John Honeywell, Author at Captain Greybeard

And . . . we’re back with a video treat

Captain Greybeard has returned from his stint supporting brother Bill Honeywell on his marathon 4,500-mile cycle ride (it's getting longer!) around the coast of mainland UK, raising money for Cancer Research UK. It's been a fascinating week, travelling along the south coast of England from Bognor Regis in West Sussex to Hope Cove in deepest Devon, and more of that later. Coming soon, updates on what has been happening in the cruise world while I have been on the road. But first, here's a Captain Greybeard video that Mr Google found for me this morning. It's nothing to do with [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:05+00:00 2 July 2011|Cruise Entertainment|0 Comments

Time out in support of a good cause

Normal service on the cruise blog may be interrupted this week, as I am taking time off to act as support for my brother, who is younger, fitter and crazier than me. Why else would he have taken it upon himself to cycle 4,300 miles round the British coast in order to raise money for Cancer Research UK? After setting out on May 10, Bill has defied all attempts to put him off course - including persistent torrential rain, gales which blew a 30-ton oak tree on to the motorhome support vehicle, and last week, a half-blind motorist who shunted [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:05+00:00 25 June 2011|Cruise Gossip|2 Comments

QM2 fails US hygiene inspection

Cunard flagship Queen Mary 2 has failed a hygiene inspection by the American Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, scoring a shock 84 out of 100. Fruit flies and cockroaches in a storage locker, sediment in ice-making machines, and a "filthy" swimming pool were among more than 60 violations cited in the report on the inspection, carried out when the ship was berthed in New York on June 10. The 3,000-passenger ship has passed every previous CDC inspection, scoring a perfect 100 on three occasions. It has only once before scored less than 92 in 15 checks carried out during [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:05+00:00 25 June 2011|Cruise News, Cruise Ships|2 Comments

Will the Queen borrow tycoon’s £50m yacht for her Jubilee flotilla?

With the Royal Yacht Britannia now retired and serving as a popular tourist attraction at Leith docks, the Queen is having to search for a suitable vessel to lead a 1,000-strong flotilla on the Thames, which is expected to be one of the highlights of her Diamond Jubilee celebrations next year. Hebridean Princess, the luxury cruise ship which she has twice chartered for holidays, is not an option, and my colleague Victoria Murphy reports that she has been offered the use of a £50 million private yacht owned by the business tycoon who made his fortune with National Car Parks [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:05+00:00 24 June 2011|Cruise News, Cruise Ships|1 Comment

Don’t delay, vote for your favourites today in the first cruise OSCARs*

Cruise International magazine has launched the first ever consumer awards dedicated to celebrating every aspect of the cruise industry. The awards will highlight the best the cruise industry has to offer - from cutting-edge cuisine to Broadway shows; iLounges to zip-lining; Agatha Christie to the Archers - they're all on board today's cruise ships. A panel of judges including leading cruise agents, and writers and commentators such as your very own Captain Greybeard shortlisted the awards, which are now open for consumer voting. A glittering awards ceremony will take place on September 14, ahead of Cruise Week, in a top [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:05+00:00 24 June 2011|Cruise News|0 Comments

Cruise ships steer clear of Tripoli

The itinerary planners at P&O Cruises have had more on their minds this week than 2013's world cruises. Gazing into their crystal balls, they have decided that Libya is no longer the place to be this winter, and have been re-scheduling voyages which had planned to visit Gaddaffi's capital. Adonia's 14-night Christmas cruise departing from Athens on December 20 was to have called at Tripoli on December 30 but will now visit Tunis on New Year's Eve instead. Timings of calls at other ports on the cruise have been changed, so the planned Christmas Eve excursions to Jerusalem and Bethlehem [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:05+00:00 24 June 2011|Cruise Destinations, Cruise News|0 Comments

How to blow your own trumpet

Yesterday I brought you P&O Cruises' new video pushing their 2013 world voyages. All very sedate and serious, with lots of information and vox pops and even a celebrity appearance from from Marco Pierre White packed into three minutes and 41 seconds. They do things differently Down Under, as this little gem from P&O Australia demonstrates in just 16 seconds. Turn the volume up loud for maximum effect. My thanks to cruise fanatic Patricia Dempsey for the discovery.

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:05+00:00 23 June 2011|Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Cruise Alaska in just two minutes

It doesn't come close to the full-on experience, but this time-lapse video shot on Disney Wonder gives a good idea of what it's like to cruise to Alaska . . . in just under two minutes. Click that button in the bottom right-hand corner and watch it full-screen. Shot by Matt Stroshane, it shows the panoramic Vancouver skyline and follows the ship under the Lions Gate Bridge, along Alaska's Inside Passage, around icebergs in the Tracy Arm and to the ports of Skagway, Juneau, and Ketchikan. I hope Hurtigruten will do something similar with the 8,040 minutes of footage which [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:05+00:00 22 June 2011|Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Back to proper bathrooms for NCL’s new Breakaway cruise ship cabins

New designs for cabins on board Norwegian Cruise Line's two new ships - codename Project Breakaway - have been revealed, and they show that the company is prepared to learn from its mistakes. They won't actually accept that the open plan bathrooms on Norwegian Epic were a mistake - " I don't think we've heard a word of negative commentary [on the bathrooms] from anyone in six or nine months," chief executive Kevin Sheehan told USA Today's Cruise Log - but traditional-style bathrooms with doors that close will be the order of the day on the new ships to be [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:05+00:00 22 June 2011|Cruise News|0 Comments