NAL/NAC —> Cunard Sagafjord

[vieux_carre]

The recent query re: Cunard Ambassador inspired me to ask: was anyone on the November 1982 Panama Canal transit on the (then) Norwegian American Cruises Sagafjord shortly before she joined the Cunard fleet?  That was my first “real” cruise at the age of 9 from Ft. Lauderdale to Aculpulco.  I feel fortunate to have had the experience on such a lovely ship!

[foodsvcmgr]

I have fond memories of sailing aboard the Sagafjord from NYC in 1986 after she had acquired Cunard funnel colors and was marketed as Cunard/NAC.

[Colin_Cameron]

We never sailed on her under NAC/NAL but a few years later we sailed through the canal in the opposite direction, LA, Acapulco, Fort Lauderdale. To this day she remains our favourite ship.

[Oahucruiser]

She was always one of our favorites too along with her sister ship the Vistafjord.  We took the Sagafjord more often and then became big fans of the wonderful QE2 which is still our all time favorite.   Our choice now is the friendly and happy Queen Victoria. 

[rog747]

The Cunard Sagafjord.
 

The MS Sagafjord was an ocean liner built by the yard, Société Nouvelle des Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée, France, who received the original plans and specifications for the vessel from the Norwegian America Line in 1960.
The keel was finally laid on 21 June 1963 before her launch on 13 June 1964.
She underwent sea trials from May until September in 1965 and was finally christened Sagafjord on 18 September 1965 in Toulon.

The construction of the Sagafjord was so expensive that it put the shipyard out of business.

The Sagafjord undertook her maiden voyage from Oslo to New York City on 2 to 11 October 1965. At the time she was built to set the mark of luxury.

She sailed with Norwegian America Line until 1980.
Their cruise services had operated at a loss in the late 1970s and were restructured in 1980 with their two ships the Sagafjord and Vistafjord passing to a new company, Norwegian America Cruises. The two ships were sold in 1983/84 and the company was taken over by Cunard Line. The ship retained her original name throughout her service with Cunard until she left the fleet in 1996.

Sister ship MS Vistafjord was was built as a combined ocean liner/cruise ship.
She was based on the company's 1965-built Sagafjord, but with an enlarged hull, additional superstructure deck and improved interior layout.

However, as the cost of building Sagafjord had put her builders, Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée, out of business, Vistafjord had to be built at a different shipyard, at the Swan Hunter yard on the Tyne.

She was launched on 15 May 1972 and delivered to the Norwegian America Line exactly a year later on 15 May 1973.
She is the last ocean liner/cruise ship to have been built in the United Kingdom.
In 1983 she was sold to Cunard Line, retaining her original name until 1999 when she was renamed Caronia.
In 2004 she was sold.

[Elephant1151]

We had many happy memories of travelling on Vistafjord.  She is still our favourite ship of our whole family.  Wonderful crew, great food. 

[sail1658]

We sailed on Sagafjord in 1992 around the Caribbean and her sister ship Vistafjord when she was the Caronia from New York to Canada and New England in 2001. So it was interesting to compare both ships. I have posted a series of videos of these cruises on YouTube.

 

 

 

 

[oslofjord]

Oh, Norwegian America Line. Absolutely loved the YouTube videos. I sailed on the Sagafjord in 1967 on a 12-day Caribbean cruise. Oh, she was a beautiful ship, although my favorite NAL ships have always been the Oslofjord and the Bergensfjord.  (see my screen name!). I was 15 when I first sailed with NAL. The NAL ships had an elegant profile.  The complete opposite of the shoeboxes that are now being built. On those ships, a cruise to Norway took 39 or 45 days (did both) and a Med cruise could be 60 days (all NYC to NYC). Today, I sail almost exclusively with  Cunard, especially the QM2 and the Victoria--classy ladies. In spite of all the grousing on these boards about the decreased in service, etc. on Cunard, it remains the most classic, traditional of all the lines. Just got off the 400th TA of the QM2 and can't wait to spend 35 days on the Victoria around South America (i.e. Rio to Ft. Lauderdale). Thanks for bringing back wonderful memories