Old cruise ship in Tampa

[Philly_Philly]

First, let me say this board allowed me to find out what happened to the ship on which I cruised first -- The Bermuda Star. So I thought I'd give this a shot.

 

A few years back, in 2001, I sailed out of Tampa on the Carnival Sensation. As we pulled away from the dock, I saw a ship that appeared to be a former cruise ship. It may have been getting overhauled, but it looked more like it was no longer in use.

 

Seeing it made me wonder the history of that ship. I know it's a shot in the dark, but anyone who could give such a detailed history on the Bermuda Star might know about this liner.

[TampaMike]

I found this update on the Bermauda Star...

 

"BERMUDA STAR: Built 1958 at Ingalls Shipbuilding Corp., Pascagoula, Mississippi, as ARGENTINA for Moore-McCormack Lines Inc., New York. New York-Buenos Aires service. Sold 1972 to Nederlandsche-Amerikaansche Stoomvaart Maatschaappij (Holland-America Line), Rotterdam; renamed VEENDAM and converted to cruise ship. Laid-up 1972. Chartered 1972 to Agencia Maritima 'Intermares' Ltd. for cruising from Rio de Janiero. Renamed BRASIL. Charter ended 1975, returned to HAL service and renamed VOLENDAM. Transferred 1976 to subsidiary Monarch Cruise Lines Inc., Panama, renamed MONARCH STAR. Returned to HAL 1978, renamed VEENDAM. Sold 1983 to Billinghurst Shipping, Panama (Bermuda Star Line), renamed BERMUDA STAR. Bermuda Star Line bought by Commodore 1990, renamed ENCHANTED ISLE. Renamed HOTEL COMMODORE 1993, hotel ship at St. Petersburg, Russia. Renamed ENCHANTED ISLE and returned to Commodore service, 1994. Following bankruptcy of Commodore in 2000, laid-up at Violet, Louisiana. Renamed NEW ORLEANS Sept. 2003. Departed Violet for breakers at Alang, India, Oct. 25, 2003. Arrived Alang Dec. 4, 2003, breaking up commenced Dec. 9."

 

The ship you likely saw in Tampa that year was the "Sun", former Regent Sun / Royal Odyssey / Doric / Shalom. She was eventually towed from Tampa and while enroute to the breakers, sunk in heavy seas. It was in Tampa, between owners and failed attempts to bring her back to service as a cruise ship or gambling ship.

[kc320]

Or it may have been the ship we also saw from the Sensation in Oct. 2000, which was Regency Cruise lines, Regent Sea. My DH took quite a bit of video footage of the ship as we had sailed her a few years earlier. He was able to zoom in on the bow & could faintly make out the ships name.

[fkapra]

Hello wcrossman

 

I saw you message about the MONARCH STAR.

 

I'm a ship's postacrds collector and for a long time thta i'm trying to find/buy the postcard of this ship, but so far without success.

 

Do you by any change have any postacrd of the MONARCH STAR?

 

My email address is postcards555@clix.pt

 

Thnaks and regards!