AIDAblu
Encyclopedia
Pacific Jewel is a cruise ship
Cruise ship
A cruise ship or cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are part of the experience, as well as the different destinations along the way...
currently operated by P&O Cruises Australia
P&O Cruises Australia
P&O Cruises Australia is a British-American owned cruise line with corporate headquarters at Carnival House in Southampton, England and operational headquarters in North Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
, and operating from Sydney, Australia. Built by Fincantieri
Fincantieri
Fincantieri - Cantieri Navali Italiani S.p.A. is a shipbuilding company based in Trieste, Italy. It was formed in 1959 and is the largest shipbuilder in the Mediterranean, and one of the largest in Europe...
and launched in 1989 for Sitmar Cruises
Sitmar Cruises
Sitmar Cruises and Sitmar Line were common names for the Societa Italiana Trasporti Marittimi ; an Italian shipping company founded by Russian émigré Alexandre Vlasov. Vlasov operated cargo and passenger services from 1937 until 1988, when it was sold to the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation...
, ownership of the vessel was transferred to P&O Princess Cruises PLC
P&O Princess Cruises PLC
P&O Princess Cruises plc was a shipping company that existed between 2000 and 2003, operating the P&O Cruises, Princess Cruises, P&O Cruises Australia, A'Rosa Cruises, AIDA Cruises and Ocean Village branded cruise lines...
after P&O acquired Sitmar. The cruise ship operated as Crown Princess until 2002, when she was renamed A`Rosa Blu and transferred to A'Rosa Cruises
A'Rosa Cruises
-History:A'Rosa was established in 2001, as a subsidiary of P&O Princess Cruises PLC. The company was created to serve the German cruise market, alongside the AIDA Cruises fleet, which had been acquired by P&O in 1999. A'Rosa was modelled loosely on the AIDA concept, and began life with three ships...
. In 2003, the ship was reassigned to the AIDA Cruises
AIDA Cruises
AIDA Cruises is a British-American owned German cruise line based in Rostock, Germany.Originally founded as Deutsche Seereederei with a ship called Völkerfreundschaft , the company entered the cruise industry in the 1960s and was later acquired by P&O Princess Cruises PLC in 2000...
fleet, following the acquisition of P&O by Carnival Corporation & plc
Carnival Corporation & plc
Carnival Corporation & plc , is a American-British Company, and the world's largest cruise ship operator. It is a dual listed company, with headquarters at Carnival Place in the Miami suburb of Doral, Florida, USA, and at Carnival House in Southampton, England, UK...
, and after a refit, reentered service in 2004 as AIDAblu. From 2007 to 2008, the ship was named Ocean Village Two and operated by Ocean Village
Ocean Village
Ocean Village was a British-American owned cruise line, based in Southampton, England. Designed to offer and alternative cruise experience, Ocean Village was founded by P&O Princess Cruises PLC, which later merged with Carnival Corporation to form Carnival Corporation & PLC...
, but after owner Carnival decided to shut down the Ocean Village brand, she was transferred to P&O Australia's fleet.
Design and construction
Pacific Jewel was built by FincantieriFincantieri
Fincantieri - Cantieri Navali Italiani S.p.A. is a shipbuilding company based in Trieste, Italy. It was formed in 1959 and is the largest shipbuilder in the Mediterranean, and one of the largest in Europe...
in Monfalcone
Monfalcone
Monfalcone is a town and comune of the province of Gorizia , located on the coast of the Gulf of Trieste. Monfalcone means "Mount of Falcon" in Italian....
, Italy as Crown Princess, with the yard number 5939. She was launched on 25 May 1989.
As designed, the vessel had a gross tonnage of , and a deadweight tonnage of . She is 245.08 metre long, with a beam of 32.25 metre, and a draught of 7.9 metre. Her distinctive curved profile—often referred to as 'dolphin-like'—was designed by Renzo Piano
Renzo Piano
Renzo Piano is an Italian architect. He is the recipient of the Pritzker Architecture Prize, AIA Gold Medal, Kyoto Prize and the Sonning Prize...
. The two propeller shafts are drived by four MAN-B&W
B&W
-Companies:* Babcock and Wilcox, an American manufacturing company * Brown & Williamson, a former American tobacco company, now merged with R. J...
8L58/64 diesels, with a combined output of 24,000 kW and a maximum speed of 19.5 knots (10.6 m/s). The ship could originally carry 1,910 passengers (maximum) The cruise ship was built at a cost of US$276.8 million.
