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Former Cunard flagship QE2 is to return to the seas after spending almost five years languishing in Dubai.

The ship, which made its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York in May 1969, is to set sail for China in October.

The vessel is to be converted into a £60 million luxury floating hotel.

A Singapore-based group leading the project says the QE2 will be refitted in a Chinese shipyard before being moored in an undisclosed Asian port as a 400-room all suite hotel.

The ship has sat idle in Dubai since being purchased by state investment company Istithmar World for $100 million.

Khamis Juma Buamin, chairman of shipyard operator Drydocks World, said the 46-year-old QE2 is undergoing upgrades in Dubai before its planned departure on October 18.

It will stop in Singapore and Hong Kong en route to the shipyard conver