Seven Seas Navigator Cruise Ship Profile and Photo Tour

Continuing our look at some of the ships in the luxury/ultra-luxury segment of the cruising, this week we focus on Seven Seas Navigator of Regent Seven Seas Cruises.




I was quite surprised to find out that Seven Seas Navigator is only 28,000 gross tons. The first time I saw her was several years ago when she was docked with Holland America’s Noordam at Grand Turk. Although she was clearly smaller than Noordam, she did not look one-third the size. Rather, she looked and still looks to be a substantial ship.



Perhaps this is because her hull was designed originally to be that of an exploration ship. It was only after her hull was completed that she was transformed into a luxury cruise ship. Thus, at her roots is a ship designed to travel any seas - - not a bad thing for a ship that roams far and wide cruising.



Navigator has a very traditional style. There is nothing that is designed to produce a “wow” or make you stagger back with awe. Rather, it is a conservative approach to luxury with extensive wood paneling, leather chairs, and understated colors. It is an approach that says quality and richness without shouting.



Regent is expanding on the concept of what is included in an “all-inclusive” fare. Of course, not everything is included in an all-inclusive fare. For example, they do not give you free of charge the chips to gamble with in the casino. However, on Navigator, an unlimited number of shore excursions are included as is round-trip airfare, a one-night stay in a hotel and many other things.



Beyondship’s profile of Seven Seas Navigator is at http://www.beyondships.com/Regent-Navigator-Profile.html The multi-page photo tour and commentary begins at http://www.beyondships.com/Regent-Navigator-Tour-1.html

P&O Cruises Adonia - - Profile, Photo Tour and Interview with Managing Director Carol Marlow

Adonia is one of eight jewel-like ships that were originally built for Renaissance Cruises. After Renaissance went bankrupt the eight were dispersed amongst various cruise lines and now after a period of nomadic wandering have settled with two being owned by Azamara Club Cruises, three by Oceania, two by Princess Cruises and one, Adonia, by P&O Cruises. Despite their difficult beginning, the eight have gone on to achieve a very good reputation amongst cruise connoisseurs.




I am not particularly partial to small ships. However, I thought the 30,000 gross ton Adonia was a charming ship when I first saw her back in the days when she was the Royal Princess of Princess Cruises.. With its wood paneling, cushioned furniture, and traditional art work, the interior has the charm of an English country house. The ship is nicely laid out as well. The designers were able to include most of the things one would expect on a modern cruise ship - - specialty restaurants, a spa, a pool, shops, bars and lounges, etc - - within a relatively small space.



When the ship was transferred from Princess to P&O Cruises earlier this year, very few changes had to be made. P&O serves the British market and the ship already had a British decor. Consequently, all that had to be done was modify a few public areas so as to include some of P&O’s signature venues. Of course, the existing specialty restaurants which were signature Princess restaurants, also had to be changed. For that task, P&O turned to celebrity chef Marco Pierre White to create a new restaurant for Adonia. The other specialty restaurant was developed in-house by P&O.



To mark Adonia’s arrival at P&O Cruises, I asked P&O Cruises’ Managing Director to give us her thoughts about the line’s new ship. She discussed how the ship came to P&O Cruises and what the line plans for the ship. That article is posted at: http://www.beyondships.com/PO-Adonia-Marlow.html



I’ve also created a Beyondships profile of Adonia that includes copies of daily programs, menus from the restaurants, and other information about the ship. http://www.beyondships.com/PO-Adonia-Profile.html. As always, there is a photo tour and commentary about the ship. http://www.beyondships.com/PO-Adonia-Tour-1.html

Profile and Photo Tour of Liberty of the Seas

Liberty of the Seas was one of the first ships profiled on Beyondships. The ship had just come out of the shipyards and Royal Caribbean had brought her to the Cape Liberty Cruise Terminal on the Jersey side of New York harbor to show her off and for some pre-inaugural activities. In May 2007, she was the world’s largest cruise ship - a title she shared with her sister Freedom of the Seas - - and her size was impressive. In addition, her décor was somewhat more subtle than her sister and thus more relaxing at least to my eye. Captain Herman Zini who was in the process of bringing out the ship spoke with pride about Liberty during our interview.




