Premier Cruise Lines
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Transportation | ||
Founded | 1983 | |
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Founders |
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Defunct | September 14, 2000 | |
Fate | Parent |
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Premier Cruise Lines, a subsidiary of
Company history
Premier Cruise Line was formed in 1983 by A.E. "Ed" Merhige (Florida Export Warehouse/International Cruise Shops) and Bruce Nierenberg (NCL), two cruise veterans and later bought by
Starting in 1985, Premier partnered with Walt Disney World, providing seven-night land and sea vacations on The Big Red Boat. Premier was licensed to provide Disney characters on its ships, until the relationship ended in 1993.[5] Disney then proceeded to start its own cruise ship line in 1995.
After the Disney contract ended, Premier then affiliated itself with Warner Bros.' Looney Tunes characters to maintain its family-friendly image,[6] and was returned to profitability under the direction of 20-year cruise veteran Jim Naik. The company had an aging fleet of Italian-designed ships competing with newer and larger liners. Mr. Naik brought Premier to profitability in his first quarter with the company. Premier's parent company, Dial, sold the company after posting profits for 1995, 1996, and 1997. New owners and new leadership followed, with Larry Magnan as president in 1998. However, the company would file for bankruptcy and cease all operations on September 14, 2000, with passengers on the still-running cruises being docked and given flights home on a first-come, first-served basis; the company's primary lender had seized its existing fleet, which had been put up for collateral.[7][8]
The older ships were designed before the current disability acts coming into effect, requiring reasonable access for persons with physical disabilities, were even envisioned, let alone enacted into law. Much later, after 1997, Premier was sued under the
The
Former fleet
Ship | Built | In service with Premier | Tonnage | Status | Image |
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StarShip Oceanic Big Red Boat I |
1965 | 1985–2000 | 38,772 GT / 39,241 GRT |
Also known as Oceanic for Home Lines, Sold to Pullmantur Cruises in 2000 and to Peace Boat in 2009. Scrapped in 2012. | |
StarShip Majestic | 1970 | 1988–1995 | 17,042 GT | Previously Spirit of London for P&O Cruises and Sun Princess for Princess Cruises. Sold in 1995. Capsized and sank in 2016. | |
StarShip Atlantic | 1983 | 1988–1997 | 35,143 GT | Previously Atlantic for Home Lines. It later became the MSC Melody for MSC Cruises and the Qing. The ship sank at its berth in Goa, India in 2016. She was later refloated and sold for scrap in 2018. | |
Big Red Boat II | 1966 | 1999–2000 | 32,753 GRT | Also known as Eugenio C / Eugenio Costa for Lowline Shipping . Sold for scrap in 2005. |
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Rembrandt | 1958 | 1997–2000 | 38,645 GT | Previously Rotterdam for Holland America Line. Converted into a hotel and museum in 2004. | |
OceanBreeze | 1955 | 1997–2000 | 20,204 GRT | Previously Southern Cross, Calypso, and Azure Seas. Sold for scrap in 2003. | |
Royale SeaBreeze |
1958 | 1983–1988 1997–2000 |
21,000 GT | Previously Federico C for Costa Cruises. Sank in 2000. | |
IslandBreeze Big Red Boat III |
1962 | 1997–2000 | 26,632 GRT | Also known as Transvaal Castle, S.A. Vaal, IslandBreeze, and Festivale. Sold for scrap in 2003. | |
SeaWind Crown | 1961 | 1997–2000 | 23,306 GRT | Previously known as Infante Dom Henrique and Vasco Da Gama. Scrapped in China, 2004. |
Timeline
References
- U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on September 27, 2009.
- ^ "FALL AND WINTER CRUISES; Where to Get Information". The New York Times. Sunday October 4, 1998. Retrieved on September 27, 2009.
- ^ "Sealetter Cruise Magazine". Archived from the original on 2015-07-22. Retrieved 2007-12-30.
- ^ "A DIRECTORY OF CRUISES WORLDWIDE; WHERE TO WRITE OR CALL FOR INFORMATION." The New York Times. Sunday February 6, 1994. Retrieved on September 27, 2009.
- ^ "How Disney Cruises Started" USA Today Travel.
- ^ "Cruise Line Will Cut a Disney Link". The New York Times, October 7, 1993.
- ^ "Cruise Ship Co. Goes Belly-Up". CBSNews.com. CBS News. September 15, 2000. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
- ^ "Vacationers flown home after cruise company forced to shut down". money.cnn.com. CNN Money. September 14, 2000. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
- ^ Peter Knego (June 2012). "Scraps Of Shipping News".
- ^ Eugenio C / Big Red Boat II