we at the floatel, motel, holiday inn
A Company Is Turning Former Cruise Ships Into Floating Hotels — See Inside Its Largest 'Floatel'
Some old and unwanted cruise ships meet their demise at ship-breaking yards, where they are disassembled and sold for scrap.
Canada-based Bridgemans Services Group buys and charters former cruise ships to turn into "floatels," outfitted with standard cruise amenities like daily housekeeping, buffets, and relaxing lounges.
But the ships aren't designed to transport tourists from one destination to another anymore. Instead, companies turn to Bridgeman when they need to house workers for a long-term project, whether it be the construction of an offshore wind farm in Europe or the shooting of a major film in a remote destination.
[The company also charters vessels long-term. Bridgemans Services Group]
Floatels can accommodate workers in remote destinations where hotels might not be an option.
In more metropolitan areas, Bridgemans says its ships could lessen the stress an inundation of workers might have on the local housing market.
[As former cruise ships, the vessels already come with necessities like water and sewage treatment, auditoriums, and bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms. Bridgemans Services Group]
Over the last decade, Bridgemans has deployed its ships for 15 projects on every continent, Brian Grange, the company's president, told Business Insider.
In the past, it has also provided accommodations for MSC Cruises at its Ocean Cay private island and housing for more than 1,000 workers in the Philippines' on a project for the Manila International Airport during the COVID-19 pandemic.
[Isabelle X is docked at the construction site, allowing workers to walk to work. Bridgemans Services Group]
The floatel operator acquired its largest ship, the 561-foot-long MV Isabelle X, in 2023.
In its past life, the 35-year-old vessel sailed around the Baltic Sea as one of Estonia-based Tallink Gruipp's cruise ships.
[MV Isabelle X's dining room before (left) and after (right) its refit. Bridgemans Service Group]
Isabelle X underwent a six-month retrofit before it was sent to Howe Sound.
The process included updating the ship's cabins and adding amenities like a game room and an 8,000-square-foot gym.
The latter two are especially important: "We need to make sure we delineate between work and home," Grange told BI. "We have to create a social environment on board these vessels that makes it attractive for workforces around the world."
[Isabelle X can house 70 Bridgemans' crew, including cooks, housekeeping, and safety systems operators. Bridgemans Service Group]
Like a typical cruise ship, Bridgemans' vessels have buffets with live cooking stations, a dessert bar, and the occasional themed night.
The ships' chefs tailor their menus to the demographic and dietary restrictions of the workers on board, the company's president told BI.
[Bridgemans charges a premium for deployments in remote destinations. Bridgemans Services Group]
Grange wouldn’t disclose the cost to rent one of Bridgemans’ floatels.
But he did note that the cost of a cabin on the Woodfibre LNG project in Howe Sound is comparable to a hotel room in nearby Vancouver, as is the case with most of its projects near major cities.
To see more photos of this "floatel," head to Business Insider.