Earlier this year, Liberty went through a major refit during which a number of enhancements and improvements were made. Accordingly, it seemed like an appropriate time to travel to Miami and revisit her. Moreover, during the time since I was last on her, the Beyondships’ profiles had become much more comprehensive and it would enable me to get the material I needed to do a profile of Liberty that was as comprehensive as those for the other ships on the site.



One of the first things I noticed about Liberty was that she no longer felt very big. After sailing on Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas, which are about a third again larger than Liberty, she no longer felt vast. Rather, it seemed a comfortable size.



Another question in my mind was how the service would be on Liberty. All of the ships in the Royal Caribbean fleet had contributed crew members for Oasis and Allure. Had all the good people been cherry-picked away for the line’s two new flagships? I was relieved to find that they had not. The service was quite good, friendly and professional.



The new enhancements blended well into the existing ship. The Cupcake Cupboard looked like it had always been part of the Royal Promenade and no one seemed to notice that the barber shop was missing. The outdoor movie screen in the pool area provides a focal point and is colorful at night. While its placement is not ideal for viewing, its location is about as good as it could be given where the pools and the hot tubs are located.



An addition to the programming onboard is the Dreamworks Experience. This entails having the characters from Dreamworks animated movies participate in various onboard activities such as parades and children’s breakfasts. The ship has also been equipped with 3-D technology so that the movies can be shown in the main theater. The children onboard seemed to enjoy the Dreamworks programming and it does not intrude into the adult world except that one may occasionally encounter Shrek when walking through the public rooms.



In any event, you can see for yourself what Liberty of the Seas is all about - - the new Liberty profile with copies of daily programs, menus and other information is at http://www.beyondships.com/RCI-LOS-Profile.html The comprehensive photo tour and commentary begins at http://www.beyondships.com/RCI-LOS-tour-1.html

Profile and Photo tour of Norwegian Epic

Norwegian Epic is one of three revolutionary ships to have debuted in the last year. Although not as large as the other two, Oasis of the Seas and her sister Allure of the Seas, Epic is a large ship. Indeed, she is one of the largest.

However, it is not the size of these ships that matters but rather how the cruise lines have used the space. Norwegian Cruise Line, like Royal Caribbean, has not just expanded on what has gone before but creatively increased the number and the quality of the options that guests have onboard. Consequently, these ships will change people’s level of expectation with regard to cruising.

NCL is no stranger to innovation. At a time when most cruise companies were employing small ships, NCL brought the giant ocean liner SS France back into service as the SS Norway, opening the door for big ship cruising.

NCL was also the first cruise line to have full production shows as entertainment. This was the fore-runner of the multi-million dollar shows that are now standard in the industry.

NCL is perhaps best known for abandoning the traditional cruise ship dining system in favor of one that allows the guests to decide when and where to dine. Almost all of the major cruise lines now have a flexible dining op0tion.

With Epic, there is innovation in the staterooms including studio cabins, non-traditional bathrooms, curving walls, and mood lighting. There is the two deck ship within a ship luxury area that encompasses not only 60 suites but exclusive outdoor areas, restaurants and lounges. Advanced technology has been employed extensively. Interactive technology has changes the way guests find their way around the ship and plan what entertainment to see. Facial recognition software has even been used to change the way images are offered in the photo gallery.

Beyondships profile page for Norwegian Epic is at http://www.beyondships.com/NCLEpic.html and the multi-page photo tour begins at http://www.beyondships.com/NCLEpic-Tour-1.html

Oriana Profile and Photo Tour and Norwegian Epic in New York

Oriana is a ship that I have been hoping to take a look at for quite some time. Her entry into service in 1995 was recognized as such a significant event that Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II agreed to name the ship. After all, this was the largest passenger ship that had been built for the British market since Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth 2. Furthermore, she was nearly as large as QE2 and was full of all sorts of new luxury innovations. Over the years, Oriana has retained an aura about her and most Brits will know precisely what you mean when you say her name.

Although built in Germany, Oriana is thoroughly British. Her interiors are contemporary but done in restrained good taste. There is no glitz or attempts to invoke awe. Rather, there is the understatement of conservative British style.

Oriana’s British-ness also appears in the food served onboard, the activities and the entertainment. She seeks to make the people she was designed to serve feel comfortable on their holidays.

The vast majority of passengers on Oriana are British. However, P&O Cruises, her owner, also welcomes international guests who are interested in a truly British experience.

In many ways, this is a classic cruise experience as in the days before Las Vegas went to sea. At the same time, she has a celebrity chef specialty restaurant, a West End style theater, a large cinema, a spa, three pools, five whirlpools, 11 bars and even a pizzeria.

