GEMINI
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Release of cruise ship refused
A Greek court refused to release the 'Gemini', which has been under detention for more than 200 days, last week, while it was running out of fuel and provisions for the skeleton crew of 25 on board. The ship was also reported to have had its classification certificates withdrawn and was now under a false flag. The ship was operated by a series of lines over the years before being acquired in 2020 by a Turkish businessman who is also a tour operator. She was registered for Miray Gemicilik and ran short cruises along the Turkish coast and the Greek Islands. In September 2025, Greek inspectors identified a hull damage, which was impairing the seaworthiness, and issued a detention order, which was based on reports of non-payment of crew wages. The ship, which had a normal crew complement of 340, was stranded in Salamis with its cruises suspended. By October, the Hellenic Seamen’s Federation was highlighting the plight of the crew and reporting that some crew members were leaving the ship despite not having been paid for up to four months. The ship’s P&I Club and the International Transport Workers’ Federation intervened to complete the repatriation of the crew. Turkey’s Denizbank, however, filed for a lien against the ship for unpaid monies, and then the P&I Club and a tug operator also filed with the court for monies they were due. The ship stayed at Salamis under detention, but the cruise company, Miray Cruises, began advertising its 2026 season with cruises scheduled to start on May 24. The company’s website showed a season of 3- and 4-day cruises as well as scheduled trips to the Black Sea. A skeleton crew of 25 was sent to retrieve the ship in March. However, the ship only got as far as Karistos, and took refuge in the bay due to bad weather. The 'Gemini' has remained in the bay at anchor since. The Classification society BV listed that the ship’s certificates were suspended as of May due to its survey being overdue. Then the ship lost its flag in the Bahamas. It is reporting that it was flagged in Cameroon. The crew has not been paid for 2,5 months, and allegedly several crew members were again preparing to abandon the ship.
Derelict cruise ship towed from Karystos to Piraeus
On June 24, a tug towed the 'Gemini' of the Miray Cruises out of Karystos Bay, bound for Piraeus. The tow was organised as a result of Greek authorities issuing an emergency operational order on June 19. The ship was moored at a pier in Elefsina, close to Piraeus, on the evening of June 23. The Embassy of Ukraine in Greece has notified the Coastguard that it was arranging for the repatriation of three Ukrainian nationals on board the ship. The International Labour Organisation had declared the vessel abandoned on May 20. After it had arrived, Karystos residents pressed local authorities, arguing the dead ship threatened the environment and the local tourism industry. The ship was under an arrest order obtained by a Turkish bank holding the mortgage, and other trade creditors and the crew have filed claims against it. Regarding the iInsurance, the last known protection and indemnity provider, Hydor, said its cover expired on May 24. In April, the 'Gemini' had dropped the Bahamas flag for that of Cameroon, though the nation had suspended its international registry in February, and the IMO now deemed the Cameroon flag false. The flag change coincided with the ship being disclassed by Bureau Veritas. The 26 remaining crew members from Greece, Turkey, Croatia, India, Saint Lucia and Ukraine were asking to be repatriated, having not been paid for more than two months. A recent inspection by the Karystos division of the Greek Coastguard found a severe shortage of fuel, a critical lack of drinking water and food, and a substantial deterioration in the crew’s living conditions. The crew described unsanitary conditions, with clogged drains, flooded cabins, overflowing garbage rooms and sewage leaking into food preparation areas. The crew also alleged recurring engine problems, including fires and smoke in the main crew corridor, with the ship running on its emergency generator. In early June the captain wrote a letter to the Coastguard, statomg that the conditions were nearing the point where he would have to send a mayday requesting towing assistance, so the vessel could be brought under the control of the Greek government. He reserved approximately one metric ton of fuel exclusively for essential safety purposes, including heaving up the anchor, facilitating the towing operation, and carrying out the mooring procedures upon arrival at the designated port. On June 11, Miray acknowledged the concerns raised. The owners, managers, mortgagee bank, legal representatives and agents would be working to find a suitable port, shipyard or lay-up facility, and stated that coordination with the bank was ongoing while financial and operational options were evaluated. The owners were pursuing alternative financing and investment opportunities. Miray’s financial issues stemmed from the collapse of the Life at Sea joint venture with US-based partners in 2023, which would have turned the 'Gemini' into a resident-owned residential cruise ship. The project unravelled after investors and the US partners withdrew. Miray had chartered the 'Gemini' from the Miami-based SunStone Ships in 2020 and bought it outright in 2023. The 2025 season began with engine trouble and ended, when the ship allided with a pier in Piraeus in early September. Repairs at Salamina, plus a port state control detention over several months’ unpaid wages for the then 316-strong crew, forced the season to end early. The wages were paid and that crew repatriated in April. On May 3, the 'Gemini' left Salamina with a skeleton crew enroute to Izmir to prepare for a summer season due to start later that month. The crew said they were told on departure that the ship lacked enough fuel to reach Izmir, forcing the diversion to Karystos. The ' Gemini' was considered an abandoned vessel by the joint database of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the International Maritime. The ship joined the list of abandoned vessels on May 21. ILO data pointed to a dire situation onboard the vessel, which at the time was facing a severe fuel shortage, as well as a critical lack of potable water and food supplies..
Cruise ship arrested off Karistos
The 'Gemini' was arrested at its mooring off Karystos due to Miray Cruises’ debts with the Turkish DenizBank, after a hearing by a Greek court. Initially set to kick off its summer season in the Eastern Mediterranean in late May, the 'Gemini' had left Ampelakia on May 2, 2026, and anchored in pos. 37° 59' N 024° 27' E. The operator Miray recently postponed the start of this year’s operations. Approximately 25 crew members were onboard the cruise ship. The workers, who haven’t been paid for the past two months, planned to abandon the ship, as it was running out of fuel and provisions. The 'Gemini', which was recently moved from the Bahamas to the Cameroon flag, has been declassified by Bureau Veritas. In addition to the DenizBank, other companies also had financial claims against Miray, including insurance and tug providers. Miray has been facing financial challenges since late 2025, when reports of unpaid wages among the 'Gemini'’s crew surfaced. Some workers were left at the island of Salamina, with up to four months of unpaid salaries. After completing its 2025 schedule, the ship entered its usual winter layup in Greece, waiting for the summer season 2026. According to Miray’s website, the 'Gemini' was scheduled to welcome guests back in early July, kicking off a series of short cruises to Greece and Turkey .In August, the vessel was scheduled to offer weeklong itineraries in the Black Sea, sailing to Turkey, Russia and Georgia.
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