of the Washington Post recently wrote that the ship originally built as MS Stockholm, just after World War II, is likely to be “nearing its final voyage.” The 72-year-old ship is one of the oldest cruise ships in service.
The ship has gone by many names. Including MS Stockholm, she has sailed as Völkerfreundschaft, Volker, Fridtjof Nansen, Italia I, Italia Prima, Valtur Prima, Caribe, Athena, and Azores. Since 2016 she has operated as Astoria, operated by Cruise and Maritime Voyages (CMV). CMV has announced that the 2020 season will be the old ship’s last.