On 5 December 2018, the auction took place on board of the classic FUNCHAL. The ship had been docked in Lisbon since January 2015 due to the owner company Portuscale Cruise had gone bankrupt.
Now the British hotel group Signature Living has bought the ship for 3.9 million euros. Thus, the liner built in 1961 probably escapes scrapping for the time being. The new owner has announced to bring the ship to England. Rumor has it the ship will be used to sail young partis to Ibiza and back but the fuel costs and sail duration could prevent that concept.
However, she is a beautiful ship and will make an ideal floating hotel in the beautiful city of Liverpool that already has a long and respected shipping history.