The Netherlands is now increasingly using old cruise ships to house refugees because of a major housing shortage.
The Ocean Majesty docked overnight in the port of Velsen, about 30 kilometres west of Amsterdam, on board which some 300 people are to live temporarily from the end of August, a spokesman for the asylum authority told dpa on Wednesday. The people have a residence permit and are waiting for a flat, he said.
The Ocean Majesty is some 135 metres long and almost 50 years old. In the past, many Germans in particular spent their holidays on the ship, but now all luxury facilities like pools, bars or boutiques are closed, the spokesman said.
"This is not a holiday resort, but accommodation because of the lack of other reception places," he said, adding that the ship is to remain in Velsen until the end of 2024.
Until now, Velsen harbour on the North Sea Canal was home to the much larger Silja Europe, a cruise ferry that sailed the Baltic Sea for more than 30 years. It is about 200 metres long and has some 12 floors. It is now moored in Rotterdam and is temporarily home to around 1,200 people until permanent housing can be found for them. There, too, all luxury facilities have been closed.
There is an acute accommodation crisis for asylum-seekers in the Netherlands.
Because there is too little social housing, many people stay in asylum hostels even though they have had a residence permit for a long time. As a result, there are too few places for new refugees, so the government has asked the municipalities to find interim solutions.
