The Sea Cloud Spirit – the first new ship in 20 years for Sea Cloud Cruises – is getting an aristocratic godmother. According to a press release, Infanta Elena of Spain will christen the new three-masted full-rigged ship on Sept. 3 in the Port of Palma de Mallorca in Spain.

Infanta Elena is the sister to Spain’s King Felipe VI. Immediately after the first contact with Sea Cloud Cruises, and aware of what the construction of the Sea Cloud Spirit meant for Spanish shipping and its uniqueness, she agreed to christen the new tall ship, the cruise line said.

Two champagne bottles made an extraordinary pilgrimage of almost 120 kilometers, to the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northern Spain, and will be part of the christening ceremony onboard the Sea Cloud Spirit. The Spanish shipping lawyer and legal representative of Sea Cloud Cruises, Javier Arias-Camisón, during the construction phase promised to personally bring the champagne for the christening on foot to Santiago de Compostela and have it blessed there, and he kept his promise.

One of the two champagne bottles will be traditionally shattered on the hull of the Sea Cloud Spirit during the christening ceremony, and the other bottle will be auctioned off for charity on the maiden voyage, on Sept. 14 -24, 2021, departing from Rome.

The Sea Cloud Spirit is the modern interpretation of the 90-year-old Sea Cloud ship, the flagship of Sea Cloud Cruises, and the Sea Cloud II, built in 2001. The cruise line said that the new tall ship will have the feel of a private yacht, with a maximum of 136 guests and 85 crew members.

Like her two sister ships, the Sea Cloud Spirit is hand-sailed, and follows the principles of environmentally friendly tourism, the cruise line said. The Sea Cloud Spirit was built at the Metalships & Docks shipyard in the northern Spanish port city of Vigo.