Hail & farewell to the classic liner: changes spell doom for the valiant vessels that pioneered pleasure cruising - Cruising's Classic Past - vintage cruise ships

Cruise Travel, Jan-Feb, 2002 by Allan E. Jordan

Designed for a combination of trans-Atlantic service and cruising, the Amerikanis soon took up station as one of the first seven-day cruise ships offering low-priced trips for the American public. She became very popular as a party ship sailing the Caribbean and to Bermuda, Bahamas, and "nowhere." She continued her cruising service for Chandris and later for Chandris's Fantasy Cruises right up until 1996, when Chandris phased out Fantasy Cruises in favor of its more upscale Celebrity Cruises brand.

Idled in Greece, the Amerikanis awaited a future, including an effort to move her to London as a floating hotel at Canary Wharf. When that effort failed to materialize, sadly she was towed in June 2001 to the scrapyards of India where the torches reclaimed the metal of the once happy cruise ship that helped introduce a new era of cruising to America.