Talking with the Captain and Hotel Manager of Grand Princess; Restaurant reviews; Photos of Celebrity Eclipse

            Clearly, the biggest thing to happen to Grand Princess in recent years is the massive refurbishment that Princess undertook last Spring.  Reportedly, Princess spent $80 million to transform Grand Princess into a new ship.

            Accordingly, when I spoke with the two people who are directly responsible for providing the cruise experience on Grand Princess, her Captain and her General Hotel Manager, the conversation focused on the refurbishment (often referred to as the “drydock” by those onboard).  What was done?  And perhaps more importantly, how has it affected the cruise experience that Grand Princess offers?

            Captain Roger Bilton, first went to sea in 1979 and has been with Princess since 1989.  Hotel General Manager (a position formerly called “Passenger Services Director” at Princess) Adam Gorst has been with Princess three years longer, joining after graduating from hotel school.  Thus, both men have a substantial experience at sea.

            It is difficult to see how anyone could dislike what Princess has done to Grand Princess.  The public areas of the ship are comparable to any in the Princess fleet and Princess is a first rank cruise line.  However, what I found interesting was these two men’s insights into how the changes have affected the ship both nautically and from a hotel perspective.

            My conversation with Captain Bilton and Mr. Gorst is posted at http://www.beyondships2.com/grand-princess-captain-hotel-manager-interview.html

            Two major changes made to Grand Princess were the addition of two new specialty restaurants.  Accordingly, I have posted reviews of both venues.

            Alfredo’s Pizzeria is a concept that debuted on the new Grand Princess.  It is an informal venue located in the ship’s new Piazza complex.  I found it an ideal place to relax after returning to the ship from a morning ashore on one of the Caribbean islands. You can sit by one of the large picture windows and enjoy the sunshine, the view and of course, the food.  More at http://www.beyondships2.com/grand-princess-alfredo-pizzeria-review.html

            The refit also gave Grand Princess the Crown Grill steakhouse.  Yes, Grand Princess had a steakhouse before the refurbishment.  But the Crown Grill is a much more upscale venue with a wider menu.  The concept first debuted on Crown Princess and was so successful that Princess has been adding to its ships ever since.  My review covers both this new Crown Grill and the original Crown Grill on Crown Princess, which I revisited a week after sailing on Grand Princess.  It is posted at http://www.beyondships2.com/grand-princess-crown-princess-crown-grill-review.html

            For a change of pace, I have also posted a new photo essay on Celebrity Eclipse, a personal favorite of mine ever since attending her naming ceremony in 2010.  The third ship in Celebrity’s Solstice class, Eclipse is based in the UK most of the year.  However, in the winter she sails from Miami to the Caribbean.  This photo essay shows this charming ship enjoying the sunshine.  http://beyondships.com/Celebrity-Eclipsephoto-Caribbean.html

Photo Tour of The Grand Princess

The first of the three ships that I sailed on during my recent month of cruising with Princess Cruises was Grand Princess. For students of recent maritime history, Grand Princess’ arrival on the scene in 1998 was a milestone event. She was so much bigger and looked so radically different than traditional cruise ships. It turned out to be a very successful design as well as 10 subsequent cruise ships now sailing for Princess and P&O Cruises are based upon her design.




OK, one might say, Grand Princess may have been a great ship in her day but what is she like now? Last year, Princess undertook the most extensive refit of a ship that it has undertaken to date. It significantly changed the look of the ship both inside and out. On the outside, the ship’s nightclub, which was suspended high over the stern of the ship was removed giving her sleeker lines. (I am told that the nightclub is now a man-made reef). On the inside, the ship was given features that have been so popular on the later Grand Class ships (Crown, Emerald, and Ruby Princesses) such as the Crown Grill steakhouse, Vines Wine Bar and the International Cafe. Other existing areas such as the Horizon Court buffet and the casino were made over. She was also given new features such as Alfredo’s Pizzeria and Leaves tea lounge that debuted on the post re-fit Grand Princess.



In my opinion, the refit worked well. The ship’s public areas are like a new ship. Moreover, in this regard, she is a first rank new ship comparable to any in the Princess fleet.



