MV Zenith

The MV Zenith was a cruise ship built in 1992 by Meyer Werft, Papenburg, Germany for Celebrity Cruises as Zenith. After a career for Pullmantur Cruises and Croisières de France she was sold for scrapping in Alang, India in 2022.^[4]

Zenith in 2019.
History
Name	Zenith (1992–2020) The Zenith (2020–2022) TSM Singapore (2022–2022) Singa (2022–2022)
Operator	(1992–2007): Celebrity Cruises (2007–2014): Pullmantur Cruises (2014–2017): Croisières de France (2017–2019): Pullmantur Cruises (2020–2022): Peace Boat
Port of registry	(1992–2002): Monrovia,  Liberia (2002–2007): Nassau,  Bahamas^[1] (2007–2020): Valletta,  Malta (2020–2022):  Panama (2022–2022):  Palau^[1]
Builder	Meyer Werft, Papenburg, Germany
Yard number	620^[1]
Laid down	18 October 1990^[2]
Launched	31 October 1991^[2]
Completed	1 March 1992^[2]
Acquired	February 1992^[1]
Maiden voyage	1992
In service	4 April 1992^[1]
Out of service	March 2020
Identification	IMO number: 8918136 MMSI number: 256561000 Call sign: 9HXM8
Fate	Beached for scrap in Alang, India.
Notes	Sister ship to Horizon
General characteristics ^[2]
Class and type	Horizon class cruise ship
Tonnage	47,413 GT 25,488 NT 4,915 DWT
Length	208.00 m (682.41 ft)
Beam	29.00 m (95.14 ft)
Draught	7.70 m (25.3 ft)
Depth	24.10 m (79.1 ft)
Decks	12
Installed power	2 × MAN-B&W 9L40/54 (2 × 5,994 kW) 2 × MAN-B&W 6L40/54 (2 × 3,996 kW)
Propulsion	Two shafts, controllable pitch propellers Two bow thrusters and one stern thruster
Speed	21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph)
Capacity	1,828 passengers ^[3]
Crew	620^[3]

History

The Zenith was built as a sister ship to Celebrity Cruises' first newbuild MV Horizon. The ship's designer was yacht designer Jan Bannenberg, with interiors designed by Michael Katsourakis and British designer John McNeece. The Zenith was delivered in February 1992 and set under Liberian flag, and used for cruises from Florida to the Caribbean and Bermuda islands. She was featured in the final scene of Captain Ron. In 2002 she was reflagged in the Bahamas. In 2007 she was transferred to Pullmantur Cruises and used for cruises around the Mediterranean.

A seven-night cruise from 11 to 18 March 1995 aboard The Zenith is the subject of David Foster Wallace's 1995 essay "A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again" (later part of a collection of the same name and originally published in Harper's as "Shipping Out"^[5]).^[6] Wallace refers to the Zenith as the Nadir throughout (although he insists "the rechristening's nothing particular against the ship itself").^[6]

In 2014, The Zenith was moved to the fleet of CDF Croisières de France, joining her sister ship L'Horizon.^[7]

CDF Croisières de France brand was discontinued in early 2017. The Zenith returned to the fleet of Pullmantur Cruises in 2017.

In July 2019 it was announced the ship would leave Pullmantur's fleet in early 2020 to Peace Boat, with fleetmate Monarch poised to take over The Zenith's existing sailings.^[8][9]

In September 2020 Cruise Capital informed according to Hong Kong Cruise Society, Peace Boat is to replace the contracts of two ships Ocean Dream and The Zenith from service, replacing them with one larger ship that they had purchased—the current MS Sun Princess, to be renamed Pacific World from Spring 2021.^[10]

In May 2022, Peace Boat announced that all cruises in 2022 and 2023 to be operated by The Zenith were cancelled due to a change in contract with the owner company.^[11][12] She was laid up in Lavrio, Greece, but left the port on 8 June as TSM Singapore heading to Hai Phong, Vietnam. In September 2022 she has been renamed to Singa and has been sold for scrap in Alang, India.^[13] She never sailed for Peace Boat.^[14][15]

Fires

The ship was damaged at the stern on 8 August 2009 when a fire broke out while it was moored at Frihamnen in Stockholm.

On 26 June 2013 there was another fire, this time in the engine room and causing a loss of power. It had to anchor 17 miles off the coast of Venice, Italy, until four tugboats came to tow it to port. One week later it went to the S. Marco shipyard in the port of Trieste.

Gallery

•  
  Zenith in Celebrity livery at Ocho Rios, Jamaica
•  
  Zenith in Celebrity livery at Bermuda (2007)
•  
  Zenith in Ushuaia (docked with the Marco Polo)
•  
  Zenith in Pullmantur livery at Split, Croatia (2011)
•  
  Zenith as The Zenith at Perama (2020)

References

1. Micke Asklander. "M/S Zenith (1992)". Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish). Retrieved 14 December 2007.
2. "Zenith (107402)". Vessel Register for DNV. Germanischer Lloyd. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
3. MV Zenith PDF
4. "Former Celebrity Zenith Takes Final Voyage to Scrapyard". cruiseradio.net. 24 September 2022. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
5. Wallace, David Foster (January 1996). "Shipping Out" (PDF). Harper's Magazine.
6. Wallace, David Foster (1997). A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again. Back Bay Books. ISBN 0-316-92528-4.
7. "CDF Confirms Second Ship for 2014 Season - Cruise Industry News - Cruise News". 5 February 2013. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
8. "Zenith to Leave Pullmantur Fleet as Company Primes Growth Plans". Cruise Industry News. July 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
9. "Zenith wird zum Peace Boat". Meyer Werft. 19 July 2019. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
10. "Princess Cruises confirms two Australia-based ships have been sold".
11. . Archived from the original on 14 May 2022. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
12. "Zenith's Future Questionable as Peace Boat Cancels Ship's Schedule". 14 May 2022. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
13. "L'Ancien paquebot Zenith quitte la Grèce… pour la démolition ? | Mer et Marine". 10 June 2022.
14. "Zenith's Future Questionable as Peace Boat Cancels Ship's Schedule". 14 May 2022. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
15. "Unwanted Japanese cruise ship changes hands". 17 May 2022. Retrieved 18 June 2022.

External links

  Media related to IMO 8918136 at Wikimedia Commons

• Celebrity Cruises
• A video clip of Zenith (in Pullmantur livery) leaving Rhodos
• The Zenith page on Croisières de France website