‘Tis the season for awards . . . every week seems to bring up a new list, and an avalanche of emails and press releases from cruise lines trumpeting their success.
The latest collection, from Cruise Critic, has something for pretty much everyone, not only because there are 25 categories, but are also because there are two whole sets – one for the UK and another for the US.
So while the best new cruise ship as far as we are concerned on this side of the Atlantic is Carnival Magic, the winner in the States is Disney Dream – and neither of them has come within sight of the White Cliffs of Dover, or even Land’s End.
With my own penchant for lavish dining, I would have been hard pushed to pick between the Verandah Restaurant on Queen Elizabeth and Qsine aboard Celebrity Eclipse and Silhouette in the category for best “alternative” restaurant.
Cruise Critic’s editor-in-chief, the indefatigable Carolyn Spencer Brown, resolves the dilemma by making the Cunard venue winner for the UK while the quirky Qsine takes the honours in the US.
Newcastle is a brave choice for Best UK Port of Call (Southampton is Best Departure Port) because there’s not much in the way of facilities at the Port of Tyne. The destination does have, however, attractions such as the Angel of the North, Hadrian’s Wall, and best of all in my view, the nearby Beamish Open Air Museum. Some cruise lines also bill it as the “Gateway to York” which is a bit of leap of imagination given that it’s a 200-mile round trip, but having said that there are few alternatives for cruise passengers wanting to visit the city.
Delighted to see that Olly Smith’s Glass House on P&O’s Azura takes the prize for Best Bar. I’ll raise a glass of its Peller Ice Cuvée sparkling wine to toast that success. Then I’ll drink a glass of Thirsty Frog beer from the Red Frog pub on Carnival Magic to celebrate its victory in the American awards.
To save me from re-publishing the entire list, go to Cruise Critic to check them out for yourself. Then let me know what your choices would have been.
Falmouth and Dartmouth are great ports of call in the southwest. They don’t get enough cruise ships visiting