History – Doulos Phos

1914 – 1948

SS Medina

Launched in 1914 by Newport News Shipbuilding in Virginia for the Mallory Steamship Company, SS Medina began life as a cargo steamship carrying onions and other commodities along routes in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean. Built as a sturdy steel freighter with a coal-fired triple-expansion steam engine, she was considered a modern vessel for her day. During both World Wars, SS Medina contributed to wartime logistics and supply efforts, wrapping up three decades transporting cargo and surviving an era that saw countless contemporaries disappear.

1948 – 1953

SS Roma

In 1948, after World War II, the vessel was sold to the Panamanian company Cia Naviera San Miguel SA and renamed SS Roma. This period marked her transition from a purely American cargo ship into an international passenger vessel. Significant modifications increased her tonnage and improved accommodations, preparing her for the growing post-war demand for migrant and passenger transport. Although relatively brief, the Roma years represented the ship's first major reinvention and set the stage for her future career carrying people rather than freight.

1953 – 1977

MS Franca C

Purchased by Costa Line in 1953 and renamed MS Franca C, the ship underwent extensive rebuilding, including the installation of diesel propulsion and modern passenger facilities. Under Costa's ownership she became a cruise liner, serving Mediterranean, Caribbean, and international itineraries during the golden age of leisure cruising. This was arguably her most glamorous chapter, carrying holidaymakers rather than cargo and helping establish Costa as a recognizable cruise brand. The Franca C years transformed the vessel from a workhorse into a pleasure ship.

1977 – 2010

MV Doulos

In 1977, just as she faced possible scrapping, the ship was acquired by the German Christian organization Gute Bücher für Alle ("Good Books for All") and renamed MV Doulos, meaning "Servant" in Greek. She became a floating bookshop, library, educational center, and missionary vessel operated in partnership with Operation Mobilization. Over the next 33 years she visited more than 100 countries, welcomed millions of visitors aboard, and sailed the equivalent of many times around the globe. During this era she earned worldwide recognition as the world's oldest active ocean-going passenger ship and became a beloved symbol of education, humanitarian outreach, and cultural exchange.

2010

Saved from the Breakers

When the aging ship's certification expired in 2009 and expensive repairs threatened her future, she was once again saved from the scrapyard. On 18 March 2010, Singapore entrepreneur Eric Saw, CEO of BizNaz Resources International, purchased the vessel and renamed her Doulos Phos—Greek for "Servant of Light." Competing against bidders from several countries, Saw's vision was not to continue sailing her but to preserve her maritime heritage through adaptive reuse. This purchase marked the beginning of one of the most ambitious ship-conservation projects in Southeast Asia. She started out as SS Medina, a freighter, carrying onions. (We found a large cache of onions in her holds when we bought the ship in 2010 and we have been serving century- old onion soup in our hotel ever since. Try some when you’re here.)

2010-2019

From Singapore to Bintan

Initially, Saw hoped to berth the ship permanently in Singapore, but after years of unsuccessful proposals he partnered with developers in Indonesia's Bintan Resorts. The vessel was towed from Singapore to Batam and then to Bintan, where engineers undertook an extraordinary relocation project. The hull was reinforced with internal steel bracing, the ship was hauled onto dry land using cables and airbags, and positioned on an anchor-shaped peninsula near Bandar Bentan Telani Ferry Terminal. This phase ended her seagoing career forever and converted her from a floating vessel into a permanent landmark.

2019 - Present

Doulos Phos the Ship Hotel

After nearly a decade of planning, restoration, and reconstruction, Doulos Phos The Ship Hotel opened in Bintan in 2019. Much of the ship's historic character was preserved, including the bridge, engine-room heritage exhibits, steel structure, and maritime atmosphere, while the interior was transformed into a luxury hotel with sea-view cabins, restaurants, and resort facilities. The project preserved one of the last surviving passenger ships from the pre-World War I era and gave her an entirely new purpose. Today, she stands not only as a hotel but as a living maritime museum celebrating more than a century of history under five different names and multiple careers.

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