John Honeywell, Author at Captain Greybeard

Adonia takes us sunbathing in the Arctic and climbing the Troll’s Ladder

The North Sea's own mini-Hurricane Irene (and it was nothing like as windy as the real thing) may have put paid to Adonia's call at Farsund, but it didn't detract from a thoroughly enjoyable week on board P&O's newest and smallest ship. Although late August is almost the end of the season for Norwegian cruises, with some remote tourist cafes and souvenir shops already shut for the winter, we were blessed with superb sunny weather in the northern city of Tromsø and the town of Åndalsnes in Romsdalsfjord. At mid-morning, when I boarded Adonia in Tromsø, the ship was almost [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:02+00:00 30 August 2011|Cruise Destinations|0 Comments

Any port in a storm? Not this one for Adonia, thank you very much

Adonia is the smallest vessel in P&O's fleet; a medium-sized cruise ship by modern standards, it can get to where its larger sisters cannot go. According to Captain David Perkins it's "the small ship with a big heart" and P&O boss Carol Marlow is fond of the phrase "pathfinder ship" to differentiate it from Azura, Arcadia, Aurora and the others. On this cruise to the Norwegian fjords it has called at Skjolden, Bodo and Alta, all destinations which are off the beaten track and which do not feature on most Norway itineraries. But there's a reason why some small ports [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:02+00:00 29 August 2011|Cruise Destinations, Cruise News|0 Comments

Michael leaves us in the dark

It's to be hoped that Michael Howard discovers his sense of humour before he takes part in "An Audience With . . . " on board P&O cruise ship Adonia this afternoon. His earlier session, when he was billed as an "after-dinner speaker" even though the talks took place at 5.15 pm and 7.00 pm, was a po-faced ramble through his political career, from Government Minister under Margaret Thatcher, to Leader of the Opposition immediately before David Cameron. His occasional attempts at jokes confirmed that he had been wise to choose careers in law and then politics rather than take [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:02+00:00 29 August 2011|Cruise Entertainment|1 Comment

Marco Polo travels to final victory

It's all kicking off in Norway. If I had been in Bergen a few days earlier, I could have watched a fleet of cruise ship teams battle it out for the right to be called champions. The occasion was the grandly-titled Bergen Cruise Ship League Cup. In the semi-finals a team from Cruise & Maritime Voyages' Ocean Countess saw off the Discovery crew 2-0, and Marco Polo beat P&O's Ventura 1-0 to complete an all-C&MV line-up for the final, from which Marco Polo emerged the 2-0 winners. Winning team captain James Hadley, from the cruise staff on board Marco Polo, [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:02+00:00 27 August 2011|Cruise News|0 Comments

Irene has cruise ships on the run

The glorious weather I enjoyed in Andalsnes on Friday couldn't last. Rain was obscuring the windows of Adonia's Sorrento restaurant before I had finished dinner last night, and we woke to a a grey, cloudy and inevitably wet Bergen this morning. But our discomfort was nothing to that which cruise passengers in the Caribbean have faced this week as their holiday itineraries have been disrupted by Hurricane Irene. The facilities at the cruise port of Grand Turk, and the private island of Half Moon Cay haver both suffered substantial damage, and ships from Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, and Holland America [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:02+00:00 27 August 2011|Cruise News|1 Comment

Book early for the best deals

It's August bank holiday weekend and already the cruise companies are doing their best to get us to put down our money and make bookings for next year. For P&O that means offering discounts of up to 20 per cent on cruise fares, and free travel to and from Southampton from anywhere in the UK on bookings made between September 1 and November 30. Free return flights to Southampton - and transfers from the airport to the docks - are available from Belfast, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Newcastle, Manchester and Leeds-Bradford. Free coach travel is also available from departure points throughout the [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:02+00:00 27 August 2011|Cruise Deals, Cruise News|0 Comments

Artist discovers £1,000 for charity

There is no question that the Norwegian fjords are among the most picturesque destinations in the world. No less an authority than National Geographic says so, and they keep drawing me back again and again - as I write this I am sailing down Romsdalfjord on board P&O's Adonia. The weather for our day in Andalsnes could not have been more perfect; early-morning mist was soon burned away by the sun and the thermometer at the foot of the Troll Wall - Europe's highest rock cliff - was showing 21 degrees C at 4.00 p.m. Others are inspired by the [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:02+00:00 26 August 2011|Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Special homecoming for Magnus

Sailing into Lerwick harbour on board cruise ship Azamara Journey earlier this week was a special moment for staff captain Magnus Davidson. For 30-year-old Magnus was brought up in the Shetland capital, and it was the first time since he began his career at sea as a cadet that he has been able to sail into his home port. "This voyage, I've been to Monaco during the F1 Grand Prix, sailed through the Kiel Canal into the Baltic, visited the Hermitage in St. Petersburg and stayed overnight in Copenhagen during their Jazz Festival. Next trip, I'll head up the Amazon [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:02+00:00 25 August 2011|Cruise Destinations, Cruise News|0 Comments

Hurricane Irene: UPDATE

Hurricane Irene is increasing in strength as it sweeps through the Caribbean, heading for the Bahamas. With winds now increased to 100 mph and gusting to 125 mph, the storm is expected to reach Turks and Caicos by tonight (Tuesday) and will be in the Bahamas tomorrow. The itineraries for seven Carnival cruises and four Royal Caribbean ships have been torn up and re-arranged to avoid the worst of the weather. Carnival Conquest, on a seven-night Bahamas and Florida cruise which left Galveston on Sunday, has turned to the western Caribean and now visits Costa Maya on Wednesday, Cozumel on [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:02+00:00 23 August 2011|Cruise Destinations, Cruise News|1 Comment

Carnival cruises are blown away

There's a certain irony in the fact that, just as Carnival has begun to reveal details of its newest cruise ship, Carnival Breeze, somewhat stronger winds are disrupting schedules in the Caribbean. Tropical storm Irene is expected to develop into a hurricane later today and is heading towards the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands - where a state of emergency has been declared - and the Bahamas. Carnival Miracle spent yesterday at sea instead of berthing at San Juan, Puerto Rico, will be at Grand Turk today instead of St Thomas, and is expected at Half Moon Cay [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:02+00:00 22 August 2011|Cruise News|0 Comments