The cruise ships PORTO and LISBOA laid up in Lisbon, 25 February 2015
The Portuguese classic cruise ship LISBOA has been sold to undisclosed interests in Turkey last January, and is expected to leave Lisbon for Aliaga in mid-March 2015. LISBOA is the former Port Line cargo passenger liner PORT MELBOURNE, built in 1955 in Belfast and rebuilt in 1975-76 in Greece as the luxury cruise ship DANAE, the second of two sister. Following a long working life under several operators and names, she was laid up in Lisbon since 22 April 2013 as PRINCESS DANAE and renamed LISBOA in May 2013 by Portuscale Cruises. A complete refit and upgrade was planned for her and a lot of refurbishment was done in 2013-14 until it was suspended due to additional work rendered it uneconomical in the present depressed market for classic cruising.
In 1996 the then BALTICA ex-DANAE was purchased by Lisbon based Classic International Cruises and renamed PRINCESS DANAE joining the FUNCHAL. In late 2012 CIC closed doors, the PRINCESS DANAE was arested in Marseilles but released in April 2013 and renamed LISBOA by PORTUSCALE CRUISES.
