A sailing cruise ship that has been in lay-up in the city of Split in Croatia since 2022 has been sold to an undisclosed owner, local media reported recently.
Golden Horizon, formerly named Flying Clipper, was originally put up for sale in 2022 with an asking price of £100 million (then US$120 million) and was reportedly sold for £110 million (US$130 million).
Although the identity of the buyer has not yet been confirmed, Croatian media said that the entity is a Swiss company that operates around 100 vessels.
Golden Horizon has been described by local shipbuilder Brodosplit as the largest square-rigged cruise ship in the world and a replica of the famed sailing ship France II, which was built in 1913.
The ship is 162 metres long and 18.5 metres wide and has five masts with 36 cross sails, totaling an area of 6,345 square metres. Up to 324 guests can be accommodated in 140 staterooms distributed across six decks.
The ship was originally ordered by Swedish cruise operator Star Clippers in 2014 but was never able to enter service with the customer due to a legal dispute with Brodosplit.
The ship, while still named Flying Clipper, was completed by Brodosplit in the summer of 2019. However, Brodosplit cancelled the sale of the vessel in August of that year due to Star Clippers' "failure to meet contractual obligations."
The shipyard had cited the buyer's delay in securing some key vessel components and the corresponding technical documentation and its having, "unjustifiably activated bank funding [that] included a €12 million (then US$14 million) state guarantee." These actions are said to have resulted in the postponement of delivery by almost two years.
Flying Clipper was sold to UK-based Tradewind Voyages, but the latter was also unable to operate the ship as she had been seized by UK authorities due to the then-ongoing legal dispute between Star Clippers and Brodosplit.
