Harland & Wolff completes major conversion of cruise ship Margaritaville at Sea Islander

The cruise ship Margaritaville at Sea Islander has completed her major upgrade at Belfast’s Harland & Wolff shipyard and successfully completed sea trials in the Irish Sea.

The former Costa Atlantica is now set to cross the Atlantic and start her new life with US owners Margaritaville at Sea, operating all-year four and five-night cruises from Tampa, Florida.

The major conversion of the cruise vessel included the fitting of a three-storey poolside LandShark Bar at Sea and a family-friendly pool deck.

All 1,100 cabins have been completely refurbished.

The 85,861gt 2000-built vessel arrived in Belfast on January 10th, after a long period of lay-up in a number of European locations.

Meanwhile, on May 1st sitting in Harland & Wolff’s Belfast Drydock was the former Fred Olsen Cruise Line-owned Braemar, being converted into the residence at sea vessel Villa Vie Odyssey for her new US-based owners Villa Vie Residences.

Braemar arrived in Belfast on April 26th after being laid-up in the Scottish port of Rosyth for over four years.

The renamed Villa Vie Odyssey will make her maiden voyage for her new owners at the end of May, a three and a half year circumnavigation of the globe. This voyage was to have started in the UK port of Southampton this month but has now been switched to Belfast due to the two-week extension of the vessel’s refit.

Harland & Wolff is fast making a name for itself in the demanding cruise ship refit and conversion sector.