Cruise Ships - Page 13 of 57 - Captain Greybeard

Say hello to Norwegian Breakaway

There's some suitably stirring music to accompany these impressive videos showing Norwegian Breakaway emerging into the open air for the first time today. The 146,600-ton ship is the largest passenger vessel ever built in Germany and was towed gently out of the construction shed at the Meyer-Werft yard this morning. There's a few more weeks of fitting out to be completed before Breakaway makes the tricky 36 km conveyance down the River Ems to the North Sea. Already in place and prominently visible from the shore are the ship's extensive water slides. Less apparent are the Waterfront complex of bars [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:37+00:00 26 February 2013|Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Tugboat Toia taps a Cunard Queen

Cunard are deservedly proud of the fact that the arrival of one of their ships in a far-flung port generates huge excitement, drawing crowds of people to the shoreline and out onto the water. They must sometimes wish that spectators weren't quite so enthusiastic, particularly after an incident in New Zealand at the weekend. Queen Elizabeth's arrival in Wellington coincided with the port's open day, and about 50 sightseers were crowded on the tug Toia when it came rather too close to the cruise ship. The tug's funnel hit the ship's port-side docking platform, about 36 feet (12 metres) above [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:37+00:00 26 February 2013|Cruise News, Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Royal goes for a Quantum of Kristin

So, Royal Caribbean's much-touted ads during American television coverage of the Oscars were not to announce another new ship (Argo of the Seas, anyone?) but to reveal the name of a ship's godmother. Yes, the cruise line paid about $1.5 million for each 30-second slot so that Kristin Chenoweth could bounce on screen to get excited about her latest role. Don't pretend you've never heard of her. The 44-year-old actress and singer was a regular in The West Wing and has appeared in occasional episodes of Glee and The Good Wife. She also performed the closing song at the Oscar [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:37+00:00 25 February 2013|Cruise Ships|3 Comments

On another Odyssey to Burma

What a treat this weekend for passengers on Voyage to Antiquity's Aegean Odyssey. The ship is back in Yangon for the first time since it delivered me there in December. If I close my eyes I can imagine them gazing in wonder at the golden splendours of the Shwedagon Pagoda, and snapping up souvenirs in the rambling maze that is the Bogyoke Aung San market. Some will be touring the colonial buildings of the city on one of the included excursions and will be setting out to see more pagodas and Buddha statues in Bago. They may have had an [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:38+00:00 24 February 2013|Cruise Destinations, Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Breakaway ready for floataway

Weather permitting, Norwegian Breakaway will be emerging into the daylight on Tuesday morning. Just 17 months after construction work started at the Meyer-Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany, the 146,600-ton cruise ship will be towed gently out of a giant construction shed and into the river basin. After initial tests, the ship will be berthed alongside and the first members of crew will be moving into their cabins within a couple of days. Final construction work and fitting out will continue for a few weeks, and the ship, built for 3,969 passengers, will make the journey down the River Ems to [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:38+00:00 23 February 2013|Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Relief as Ruby gets under way

PICTURE: Patricia Dempsey If there was an extra rustling among the trees and a whoosh of air in the breeze earlier this evening, it was probably the collective sigh of relief coming from the South Coast. It started on the quayside at Southampton, continued down through the Solent, and spread as far as Saga head office 140 miles away in Folkestone. Passengers, crew, and backroom office staff could relax as Saga Ruby finally set off for what should have been her final world voyage but which has instead been curtailed to a mere 66 nights to Cape Horn and the [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:38+00:00 20 February 2013|Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Royal route to a happy family cruise

With its ice rinks, climbing walls and DreamWorks character parades; children's nurseries and lively teen clubs, Royal Caribbean sets out to be one of the most family-friendly cruise lines. Now it has set up a holiday advice line staffed exclusively by mums and dads to help make choosing the perfect family holiday an even easier experience. The 'Royal Mums & Dads' advice line is claimed as a travel industry first. The specialist phone line is operated by knowledgeable parents who work for the cruise line and who have experience of planning, booking and taking family cruise holidays with their own [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:38+00:00 10 February 2013|Cruise Ships|1 Comment

Quantum leap for Sunshine

Royal Caribbean might be finding it hard work to sell cruises in Europe, but they don't have a problem building new ships there; work has now started on the construction of the first of two new Project Sunshine vessels at Meyer-Werft in Germany. As befitting the yard's hi-tech systems, the laser which cut the first piece of steel was set in motion from thousands of miles away by Richard Fain and Adam Goldstein, on a live video link to the construction shed in Papenburg. Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, executive vice president in charge of operations at Royal Caribbean, disclosed that the first [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:39+00:00 5 February 2013|Cruise Ships|0 Comments

How to be the first to sail on Royal Princess and Norwegian Breakaway

Passengers who want to be the first to sail on new cruise ship Royal Princess will be able to sample a two-night preview before the official maiden voyage in June. Princess Cruises have announced details of two round-trips from Southampton to St Peter Port, Guernsey, departing on June 9 and June 14. Fares start at £349 per person for a balcony stateroom, and go on sale at 2.00 pm next Tuesday (January 29) to people who have already booked the maiden voyage, and the following day for to all other customers. Paul Ludlow, Princess Cruises' UK director, said: "Passengers and [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:39+00:00 21 January 2013|Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Engine room repairs cut Saga Ruby’s final world cruise to just 66 days

Work to repair that grand old lady Saga Ruby - which will be retired at the end of the year - is going to take longer than expected. I understand Saga Cruises has now decided her farewell world cruise cannot now depart until February 20, more than six weeks behind schedule. A team of customer care staff is contacting all those affected. The ship carries up to 661 passengers; some of them were booked on the entire 109-night trip which should have left Southampton on January 7, while others would have been joining for shorter stretches. The revised itinerary of [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T15:59:39+00:00 15 January 2013|Cruise News, Cruise Ships|23 Comments