Cruise Ships - Page 33 of 57 - Captain Greybeard

Gem of a name for new Saga ship

Saga has confirmed that their new cruise ship will be called the Saga Sapphire. Currently sailing as the Bleu de France, it will undergo a multi-million pound makeover during the winter, and embarks on her maiden voyage from Southampton on March 26, 2012. The name is in line with those for smaller sister ships Saga Ruby and Saga Pearl II, and was the most popular choice among members of the line's Britannia Club for frequent cruisers. Quite rightly, they avoided tarnishing memories of the much-loved Saga Rose by adding a II (or even a 2) to the name of the [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:09+00:00 17 March 2011|Cruise News, Cruise Ships|2 Comments

Deals do the business for MSC

Italian cruise line MSC - which will have its 1,700-passenger ship Opera ship sailing from Southampton this summer - has seen a boom in UK bookings, which are up 80 per cent on a year ago. But the increase is more likely to be a result of the recent "Four Free Extras" promotion on its Mediterranean itineraries than a rush to sail no-fly cruises to northern Europe. Free flights from Heathrow or Gatwick, free transfers to the ship, free cabin upgrades, and "free" £50 on-board credit formed the package which proved so successful. Giulio Libutti, the company's UK and Ireland [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:09+00:00 11 March 2011|Cruise Deals, Cruise News, Cruise Ships|1 Comment

Marco and Olly both provide food for thought as P&O re-models ships

It's good news that the transformation of P&O cruise ship Oriana into an adults-only vessel will include the introduction of a new restaurant overseen by Marco Pierre White. But I am disappointed that room has not yet been found for a Glass House wine bar on the lines of the one which Olly Smith launched last year on Azura. Marco's first ocean-going restaurant was the White Room on board the Ventura. His new Ocean Grill concept will debut on Adonia when the ship joins the fleet in May, and will also replace Gary Rhodes's restaurant on Arcadia next January. Ocean [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:09+00:00 9 March 2011|Cruise Food & Drink, Cruise News, Cruise Ships|1 Comment

Jenny falls for the Allure of Love

The biggest cruise ship in the world, Allure of the Seas, is coming to be quite the film star. Not content with being the location for scenes from the forthcoming Adam Sandler move Jack and Jill, it is about to feature in a series of shorts including this one (above) starring Jenny McCarthy. The film, which is former Playboy model McCarthy's debut as a director, is a rom-com called The Allure of Love. The film, which is former Playboy model McCarthy's debut as a director, is called The Allure of Love and tells the story of two friends trying to [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:09+00:00 9 March 2011|Cruise Entertainment, Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Prepare for the biggest party afloat

All seven of P&O's cruise ships will be gathered together in Southampton next year to mark the 175th anniversary of the company's creation. Quite how the UK's busiest cruise port will be able to cope with so many ships and passengers on one day is not clear - January this year saw the first time in decades that six liners were turned round in one day. It will be a bonanza for Southampton's hotels, shops and taxi drivers. There will be something like 14,500 passengers leaving the ships in the morning and a further 14,500 boarding in the afternoon. There's [...]

By John Honeywell| 2011-03-08T15:41:38+00:00 8 March 2011|Cruise Destinations, Cruise News, Cruise Ships|1 Comment

Mystery of our neighbour in port

Saga Pearl II has had some interesting neighbours in the past couple of ports. In Oranjestad today, our 18,500-ton ship is moored almost in the shade of the SkyWalker nightclub on the 109,000-ton Grand Princess; the escalator which delivers passengers through a glass-roofed tube to the futuristic disco 150-ft above Grand's waterline is in sharp contrast to the three arthritic lifts slowly travelling between six decks on Pearl. There are 22 covered lifeboats hanging from the sides of Grand - beneath five decks of balcony cabins. Pearl has just eight boats - seven of them open - and only 20 [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:09+00:00 4 March 2011|Cruise Ships|4 Comments

How to cruise like royalty on board Cunard’s stately Queen Elizabeth

From the Sunday Mirror Homes & Holidays, published 20 February 2011 EVER wondered what it would take to get The Queen to a casino? I have the answer - because she recently stepped inside the "gaming salon" on a certain cruise ship, welcomed by an honour guard of waistcoated croupiers. The ship in question is, of course, the Queen Elizabeth. Her Majesty was there to do the honours in naming Cunard's latest liner. While on board she inspected an 18-foot high marquetry mural created by her nephew Viscount Linley, which is the centrepiece of the three-deck Grand Lobby, and came [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:10+00:00 20 February 2011|Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Millions spent on ship upgrades

It's not just Princess and Celebrity who are spending millions on refurbishing their cruise ships and keeping them up to date. Crystal Serenity (above) was launched only eight years ago, but already it is having a $25 million (£15.5 million) upgrade. The 1,070-passenger vessel, which originally cost $350 million (£215 million) to build at the Chantiers d'Atlantique yard in France, will be going into drydock in Hamburg in May. Within 14 days, a team of 400 technicians and engineers will fit new lighting and carpets throughout the ship. The 531 staterooms and suites will be upgraded with new floor-to-ceiling tufted [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:10+00:00 18 February 2011|Cruise News, Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Why Celebrity Cruises will not allow themselves to be Eclipsed by rivals

Luxury cruise line Celebrity is determined to ensure that once a passenger has sailed on one of their ships, they will never want to sail with anyone else. That was the mantra of company president Dan Hanrahan this week, on a brief visit to the UK. Celebrity Eclipse, which is based in Southampton for the summer, has already achieved record business and ratings in the few months since its launch last April. Senior vice-president Lisa Lutoff-Perlo disclosed that the number of future cruise bookings made by British passengers while on board the ship is three times higher than the next [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:10+00:00 18 February 2011|Cruise News, Cruise Ships|0 Comments

Splendor looking splendid again

After weeks of repair work, cruise ship Carnival Splendor - crippled by an engine room fire in November - has left its repair dock in San Francisco. Final tests of its new generator and fire prevention systems will be carried out this week, ready for it to return to action, carrying passengers on a cruise from Long Beach to the Mexican Riviera, on Sunday. Back on board is senior cruise director John Heald, who did so much to keep 3,500 passengers calm during the days immediately following the fire, when the ship was adrift without power and while it was [...]

By John Honeywell| 2017-06-15T16:00:10+00:00 15 February 2011|Cruise News, Cruise Ships|0 Comments