London Buzz -- Queen Elizabeth 2 to Become Thames Hotel?

 

As though London's luxury hotel scene couldn't get any cooler: As the city's first Shangri-La Hotel prepares to open in the soon-to-debut Shard, ministers are considering a plan to put Southampton’s former great liner, the Queen Elizabeth 2, in one of the most famous waters of all: the River Thames.

According to the Daily Echo, the iconic ship would become a floating hotel next to the O2 Arena, the Emirates Cable Car, the Excel Conference Centre and only minutes from Canary Wharf.

Ever since arriving in the Middle East after leaving Southampton for the last time in November, 2008, the QE2 has not moved, a victim of the global recession. The “QE2 London” project calls for the ship to be brought to the UK, where she would be permanently moored at Carlsberg Wharf on the Thames.

It would be an enormously expensive operation, as it is unlikely QE2 would be able to make the voyage from Dubai to the Thames under her own power after such a long lay-up. QE2 would be loaded up with enough ballast to sit on the tidal river bed and open as a five-star hotel with tours for the public.