MS Marco Polo

For other ships, see Marco Polo (disambiguation).

MS Marco Polo in the port of Tallinn in 2012
History
Name
  • Aleksandr Pushkin (1965–1991)
  • Marco Polo (1991–2021)
Namesake
Owner
Operator
Port of registry
BuilderVEB Mathias-Thesen-Werft, Wismar, East Germany[3]
Yard number126[3]
Laid down18 June 1963
Launched26 April 1964[1]
Completed1965
Acquired14 August 1965[1]
In serviceAugust 1965[1]
Out of service2020
Identification
FateScrapped in Alang, India, 2021
General characteristics (as built)[1]
Class and typeIvan Franko-class passenger ship → Ocean liner
Tonnage
Length176.28 m (578.35 ft)
Beam23.55 m (77.26 ft)
Draught8.20 m (26.90 ft)
Depth13.50 m (44.29 ft)[8]
Ice class1C passenger ship[7]
Installed power
PropulsionTwo shafts; fixed pitch propellers[3]
Speed20.5 knots (38.0 km/h; 23.6 mph)
Capacity650 passengers with berths (different sources give different figures) + 500 deck passengers[8]
Crew220[9]
General characteristics (circa 2007)[10]
TypeCruise Ship
Tonnage22,080 GT[3]
Speed19.5 knots (36.1 km/h; 22.4 mph)
Capacity
  • 820 passengers[6]
  • Previously listed as 915 passengers[11]
Crew356[11]
NotesOtherwise same as built

MS Marco Polo was a cruise ship originally built as ocean liner Aleksandr Pushkin in 1965 by Mathias-Thesen-Werft, East Germany for the Soviet Union's Baltic Shipping Company. After major alterations and additions, the ship operated as Marco Polo for the Orient Lines from 1993 to 2008.[1] It last sailed for UK-based Cruise & Maritime Voyages[6] and its German subsidiary Transocean Tours.[5] After Cruise & Maritime Voyages entered administration in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was sold at auction by CW Kellock & Co. Ltd. for US$2,770,000 on 22 October 2020;[12] it was subsequently resold and in January 2021 was beached at Alang, India and scrapped.[13]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Asklander, Micke. "M/S Alexandr Pushkin (1965)". Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish). Retrieved 1 April 2008.
  2. ^ "M/S ALEKSANDR PUSHKIN (1965)". www.faktaomfartyg.se.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "Marco Polo (23718)". Vessel Register for DNV. DNV. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Boyle was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b Newman, Doug (31 March 2008). "The End of Orient Lines". At Sea with Doug Newman. Retrieved 1 April 2008.
  6. ^ a b c "Ambience Cruise Ship | Ambassador Cruise Line". Archived from the original on 14 September 2009.
  7. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Report was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ a b "Aleksandr Pushkin". The Soviet Fleet. infoflot.ru. Archived from the original on 17 May 2008. Retrieved 4 March 2008.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Le Goff was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Orient Lines: Marco Polo statistics, retrieved 22. 11. 2007
  11. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Berliz was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ "Auction Results". 8 November 2020. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  13. ^ Thakkar, Emrys (14 January 2021). "MS Marco Polo Reaches the End and Beached in India". CruiseHive. Retrieved 2 March 2021.