Inside abandoned cruise ship that's frozen in time on a seasick-inducing tilt

Table Of Content

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• Inside abandoned cruise ship that's frozen in time on a seasick-inducing tilt
• Mike Panicked
• Why Do Cruise Ships Get Abandoned?
• A cruise ship can take up to 10 months to dismantle, but it depends on both the vessel and the shipyard.
• MS Astor
• ‘Lovely to be back onboard’: Princess cruise ships return to sea

During the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw a significant decline in passenger numbers. This forced many cruise lines to decommission and scrap ships they could no longer afford to keep in operation, so the number of decommissioned ships increased substantially. An abandoned cruise ship’s primary environmental concern is the risk of a major oil spill when the ship’s fuel tanks and fuel lines eventually corrode. The MS World Discoverer is the most notorious example of this concern, as environmentalists are worried that the deteriorating ship’s fuel tanks and engine parts will eventually leak oil into the surrounding water. Have you been forced to say goodbye to your favorite cruise ship recently?

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The plan also includes the SS United States being permanently moored in New York City. Let’s hope this plan moves forward and the ship returns to life. Photographer Hugo Healy said he was amazed when he spotted the boat on the shoreline of Lanzarote and had to explore it with his camera equipment. This isn't the only abandoned ship to make the news recently. However it never happened because of the company’s demise and instead the ship was sold off at auction for $1.7 million.

Inside abandoned cruise ship that's frozen in time on a seasick-inducing tilt

In one bar, drinks still remain on tables while the seats are covered in sheets. Many of the rooms and common areas remain in good condition – albeit slightly haunting with the lack of people onboard. Instead of arresting Jeff and Mike, they rewarded them for their bravery. It turned out that the woman they rescued was not a normal woman. She was the governor's daughter, and had been held hostage for a few days now.

Mike Panicked

Given how valuable full-size cruise ships are, regardless of their age and condition, you might wonder why they would ever sit abandoned rather than being taken for recycling at a ship scrapping yard. We think of cruise ships as engineering marvels outfitted with lavish interiors and a wide variety of amenities, but what happens to them when they are abandoned? To answer this question, we will take a deep dive into the world of abandoned cruise ships. A set of eerie photos show the inside of an abandoned cruise ship that is frozen in time. The Queen Elizabeth 2, or QE2 for short, is a retired British cruise ship that carried out countless transatlantic voyages during her heyday. While it was considered one of the world’s most luxurious and impressive cruise ships when it was first launched in 1969, it was eventually retired in 2008.

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Exploring abandoned cruise ships has enticed all sorts of adventurists and explorers. Most decommissioned cruise ships are taken for dismantling at a ship scrapping yard. After the cruise line has removed everything of value, the remaining hull of the ship is auctioned off and eventually sent to a scrap yard that can handle dismantling a vessel of that size. What was meant to be one of the world’s largest cruise ships is being prepared for its maiden voyage – to a scrapyard. Global Dream II and its sister ship Global Dream – which is not being scrapped for now – would have been the world’s largest cruise ships by passenger capacity when complete. In the cruise industry, we celebrate the birth of new vessels with press conferences and smashed bottles of Champagne, but rarely do we address what happens to retired cruise ships.

Why Do Cruise Ships Get Abandoned?

The man had asked for money but suddenly cut off contact. Eventually the police arrived and they were shocked to see what they had been called to do. They took the woman to safety and Mike and Jeff also had to accompany them to the police station. Mike didn't have time to waste, so he quickly ran downstairs and opened the door. He expected to find Jeff standing triumphantly over the other man's dazed body, but he couldn't be more wrong.

Even the cruise industry is committing to becoming more environmentally friendly, which could put pressure on individual cruise lines to deal with abandoned ships before they pose an environmental risk. We don’t need to introduce you to this once iconic vessel, which now remains abandoned and hollow in Philadelphia. SS United States was built in 1951 and departed on her maiden voyage in 1952 for United States Lines.

