MV Queen of the Oceans
MV Queen of the Oceans is a Sun-class cruise ship built in Italy in 2000 and formerly operated as Ocean Princess and Oceana.
Last updated August 25, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
MV Queen of the Oceans is a Sun-class cruise ship built by Fincantieri at Monfalcone, Italy. The vessel entered service in February 2000 as Ocean Princess for Princess Cruises, after being ordered for the wider P&O cruise organization. With a gross tonnage of 77,499 GT, it was designed for international leisure cruising and became one of the larger ships in the Princess and later P&O Cruises fleets. The ship's first operating identity was Ocean Princess. It entered service on 16 February 2000 and was named by actors Ali MacGraw and Ryan O'Neal. Its initial deployment combined winter cruising in the southern Caribbean with summer itineraries in Alaska, giving the vessel a seasonal role across two major cruise regions. Shortly after its launch, P&O separated its cruise operations from the rest of the group, and Ocean Princess became associated with P&O Princess Cruises while continuing to sail under the Princess Cruises brand. In November 2002, the ship transferred to P&O Cruises and was renamed Oceana. It began operating from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and later became closely associated with the British P&O Cruises fleet. Its formal naming ceremony under the Oceana name took place in Southampton on 21 May 2003, when Anne, Princess Royal, christened the vessel. In 2003, the merger of P&O Princess Cruises with Carnival Corporation created Carnival Corporation & plc. Oceana consequently became part of the Carnival group structure, operating through Carnival UK while retaining its P&O Cruises identity. The ship was configured with ten passenger decks and a broad range of onboard leisure facilities. These included four restaurants, an open-air dining venue, twelve bars, a gym, sports court, casino, golf simulator, spa, four swimming pools, and a principal entertainment theatre seating approximately 530 people. The combination of resort-style amenities and a relatively compact cruise-ship scale reflected the operating model of the P&O Cruises fleet in the 2000s and 2010s. Between 29 November and 17 December 2017, Oceana underwent a reported £31 million refurbishment at Blohm+Voss in Hamburg. The work included technical improvements and refurbishment of public areas, extending the vessel's service life and updating guest-facing spaces. The refit was the last major renovation identified in the available reference material. The ship's P&O Cruises career ended during the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. On 7 July 2020, P&O Cruises announced that it had sold Oceana to an undisclosed buyer. Reports the following day identified the Iliopoulos family, associated with the Greek ferry company Seajets, as considering the purchase in connection with a possible cruise operation. The transfer to Seajets was completed at Patras on 21 July 2020. The ship was subsequently renamed Queen of the Oceans, and its former name markings were removed or covered while it lay at Patras. Although the acquisition suggested a possible move into Seajets-operated cruising, Queen of the Oceans did not return to passenger service in the available record. As of 2026, it has remained laid up since its 2020 transfer. Its current commercial status, future deployment, and long-term ownership arrangements are not established by the supplied sources. The vessel remains notable primarily for its successive identities within Princess Cruises, P&O Cruises, and Seajets, and for its place in the Sun-class family alongside Dream, Pacific World, and Pacific Explorer.
