Oceania Cruises vessel Insignia sold to residential cruise company

Oceania Cruises vessel Insignia will sail its last cruise with Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings in 2027 after being acquired by a new residential cruise company.

Crescent Seas, part of an America real estate company Crescent Heights, aims to offer an "unparalleled residential experience at sea" and “a new frontier in luxury living”.

Insignia will leave the Oceania Cruises fleet at the end of 2027 after a Farewell Tour around South America which will go on sale on April 9, and its summer and autumn 2027 sailings will be published and open for sale in September.

Insignia will then sail its inaugural voyage for Crescent Seas for New Year 2028.

The 670-passenger ship will be converted into a residential cruise ship following a $50 million refurbishment which will see 290 residences installed.

Sales for Insignia as a residential ship in the Crescent Seas fleet will open later this summer.

Insignia will join the company’s other ship, the Navigator, which will have 210 residences and set sail in December 2026, with sales opening later this month.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, the parent company of Oceania Cruises, Regent Seven Seas and Norwegian Cruise Line, will oversee the technical management of the ship’s operations, including navigation, safe operation, maintenance and repair, compliance with maritime regulations, and crew management for technical staff.

Oceania Cruises’ senior vice-president of international sales Steve Odell said: "Insignia was our second ship but was a first in so many ways.

"She was the first cruise ship christened in Monte Carlo and was the first Oceania Cruises ship to ever embark on a six-month around the world voyage. 

"This change to the Oceania Cruises fleet will have no impact on any current sailings and will cause no interruption to any current guest bookings, as Insignia’s final season of sailings have not yet been published." 

He added: "While we are sad to see Insignia depart the fleet, we have a new generation of ships on the horizon.

"The new Allura, sister ship to the critically acclaimed Vista, arrives this summer, and just about the time Insignia sails her grand finale voyage, the first of our highly anticipated “Quattro” ships will sail her maiden voyage in the summer of 2027.

"These new ships will be the most spacious, amenity-rich Oceania Cruises ships to date. We will be sharing more on this new class of ship later this year."