Beyondship’s profile of Oriana is at http://www.beyondships.com/PO-Oriana-Profile.html The multi-page photo tour begins at http://www.beyondships.com/PO-Oriana-Tour-1.html

A much different cruise experience came to New York this last week in the form of Norwegian Epic. This is Norwegian Cruise Line’s latest ship and at 153,000 gross tons the fifth largest cruise ship now in service.

As NCL proudly has proclaimed, its “Freestyle Cruising” was designed to break the traditional mold. On Epic, innovation is a watchword, combing entertainment and dining venues, curving interior walls and cabin configurations unlike any other cruise ship.

I was able to photograph Epic as she came up the Hudson River and docked on the West Side of Manhattan. My photo essay of this event is at: http://www.beyondships.com/NCLEpic-photoessay.html

Photo tour and Profile of Carnival Sensation

Carnival has made the decision to keep its Fantasy-class ships viable. These eight ships were built in the early 1990s and have served the company well. Offering good quality amenities and facilities at an affordable price, these 70,000 gross ton ships were in no small measure an important factor in making Carnival the world’s most popular cruise line.

Today, the fleets of the major cruise lines, including Carnival, are dominated by much larger ships with more features than the Fantasy class chips. As a result, most pf the major lines have sold or are transferring ships of the same age to their subsidiaries in the secondary market. From a nautical and technological standpoint, there is nothing wrong with these ships. The problem is that they do not have all the features that the new ships have.

Carnival, however, has seen that there is still a place for these ships. There are ports that serve areas where there is an untapped demand for cruising but which may not be big enough to justify deploying a new mega-cruise ship to that area. In addition, there is a market for short cruises that are an economical vacation or a good short break. Again, it probably would not be an efficient deployment of resources to have new mega-cruise ships doing short cruises but it would work with a smaller ship.

Therefore, Carnival is investing millions on its Evolutions of Fun re-vitalization program for its Fantasy class ships. For Carnival Sensation, the third of the Fantasy-class ships, this revitalization took place in two parts. In 2007, her interior public spaces and staterooms received a facelift. Then, in 2009, she went in for a second refit.

This time, the big changes to Sensation were to the open decks. The main pool area has been redecorated so as to give it a more upscale feel. In addition, the spiral water slide and the children’s Water Wars equipment have been removed. Similarly, the children’s pool, which was located at the stern on the promenade deck, has been replaced by an adults-only retreat.

Sensation, however, is still family-friendly. Replacing the aforementioned children’s facilities is a new aqua park called Water Works. This large area has a giant spiral water slide, racing slides, and fountains spraying streams of water.

In addition to the changes to the open decks, Carnival added three sections of balcony staterooms to the ship. Balconies are incredibly popular in the cruise business. Consequently, ships built without balconies have to have balconies added if they are to remain viable in the primary market.

The new Beyondships profile and photo tour of Sensation shows the finished product. In addition, I have added a page to the photo tour to show what the ship looked like before the most recent changes were made. The profile is at http://beyondships.com/CarnivalSensation-Profile.html and the photo tour begins at http://beyondships.com/CarnivalSensation-Tour-1.html

Carnival Conquest Photo Tour and Profile

Carnival Conquest is one of the mainstays of the Carnival fleet. She was the first ship to be built of the larger version of the Carnival Destiny design and her features were carried through with very little change through the next four Carnival mega-ships. Indeed, even Carnival Splendor of 2008 bears a close resemblance to Conquest and the line’s most recent ship, Carnival Dream, bears something of a resemblance.

One of the really nice things about Conquest is the interior decoration. Designer Joe Farcus selected the French Impressionists as the inspiration for the interior and he has utilized their works and ideas from their works in an imaginative and pleasing way. Almost everyone likes the French Impressionists, so this idea was bound to work.

Beyondships’ profile of Carnival Conquest with copies of menus, daily programs and other information about the ship is at http://www.beyondships.com/CarnivalConquest-Profile.html and the multi-page photo tour of the ship begins at http://www.beyondships.com/CarnivalConquest-Tour-1.html

Photo Tour of Fred.Olsen's Balmoral and Cruise News

Balmoral is the newest and largest ship in the Fred.Olsen Cruise Line’s fleet. However, veteran cruisers will remember her first appearance as the Crown Odyssey of Royal Cruise Line in 1988. More cruisers will remember her as the popular Norwegian Crown of Norwegian Cruise Line as she spent most of her prior career with that line.

