QE2 in the Daily Mail 7 June 2009

What's happening to the QE2? No work carried out to transform the liner into a floating hotel eight months after leaving the UK
• By Katy Hastings
Article published by the Daily Mail on-line on 7 June 2009. Link kindly sent by Michael Sutcliffe
It's a sad end for the ship that was once the pride of Britain.
A birds-eye view shows the QE2 docked at in Dubai - but eight months after the iconic liner arrived in her final resting place no work appears to have been carried out to transform her into a luxury floating hotel.
The solitary ship stands alone against the backdrop of Dubai's dramatic skyline in a remote dockyard.
But the lack of work is fuelling speculation she could be sold off instead of becoming a hotel.
There is no sign of activity on the liner, which was bought for £50m by real estate developer Nakheel in the United Arab Emirates.
The only movement is the occasional wisp of smoke from the funnel where the engines are kept turning over to keep air circulating.
The owners have denied speculation that the cruise ship will be sold on instead of becoming a hotel.
The company has told the BBC the ship is not up for sale, even though work on the refurbishment has not begun.
Nakheel has said it will make the QE2 the centrepiece of the Palm Jumeirah development on the Dubai waterfront.
Last year, Nakheel said the QE2's giant red funnel would be sliced off and placed on the waterfront.
It said a glass penthouse - the most exclusive hotel room in Dubai - would be built in its place.
Every cabin was to be replaced with new, larger bedrooms and the engine space filled with a theatre, ahead of a scheduled opening next year.
The new-look vessel was also set to have a heritage museum displaying artefacts from the ship and from maritime history.
The cruise ship, which was Southampton-based during its life, reached Dubai on November 26.
Tens of thousands of people lined Southampton Water on 11 November to see the 70,000-tonne ship leave UK waters for the last time.
During her lifetime she acted as a troop ship in the Falklands Conflict in 1982, sailed more than five million nautical miles and completed 25 world cruises.
Her library, the largest still afloat, and grand ballroom have been transcended by new liners which boast everything from skating rinks to rock-climbing walls.

QE2 DUBAI REFIT

Some 200 hotel rooms, 110 luxury apartments, a 500-seat West End theatre, a 5,000sq mtr spa, fiv e restaurants and a maritime heritage trail are just some of the refurbishment plans for QE2 in her new life as a floating iconic destination on the Dubai waterfront unveiled by Manfred Ursprunger, ceo of new owner QE2 Enterprises, Nakheel Hotels at today’s opening session of the Seatrade Middle East Cruise Conference.
‘QE2’s arrival in Dubai is not the end for the most famous liner in the world but a new beginning,’ remarked Ursprunger. Currently berthed in Port Rashid where she arrived on November 26, QE2 will eventually be moved to the nearby Drydocks World repair yard to undergo an extensive refurbishment estimated to take two to three years, Ursprunger revealed.
All public areas will be rebuilt as will all cabins and suites. The makeover will take the philosophy of the original design combined with modern standards, said Ursprunger. This will result in 200 hotel rooms of 50sq mtr plus 110 apartments ranging from 80 to 250sq mtr. The engine room will be stripped out and a 500-seat theatre created staging West End shows and film premieres. Leisure facilities will also include a 5,000sq mtr indoor/outdoor health and wellness centre. Celebrity chef Michel Roux will mastermind the menus of the five restaurants on board and others shoreside. The bridge, captain’s cabin and Princess Grill will be kept as is, forming part of a heritage trail that visitors can follow. ‘I am sorry to be vague about the completion date but this is a complicated project which also needs major complementary land-based infrastructure alongside where the liner will be finally accommodated, none of which is built today,' Ursprunger said.
The QE2 Precinct, as the Nakheel executive referred to it, will be the flagship attraction at Palm Jumeriah and will comprise the ship itself moored at a berth accessible via a 40ft gangway, ‘giving visitors the feel of entering an ocean-going passenger liner’. Shoreside facilities will include luxury restaurants, retail outlets, a cultural and heritage centre, a maritime museum with large display of Cunard memorabilia taken from on board, an art gallery and amphitheatre for outdoor concerts.
Ursprunger told Seatrade Insider he was unable to disclose more information about plans on the hotel and leisure side as ‘this is a ship we are using and we first need to see if our visions can actually be realised’. Repair yard engineers are now conducting structural surveys. ‘It is difficult to accurately predict the cost of the project until substantial assessment has taken place. What we are going to do will ensure the ship is functional for another 50 years and will involve replacing all plumbing, accommodation, wiring, etc.,’ Ursprunger added.
The funnel will be removed from the ship and restored to become the central display of a new maritime museum located at the QE2 Precinct. An exact replica will be built to go on the liner. A luxury apartment will be created inside the replica making the funnel the most famous address in the Middle East, said Ursprunger. ‘They say a soul of a ship is represented by the people who sail in her. We hope under her new look QE2 will continue to provide experiences for many more years to come,’ he concluded.(Published by Seatrade on 15 December 2008)