DUBAI, 19 June 2007 — Dubai’s Istithmar has bought the world’s most famous cruise ship Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2), for $100 million from Carnival, the American cruise company that owned the Cunard liner. Dubai will convert the vessel into a hotel to be moored beside the Palm Island.
The Dubai government-owned Istithmar PJSC investment firm will take delivery of the 40-year-old ship in November 2008. The QE2 will open as a luxury hotel from 2009. Istithmar said its refurbishment program would aim to recreate the ship’s original interior and would also include a museum celebrating its rich history.
The Queen Elizabeth 2 will continue her planned cruising itinerary until November 2008, before being consigned to her stationary resting place and new role as a hotel. Since came into service in 1969, the ship has undertaken 25 world cruises, has crossed the Atlantic more than 800 times and has carried more than 2.5 million passengers. It has sailed 6 million nautical miles since her maiden journey in 1969. The Palm is the world’s largest man-made island with hundreds of hotels and millions of pounds worth of property, jutting out into the Gulf in the shape of three palm leaves.
Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Dubai World chairman, said: “QE2 is without a doubt one of the wonders of the maritime world, and is easily the most famous serving liner in the world today.”
Istithmar operates as the investment wing of Dubai World, the government agency that owns the real-estate developer Nakheel.