After purchasing her from NCL, Fred.Olsen sent her to Germany to have an additional section inserted. This increased her passenger capacity as well as the public space. However, the ship still retains a small ship atmosphere.

At 40,000 gross tons, Balmoral is not a yacht. However, the atmosphere onboard is much different than the megacruise ships coming out of the shipyards today. In many ways, it has the flavor of late 20th Century cruising when the emphasis was more on relaxation in comfortable surroundings than on the number and variety of onboard experiences that a ship can provide. In my view, both styles of cruising have merit and thus it is good that someone is still offering the old style as an option for travelers.

Balmoral is primarily geared toward the British market. The line is well known in the UK and for most of the year, Balmoral operates from Dover, England.

Beyondships new profile page for Balmoral appears at http://beyondships.com/FOL-Balmoral-Profile.html and the photo tour and commentary starts at http://beyondships.com/FOL-Balmoral-Tour-1.html

Turning to the events of the last week, Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the Seas was officially named in a ceremony in Fort Lauderdale on 30 November. The ship has already achieved notoriety as the world’s largest passenger ship. At 225,282 gross tons and capable of serving 5,400 passengers at double occupancy (that means she can carry even more if the upper berths are used), Oasis is not just a little larger than the previous record holder of the but almost half again larger. (The previous holders were RCI’s three Freedom class ships of 158,000 gross tons. Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 is a bigger physical object than these ships but has less gross tonnage).

RCI had seven godmothers for Oasis - - one each for each of the “neighborhoods” on the ship. The neighborhoods are sections of the ship geared toward different concepts or interests. For example, there is an entertainment neighborhood. This allows “guests with the opportunity to seek out relevant experiences based on their personal style, preference or mood.”

Not to be outdone, Princess Cruises is inviting everyone to be a virtual godmother for the former Tahitian Princess, which has been renamed Ocean Princess. The ceremony will be conducted entirely on line during Ocean Princess’s current cruise. People can log into Princess’ site at http://www.princess.com/oceanvirtualchristening until 18 December to participate.

When I was on Carnival Dream last month, I ran into Gerry Cahill, President of Carnival Cruise Lines, who mentioned that he was onboard talking to some people about plans for Carnival’s next ship. This struck me as odd as Carnival’s next ship, Carnival Magic (a sister to Carnival Dream), is already under construction and is scheduled to join the fleet in 2011. The mystery was cleared-up last week when Carnival announced that it will be building a third ship based upon the design of Carnival Dream. As such, the new ship will be 130,000 gross tons and will accommodate 3,690 passengers double occupancy. She will be built at the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy and is scheduled to enter service in 2012.

One of the nice things about the Carnival ships is that they are not mere clones of each other. Even when they are part of the same class, there are differences such as distinct interiors and often new features. This makes going aboard each ship more interesting as it is an exploration. It looks like this trend will continue as Carnival says that the new ship “will offer many of the same innovations featured on the recently launched Carnival Dream, as well as some exciting new elements to be announced at a later date.”

The Revitalization of Caribbean Princess

Although I had greatly enjoyed my last cruise on Caribbean Princess, I was somewhat skeptical about going back. In 2008, she was a nice ship with good food and lots of things to do. However, in January 2009, she went through a major refit project. Why mess with a good thing?

The aim of this project was to give Caribbean Princess some of the same features as her younger sisters Crown Princess, Emerald Princess and Ruby Princess. I was familiar with these ships and the features that were to be transplanted to Caribbean Princess such as the Crown Grill specialty restaurant and the adults-only Sanctuary are indeed very nice but would their importation spoil the character of Caribbean Princess. I am a believer that every ship has its own character and thus attempts to make one ship the same as another are misguided and bound to fail.

Fortunately, Princess was able to defy the rule. The new features do indeed enhance the cruise experience on Caribbean Princess. Plus, due to physical constraints and some wise thinking, the new additions are slightly different than on the other ships. Thus, Caribbean Princess has the advantages of the new features while still retaining her own character.

