MS Golden Iris
MS Golden Iris in Rhodes 2011
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| History | |
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| Name: |
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| Operator: |
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| Builder: |
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| Cost: | £12 million |
| Yard number: | 859 |
| Launched: | December 1974 |
| Acquired: | 30 October 1975 |
| Maiden voyage: | March 1977 |
| In service: | March 1977 |
| Identification: |
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| Status: | In service |
| General characteristics (as built) | |
| Class and type: | Cunard Countess-class cruise ship |
| Tonnage: | |
| Length: | 163.56 m (536 ft 7 in) |
| Beam: | 22.80 m (74 ft 10 in) |
| Draught: | 8.30 m (27 ft 3 in) |
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| Propulsion: | 2 propellers |
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| Capacity: | 947 passengers |
| General characteristics (as rebuilt, 1997) | |
| Tonnage: | 16,852 GT |
| Length: | 164.90 m (541 ft 0 in) |
| Beam: | 23.20 m (76 ft 1 in) |
| Draught: | 5.80 m (19 ft 0 in) |
| Decks: | 8 |
| Capacity: | 959 passengers |
| Crew: | 350 |
| Notes: | Otherwise the same as built |
MS Golden Iris is a cruise ship owned an operated by the Israel-based Mano Maritime. She was built 1975 by the Burmeister & Wain shipyard in Copenhagen, Denmark for Cunard Line as MS Cunard Conquest, but her interior fittings were subsequently installed at the Navali Mechaniche Affini in La Spezia, Italy. Following re-delivery from Navali Mechaniche Affini in 1977 the ship was renamed MS Cunard Princess. In 1995, the ship entered service with StarLauro Cruises (later rebranded MSC Cruises), briefly retaining her previous name before being renamed MS Rhapsody. Later during her career with MSC Cruises the ship came to be marketed as MS MSC Rhapsody, but her official registered name remained Rhapsody throughout her MSC career. The ship was sold to Mano Maritime in 2009.
The ship that eventually became known as the Cunard Princess was originally one of two ships ordered by the United States-based Overseas National Airways. Unusually Hugh Hefner, the founder of Playboy, was involved in the design process of the ships, envisioning them as "floating Playboy Clubs". Order for the two ships was placed with the Burmeister & Wain shipyard in Copenhagen, Denmark. However, during construction the ships were sold to the United Kingdom-based Cunard Line. Although better known as luxury cruise operators, Cunard decided to maintain the original informal cruise concept developed for the ships by Overseas National Airways.
Cunard Conquest, the second of the two sisters, was launched from drydock in December 1974. Instead of having the ships completed at Burmeister & Wain, Cunard decided that once the hulls of the ships were complete they would sail to the Navali Mechaniche Affini in La Spezia, Italy, where interior fittings would be installed. Therefore, following delivery to Cunard on 30 October 1975 the Cunard Conquest sailed to La Spezia, where she arrived on 6 November 1975. While the ship was being fitted out Cunard decided to change her name to Cunard Princess. Following delivery to Cunard in early 1977 the ship sailed to New York City, where she was renamed by Princess Grace of Monaco.
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Wikipedia