Istithmar buys the QE2
Dubai state-owned private equity firm Istithmar has bought the Cunard liner Queen Elizabeth 2 for $100 million and is to convert it into a floating hotel and museum.Istithmar recently became a substantial shareholder of Malta's International Hotel...
Dubai state-owned private equity firm Istithmar has bought the Cunard liner Queen Elizabeth 2 for $100 million and is to convert it into a floating hotel and museum.
Istithmar recently became a substantial shareholder of Malta's International Hotel Investments (IHI).
The QE2 is the longest-serving ship in the 168-year history of the Cunard line and also its most famous. It will be anchored off the Palm Jumeirah, the smallest of three islands shaped as palm fronds that government-owned developer Nakheel is building off Dubai's coast.
The cruise ship, which will also have shops on board, will arrive in Dubai in 2009 as part of a drive to turn the island into a tourist destination. Around 6.5 million people visited Dubai last year, more than any Arab destination except Egypt. The ship will be refurbished to recreate QE2's original interior decor and fittings, Istithmar said.
The ship, launched by Queen Elizabeth 40 years ago, came into service in 1969 and has crossed the Atlantic more than 800 times, carrying more than 2.5 million passengers.
Istithmar is the investment arm of Dubai World, which owns Nakheel and Dubai Ports World, the port operator that bought rival P&O, a 165-year-old British company, in 2006.
Istithmar recently became a substantial shareholder of Malta's International Hotel Investments (IHI).
The QE2 is the longest-serving ship in the 168-year history of the Cunard line and also its most famous. It will be anchored off the Palm Jumeirah, the smallest of three islands shaped as palm fronds that government-owned developer Nakheel is building off Dubai's coast.
The cruise ship, which will also have shops on board, will arrive in Dubai in 2009 as part of a drive to turn the island into a tourist destination. Around 6.5 million people visited Dubai last year, more than any Arab destination except Egypt. The ship will be refurbished to recreate QE2's original interior decor and fittings, Istithmar said.
The ship, launched by Queen Elizabeth 40 years ago, came into service in 1969 and has crossed the Atlantic more than 800 times, carrying more than 2.5 million passengers.
Istithmar is the investment arm of Dubai World, which owns Nakheel and Dubai Ports World, the port operator that bought rival P&O, a 165-year-old British company, in 2006.