The Logos Hope, docked at Britannia Quay in Cardiff Bay, has been welcoming visitors since its arrival earlier this month. Operated by the Christian organisation Operation Mobilisation, the ship describes itself as the world's largest floating book fair. But for the roughly 300 people who live on board, it is far more than a bookshop.
Crew members sign contracts of either three months or a year, and everyone on board is a volunteer, with people coming and going throughout the year from different countries and backgrounds. Life is structured like a small travelling community, with accommodation, a clinic staffed by two doctors, and more than 30 children currently living on board and studying in the ship's school.
Daily routines and roles on board
Crew members work in a range of roles, from engine and deck teams to caring for guests and running the book fair. In the evenings, they come together to relax and socialise. The ship itself has a long history: built in Germany in 1973 as a passenger car ferry, it operated on North Atlantic routes before being renamed Norröna. GBA Ships, a German non-profit organisation, acquired the vessel in 2004, and after extensive renovation it became Logos Hope in 2009.
The ship is 132.5 metres long, has nine decks and can accommodate around 400 people. Over the years, crew members have seen the Northern Lights while sailing from the Faroe Islands towards Wales and spotted whales between Bermuda and Spain. For those on board, the unique surroundings are described as home. Crew members typically start work around 7.45am, with different teams reporting through the ship's chain of command, while those in shared cabins follow rules including a midnight curfew.
Crew stories: Amy, Ricky and Angel
Among the residents are crew members of all ages, from the youngest at four months old to teenagers with their own responsibilities. Eighteen-year-old Amy Blair, originally from New South Wales, Australia, flew to Trinidad and Tobago seven months ago to join the ship. Her family previously served aboard Logos Hope, and she spent her first five years living on the ship before moving to Australia. Now back as an adult, she works as its photographer, capturing visitors, official delegations and the places the ship visits.
"I get to photograph a lot of the visitors coming on board, people from official parties or from government when they come to visit," Amy said. Returning without her family has allowed her to become more independent, and she has rediscovered a place she knew as a child. One of her most memorable moments came during a journey across the Atlantic, when the crew experienced an entire day surrounded by marine life. "There was one day where we had dolphins in the morning. We had whales in the afternoon, and I heard from other people that there were sharks in the evening, so we had a full marine life happening right under us the entire time," she recalls.
Twenty-four-year-old Ricky Roy, from India, has spent the past two years travelling the world on the ship. He works as a media relations officer in the media team, and his decision to join was influenced by his parents, who met on an earlier GBA Ships vessel, the Doulos, in 1996. Ricky joined Logos Hope in Sierra Leone, sailed across the Atlantic to the Caribbean, and in March 2026 travelled to Europe, visiting Spain, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK. He estimates he has visited more than 25 countries and around 30 ports, and saw the Northern Lights shortly before the ship arrived in Wales.
Although he is travelling without his family, Ricky said the crew has created its own sense of community. "I do miss my family, but we also have something called ship families on board," he said. "So even though I miss my family back home, the ship family on board gives me a sense of family."
Nineteen-year-old Angel, from Aruba, has worked as a watchkeeper for the past seven months, monitoring cameras and sensors and responding to alarms. "As a kid I always wanted to be a sailor. I was always interested in boats and anything to do with the sea," he said. He has travelled to around 27 ports across roughly 20 countries, and his most memorable moment came when he first joined the ship. "As we were leaving the port from Aruba I saw dolphins and that was a dream from when I was a kid. I always wanted to see dolphins out in the wild," he said, adding that the experience is something he will never forget.
