In what feels like a case of déjà vu, the luxury cruise industry is losing another ship. Just last week, I wrote about Regent Seven Seas Cruises selling the Regent Seven Seas Navigator—a ship I’ve had the pleasure of sailing on multiple times—to Crescent Seas, a new residential ship startup. Now, hot on the heels of that announcement, Crescent Seas has revealed they’re acquiring a second luxury ship, this time the Insignia from Oceania Cruises.
It’s worth pointing out that both Regent Seven Seas and Oceania Cruises fall under the umbrella of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, so this double sale might have been part of a strategic package deal. The Navigator’s departure from the Regent fleet was announced just days before the Insignia’s. Both ships are now destined for a major overhaul, transitioning from traditional cruise liners to floating residential communities.
For the Insignia, Crescent Seas is investing over $50 million to transform the ship into 290 residences, with prices ranging from $650,000 to a staggering $10 million. The ship is slated to join the Crescent Seas fleet by the end of 2027, with its inaugural residential voyage planned for New Year’s 2028.
Meanwhile, the Navigator will feature 210 residences, priced between $750,000 and $8 million. It’s set to launch a bit earlier, with its first residential voyage scheduled for December 2026.
When I covered the Navigator’s sale last week, I admitted to being skeptical about whether Crescent Seas could pull this off. Post-pandemic we’ve seen several startups attempt to launch residential ships, only to fizzle out before ever setting sail and in some cases leaving unlucky “owners” out of a lot of cash. Even with Crescent Seas’ ambitious claim that they’ll add three more ships over the next five years—bringing their fleet to a total of five floating residential communities—I’m still not entirely convinced. The only true success story in the world of residential ships is The World, which has been operating since 2002.
Interestingly, Oceania Cruises hasn’t announced plans for a new build to replace the Insignia once she leaves the fleet in 2027. It’ll be worth watching how this shift impacts their lineup in the coming years.
Oceania Insignia Fast Facts
For those unfamiliar with the Insignia, here’s a rundown of her specs. Launched in 1998 and last refurbished in 2018, she weighs in at 30,277 gross tons, stretches 593 feet in length, has 9 passenger decks and can carry 684 passengers (double occupancy) with a crew of around 400.