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Second Berth: 10 Cool Repurposed Ships
introMuch like seafaring humans, the watercraft that populate the world’s oceans, lakes and rivers have to one day retire. And, just as for their human counterparts, life on dry land usually requires a certain amount of adaptations, adjustments and changes. From pleasure cruisers to freight carriers and fishing boats, these disused ships prove that shore life can be sweet. [Photo: Alte Utting]
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Second Berth: 10 Cool Repurposed Ships.
WaitanicLess disconcerting – but only slightly so – is the sight of a ship on dry land. In Woodlyn Park Motel, you can sleep in a train, plane, in replica Hobbit houses, or inside the Waitanic. Built as an anti-submarine patrol ship during WWII, she is now living out her twilight days amidst the rolling hills of New Zealand’s North Island. Landlubbers board their rooms via a wooden walkway and get to feel like mariners for the duration of their stay, miles away from the nearest ocean.
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Second Berth: 10 Cool Repurposed Ships.
LindisfarneThe small British island of Lindisfarne, also known as Holy Island, is most renowned for its castle and monastery, but its boat sheds may come a close third. Local fishermen have long turned their old boats into sheds, usually used to store fishing equipment. Many of these picturesque boat sheds are still in use, and several are located near the castle, putting them in the way of many a visiting camera lens. [Photo: ©National Trust Images/Joe Cornish]
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Second Berth: 10 Cool Repurposed Ships.
de CeuvelAmsterdam’s houseboats are a novel sight for visitors. An even more surprising discovery: the former houseboats that make up the de Ceuvel project. The creative business park, located on the site of a former shipyard, is dedicated to sustainability and urban regeneration. Several no-longer-canal-worthy houseboats, now demoted to mere houses, fit perfectly into this concept and add a quirky touch. Today, they serve as artist studios, design agency offices and coworking spaces, surrounded by soil-cleaning plants that will restore the quality of the polluted ground. [Photo: Martijn van Wijk]
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Second Berth: 10 Cool Repurposed Ships.
hotelsMany retired cruise ships share a cruel fate – sent to shipwrecking yards, they are broken down into their parts and sold for scrap. A select few, however, receive a far more glamorous treatment and live out their twilight years as floating hotels. You can spend a night aboard the Queen Elizabeth 2 in Dubai (pictured); dine, sleep or experience events on the Queen Mary in Southern California; or check into the SS Rotterdam in the Dutch harbour city that gave the ship its name.
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Second Berth: 10 Cool Repurposed Ships.
restaurantsAnother popular retirement plan for seafaring vessels – become a restaurant. There are too many on-board eateries all over the world to mention them all, but they range from a fine dining sailboat in Philadelphia and a brunch clipper in Berlin, to restaurants built around tugboats in Maine or Namibia. Some are still floating on water, albeit permanently moored. Others have solid ground foundations now, but they all make the most of their maritime charm. [Photo Moshulu by J. Fusco for VISIT PHILADELPHIA®]
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Second Berth: 10 Cool Repurposed Ships.
Black GoldThe Black Gold project is currently no more than a flight of fancy – the type our world could use more of. The proposal for a sustainable conversion of disused oil tankers by a group of Dutch designers makes the best of the seafaring vessels’ vastness. In the design renderings, a beached tanker is turned into an entire neighbourhood, containing a shopping centre, offices and recreational spaces.
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Second Berth: 10 Cool Repurposed Ships.
BoatanicThe Boatanic is equally forward-looking – and a lot easier to implement – but also remains an unrealised concept. During a brief trial period in the Dutch city of Utrecht, a former glass-roofed sightseeing boat was turned into a floating greenhouse. It’s an ingenious idea that both finds a sensible second use for the disused tourist vessels and taps into the urban gardening trend, reducing food miles and freeing up valuable farming land. Due to the cramped size, the crops grown on board would be limited to herbs and microgreens, but a fleet of greenhouse boats would be a great way to supplement a city’s fresh food supply.
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