Hurtigruten has invested in a new expedition ship, the first time such an investment has been made for nearly 10 years. The 13th ship was built as a vehicle ferry, the MS Atlantida, by Estaleiros Navais de Viana do Castelo (ENVC), Portugal, in 2009 and has been given the temporary name Norway Explorer by Hurtigruten.

The vessel was built for a Portugal-Azores service but never entered service. She will replace 16,151gt/2003 built Midnatsol sailing along the Norwegian coast, when the latter sails to join the 11,647gt/2007 built Fram in Antarctica for the winter season of 2016/2017.