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- Swan
Hellenic Cruises
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- (P&O
Cruises Page 3)
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- Swan Hellenic (previously
Swan's Hellenic) have been operating highly-regarded cultural
cruises in Greek and other Mediterranean waters since the 1950s.
Their best known ship was the Orpheus, chartered from
Epriotiki Lines from 1974 to 1996. This ship was originally built
in 1948 as the Liverpool-Dublin night boat Munster.
Prior to the Orpheus, Swan's Hellenic had chartered the
Turkish ship Ankara. The company was acquired by P&O
during the long service of Orpheus, and cards with the
P&O logo were issued. When her replacement became necessary,
P&O teamed with V-Ships and the Mariotti shipyard in Genoa
to convert the incomplete hull of a Soviet reseach vessel into
the luxurious small cruise ship Minerva. Minerva
is owned by V-Ships (previous owners of Sitmar) and is their
first new cruise ship since Sitmar were sold to P&O in 1988.
Occasional expedition cruises are also operated (three in 2000)
using the vessel Clipper Adventurer. One of the bankrupt Renaissance Cruises fleet is to be chartered
by Swan Hellenic as the Minerva II.
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- Ships on This Page:-
- Ankara
- Clipper
Adventurer
- Minerva
- Minerva
II
- Nile
Monarch
- Orpheus - ex-Munster
- Tarsus
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- Associated Pages:-
- Epirotiki
Lines
- P&O Liners - Page 1 - 1837-1899
- P&O Liners - Page 2 - 1900-1914
- P&O Liners - Page 3 - 1915-1939
- P&O Liners - Page 4 - 1940-1961
- P&O
Princess Cruises - Page 1 - Early P&O Princess Cruise Ships
- P&O
Princess Cruises - Page
2 -
Later P&O Princess Cruise Ships
- P&O
Princess Cruises Photographs
- Cruise
Ship Postcards
- Ocean
Liner Postcards
- Simplon
Postcards Home Page
- www.swan-hellenic.co.uk
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- Swan
Hellenic Fleet List
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- Ankara
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- Turkish
liner Ankara on charter to Swan Hellenic.
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- Tarsus
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- Turkish
liner Tarsus on charter to Swan Hellenic.
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- Orpheus (1974-1996)
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- Orpheus was built in 1948 as
the Munster
(4)
for B&I
Line.
She replaced the similar Munster (3) of 1938 which was lost
in the war. The Munster
(4)
was sold in 1969. After a spell as Theseus, she operated
as Orpheus for Epirotiki Lines, with lengthy charters to Swan Hellenic (part of P&O
Cruises).
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- Complete history of Munster (4)
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- This
Epirotiki
Lines
card also has the logos of Swan Hellenic and P&O on the reverse,
as shown.
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- Minerva (1996-2003)
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- Minerva was built in 1996 using
the partially completed hull of a Soviet-ordered research ship.
She is owned by V-Ships, and is chartered to Swan Hellenic. Minerva
offered cruises throughout the world. She was replaced by Minerva II in 2003 and was chartered
by Saga
Cruises
as the Saga Pearl during the summer. In winter she is
chartered elsewhere as Explorer II (for example Noble
Caledonia are marketing cruises in Antactica during winter 2004/5).
Publicity pictures as Explorer II show her in Saga colours
with yellow funnel.
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- Official
Swan Hellenic postcards of Minerva.
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- Photograph
of Minerva in the North Sea Canal.
- Photo:
© Wil Moojen, 23rd June 1998.
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- Minerva II (2003- )
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- R Eight has being used by Swan
Hellenic (P&O) as the Minerva II from 2003. Minerva
II visited the Pool of London on July 4th 2003. She turned
upriver and was pulled by tugs for the final section of the journey.
She was moored at buoys in the river, near Tower Bridge (being
too large to psss through it). She left on a Baltic cruise at
17:00hrs on 5th July, with passengers having been tendered out
on local Thames excursion boats. Additional photos are shown
on
this link.
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- Advertising
postcard for Minerva II.
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- Minerva
II in
the Pool of London.
- Photo:
© Ian Boyle, 5th July 2003.
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- Photo:
© Ian Boyle, 5th July 2003.
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- Photo:
© Ian Boyle, 5th July 2003.
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- Minerva
II leaving
the Pool of London, with tugs Sun Thames and Sun Sussex.
- Photo:
© Ian Boyle, 5th July 2003.
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- Photo:
© Ian Boyle, 5th July 2003.
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- Minerva II arriving at San Francisco on inaugural
call.
- Photo:
© Marv Jensen, 24th January 2006.
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- Minerva
II arriving
at San Francisco on inaugural call.
- Photo:
© Marv Jensen, 24th January 2006.
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- Minerva
II arriving
at San Francisco on inaugural call.
- Photo:
© Marv Jensen, 24th January 2006.
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- Minerva
II arriving
at San Francisco on inaugural call.
- Photo:
© Marv Jensen, 24th January 2006.
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- Minerva
II arriving
at San Francisco on inaugural call.
- Photo:
© Marv Jensen, 24th January 2006.
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- Minerva
II arriving
at San Francisco on inaugural call.
- Photo:
© Marv Jensen, 24th January 2006.
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- Minerva
II arriving
at San Francisco on inaugural call.
- Photo:
© Marv Jensen, 24th January 2006.
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- Clipper Adventurer
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- Clipper
Adventurer
was chartered once from owners Clipper Cruise Line in 1999, for
a cruise to Brazil. Three expedition cruises are offered on her
in 2000, to Greenland, the 'Hidden' Caribbean and the Amazon.
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- The
cards below are Clipper Cruise Line officials; I have not seen
any Swan Hellenic issues.
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- This
is an oversized advertising card of Clipper Adventurer.
- The
card was issued during the rebuilding, and the card back gives full details of the rebuilding
from the 1975 Soviet Alla Tarasova in 1997/98.
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- Photograph
of Clipper Adventurer in the North Sea Canal.
- Photo:
© Wil Moojen, 23rd June 1998.
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- Nile Monarch
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- This
is an official Swan Hellenic/P&O card of the Nile Monarch,
operated under charter. No Nile trips are offered in 2000, but
cruises on the Rhine, Danube and Rhone are available. Swiss
Crystal is used on the Rhine/Danube, and the Cezanne
on the Rhone. I do not have cards of either of these vessels.
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- P&O Princess Cruises - Page 1 - P&O Princess Cruises - Page
2 - P&O Princess
Cruises Photographs
- Cruise Ship Postcards - Ocean Liner Postcards
- Top
of Page
- Simplon
Postcards - Recent Updates - Simplon Postcards
- Home Page
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- Please
credit to www.simplonpc.co.uk if you take images from this website!
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- ©1999-2006
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