The changes to Caribbean Princess touched many areas and as a result, I have extensively revised my photo tour and commentary for the ship. It now starts at http://www.beyondships.com/Princess-CB-Tour-1a.html. In addition, I was able to sit down with Captain Marco Fortezze and Passenger Services Director Peter Hollinson to find out their inside views of the project. http://www.beyondships.com/Princess-CB-art-Revitalizing.html I have also added new menus, Princess Patters, deck plans and other information to the Caribbean Princess profile page. http://beyondships.com/Princess-CB-Profile.html

Turning to items in the news, Cunard announced this week that filmmakers Griffin Dunne and Gary Winick will be lecturing on Queen Mary 2’s 11 November transatlantic crossing. Dunne will discuss “Practical Magic,” starring Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock; Winick will screen his feature film, “13 Going on 30,” starring Jennifer Garner and Mark Ruffalo. Such discussions are often quite interesting, not only for film buffs, but also for people who are interested in hearing beyond-the-scenes insights. I was on a transatlantic crossing this summer in which film director Baz Luhrmann screened his “Moulin Rouge” and enjoyed the lecture perhaps more than the film.

Cunard has always been quite good about attracting Hollywood stars and other celebrities to its transatlantic crossings. Quite a few have been there to give a talk about some project they were involved with but others have been there just as passengers. I recall exercising in the gym and noticing that the fellow at the next machine was Rod Stewart. He walked about the public areas and most people respected his privacy.

On another voyage on QE2, there was a man who everyone agreed looked like David Bowie. Oddly enough, no one said: “That is David Bowie.” Rather, he would be seen here and there about the ship and it was a running joke amongst the passengers that “there is the Bowie-guy again.” Later, a senior officer confided to me that the supposed look-alike was indeed the man himself. I have often wondered what would have happened if the “Bowie-guy” had entered the karaoke contest in the Golden Lion Pub. Probably, everybody would have agreed that he did not sound a bit like him.

Princess has released the results of a study that concluded most Americans do not lead balanced lives, i.e., they do not balance the demands and stresses of everyday life with free time. Residents of Chicago were determined to have the least balance in their lives while residents of Miami had the most balance. Interestingly, there is a direct correlation between these findings and the number of ocean-going cruise ships homeported in each city - - a lesson there for city-planners.

In New York this week was Fred. Olsen Cruises’ Balmoral, the former Norwegian Crown and Crown Odyessey. She had been visiting Canada and was about to head back across the Atlantic to England. While she has been stretched and refurbished since leaving NCL, she retains much of her original attractiveness. I will be adding a section to Beyondships about the Balmoral in the not too distant future.

Royal Caribbean's Jewel of the Seas (photos and guide)

I believe I have discovered yet another Royal Caribbean. There is, of course, the vacation experience offered on the giant mega-cruise ships that the line has become particularly noted for. On those ships, there is a vast variety of amenities and features as well as almost non-stop entertainment. Then, as I wrote about last month, there are the relatively smaller ships such as Grandeur of the Seas. They do not have all the features of the bigger ships but, at least on Grandeur, the crew really knock themselves out to ensure that the passengers have a good vacation. Both the large ships and the smaller ships have a Royal Caribbean flavor but they are much different vacation experiences.

What is surprising is that there is yet another type of vacation experience under the RCI Crown and Anchor emblem. Jewel of the Seas is one of four Radiance class ships built for Royal Caribbean in Pappenberg, Germany. Most of RCIs ships were built in Finland and they are very good quality ships but the craftsmanship on he Radiance class ships is impressive. This is true not only in the ship’s interior but also extends to her hydrodynamic hull and advanced propulsions system. She can move along at more than 25 knots, which is quite fast for a cruise ship.

At 90,000 gross tons they are larger than the Vision class but also significantly smaller than the line’s giant ships such as Voyager of the Seas. It would be wrong, however, to think of Jewel as a mini-Voyager class ship or as a large Vision class ship.

What makes the Jewel experience unique is the refinement of the product. Yes, she has the trademark Viking Crown Lounge and rock climbing wall. However, she also has a beautiful covered pool area, touches of marble and wooden inlays. Moreover, even though she is larger than the largest Vision-class ship, Enchantment of the Seas, she carries fewer passengers. This means more space per passenger.

Jewel is a quieter, more cosmopolitan Royal Caribbean. In some ways, she is reminiscent of the style of Royal Caribbean’s sister company Celebrity Cruises. Indeed, Celebrity’s Solstice class is derived from the Radiance class. Still, her style is distinctly her own.

