On Thursday, 30 May 2024, the CMHI yard, China, marked the keel lay for the next Ulstein-designed expedition cruise ship for SunStone Ships, the 'Douglas Mawson'. 

Aurora Expeditions, the Australian-owned expedition travel company, will soon welcome its third purpose-built small expedition ship, Douglas Mawson, to its family of pioneering vessels. The cruise vessel, based on the ULSTEIN CX103 design, is due to begin sailing in December 2025.

The CX103 designs, Ocean Odyssey and Sylvia Earle, have been delivered from the CMHI shipyard in Haimen, China to SunStone. The final documents were signed on 21 October 2022, completing the delivery. This series of vessels is the first expedition cruise vessels to implement the X-BOW feature for increased comfort.

The ULSTEIN CX103 design, SunStone Ships’ ‘Sylvia Earle’ newbuild, has successfully completed sea trials in end October 2021. Ulstein has delivered the ship design and a comprehensive equipment package and has also been represented with a site team at the CMHI yard during the shipbuilding period.

Lindblad Expeditions and Aurora Expeditions are two of the top ten winners of best adventure cruise lines in 2021.

The U.S. based ship owner SunStone Ships has contracted six expedition cruise vessels of the ULSTEIN CX103 design for construction at the shipyard CMHI , China. In July 2020 the keel laying ceremony was held for the 'Sylvia Earle', vessel number 2 in this series of X-BOW vessels.

A steel cutting ceremony was held for the CX103 expedition cruise design, the ‘Sylvia Earle’, on 16 March 2020 at the CMHI Haimen yard, China. She has been designed by Ulstein Design & Solutions AS for SunStone Ships.

The operator Aurora Expeditions’ next X-BOW® expedition cruise ship will be named ‘Sylvia Earle’, to honour the renowned marine biologist, oceanographer and explorer. The ship is one of the vessels in owner, SunStone Ships’, INFINITY class. Constructed at CMHI, they have been designed by Ulstein Design & Solutions AS.

Recently introduced to the cruise market, the 'Greg Mortimer' has called upon much attention among cruise media and cruise travellers. While the X-BOW® shape is well known in the offshore market, this is the first time it has been implemented in a cruise ship.

The first X-BOW® cruise vessel, Greg Mortimer, set off for her first Antarctica expedition and crossed the notorious Drake Passage early November. The X-BOW® feature reduces the slamming in head seas. This was proven firstly on her transit from China to Argentina, when she entered 10m high waves and strong winds.

On 6 September, the ‘Greg Mortimer’ was named and delivered in a ceremony on the CMHI Haimen base. This is the first expedition cruise vessel in SunStone’s INFINITY series. The vessels have been designed by Ulstein Design & Solutions together with the ship’s owner and their client, Aurora Expeditions.

The launching ceremony of the ‘Greg Mortimer’, the first polar expedition cruise vessel in SunStone Ships’ INFINITY series, was held in the morning of 12 March at the CMHI yard, China. The steel cutting ceremony of ship number three in the series was also arranged this morning.

In 2017, Ulstein Design & Solutions AS announced their first design and equipment contract on an X-BOW expedition cruise vessel for ship owner SunStone Ships. The contract included nine options, and the first option has now been declared.

On 12 June 2018 at 10.18 a.m., the keel laying ceremony of the 'Greg Mortimer' expedition cruise vessel for SunStone Ships was held at CMHI, China.