This is the new "Alexander v. Humboldt II"

In November I blogged about the recent ship changes and sometimes only name changes in the expedition cruise industry. Now it's time for a follow-up:

remember the "Alexander von Humboldt" aka Explorer II?



Now Phoenix Reisen is ending their contract with this vessel (which btw is reversing its name back to "Minerva") and instead they got another ship as of this August, and they will call her - hold on - "Alexander von Humboldt II"!



Cross-posting from fellow blogger Doug Newman:

"The ship, built in 1990 as Crown Monarch for Crown Cruise Line, spent 1994 to 2006 as a gambling ship, first as Nautican in Singapore and then as Walrus (later marketed as Neptune) from Hong Kong. In 2006 Sea Containers, the successor of the ship’s original owner, sold the ship to Club Cruise and from 2007 she was chartered to the newly-formed Spanish cruise line Vision Cruises for cruises from Valencia. It is unclear what will happen to Vision Cruises when it loses its ship in 2008.

Although not an expedition vessel, the relatively small size and maneuverability of Alexander von Humboldt II should help make her a success in her new role."