Hebridean Sky

{{Short description|Cruise ship}}

{{Infobox ship begin |display title=ital}} {{Infobox ship image |Ship image=Corinthian II.jpg |Ship image size=320px |Ship caption=Sea Explorer in harbor of Rethymno port (Greece, Crete) }} {{Infobox ship career |Hide header= |Ship country= |Ship flag= |Ship name=*Hebridean Sky Sea Explorer I Sea Explorer Corinthian II Island Sun Sun Renai I Regina Renaissance Renaissance VII |Ship namesake= |Ship owner=Salén Ship Management{{cite web|url=https://www.noble-caledonia.co.uk/vessels/fleet/ |title=Our Fleet |publisher=noble-caledonia.co.uk |date= |accessdate=2018-04-14}} |Ship operator= |Ship registry=*1991–1993: Palermo, {{flag|Italy|civil}} 1993–2004: Monrovia, {{flag|Liberia}} 2004–2005: Nassau, {{flag|Bahamas|civil}} 2005–2011: Valletta, {{flag|Malta|civil}} 2011–2016: Majuro, {{flag|Marshall Islands}} 2016 onwards: Nassau, {{flag|Bahamas|civil}} |Ship route= |Ship ordered= |Ship awarded= |Ship builder=Nuovi Cantieri Apuania, Carrara, Italy |Ship original cost= |Ship yard number=1146 |Ship way number= |Ship laid down=December 17, 1987 |Ship launched=April 13, 1991 |Ship sponsor= |Ship christened= |Ship completed=December 02, 1991 |Ship acquired= |Ship commissioned= |Ship recommissioned= |Ship decommissioned= |Ship maiden voyage= |Ship in service=April 13, 1991 |Ship out of service= |Ship renamed= |Ship reclassified= |Ship refit= |Ship struck= |Ship reinstated= |Ship homeport= |Ship identification=*Call sign: C6BG2 {{IMO Number|8802882}} {{MMSI|311000253}} |Ship motto= |Ship nickname= |Ship honours= |Ship honors= |Ship captured= |Ship fate= |Ship status=In service as of September 2023 |Ship notes= |Ship badge= }} {{Infobox ship characteristics |Hide header= |Header caption= |Ship class= |Ship type= |Ship tonnage={{GT|4200}}, Net Tonnage: 1263 tons |Ship displacement={{nowrap|3,250 tons}} |Ship length={{convert|90.36|m|ftin|abbr=on}} |Ship beam=*{{convert|30|m|ftin|abbr=on}} (max) {{convert|28|m|ft|abbr=on}} (waterline) |Ship height= |Ship draught={{convert|4.05|m|ftin|abbr=on}} |Ship depth={{convert|4.2|m|ftin|abbr=on}} |Ship decks=7 |Ship deck clearance= |Ship ramps= |Ship ice class=1C |Ship power= |Ship propulsion=2 x B&W Holeby engines, 8L28/32AF, 2 x 1760 KW at 750 RPM |Ship sail plan= |Ship speed={{convert|14.5|kn}} (max) |Ship range= |Ship endurance= |Ship test depth= |Ship boats= |Ship troops= |Ship capacity=120 passengers |Ship crew=72 |Ship time to activate= |Ship sensors= |Ship EW= |Ship armament= |Ship armour= |Ship armor= |Ship aircraft= |Ship aircraft facilities= |Ship notes= }}

Hebridean Sky is a cruise ship owned by London-based cruise company Noble Caledonia. As an ice-rated vessel she has operated as an expedition cruise ship in Antarctica and in the Arctic. She was also known under the names Renaissance VII, Regina Renaissance, Renai I, Sun, Island Sun, Corinthian II, Sea Explorer, Sea Explorer I.

In the early 1990s the Renaissance Cruises company commissioned eight small cruise ships, all of which were given numeric names in the form of Roman figures (from I to VIII). The second group of four identical sister ships, V - VIII, was built in a different yard, and had increased capabilities. Originally named Renaissance VII, Hebridean Sky was the third ship of the second group.

Designed to operate in almost any place of the world, this ship accommodated up to 120 passengers in 59 cabins. The lounge and dining room were both large enough to welcome all passengers at one time. There were also other facilities, such as swimming pool and nightclub.

In 1992 Renaissance VII was chartered by a tour company, Raymond & White, and was renamed Regina Renaissance, cruising for several years in the Caribbean. The charter ended in 1998, and ship was returned to her original name and changed her itinerary for cruising in the Mediterranean in summer and in the Indian Ocean in winter, being presented mainly in North American and European markets.

Renaissance Cruises went bankrupt in October 2001, and Renaissance VII was sold to a business group that had invested in the company. They renamed the vessel Renai I, but she remained idle, for sale or charter.

In 2003 the ship's name was changed to Sun, and the year after, the vessel was bought by International Shipping, who renamed her Island Sun, and then she was chartered by Mauritius Island Cruises. They planned to operate the vessel on a regular basis, making cruises around Mauritius from Port Louis. Unfortunately, the company did not pass through bureaucratic regulations enforced by the government and was forced to cease operations after only a couple of days.

During 2004, a company named Around The World Cruises began to promote cruises from Fremantle, Australia, for the coming summer. After experiencing some difficulties, the company finally managed to obtain Island Sun at a very short notice, and she duly arrived in Fremantle on 26 November. After making only four short cruises the departure that was scheduled for 10 December was cancelled almost before the voyage, and the operating company went bankrupt few days later.

A bit later Mauritius Island Cruises also collapsed, and in 2005 Island Sun was sold to the Danish Clipper Group, and the vessel was chartered to an American company named Travel Dynamics International. They renamed the vessel Corinthian II, refurbished and redecorated her, and for eight years she cruised mainly in the Mediterranean region and later in Antarctica.

In 2013 the ship was chartered from Clipper Group by Polar Latitudes and Poseidon Expeditions. They operated her in Antarctica and the Arctic.

In 2014 the ship was acquired by Noble Caledonia, a company that already owned sister vessels Island Sky (formerly Renaissance VIII) and Caledonian Sky (formerly Renaissance VI). The ship was refitted in April 2016.

December 2024 she is traveling the coast of Madagascar, docking in Fort Dauphin at the Port d'Ehola for the day. She will be returning to Madagascar in 2025 with other cruises up and down the coast of SE Africa from South Africa to Mauritius.

From 2026/27 Antarctic season and beyond, the vessel is chartererd to Terra Nova Expeditions.