Welcome to our Augustus website celebrating this stylish and beautiful ship. The Italian tradition of luxury and style at sea was never so fully realised as it was with its postwar fleet of liners. Though its fleet had been virtually destroyed by the Second World War including the loss of the Rex and Conte di Savoia among others. Italia Line made a great effort to rise from those ruins, and thus were produced some of the finest and the most stylish, elegant, graceful and beautiful vessels to ever sail the oceans of the world.

First in this programme of modern and luxurious vessels were the Giulio Cesare and Augustus. Veritable floating resorts, these ships epitomised the ingenuity of Italian shipbuilders and showcased the grace and elegance of the postwar Italian ocean liner fleet. The Augustus was launched in November 1950 by Francesca De Gasperi (the wife of the Italian Prime Minster) at the Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico, San Marco shipyard near Trieste. She sailed on her maiden voyage from Genoa to South America on the 4th March 1952.  In 1956 following the loss of the Andrea Doria she was put into service on the North Atlantic service before returning to her usual route in 1960 when the new Leonardo di Vinci entered service on that route.

In January 1976 Italia Line retired the Augustus from service. She was sold to Hong Kong interests and from then on led a rather obscure and mysterious existance in the Far East. Eventually in 1999 she was acquired by the Manila Hotel and has a dedicated berth behind the Manila Hotel. She remains there today as M.S. Philippines and until recently was used as a restaurant ship and conference centre. 

Her Regular Service Route: Italy to South American countries

Genoa to Naples, Cannes, Barcelona, Rio de Janiero, Santos and Montevideo "South American" service

"THE SOUTH AMERICAN SERVICE"

ITALIA SOCIETA DI NAVIGAZIONE S.p.A., GENOA

(ITALIA LINE)