Here on its first visit last Saturday, the cruise ship Arcadia carries a name that has been associated with four P&O passenger ships over a period of 122 years.
The cruise liner is also the first of the Carnival group's "Vista" class vessels to have berthed here. Arcadia, at 82,972gt, is now the fifth largest visitor to the harbour, and the seventh longest with an overall length of 285.11m. It is owned by Carnival PLC, operated by P&O Cruises (UK) Ltd, and is registered at Hamilton, Bermuda. The ship was completed in March, 2005, at the Italian state-owned Fincantieri "Breda" yard at Venice. Arcadia provides berths for 2556 passengers.
Fitted with diesel-electric machinery and also a turbo-electric gas turbine, propulsion is from two Azimuth electric-drive pod units that give a service speed of 22 knots.
The ship, on a round the world cruise from Southampton, is a far cry from the first ship of the name in the fleet.
A 6188gt, 1 16-knot, single screw steamer having a daily fuel consumption of 110 tonnes of coal, it was fitted with accommodation for 250 first and 160 second class passengers.
It could also carry nearly 4000 tonnes of cargo, some of it refrigerated. Fitted with two funnels and four masts, the steamer was one of four sister ships of the so-called "Jubilee" class of 1887.
Their construction coincided with the Jubilee of both P&O and Queen Victoria. Arcadia was launched at Belfast by Harland and Wolff on December 17, 1887, and was handed over in February, 1888.
The ship was employed on the Australian service until late 1904 when it was transferred to the Bombay run.
It outlived it sisters by a few years and in January 1915 it was sold to shipbreakers at Bombay. The second Arcadia was built and engined at the celebrated Clydebank shipyard of John Brown and Company.
Launched on May 14, 1953, and delivered in January 1954, the ship commenced its maiden voyage on February 22, 1954, from London to Melbourne and Sydney via Bombay and Colombo.
Powered by six steam turbines, the twin-screw liner was designed to operate at a speed of 22 knots.
Accommodation for 679 first class, and a maximum of 735 tourist class passengers, gave the ship a higher ratio of tourist/first class berths than any previous P&O designs.
And at 29,734gt Arcadia was notable in being the largest of the company's ships to be built on the Clyde. Voyages from late 1959 also included the extended trans-Pacific service to Vancouver and San Francisco operated under the auspices of P&O-Orient Lines.
The ship was withdrawn from service after arriving at Singapore on February 2,1979, and a week later arrived at Kaohsiung for demolition.
This work by the Lee Chong firm commenced on April 3, 1979.
The third ship of the name, built at St Nazaire and launched as Sitmar Fairmajesty, was completed as Star Princess in March 1989.
In 1997, it was renamed Arcadia, but since 2003 it has been serving as Ocean Village.
This year, the 63,524gt, 1856-berth will be renamed Pacific Pearl when it is transferred to the operations of P&O Cruises Australia.
Port Otago's current cruise ship forecast lists the ship to make its first call here on March 23, 2012.
