Ambassador Cruise Line Charters Ship to the Scottish Government

Ambassador Cruise Line confirmed it’s chartering of the Ambition to the Scottish Government. Formerly known as AIDAmira, the 1,428-guest vessel will be used to house Ukrainian refugees in the country.

“We have agreed to a joint arrangement with the Scottish Government that means we can help the Scottish resettlement program for the Ukraine population, many of whom are fleeing the country,” the company said in a prepared statement.

Currently sailing to Scotland, the cruise ship is set to arrive in Glasgow at the beginning of September, Ambassador explained.

“We are proud to be supporting such an important humanitarian cause,” it added.

Acquired by Ambassador Cruise Line in January 2022, the Ambition was scheduled to launch a service for the brand in March 2023.

While the duration of the charter agreement has not been disclosed, no changes to the inaugural timeline have been confirmed so far.

“We are still finalizing the details with the various parties concerned, but we will be communicating with guests in due course to explain this agreement and we hope you are able to understand our wishes to help with this cause,” Ambassador noted.

Docked in Montenegro for the past four months, the Ambition has been out of service since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Launched in 1999 as the Mistral, the 48,200-ton vessel was built for Festival Cruises.

After the collapse of its original operators, the ship was acquired by Iberojet for further service in Europe as the Grand Mistral.

In 2007, it joined Carnival Corporation when the Spanish tour operator, along with its fleet, was acquired by the U.S.-based cruise conglomerate.

Before being sold to its current owners, the vessel also spent time sailing for Costa Cruises and AIDA Cruises.

As the second ship of Ambassador, the Ambition is now set to provide departures from regional UK ports such as Newcastle, Dundee, Belfast, Liverpool, Bristol and Falmouth.

Former Costa neoRomantica To Be Scrapped

The Antares Experience – formerly known as the Costa neoRomantica and Celestyal Experience – is getting scrapped, according to Gadani Ship Breaking Yard.

The Pakistani shipyard posted several photos and videos of the former Costa Cruises ship on its Facebook page.

The ship was originally launched as the Romantica in the 1990s and renamed as the neoRomantica after Costa gave it a 90-million-euro upgrade in 2011-2012 adding two half decks, new staterooms and additional balcony-equipped accommodations.

Celestyal Cruises took delivery of the ship in summer 2020 and renamed it as the Celestyal Experience, according to the Secondhand Market Report by Cruise Industry News. The 1,800-guest ship immediately became the largest ship in the company’s fleet but, sadly, never sailed for the cruise line.

Celestyal CEO, Chris Theophilides, previously said that the purchase of the Experience allowed the cruise line to see “many more destinations.” It was expected to sail on March 5, 2022, with the seven-night Three Continents itinerary, calling in Greece, Turkey, Israel, Egypt and Cyprus. The ship’s sales price was not disclosed.

However, those operational plans were quickly scrapped as the pandemic showed no signs of stopping, and Celestyal published a statement on selling the ship – at the time to an undisclosed buyer. The vessel shortly reemerged as the Antares Experience.

New Celestyal Ship Gets Smart New Livery

Celestyal Experience

Celestyal Cruises has wasted no time on its latest addition as the former Costa neoRomantica has become the Celestyal Experience.

Celestyal added the name to the ship while the vessel was docked in Greece, having taken delivery from Carnival Corporation’s Costa brand earlier in the summer.

With the new name added, Celestyal’s next move was to add a new livery to the 1993-built vessel as the trademark yellow Costa funnels are now Celestyal blu. Next up the logo has also been added to the ship.

Celestyal has yet to announce the ship’s 2021 deployment, but it is expected to operate in the Eastern Mediterranean as the company grows capacity alongside the Olympia and Cristal.