purposes only and it is in no way related to the 'Safety of Navigation at Sea'. All the AIS ship position data featured within this article is provided by VesselFinder and we are therefore not responsible for its content or its accuracy.


History

November 1st 1987: Launched.

December 28th 1987 – December 31st 1987: Sea trials.

May 14th 1988: Christened.

June 1988: Delivered to Royal Cruise Line, Piraeus, Greece.

June 4th 1988: Crossed from Emden to Tilbury.

June 7th 1988: Commenced cruising.

1990: Registered to Bahamas flag, home port Nassau.

1992: Sold to Kloster Cruise, Nassau, Bahamas.

May 1996: Renamed NORWEGIAN CROWN for Norwegian Cruise Line, Nassau, Bahamas.

May 2000: Service for Orient Line. Renamed CROWN ODYSSEY.

© Benoit Donne

© Benoit Donne

March 26th 2003: Renamed NORWEGIAN CROWN at Sembawang Shipyard, Singapore.

September 15th 2003: Inaugural cruise from Baltimore.

© Benoit Donne

© Benoit Donne

2004: Registered Owner; Crown Odyssey Ltd.

2004: Registered Owner; Norwegian Cruise Line Ltd.

Nigel Thornton Collection

Nigel Thornton Collection

May 26th 2006: Sold to Fred Olsen Cruise Line, for delivery in November 2007, but chartered back to Norwegian Cruise Line for completion of 2007 cruise season.

June 7th 2006: Grounded on a sandbar in Bermuda between Dockyard and Spanish Point, but was eventually freed by three tugs that evening.

October 28th 2007: Last NCL cruise.

November 5th 2007: Fred. Olsen took delivery in New York.

November 14th 2007 (eve): Called at Dover.

November 15th 2007: To Blohm & Voss Repair GmbH, in Hamburg for refurbishment and lengthening by insertion of 30m mid-section.

© Christian Eckardt

© Christian Eckardt

November 17th 2007: “The ship is being cut in half today, prior to inserting a new 100-foot midsection, adding 350 berths. She will be renamed BALMORAL”.

© Jens Boldt  © Jens Boldt  

© Jens Boldt

© Jens Boldt (all)

© Mikael Söderholm  © Mikael Söderholm  

© Mikael Söderholm

© Jan Tiedemann www.jantiedemann.de

© Jan Tiedemann (www.jantiedemann.de)

Extension of Balmoral timelapse © MKtimelapse GmbH

November 2007: Renamed BALMORAL

© Jens Boldt

© Jens Boldt

January 23rd 2008: Anticipated inaugural arrival in Dover.

January 25th 2008: Inaugural arrival at Dover. Her first cruise was a 14-night Canary Islands voyage. The ship then will then be repositioned to Miami, FL, becoming the first Fred. Olsen vessel home-ported in the US.


© Nigel Thornton  © Nigel Thornton  

© Nigel Thornton  © Nigel Thornton  

© Nigel Thornton

2008: Commenced cruising for Fred Olsen.

© Aleksi Lindström  © Aleksi Lindström  

© Aleksi Lindström

© Ray Goodfellow   

© Ray Goodfellow

January 20th 2009: Two passengers were taken to hospital with broken bones after she was hit by 50ft waves in the Bay of Biscay. She docked in the Spanish port of La Coruna after setting sail from Dover on January 17th. Her owners said the passengers were injured when they fell over as the ship endured rough seas and winds of 60mph.

December 11th 2015: Received new livery.

“Following a recent refurbishment at the Lloyd Werft shipyard in Bremerhaven, Germany, Fred Olsen Cruise Lines’ Boudicca has been given a new colour scheme and livery. Boudicca is the first ship in the fleet to be given the new colours. The previously white hull is now a dark grey, topped with a red line above.

Nathan Philpot, Sales & Marketing Director, Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, said:

“The painting of the hulls is a positive statement and represents the on-going changes to position Fred Olsen Cruise Lines’ fleet within the premium market. A grey hull harks back to Fred. Olsen’s heritage, to when the first Black Watch and Black Prince were launched in the 1930s; these were two of the most luxurious ships afloat at the time. The use of the ‘Cartier’ red line is a visual reminder to all our guests and crew of what we refer to internally as our ‘Red Carpet’ service.”

Balmoral has also began her transformation, with Black Watch and Braemar being painted in due course.”

Source: Cruise Critic

© Edson de Lima Lucas    

© Edson de Lima Lucas (Left) and © Robert Fournier (Right)

© Erwin Willemse  © Erwin Willemse  

© Erwin Willemse (Ijmuiden, 24/06/2017)

October 19th 2019: Due at Dover

© Erwin Willemse  © Erwin Willemse 

© Erwin Willemse (Ijmuiden, 20/09/2019)

March 20th 2020: Sailed to Firth of Forth for extended lay-up (Coronavirus) then arrived in Rosyth.


© Brian Donovan © Brian Donovan

© Brian Donovan (20/03/2020)

© Brian Donovan © Brian Donovan © Brian Donovan

© Brian Donovan

March 30th 2022: Left Rosyth showing destination Falmouth (eta 01/04/2022)

© Brian Donovan © Brian Donovan © Brian Donovan  © Brian Donovan© Brian Donovan © Brian Donovan© Brian Donovan  © Brian Donovan

© Brian Donovan (Rosyth, 30/03/2022)

April 2nd 2022: Arrived Falmouth for refit.

April 24th 2022: Left Falmouth and sailed to Tyne.

May 2nd 2022: Anticipated entry into cruise schedule (16 days round trip Canaries).

September 23rd 2022: Due at Dover.

© Dennis Mortimer © Dennis Mortimer © Dennis Mortimer

🆕 © Dennis Mortimer (Piraeus, 15/10/2022)


All information is believed to be correct and no responsibility is accepted for any errors or omissions found. All items included in this article are subject to © copyright. We would like to take this opportunity of thanking: Jens Boldt, Benoit Donne, Brian Donovan, Christian Eckardt, Brian Fisher, Robert Fournier, Jorodmon, Edson de Lima Lucas, Aleksi Lindström, Dennis Mortimer, Mikael Söderholm, Jan Tiedemann and Erwin Willemse for their assistance in compiling this feature.

Article © Nigel Thornton and Ray Goodfellow (Dover Ferry Photos Group)

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