By D.K. DuPont
6/27/2011
Xanterra Parks & Resorts has purchased the assets of Ambassadors International Inc., including the Delta Queen and Columbia Queen, for $39 million cash. U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware approved the sale in late May to the Greenwood Village, Colo.-based company that runs concessions and activities at national and state parks. The deal also includes Windstar Cruises. The two riverboats were part of Ambassadors money-losing Majestic America Line brand. The Delta Queen is leased under a bareboat charter as a hotel in Chattanooga, Tenn. The Columbia Queen, which is in Portland, Ore., was pledged as collateral with a credit card processor, according to regula- tory filings. Ambassadors had both on the market. Xanterra has made no decisions on the fate of either vessel, a spokesman said in early June. The Maritime Administration is trying to sell two other Majestic vessels, the American Queen and the Empress of the North. Ambassadors returned them to the Maritime Administration, which paid bondholders nearly $68 million. The American Queen is under contract for $15.5 million to a company led by John Waggoner, CEO of HMS Global Maritime based in New Albany, Ind. Waggoner earlier told WorkBoat he hoped to operate the 418′, 436-passenger vessel on the inland rivers next year. — D.K. DuPont
[Editor's Note: We found this story today at http://www.workboat.com/newsdetail.aspx?id=10406 but have no further information.]
