DUBAI – New life is being breathed into the almost forgotten cruise liner Queen Elizabeth 2 with plans to turn one of her decks into a business incubator, offering workspaces with a sea view.
Plans to move the former Cunard Line flagship from Dubai’s Port Rashid to man-made island, The Palm, have been dismissed as unviable by the current operator of the ship.
Hamza Mustafa, chief executive of the vessel’s operator, PCFC Investments, said the QE2 remains at the heart of an ambitious master plan for Port Rashid and is “going nowhere”.
Level Q of the QE2, which once housed the famous Lido restaurant, has been taken over by office space for new businesses in what is Dubai’s latest trading free zone.
A government-owned company offers trade licences, workspaces, and services - all with a sea view.
“For me it was a very big decision to change this space from a very famous restaurant with a lot of history where the Queen once dined to a dynamic business hub,” Mr Mustafa told the National newspaper.