The Beyondships Jewel of the Seas profile page with copies of menus and daily programs from the ship is at http://beyondships.com/RCI-JOS-Profile.html The comprehensive photo tour and commentary begins at http://beyondships.com/RCI-JOS-Tour-1.html


Next week, Captain James MacDonald and Hotel Director Robert Taggart will add some inside views on Jewel of the Seas.

Serenade of the Seas Photo Tour and Commentary

At the turn of the Millennium, Royal Caribbean had come up with two rather excellent but quite different designs for cruise ships. The first was the Voyager design, which premiered in late 1999. It was for a megacruise ship of more than 130,000 tons, which have the line the space to include amenities such as the Royal Promenade and the ice skating rink, which had never been seen on a cruise ship before. Its large size also lent itself to economies of scale as the design could accommodate large numbers of guests.

The other design was the Radiance class design, which first saw service in 2001. This design was also for a large ship but at 90,000 tons, much smaller than the Voyager design. At the same time, capable of doing 25 knots, it was a much faster ship. It was more traditional in its interior but very well laid out with the use of large amounts of glass enhancing the public spaces. In sum, it was an eloquent design that pointed in something of a different direction than the Voyager design.

Serenade of the Seas is the third of four Radiance class ships built for RCI between 2001 and 2004. Her modern sleek lines are immediately appealing. Her interior is delightful. In many ways, she is a significant milestone in the development of the traditional cruise ship design. Although she has many of the signature Royal Caribbean amenities, it is a different experience.

Recently, Royal Caribbean has focused its attention on developing the Voyager class, which gave rise to the Freedom class and which is the ancestor of the forthcoming Oasis class. Thankfully the Radiance design has not been abandoned. RCI’s sister company Celebrity Cruises is developing the Radiance design with its Solstice class ships.

My profile of Serenade of the Seas is at http://beyondships.com/RCI-SOS-Profile.html. and the photo tour and commentary begins at http://beyondships.com/RCI-SOS--tour-1.html.

Focusing on Carnival Sensation

Carnival Sensation is one of eight 70,000 gross ton large cruise ships built for Carnival Cruise Lines in the 1990s known as the Fantasy class. While Carnival had had ships before the Fantasy class, including a few that were built for the line, these eight were what really cemented Carnival’s position as the world’s leading cruise line. They enabled Carnival to bring the features of a large ship to mass market cruising.

Since then Carnival has gone on to build even larger and more luxurious cruise ships. However, it has not forgotten the Fantasy class ships. Through a multi-million dollar program called "Evolutions of Fun," Carnival is making over these ships so that they have the type of features that today’s passenger has come to expect.

For Carnival Sensation, this has been a two part process. Following Hurricane Katrina, Carnival Sensation was leased to the government for use as emergency housing. The ship then went through a major refit in 2007 during which all of the staterooms were redone with things like flat panel televisions being added. In addition, several of the public rooms were refurbished and enhanced. As a result, the ship remains a vibrant, gleaming venue for having a fun time.

This month, Carnival Sensation will go in for a second refit during which balconies will be added to 98 staterooms. In addition, all of the ship’s swimming pools will be changed. A resort style pool will replace the main swimming pool. An extensive water park will replace the aft pool on Verandah Deck and the children’s pool will be replaced with an adults-only spa pool.

My profile of Carnival Sensation is at http://beyondships.com/CarnivalSensation-Profile.html. The photo tour and commentary, including discussion of what is about to be changed on the ship begins at http://beyondships.com/CarnivalSensation-Tour-1.html

Norwegian Jewel Cruise Ship Profile

Norwegian Jewel is one of the most recent class of Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ships and one of the largest. Since she was the first one of this class, she does not have quite all of the features that are on the most recent ship, Norwegian Gem, but she is pretty much state-of-the-art Freestyle cruising.

Freestyle cruising is all about giving the guests options to design their own vacation. There are two large dining rooms, seven specialty restaurants, a buffet and several places for a light snack. There are bars, nightclubs, a large casino and a theater for production shows. Similarly, there are pools, a spa, a fitness center and various other sports facilities for daytime entertainment. The accommodations range from lavish luxury to comfortable but utilitarian. The idea is that you decide what is best for you.

Of course, with freedom comes responsibility. For example, the guest must make his or her own dinner arrangements. If they fail to do so, they may end up dining in a venue that they did not really want while the production show that they did want to see in the theater is taking place.