The ship has the
A second ship was built to the same design, and is operating as of 2010 under the name Pacific Dawn. The two ships were ordered by Sitmar Cruises
Sitmar Cruises
Sitmar Cruises and Sitmar Line were common names for the Societa Italiana Trasporti Marittimi ; an Italian shipping company founded by Russian émigré Alexandre Vlasov. Vlasov operated cargo and passenger services from 1937 until 1988, when it was sold to the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation...
, but transferred to the ownership of P&O Princess Cruises PLC
P&O Princess Cruises PLC
P&O Princess Cruises plc was a shipping company that existed between 2000 and 2003, operating the P&O Cruises, Princess Cruises, P&O Cruises Australia, A'Rosa Cruises, AIDA Cruises and Ocean Village branded cruise lines...
when P&O acquired Sitmar.
Operational history
Crown Princess was handed over to P&O on 29 June 1990, and sailed on 8 July for her maiden voyage.In 2002, the ship was renamed A'Rosa Blu transferred to A'Rosa Cruises
A'Rosa Cruises
-History:A'Rosa was established in 2001, as a subsidiary of P&O Princess Cruises PLC. The company was created to serve the German cruise market, alongside the AIDA Cruises fleet, which had been acquired by P&O in 1999. A'Rosa was modelled loosely on the AIDA concept, and began life with three ships...
, a new P&O brand aimed at the German market. Financial problems and the acquisition of P&O by Carnival Corporation & plc
Carnival Corporation & plc
Carnival Corporation & plc , is a American-British Company, and the world's largest cruise ship operator. It is a dual listed company, with headquarters at Carnival Place in the Miami suburb of Doral, Florida, USA, and at Carnival House in Southampton, England, UK...
prompted the ship's reassignment to the AIDA Cruises
AIDA Cruises
AIDA Cruises is a British-American owned German cruise line based in Rostock, Germany.Originally founded as Deutsche Seereederei with a ship called Völkerfreundschaft , the company entered the cruise industry in the 1960s and was later acquired by P&O Princess Cruises PLC in 2000...
fleet in September 2003. Following a refit, which saw the ship's passenger capacity increase to 2,014 across 11 decks, her crew expanded to 621, and increases in her tonnage (to and ), the cruise ship was renamed AIDAblu and returned to service in 2004.
Ocean Village
Ocean Village was a British-American owned cruise line, based in Southampton, England. Designed to offer and alternative cruise experience, Ocean Village was founded by P&O Princess Cruises PLC, which later merged with Carnival Corporation to form Carnival Corporation & PLC...
, and after a small refit in Bremerhaven, was christened as Ocean Village Two by sisters Jodie Kidd
Jodie Kidd
Jodie Kidd is an English television personality and fashion model.-Early life:Jodie was a showjumper as a child and attended St Michael's School, Petworth.-Family:Jodie is the granddaughter from Hon...
and Jemma Kidd. The vessel became an informal cruise ship.
On 30 October 2008, Carnival announced the closure of their Ocean Village brand, with both ships to be transferred to the fleet of P&O Cruises Australia
P&O Cruises Australia
P&O Cruises Australia is a British-American owned cruise line with corporate headquarters at Carnival House in Southampton, England and operational headquarters in North Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
by the end of 2010. Pacific Jewel left on 14 November 2009 for a two-week refit at the Sembawang Shipyards in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, which included minor upgrades and renovation of her facilities. After this, the ship began operation from Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
.
On 27 August 2010, the soap opera Neighbours
Neighbours
Neighbours is an Australian television soap opera first broadcast on the Seven Network on 18 March 1985. It was created by TV executive Reg Watson, who proposed the idea of making a show that focused on realistic stories and portrayed adults and teenagers who talk openly and solve their problems...
filmed scenes on board Pacific Jewel. Actors and crew took five hours to shoot on and around the vessel's running track and circus arena on the top deck. Some Pacific Jewel staff were given the chance to be extras in the scenes. Travel Blackboard reported that P&O expected Pacific Jewel's appearance on the show to generate more than $1 million worth of brand exposure to the Australian audience.
In October 2010, three cruises for October and November (to Vanuatu and Noumea, Melbourne for the Melbourne Cup
Melbourne Cup
The Melbourne Cup is Australia's major Thoroughbred horse race. Marketed as "the race that stops a nation", it is a 3,200 metre race for three-year-olds and over. It is the richest "two-mile" handicap in the world, and one of the richest turf races...
, and Fiji) were cancelled after a fault developed in the propulsion system.