Two cruise ships will serve as floating hotels during the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju, South Korea.
According to reports, the Piano Land and the Eastern Venus will host attendees after being chartered by the event’s organizers.
Located 370 kilometers away from Seoul, Gyeongju is said to be facing challenges due to a lack of available hotel rooms, Bloomberg said.
Almost 700 global business leaders are expected to attend the event, which will take place between Oct. 28 and Nov. 1, 2025.
The summit will also host government leaders and authorities and is expecting a total attendance of roughly 20,000 people.
Operated by China-based Astro Oceans Cruises, the Piano Land will add 850 rooms to Gyeongju’s hotel capacity.
Another 270 cabins will be added by the South Korea-owned Eastern Venus, which has been operated by DuWon Shipping since late 2024.
The vessels are expected to remain docked at Yeongilman, a port in Pohang, which is located approximately one hour away from the main event venues.
Singapore’s The Business Times reported that the idea to charter the ships came from Chey Tae-won, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry chairman who is overseeing the APEC CEO summit.
The website noted that it’s not the first time an APEC summit has turned to cruise ships for accommodation.
As Cruise Industry News reported at the time, three Carnival Corporation ships, the Pacific Explorer, the Pacific Jewel and the Sea Princess, were chartered by organizers.
In related news, the Costa Serena was recently chartered to serve as accommodation for athletes attending the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games and Asian Para Games.
The Costa Cruises vessel will serve as a floating Olympic village during the event that takes place in Japan between Sep. 19 and Oct. 4, 2026.
The Brazilian government is also chartering ships as floating hotels for the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP 30).
With the Costa Diadema and the MSC Seaview providing additional accommodation, the event will be held in Belém do Pará starting in early November.
