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Minerva

Minerva
The Minerva is the sole member of the former Swan Hellenic fleet. The ship was built in 1989 originally for Russia as a research vessel, and had been planned to be called the Okean. When this sale fell through Swan Hellenic (as part of P&O) purchased the ship and named her Minerva.
In 2003 the ship was briefly chartered by Saga Holidays and became the Saga Pearl, before being chartered to Abercrombie & Kent as the Explorer II. Swan Hellenic was due to dissappear from the cruise market, when Lord Sterling, the former chairman of P&O purchased the company and looked for a new ship. He purchased the ship. The company restarted in 2008 and the ship, now renamed back to Minerva sails on unique and exotic cruises. The Minerva has stately comforts, a relaxed lounge with entertainment, well-stocked library, restaurants, gym and bar, with polished wood and gleaming brass topped off with fresh flowers. The crew of the Minerva are here to provide you with the ultimate discovery cruise experience.

Ship Stats

Launched: 1989
Start of service: April 1996
Decks: 6
Lifts: 2
Length: 133 m
Beam (width): 20.3 m
Tonnage: 12,500 GRT
Propulsion:Two Propellers
Speed: 15 knots
Capacity:350 passengers
Crew and staff: 160
Registry: Bahamas

Ship Features

2 restaurants
2 bars & 1 lounges
air-conditioned throughout
1 swimming pool
Laundrette
Gym
beauty salon & boutique
stabilised worldwide satellite telephone, telex and fax
medical quarters

Ship particulars

Food
Dining on board the Minerva take place in the main restaurant or the Veranda. The main restaurant is quite formal but friendly and passengers are asked how they would like to be seated, be this alone, or with certain sized groups, great for either meeting people or for having that special private time. The Veranda is an informal, buffet-style cafe. Nice sized tables with wicker chairs, its a popular place to have a relaxed bite to eat.

Excercise

On Board the Minerva you will find a glassed-in gymnasium. This fitness centre is small with limited facilities but you will still find around 6 exercise machines and weights. Unfortunately this is a shared space and is limited, but with such small passenger numbers you should be able to find a time to access the machines. However, if this fails, the wide promenade deck can be used for walking, with around 8 circuits totalling a mile.

Formal nights

There are around three formal nights on board the Minerva over a two week cruise, where men must wear dinner jackets or dark suits and women cocktail dresses or gowns. If you wish to avoid this, it is possible to stay casual in the Veranda cafe. The dress code on board requires men to wear jackets and ties in the evenings for meals in the main restaurant but again it is more relaxed in the cafe. The predominently British passnegers on board the Minerva do not wear jeans or T-shirts, even during the day.

Smoking

Smoking on the Minerva is only permitted in designated areas on the open decks. Smoking outside these areas, including in cabins and on excursion coaches, is strictly prohibited..