Flag: Panama
Port of Registry: Panama
Company: Carnival Cruise Lines
Built: 1961, Vickers-Armstrong Shipbuilders Ltd, Newcastle, England, cn 171
Dwt/Grt: 9551/27250
Length: 198.13m
History: Launched 10 May 1960 and delivered 29 March 1961 as the EMPRESS OF CANADA to British company Canadian Pacific Steamship Company as their last passenger liner, to serve on the Liverpool-Montreal line. The port of registry was London, UK, and the grt was 27284. She was sold in 1972 to Carnival Cruise Lines as their first ship, and renamed MARDI GRAS, the grt was now 27250. The port of registry became Panama until 1990 and then Nassau, Bahamas until 1994. In 1993 she was sold to Greek company Epirotiki Lines and the name OLYMPIC was proposed but not used. Instead she became the STAR OF TEXAS in 1994 as chartered to Gold Star Cruises as a casino ship cruising out of Galveston, Texas on short gambling cruises. The grt was increased to 28574 and the port of registry was now Piraeus, Greece. When Gold Star Cruises folded she re-deployed to Miami and continued as the LUCKY STAR, but only for a few weeks. In 1995 she was sold to Royal Olympic and renamed APOLLON with the port of registry still as Piraeus. In 1997 it was proposed to rename her OLYMPIC 2004, but that plan fell through and she stayed as APOLLON. In 1998-1999 she was chartered to Direct Cruises in the UK for one year. From 2001 she operated out of Piraeus for Royal Olympia Cruises (the former Epirotiki) on 3- to 4-day cruises. In December 2003, renamed APOLLO for her final journey and under the St. Vincent and Grenadines flag, she was beached at Alang, India, and scrapped.
Scanned slide.