History
MV Queen of the Oceans was constructed by Fincantieri at Monfalcone, Italy, as a Sun-class cruise ship with a gross tonnage of 77,499 GT. The vessel was ordered for the P&O cruise organization and entered service on 16 February 2000 under the name Ocean Princess. Its launch identity placed it within Princess Cruises, where it operated winter itineraries in the southern Caribbean and summer voyages in Alaska. Ali MacGraw and Ryan O'Neal served as the ship's naming figures. Soon after the ship entered service, P&O demerged its cruise operations. Ocean Princess consequently became associated with P&O Princess Cruises while continuing to operate within the Princess Cruises fleet. In November 2002, the ship transferred to P&O Cruises and adopted the name Oceana. It initially operated from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and received its official naming ceremony in Southampton on 21 May 2003, conducted by Anne, Princess Royal. The corporate structure around the ship changed again in 2003 when P&O Princess Cruises merged with Carnival Corporation to form Carnival Corporation & plc. Oceana subsequently came under the Carnival group, operating through Carnival UK as part of the P&O Cruises fleet. During its P&O career, the ship offered a resort-style cruise environment with ten passenger decks, four restaurants, twelve bars, four swimming pools, a theatre seating about 530 people, a casino, spa, gym, sports court, golf simulator, and other leisure facilities. Oceana received its last reported major refurbishment from 29 November to 17 December 2017 at Blohm+Voss in Hamburg. The project was described as a £31 million refit involving technical work and renovation of public spaces. This investment updated the vessel while maintaining its role as a mainstream P&O Cruises ship. On 7 July 2020, during the severe operational disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, P&O Cruises announced that it had sold Oceana. The following day, Greek media reported that the Iliopoulos family, which leads Seajets, was considering purchasing the vessel for possible cruise operations. The transaction was completed when the ship was delivered to Seajets at Patras on 21 July 2020. It was subsequently renamed Queen of the Oceans, with its previous branding removed or covered. The vessel did not resume passenger service after the transfer in the available record. As of 2026, it has remained laid up since 2020, and there is no confirmed operating schedule or public evidence in the supplied material of a return to cruising. Queen of the Oceans is a sister ship of Dream, Pacific World, and Pacific Explorer, all associated with the Sun-class design lineage. Its history therefore spans three principal commercial identities: Ocean Princess under Princess Cruises, Oceana under P&O Cruises, and Queen of the Oceans under Seajets.
- 2020
Sold by P&O Cruises
[1]P&O Cruises announced the sale of Oceana on 7 July during the COVID-19-era contraction in cruise operations.
- 2020
Renamed Queen of the Oceans under Seajets
[1]Seajets took delivery of the vessel at Patras on 21 July, after which it appeared under the name Queen of the Oceans.
- 2017
Major refurbishment at Blohm+Voss
[1]Oceana underwent a reported £31 million technical and public-area refit in Hamburg from late November to mid-December.
- 2003
Official Oceana naming ceremony
[1]Anne, Princess Royal, formally named the vessel Oceana in Southampton on 21 May 2003.
- 2003
Entered the Carnival group structure
[1]The merger of P&O Princess Cruises with Carnival Corporation placed Oceana within the resulting Carnival Corporation & plc structure.
- 2002
Transferred to P&O Cruises and renamed Oceana
[1]In November 2002, Ocean Princess moved into the P&O Cruises fleet and adopted the name Oceana.
- 2000
Entered service as Ocean Princess
[1]The ship entered service on 16 February 2000 for Princess Cruises after construction by Fincantieri in Monfalcone, Italy.
Products and positioning
A large, resort-oriented international cruise ship positioned through successive cruise-line identities for seasonal leisure voyages, onboard accommodation, dining, entertainment, and recreation.
Cruise ship · 2000
MV Queen of the Oceans
The vessel is a 77,499 GT Sun-class passenger cruise ship built by Fincantieri. Its design includes ten passenger decks and facilities intended for resort-style cruising, including four restaurants, an open-air dining venue, twelve bars, four swimming pools, a casino, spa, gym, sports court, golf simulator, and a 530-seat main theatre. It has operated under the names Ocean Princess and Oceana and has been laid up as Queen of the Oceans since its 2020 transfer to Seajets.
Brand decisions
2020
Sale and transfer to SeajetsM&ABackground
The sale occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, when cruise operators were reducing or restructuring fleet capacity.
Action taken
P&O Cruises sold Oceana, and Seajets took delivery of the vessel at Patras on 21 July 2020. The ship was subsequently renamed Queen of the Oceans.
Aftermath
The vessel did not re-enter service in the available record and remained laid up through 2026.
2017
Oceana refurbishmentOtherBackground
P&O Cruises scheduled a major refurbishment to update the ship's technical systems and public areas during its continued service in the fleet.
Action taken
The ship underwent a reported £31 million refit at Blohm+Voss in Hamburg between 29 November and 17 December 2017.
Aftermath
The work was the vessel's last reported major renovation before its sale in 2020.
Refit cost. £31 million (2017 refit)
Sources1 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/mv-queen-of-the-oceans · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled