Knyaz Vladimir

The 1971-built MV Knyaz Vladimir cruise ship (formerly “Roy Star” and “Royal Iris”) was originally designed as a passenger and car ferry and constructed in Nantes, France by Chantier Dubigeon-Normandie SA. In 1981, she was converted into a cruise ship. Since 2017, the vessel has been owned by the Russian Federation’s Ministry of Transport and operated by the newly formed company Black Sea Cruises.

The vessel (IMO 7032997) is currently Russia-flagged (MMSI 273397120) and homeported in Novorossiysk.

History – Construction and Ownership

The 1,000-passenger Knyaz Vladimir (meaning “Prince Vladimir”) was originally named MV Eagle and operated by the British company Southern Ferries as a car/cruise ferry. A few years later, she was sold to Paquet Cruises, a subsidiary of Nouvelle Compagnie de Paquebots (Marseille). In 1981, MV Eagle was rebuilt as a cruise ship, renamed MV Azur, and underwent a major refit that added numerous passenger cabins.

In 1994, the ship was acquired by Festival Cruises and operated for 10 years until the company’s 2004 bankruptcy. MV Azur was then arrested in Gibraltar and sold to Mano Maritime for over USD 12 million. Renamed Royal Iris, she was repainted with a smiling yellow fish on both sides of the hull.

As MV Roy Star, the vessel operated Eastern Mediterranean cruises to Cyprus and the Greek Islands until 2014, when Mano Cruises ceased operations.

In December 2016, Victor Olersky (Rosmorrechflot Director and Russia’s Deputy Minister of Transport) chaired a meeting of the Marine Board of the Russian Government on establishing regular passenger service to Crimean ports. Experts concluded the best option was to create a regular cruise line on the route Sochi–Novorossiysk–Yalta–Sevastopol–Istanbul–Sochi. Since the service included Crimean ports, a time charter was ruled out, and the Ministry proposed purchasing the ship.

In early 2017, the Ministry of Transport held talks with Rosmorport and Sovfracht Group to launch the project, intending to deploy the Roy Star. The estimated cost was around RUB 700 million (USD 11.7 million), covering vessel acquisition and refurbishment.

This Russian cruise liner offers comfortable facilities, including:

• Sun Deck (solarium with 2 swimming pools and 1 Jacuzzi) aft on Deck 6
• Swimming pool (midship on Deck 8, top deck)
• Main dining room restaurant, 4 bars, disco, and Music Hall (concert hall). Complimentary coffee and tea are served before breakfast, with tea or soft drinks after excursions.
• Duty-free shops, library, souvenir shop, Art Salon (gifts), Guest Services Desk, and Tour Desk (shore excursion bookings)
• Sauna, Beauty Salon (hairdresser and barber), Spa Salon (massages and cosmetic treatments)
• Cinema (movie theater), Karaoke Bar, and Bar Lounge
• Kids Club (indoor playground with inflatable bouncer, toys, arts-and-crafts tables, games, and contests; also used as a nursery)

Decks and Cabins

The ship has 360 staterooms in three main categories: Suite, Outside (A), and Inside (B).

• Suites are compact, each with a double bed and a sofa bed.
• Most Outside cabins are doubles with two lower beds convertible to a queen. Some triples and quads (up to 3–4 passengers) feature two lower beds plus one or two Pullman bunks.
• Most Inside cabins are triples or quads (up to 3–4 passengers), fitted with lower and Pullman bunks. In some, the lower beds convert to a queen.

Cabin capacities are shown on the deck plans. Cribs are available for rent.

All staterooms include standard amenities: writing desk with mirror and drawers, chair, bedside reading lamps, telephone (onboard calls only), LCD TV (satellite and onboard channels), complimentary bottled water (0.33 L per person, replenished daily), 220V power sockets, USB ports, en suite bathroom (WC, glass shower, washbasin, accessories), hair dryer, and air conditioning.

New linens are provided every 3 days in Suites/Semi-Suites and every 5 days in other staterooms. Complimentary towel changes are available upon request, with daily changes of face and foot towels provided in Suites/Semi-Suites.

The ship has 8 decks, 7 accessible to passengers, with cabins on 5 decks.

Itineraries

Knyaz Vladimir offers 7-day Black Sea voyages with roundtrip Sunday departures from Sochi (homeport). The cruising season runs May through October. Week-long itineraries include calls at Novorossiysk, Sevastopol (overnight), and Yalta (overnight), with the option of adding Istanbul. Interporting (roundtrip deals from all ports of call) is also available.

During the winter months, the ship remains docked in Novorossiysk. According to Rosmorport, about 60% of passengers embark in Sochi, 20% in Novorossiysk, 10% in Yalta, and 10% in Sevastopol.

The extended 2020 season (March–October) was planned as the company’s longest, with 35 roundtrips from Sochi. Following the COVID-19 suspension in 2020–2021, Black Sea Cruises resumed operations with MS Knyaz Vladimir on June 13, 2021, departing from Sochi.