Jewel is somewhat similar in décor to the slightly smaller Norwegian Dawn. Both make use of bold colors but not overwhelmingly so. For the most part, the style is upscale contemporary. I was somewhat disappointed that Jewel does not have the amazing art collection that is on Dawn, but then one can’t really expect NCL to have Monets and Reniors on every ship. There are some very good Asian paintings, however, if one keeps an eye out.

Outside, Jewel is painted white with a festive mural on her bow and sides. It is not like a traditional ocean liner but then NCL is all about breaking with tradition. Jewel is a big happy-looking ship.

It should be noted that this ship is no slouch technologically. She is capable of 25 knots, making her one of the fastest passenger ships in service. Also, with her two azipods and three bow thrusters, she is highly maneuverable.

This ship is based out of Britain during the summer months, doing cruises to Northern Europe. Although the style is distinctly American, she has developed a substantial European following. Freedom of choice has an appeal that transcends national boundaries.

My profile of Norwegian Jewel with information, copies of menus and daily programs, is at http://beyondships.com/NCLJewel.html and the photographic tour and commentary begins at http://beyondships.com/NCLJewel-Tour.html

Norwegian Spirit Revisited

When I started Beyondships.com, one of the first ships that I profiled was Norwegian Spirit. The profile included some basic information, an article that I had written about the ship when she first came to New York and a page of photos. Since then the profiles on the site have become much more extensive and contain much more information. Consequently, I felt that I had to go back and redo Spirit’s profile.

Spirit is a charming ship. She was built as Superstar Leo for the Asian market by Star Cruises. Not long after Star bought Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), the ship was transferred to NCL. She still retains an Asian flavor with an extensive collection of Asian art and a clear Asian influence in the décor of her public rooms. This unifying theme helps to give the feeling that the ship is a coherent whole rather than a polyglot conglomerate of rooms.

In addition, the public rooms were done to a high standard and are well-maintained. This gives the ship an upscale and sophisticated feel.

One thing that particularly impressed me on this visit was the friendliness and attitude of the crew. Quite frankly, I did not remember the ship that way. The staff did their jobs but I do not recall them being particularly open. This time, however, everyone appeared happy and eager to please. Not surprisingly, the passengers seemed to respond to this attitude and the ship had a happy atmosphere.

Since coming to NCL, Spirit mostly has been sailing from New York. For a time, it was all year but more recently, she has been spending time sailing from southern ports such as New Orleans. Next year, she will be taking over the itineraries that had been done by Norwegian Dream, which is leaving the fleet, and will be sailing out of Boston.

The new photo tour of Spirit is consistent with the other photo tours on the site and much more in keeping with what this good ship deserves. It is six pages and documents her public areas as well as some of the staterooms. http://www.beyondships.com/NCLSpirit-Tour.html In addition, on the profile page there are now menus from the main dining room as well as the popular Cagney’s and Le Bistro restaurants. There are also copies of daily programs including children’s programs and a sports program. http://www.beyondships.com/NCLSpirit.html

P&O's Aurora - - Attractive British sophistication

P&O Cruises’ Aurora is an attractive ship. On the outside, she has a relatively long bow for a modern cruise ship and she has a terraced stern that give her a pleasing sleek appearance, particularly evident when she is underway.

Yet, what I was more impressed by was her interior. Everything has been done with taste and refinement. The atmosphere of the public rooms is cosmopolitan and sophisticated. At the same time, even though she is a big ship, there is a welcoming feeling.

Aurora is based in Southampton, England. She specializes in longer cruises that take her to the Baltic, the Black Sea, the Mediterranean, Northern Europe, and even to America and Canada. The vast majority of passengers are British - - after all the ship was built with the British market in mind.

In many respects, Aurora reminds me of Celebrity Constellation. However, life onboard Aurora is more traditional and more formal than on most cruise lines. Dinner in the two main restaurants is done in two seatings with passengers having the same table and waiters for the length of the voyage. I like such a system because a camaraderie usually develops with ones table companions and with the staff over the course of several evenings. Aurora has alternative dining venues that are less formal if one needs a change. There are also tables hosted by the ship’s officers as was the custom in the days of the great liners.

I have posted a profile of Aurora http://www.beyondships.com/PO-Aurora-Profile.html and a photo tour of the ship. http://www.beyondships.com/PO-Aurora-Tour-1.html I hope you enjoy them.