Disney's surprising purchase: the group turns to the cruise industry!
Eva Deschamps / November 17, 2022
The Disney Group has purchased the cruise ship previously known as the 'Global Dream' from bankrupt German shipbuilder MV Werften.
The ship will be renamed and some of its features reimagined "under the world-renowned expertise" of Walt Disney Imagineers, the U.S. entertainment giant said.
Construction is expected to be completed at the former MV Werften shipyard in Wismar, Germany.
The 208,000 gross ton ship is expected to be one of the first in the cruise industry to be powered by green methanol, one of the least polluting fuels available. Disney Cruise Line expects to accommodate approximately 6,000 passengers and some 2,300 crew members.
The ship, which will be based outside the U.S. and "decked out in the fleet's iconic Mickey Mouse-inspired colors," with its famous red smokestacks.
The ship, which is 75 percent complete, was originally intended for the Asian market by the MV shipyard's former owner, Chinese cruise group Genting Hong Kong. During the pandemic, however, MV Shipyards and then the parent company went bankrupt.