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Look inside Thomson’s newest cruise ship – it’s a Dream

John Honeywell — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 23:44:42 +0000

The arrival of the 1,500-passenger Thomson Dream in the Thomson Cruises fleet this week will help to boost the company’s total capacity to 254,000 passengers a year.

Dream joins Celebration, Destiny, Spirit and Island Escape in providing home-from-home cruises for the British market, packaged with flights from regional airports around the country.

The ship, formerly the Costa Europa, came straight from dry-dock in Sicily to rescue 2,800 holidaymakers stranded in Majorca before embarking on its first proper cruise – with some crew members left behind because they were stranded by the ash cloud chaos.

But operations swung into top gear this week as the ship left Palma with a full complement of crew and passengers.

Fares for seven-night voyages, to destinations such as Tunis, Naples and Barcelona, or Villefranche, Rome and Ajaccio, start from £530 for departures in May. There are plenty of children’s facilities on board, but cruises in June and September will be adults-only – and during the World Cup all England’s matches and most of the other big games will be shown on board.

Throughout the summer, Thomson will be looking closely at how the ship operates in her new colours, and at the end of the Mediterranean season, it will be dry-docked in Hamburg for a £5 million refit. Some of that money will be spent on fitting stern thrusters to improve manoeuvrability (and save on the cost of tugs when berthing). The rest will be spent on upgrading cabins and public rooms.

Managing director David Selby told me: “Our first thought was that the casino is bigger than we need, and we were considering changing some of that space. But apparently this week it has been very busy in there, so we’ll wait to see how that works out.”

He may want to look at extending the servery areas in the Andromeda buffet restaurant. Some passengers have complained of long queues at breakfast and lunch

For more details of Dream’s itineraries and to book online, go to www.thomson.co.uk/cruise, call 0871 231 4691, or visit any Thomson or First Choice travel agent.

Dream will be up against some formidable competition as rival cruise lines slash their fares .

Disney Magic arrives in the UK in June, and a seven-night cruise from Barcelona to Dover, calling at Gibraltar, Cadiz and Lisbon, is on offer for £699, including one-way flights. Departs June 5. Go to www.virginholidayscruises.co.uk or call 0871 781 9893.

For the same price, you could sail on P&O’s Ventura on a seven-night round-trip from Southampton to Vigo, Lisbon, La Rochelle and Brest. The fare includes £100 on-board spending money, and balcony cabins are available from £899. Departs July 24. Go to www.iglucruise.com or call 020 8544 6447.

Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 is the grandest ocean liner afloat, and it’s not often you get an opportunity to spend four nights on board for £399. The ship departs Southampton on May 28 and visits Bruges, Rotterdam and Cherbourg. Balcony cabins are available for an extra £100. Go to www.iglucruise.com or call 020 8544 6447.

But the deal of the week has to be a seven-night cruise on the inappropriately-named Costa Fortuna. This one definitely won’t cost a fortune – it’s just £199 per person. Sailing from Venice on May 17, the ship visits Bari, Olympia, Santorini, Mykonos and Rhodes, before returning via Dubrovnik. Flights are not included in the fare, but if you’re prepared to travel light and risk flying with Ryanair, I found round trip flights from Stansted for less than £70 per person. go to www.costacruises.co.uk or call 0845 351 0552.

When will Her Majesty say ‘Yes’?

John Honeywell — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 12:57:24 +0000

The news that Princess Maxima of the Netherlands is to name Holland America’s latest cruise ship, Nieuw Amsterdam, has prompted further speculation about the plans for the naming ceremony of Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth later this year.

Nieuw Amsterdam’s naming will take place in Venice on July 4, and she will be the 11th HAL ship since 1929 to be launched by a member of the Dutch royal family. Sister ship Eurodam was named by Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands in 2008.

Built to a similar design, Queen Elizabeth will be launched in Southampton in October, and there can be only one person appropriate for the job of pronouncing the words “I name this ship . . . “

Her Majesty the Queen launched Cunard’s flagship, Queen Mary 2, in January 2004, but as yet there is no confirmation that she has agreed to do the same for her own namesake – or even that she has been invited.

Cunard spokesman Eric Flounders said gnomically: “How can we say we are waiting for her to confirm something we haven’t said we have asked?”

But surely HM is not pacing the carpets at Windsor Castle or Buckingham Palace, muttering to her aides and wondering when she’s going to get the call, or indeed who else would have the temerity to do the job if she’s not asked.

Maritime tradition dictates that ships are named by women, who become the vessel’s godmother, and Cunard more than anyone value traditions, and do their utmost to uphold them.

There will at least be another royal link for their new ship – I understand that the Queen’s nephew, furniture designer Viscount Linley, is involved in creating and supplying items for the vessel. Further details are expected to be announced next month.

Like Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, who launched Cunard’s Queen Victoria in 2007, Princess Maxima is the wife of an heir to the throne. The daughter of an Argentinian politician, she married Prince Willem-Alexander in 2002.

