John Honeywell, Author at Captain Greybeard

Vietnam’s bright shining butterfly*

Cruise ship tours are, by their very nature, rushed affairs. There's a fixed number of sights to be shepherded around in a short amount of time. There's the obligatory stop for souvenir shopping. And then it's all back to the ship in time for dinner, or departure. That's just how it was in Ho Chi Minh City. So much to see, you would not want to miss Saigon. We had an excellent guide, with a sense of humour and an impeccable command of English. But the schedule gave him limited time in which to whisk his coach-load of Silver Shadow [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:41+00:00 21 November 2012|Cruise Destinations|0 Comments

Hurricane Sandy sinks Titanic II

FROM MY DAILY MIRROR COLUMN. PUBLISHED NOVEMBER 17 It's difficult to resist uttering a smug "I told you so," but it's beginning to look as if an Australian billionaire's far-fetched plans to build a replica Titanic could be scuppered before they even reach the slipway. I am not the only observer to have expressed scepticism about Clive Palmer's proposals to establish a regular scheduled service between Southampton and New York in a copy of the liner which sank on its maiden voyage 100 years ago. Doubts were further fuelled this week by the announcement that a lavish dinner in New [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:41+00:00 18 November 2012|Cruise News|0 Comments

A floating gallery of modern art I could only dream about

It was a true OMG moment. We had just boarded Silver Shadow when one of my travelling companions rested her handbag on a side table in the central lobby. It took only a moment before her eyes opened wide. "Look at that!" she exclaimed, indicating a foot-high statue on the table, and the printed card beneath it, which described it as an elephant. It was indeeed recognisably a pachyderm, albeit raised on the stilt-like legs of a double-jointed giraffe. The name on the card provided an explanation for that - the artist was Salvador Dali. The attribution also justified the [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:41+00:00 18 November 2012|Cruise Entertainment|0 Comments

Strictly’s Craig scores 7 with P&O

One word darlings. Ah-MAY-zing. Acid-tongued Strictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel Horwood will be joining seven (sorry, Len Goodman, SEH-VEN) P&O cruises next year along with a whole troupe of professional dancers from the hit BBC show. They will be strutting theitr stuff and showing passengers how to make an impression on the dance floor during voyages throughout the summer on five of the ships in P&O's fleet. Costumes from the show will be on display. Ian Waite and Natalie Lowe on a 13-night Canary Islands cruise on Azura departing May 11, 2013. Ports of call are Madeira, La Palma, [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:41+00:00 15 November 2012|Cruise Entertainment|0 Comments

Singapore’s new city by the Bay

Like much of modern Singapore, the Marina Bay Cruise Centre (above) is a state-of-the-art, purpose-built facility. Officially opened just last month, its design is supposed to evoke "cubic waves;" the painted ceilings and the acres of carpet - so new they are still shedding fluff - are the colour of the ocean. The terminal has been built to handle the biggest cruise ships in the world, even though Royal Caribbean has not yet made a decision on whether to deploy its Oasis-class vessels to the region (but watch this space). Transport links to the city centre and Changi airport are [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:41+00:00 15 November 2012|Cruise Destinations|0 Comments

Miranda named as ship’s godmother

When I heard that Voyages of Discovery's new cruise ship was to be christened by Miranda, I had visions of the galumphing comedienne Miranda Hart, whose sense of humour is something of an acquired taste. I need not have worried. Turns out that the godmother of Voyager, to be named in Portsmouth on December 4, is actually Miranda Krestovnikoff, a TV presenter and naturalist who also plays the flute. A regular member of the team on the BBC series, Coast, she is currentlty working on a new exploration book, titled Beach. She was chosen "in recognition of her passion for [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:41+00:00 13 November 2012|Cruise News, Cruise Ships|0 Comments

My Silver sling to Singapore

I'm flying to Singapore this morning, first to take a look at the Marina Bay Cruise Centre, and then to board Silver Shadow for a cruise to Vietnam. I'll be racking up a number of firsts. For a start, my Singapore Airlines flight will be the first chance I've had to travel in an Airbus A380 super-jumbo jet. It will, of course, be my first visit to the new terminal - officially opened only last month. When I was last in Singapore, on Queen Mary 2 five years ago, the ship berthed at the commercial container port, and on my [...]

By John Honeywell| 2012-11-12T01:03:15+00:00 12 November 2012|Cruise Destinations|1 Comment

Ruby loses some of her shine

They're not have too much luck at Saga Cruises at the moment. Venerable flagship Saga Ruby, almost 12 months away from retirement, couldn't make it back to Southampton at the weekend, and was held up in Portugal for emergency repairs. The ship was scheduled to go into dry-dock in Germany this week for a £4 million refurbishment, which will keep her in service until her farewell cruise next December. But a mysterious engine problem meant passengers were flown home from Porto on Friday. The ship remained there until Saturday afternoon when it set off at reduced speed for Bremerhaven. In [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:41+00:00 12 November 2012|Cruise News, Cruise Ships|2 Comments

Elegant, even out of the water

The classic lines of venerable cruise ship Marco Polo are a world away from those of modern ships. Built in 1965 as Aleksandr Pushkin it now sails from UK ports for Cruise & Maritime Voyages. That curving, ice-strengthened hull is obvious enough when the ship is at sea, and it's even more apparent at the moment, as the vessel is in drydock in Antwerp for her biennial overhaul. There's not a bulbous bow in sight as Marco Polo stands proudly on her blocks, being prepared for a winter season cruising to the Caribbean, the Amazon, and the Canaries. Before then, [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:41+00:00 8 November 2012|Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Passenger sues over 3.30 alarm call

A cruise passenger is suing for the refund of the full cost of a seven-day holiday because of the distress he claims was caused when he had to get up at 3.30 am to be ready to go through immigration procedures. David Bookbinder, a former leader of Derbyshire County Council, was on a Red Sea cruise aboard Thomson Celebration. Passengers were told they had to be ready at 5.00 am to be interviewed by Israeli officials before they would be allowed ashore in Eilat. Mr Bookbinder, 71, who was travelling with his 86-year-old brother, claims the early start was made [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:41+00:00 8 November 2012|Cruise News|3 Comments