MS Astor

If you've recently lost your favorite vessel to the shipbreakers and you're feeling nostalgic, you can ease the blow in a few ways. "Abandoned or laid-up ships tend to leak toxins after a while if there is no maintenance or supervision." For the shipbreaking industry, however, this means big business. "It was quite spectacular. And when we reached the beach, we could see a tree hanging from the prow of the ship."

‘Lovely to be back onboard’: Princess cruise ships return to sea

During the day, they also host ship tours and temporary exhibits, which allow guests to feel like they have traveled back in time. It costs $60,000 per month to dock and maintain the SS United States, and despite continued interest in redeveloping her, the conservancy group had to start looking at the possibility of scrapping the iconic ocean liner. Crystal Cruises even got close to purchasing the ship to transform her, but that eventually fell through.

This relatively small German cruise ship struck a rocky reef near the Solomon Islands in April 2000. While the ship was safely abandoned and no crew or passengers were lost, the capsized vessel was almost immediately declared a total loss. In these cases, the bulk of the ship may stay in a state of abandonment. In these cases, any equipment or components deemed of significant value would be dismantled on-site, but the bulk of the ship would remain behind.

Everyone on board was safely evacuated, but the ship has since been been left to rust and slowly crumble into the ocean. "It was just rammed into the beach, breaking trees in the forest, which stretches down to the shore," he told The Herald. Finally, in 2023, a plan was announced to restore the SS United States by RXR Realty and MCR Hotels. The plan is for the ship to hold 1,000 rooms onboard, along with a restaurant and a range of features that guests can enjoy.

The ship didn't seem very sturdy, and who knows what they would find inside. It could be dangerous, and if something happened to one of them, there was no way they would get back to shore in time. Book a sailing on a sister ship that's still sailing, peruse old photos to reminisce or check eBay from time to time to see if anyone is selling memorabilia. The CLIA now estimates that "each day of the suspension of cruise operations in the US results in a total loss of approximately $110 million in economic activity and up to 800 American jobs."

As Jeff and Mike explored the derelict cruise ship, they came across countless rooms, each with its own eerie atmosphere. Some rooms were locked but fortunately not all of the rooms were. However, in 2021, it was sent to one of the biggest ship demolition sites in the world in Aliaga, Turkey. Now, it has been destined for the scrapyard in a graveyard of old forgotten ships. Bob Thissen, 35, and his team of Urban Explorers were able to capture new images of the Ms Astor, which spent over 30 years at sea taking passengers on pleasant cruises.

So they took out their phones and used their flashlights to guide them, and as they descended the noise started to get louder. He leaned back, knowing he had only one chance to open that lock, and he slammed the crowbar on the lock. A loud bang echoed through the vessel, the lock fell to the floor, and Mike quickly opened the door. Jeff was looking around with his flashlight to see if he could find some kind of pipe when he saw a crowbar lying on the ground.

Norwegian Cruise Line showed interest in the ship by adding her to the fleet; there was also interest in using the vessel as a waterfront complex; however, none of these came to fruition. "It's really sad that a ship in perfect condition like the Astor got scrapped, I'm sure it could have served for a lot more years if it wasn't for the pandemic." "It's a weird sight to see a place like a cruise ship which is normally full of life totally empty. Although once a popular place for tourists to kick back and relax, the building has now been left to rot and its closure remains shrouded in mystery.

Ideally, a cruise ship would be dismantled and recycled or altogether repurposed, so it can continue to serve a useful purpose beyond life as a sophisticated form of travel. If you want to see an abandoned cruise ship for yourself, we encourage you to visit one of the many repurposed ships, where you can enjoy guided tours or even spend the night in a floating hotel. New environmental regulations and pressure from local governments may reduce the number of cruise ships allowed to remain in a state of abandonment. As international regulatory organizations crack down on environmental regulations, cruise lines may face severe penalties if they do not remove their wreckage and damaged vessels in a timely manner.