Freedom of the Seas Cruise Ship

YouTube Videos tagged with cruise ship — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 13:05:37 +0000

www.ucruiser.com filmed Freedom of the Seas while it was leaving Port Canaveral for the very first time. The port arranged a Sail-a-Bration event to celebrate the worlds largest cruise ship. MS Freedom of the Seas is a cruise ship owned and operated by Royal Caribbean International. It is the namesake of Royal Caribbean’s Freedom Class of cruise ships, and can accommodate over 4300 passengers and 1300 crew on fifteen passenger decks. In addition to two sister ships, Freedom of the Seas will keep the title of the largest passenger ships ever built (by gross tonnage) until construction of the Oasis Class ships in 2009, also owned by Royal Caribbean International. The Freedom of the Seas was built at the Aker Yards drydock in Turku, Finland, which also is building the other ships of the Freedom Class. Upon its completion, it became the largest passenger ship ever built, taking that honor from Cunard’s RMS Queen Mary 2. Freedom of the Seas is 2.4 metres narrower than QM2 at the waterline, 6 metres shorter, has 1.5 metres less draft, is 8.3 metres less tall and 10 mph slower. Freedom of the Seas however is the larger ship in terms of gross tonnage. While its gross tonnage was estimated to range from 154000 GT to 160000 GT, its official rating by Det Norske Veritas, a Norwegian marine classification society, is 154407 GT, compared with QM2′s 148528 GT. Freedom of the Seas has the highest gross tonnage of any passenger ship yet built. The ship features three swimming areas an …

Queen Mary amp Cruise Ship

budsal99 — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 01:20:37 +0000

Queen Mary amp Cruise Ship – DSC00549.jpg

Stranded Fliers Flock to Cruise Ships to Cross Atlantic – Cruise Critic

cruise ship - Google News — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 20:58:03 +0000

Passport Magazine (blog)

Stranded Fliers Flock to Cruise Ships to Cross Atlantic
Cruise Critic
Though some cruise ships heading to Europe for the summer have already repositioned or are in the process of doing so now (Independence of the Seas, …
1000 join waiting list for Queen Mary 2's sailing to New YorkDaily Echo
Queen Mary 2 Kicks Off 2010 Transatlantic Crossing SeasonTravelVideo.tv (press release)
Some stranded in Europe because of the volcano are sailing home on QM2Los Angeles Times (blog)
Jaunted
all 10 news articles »

4/16/10 – Queen Mary 2 Kicks Off 2010 Transatlantic Crossing Season

Cruise News — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 19:13:00 +0000

Cunard Line began its Transatlantic Crossing season on Thursday aboard their flagship Queen Mary 2, accompanied by a quintet from the Juilliard Jazz School. Cunard and Juilliard announced their partnership earlier this year, which includes performances and Cunard Insights enrichment programmes with jazz alumni, faculty and students on board Queen Mary 2 eastbound Crossings in 2010.

Pictured with Entertainment

Recession? What recession is that? – Times LIVE

cruise ship - Google News — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 22:07:18 +0000

Times LIVE

Recession? What recession is that?
Times LIVE
This is the cruise ship's maiden voyage to South Africa. About 100 South Africans disembarked in the Mother City after travelling from Sydney via Mauritius …
Cape Town welcomes the QM2Southall Travel
Jesse James and Michelle McGee met at a tattoo convention on Queen Mary – what …Daily Mail (blog)
Anything you can do I can do TuTuMirror.co.uk (blog)
TTG live -SYS-CON Media (press release) -TriCities.com
all 9 news articles »

3/26/10 – Cunard Welcomes Archbishop Desmond Tutu aboard Queen Mary 2

Cruise News — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 23:51:00 +0000

The Most Reverend Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu arrived in Cape Town, South Africa today after enjoying a segment of Cunard Line’s 2010 World Voyage onboard the legendary Queen Mary 2. Upon the flagship’s arrival – her maiden call to Cape Town – Archbishop Tutu, flanked by Captain Nick Bates and Cunard Line President Peter Shanks, unveiled a plaque that read:

Cape Town welcomes the QM2 – Southall Travel

cruise ship - Google News — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 20:23:06 +0000

Southall Travel

Cape Town welcomes the QM2
Southall Travel
Sister ship to the QE2, the vessel is the largest and most expensive cruise liner ever made. The boat has 19 decks and can accommodate a maximum of 3090 …
Jesse James and Michelle McGee met at a tattoo convention on Queen Mary – what …Daily Mail (blog)
Anything you can do I can do TuTuMirror.co.uk (blog)
Tutu welcomed aboard QM2TTG live
SYS-CON Media (press release) -eTurboNews
all 8 news articles »

Anything you can do I can do TuTu

John Honeywell — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 11:43:52 +0000

Judging by the responses I received, lots of you were thrilled to see yesterday’s picture of Cunard liner QM2 making her maiden call at Cape Town. To start today, here’s another impressive shot, of the ship at dusk.

There’s also a picture of Archbishop Desmond Tutu blowing the ship’s whistle during a visit to the bridge. Just for fun, I’ve added a picture of Mrs Greybeard doing just the same as QM2 left the port of Cochin, in southern India, during the ship’s 2007 world voyage. And check out the crowds who gathered on the beach by the city’s famous Chinese fishing nets to wave us goodbye.