Saga Pearl II
Astor ( 1980-85 ) Arkona (1985-2002) Astoria ( 2002-10 ) Quest for Adventure (2012-13 )
Germanischer Lloyd
IMO no. 8000214
The Saga Pearl II is a cruise ship in the Saga Shipping Company Ltd. The ship was under the name Astor in the years 1983/84 location of the very popular in Germany television series " The Love Boat " and runs now under the flag of Malta.
History
On December 16, 1980, the ship went under the name Astor at the Howaldtswerken - German shipyard AG in Hamburg with the hull number 165 ( Bauname Hammonia ) for HADAG Cruises Lines Ltd. from the stack.
During equipment assembly works a comparatively harmless fire on board caused significant smoke and water damage. This damage led to a delay in the maiden voyage of the ship, which took place in the North Sea from 24 November 1981. After successful testing of the ship on 4 December 1981, delivered to the KG Kymo management company for ship investments with headquarters in Hamburg. First the ship to the KR HADAG Seetouristik & AG and ferry service was chartered as a cruise ship. Originally the ship for 638 passengers had been built. The first trip was from Hamburg to Le Havre, Malaga and Genoa with invited guests.
To avert the utter bankruptcy of HADAG, the ship on 14 October 1983, the shipping company South African Marine Corp. was. Ltd.. sold in Cape Town. In Hamburg, took place on 7 February 1984, the delivery of the ship. In the shipyard were then extensive renovation and modernization work carried out so that the ship was now approved only for 530 passengers. These renovations were completed with the expiry 1 April 1984 to South Africa via Southampton.
As of July 1984, the Astor was registered in Nassau ( Bahamas). The ship is often confused with the Astor in 1987 put into service, the successor to ship with the re vergebenem name.
By 29 August 1985, the VEB Deutfracht / DSR Rostock ( DSR) took over the ship and put it under the name Arkona for the holidays fdgb service of the GDR into service. Previously, the German East Africa Line, based in Kiel, a subsidiary of Deutsche Afrika-Linien, briefly owner of the ship, as the GDR did not want a direct relationship with South Africa. Before the re-flagging the vessel with the HDW - German Werft GmbH (HDW ) has been overhauled for three million Deutsche Mark. To date, there are opinions that the sale of the vessel to the GDR part of a secret triangular operation between South Africa, East Germany and the HDW, which was significantly influenced or threaded through the Schleswig-Holstein state government or its Prime Minister Barschel and in which up DM 150 million bribe to have flowed. The GDR was thus favorable to a cruise ship, which because of its apartheid policy is under arms embargo South Africa submarine plans and the economically ailing HDW, which was 25.1 % owned by the State of Schleswig Holstein, much was needed jobs.
The Arkona replaced the sold in the same year of the GDR People's Friendship. In addition to vacation trips with GDR citizens in the Baltic Sea and to Cuba, it was mainly to Western tour operators to generate much-needed foreign exchange chartered. From the German reunification in 1990, the ship sailed again under the Federal German flag and was renamed to Astoria in 2002.
After a conversion of around 14 million pounds sterling, the ship came from mid-March 2010 under the name Saga Pearl II again under the flag of the Bahamas are used.
Since March 2012, she flies the flag of Malta, in May 2012 the ship was renamed Quest for Adventure. The end of 2013 it got back its old name Saga Pearl II
Pictures
The Arkona before leaving Rostock
Arkona from Rostock discontinued
Rostock 1985: Farewell to Leningrad and Riga
Sun Deck ( 1985)
Salon (1985 )
The Arkona on the Baltic Sea Ride 1989
Arkona 1999 in Warnemünde
Astoria 2007 in Kiel
Saga Pearl II Nordermole before May 16, 2010
Saga Pearl II in Split, on 24 October 2011.
Saga Pearl II in Split, on 24 October 2011.
Quest for Adventure in Douglas Bay