Scotish Bid to save the QE2

I don't think that it's likely that they could come with the money to buy and renovate the QE2. But it might be advantageous for them to consider the Saga Ruby instead.

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Originally posted by Donald Johnson:
I don't want to see her end up for scrap in China like her sister the Saga Rose.

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Historically she is far less significant than say the Rotterdam or the Queen Mary. She does not have the national pride behind her like the Rotterdam or even the failed effort to take the Kungsholm home.

Operationally the Ruby is very old and the latest round of problems have to make any buyer weary.

Pam

[ 01-24-2013: Message edited by: PamM ]

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Originally posted by desirod7:
I very much believe that cruise lines and ship brokers are very quiet about mechanical issues as not to alarm passengers, insurers, potential passengers, and potential buyers of the ship.

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Any serious buyer would want to see her logs, the registry society records and do a full mechanical inspection before making an offer.

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Originally posted by lasuvidaboy:
She is one of the last beauties in service. It is interesting that the former RVL trio of the same era have had massive life-extending rebuildings and the former Vistajord has not.

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Originally posted by Ernst:

It's easier to replace the smaller engines of the former Royal Viking ships than the large engines of Vistafjord.

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You got a point there, Ernst. A ship as old as the Saga Ruby can't sail forever. But, it could become a useful hotel for either Southampton or the Clyde in Scotland. There are virtually no other ships out there to choose from as a hotel ship. With the QE2 and the Big U on the list of uncertainty, the MS Veronica and the SS Rotterdam are the only two ships that has become hotel ships.

While I hope that the Saga Rose could join the SS Rotterdam, the chance that it will join the Saga Rose is all too apparent.

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Originally posted by Donald Johnson:

You got a point there, Ernst. A ship as old as the Saga Ruby can't sail forever.

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Of course not. Nevertheless, Black Watch ex Royal Viking Star is actually the older vessel.

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Originally posted by Donald Johnson:

But, it could become a useful hotel for either Southampton or the Clyde in Scotland.

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Originally posted by Donald Johnson:

Besides that, does the ship contain a large amount of Asbestos onboard considering that it was built in the early 1970's when the use of Asbestos insulation was on the decline.

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If the asbestos is left alone, it poses no problem. The issue would be if she was to be re-built internally by another operator but that is highly unlikely.

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Originally posted by Ernst:
That is hardly the case. She was a huge disappointment when I sailed with her - the original interiors were 'not impressive' at all. Sagafjord might have been a candidate, but not her.

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Too bad the Saga Rose went to the scrapyard as she might have made for a good hotel ship. There were plans to do so by Saga Cruises themselves. But to build a berth would cost too much in Southampton as it was discussed by their City Consul. The one thing that I hated about the Saga Rose was when they added that awful Top Deck to its forward superstructure. Too bad we'll never know on what might have been for the Saga Rose.

But I would like to think that the Saga Ruby could be renovated into a modern 4-star hotel ship as it's interiors could be re-imagined. The only concern that I have about the Saga Ruby is whether or not the ship has asbestos on board as that would be the deciding factor of her fate.

The Asbestos removal costs almost bankrupt De Rotterdam while it was in Germany. And it left some of the lower decks unfinished. Not to mention limited access to the ship's engine rooms as the asbestos was not completely removed from those areas.

[ 01-31-2013: Message edited by: Donald Johnson ]