The one-ship UK operator Noble Caledonia is doubling the size of its fleet with the acquisition of the former Hebridean Spirit, which entered service in 1991 as Renaissance VI. She is a sistership of the 114-passenger Island Sky (1992/4,200gt), built as Renaissance VIII, the last of a series of near sisters by Nuovi Cantieri Apunia for now-defunct Renaissance Cruises.
She was later sold to Star Cruises, for whom she sailed as Megastar Capricorn, and was bought in 2001 by Hebridean International Cruise Lines. She was given a major internal and external overhaul, which significantly changed her appearance. In 2009 the recession-hit Hebridean sold her to buyers believed to be associated with the Dubai Royal Family, who had her converted as the private yacht Sunrise.
The newly-renamed Caledonia Sky will undergo a refurbishment this winter and begin sailing for Noble Caledonia in May 2012. Specific itineraries have yet to be announced.