This does not mean that Grand Princess does not have a personality of her own. Perhaps because she carries less passengers than her younger relations, she has a surprisingly intimate feel for a big ship.



Because Grand Princess is in effect a new ship, I have removed her existing Beyondships profile and photo tour and posted a new profile and photo tour that is much more extensive than the one done in 2007. Even the URLs are different. The profile is now at http://www.beyondships.com/Princess-GP-Profile.html  It has new menus, prorgams (Princess Patters) and other information about the ship. The multi-page photo tour begins at http://www.beyondships.com/Princess-GP-Tour-1.html

Going Ashore - - Atlantis Submarine; Grand Cayman's Seven Mile Beach; and Photo Tour of Aruba

I have just returned from three delightful cruises in the Caribbean, all on Princess Cruises. Good weather, good food, nice people and excellent ships. Princess has done a great job in refurbishing the Grand Princess - - she is like a new ship. Crown Princess, I was very pleased to find, still has the sumptuous cosmopolitan atmosphere that I liked so much when she entered service. But the dark horse of the group was Island Princess, a unique blend of Princess’ Sun and Grand classes that was designed to do some unique cruises. If you are looking for something beyond the standard Caribbean itineraries, take a look at Island Princess. But more about these ships in coming weeks.




This week, Beyondships focuses on going ashore. First, we have a new article about cruising on the Atlantis submarines. These subs are submarines with windows through which the passengers can look out at the undersea world. I found it to be an exciting experience as we cruised through the coral heads and in amongst the sea creatures. Atlantis has subs based in several of the most popular Caribbean ports of call and the cruise ships often offer dives on the subs as a shore excursion. The article is posted at http://www.beyondships2.com/cruise-article---undersea-cruising-on-the-atlantis-submarine.html



The second article is about Seven Mile Beach in Grand Cayman. Seven Mile is a long (actually only about five and a half miles) crescent of white sand bordered by beautiful turquoise waters. It has received much praise and so is a popular attraction on Grand Cayman. The article relates my experience going independently to Seven Mile. It is posted at http://www.beyondships2.com/cruise-article---a-walk-to-seven-mile-beach.html As with the Atlantis submarine article, this article is illustrated with photos.



In addition, the Beyondships cruise destination photo guide to Aruba has been updated and expanded. New additions include the Butterfly Farm, the Ayo Rock Formation and the Aloe Factory as well as some new photos of the beaches. It begins at http://www.beyondships.com/Ports-Aruba.html



On a more somber note, this year marks the 70th anniversary of the fire that destroyed the ocean liner Normandie. She was perhaps the most beautiful liner of all time and was capable of traveling at sustained speeds that none of today’s ships can match. Her demise was not only a loss to the shipping world but a tragic loss to the Allies in World War II as the fire took place as she was being converted to a troopship. To mark the anniversary, I have re-published a short piece that I wrote about the fire several years ago. It is at http://www.beyondships2.com/cruise-article---the-demise-of-the-normandie.html

Photo Essays - Azura and Ruby Princess

When I am out cruising, I often come across other ships that are in a photogenic situation. Sometimes, during the course of a day, there will be opportunities to photograph the ship in different ways. Sometimes the resulting photographs can be put together to tell a story.




This week we have photo essays on two sister ships - - P&O Cruises’ Azura and the Ruby Princess. Although the two ships said for different cruise lines they are sisters. They are both Super Grand Princess class ships built by the Fincantieri ship yards in Italy. P&O at one time was the parent company of Princess and now they are both part of the Carnival Corporation family so it is not surprising that they would share a ship design.



The essay on Azura follows her through a port call at the Caribbean island of St. Kitts. It was a beautiful day and Azura photographed well against St. Kitts’ green mountains and clear blue skies. It is posted at http://www.beyondships.com/PO-Azura-photos-StKitts.html



Just as Azura is P&O Cruises’ latest new-build ship, Ruby Princess is Princess Cruises’ latest new-build. During the winter months, she is based in Fort Lauderdale and in this essay we see her at various times between ending one cruise and beginning another. In addition, we see her making a port call at the popular island of St. Maarten.

It is posted at http://www.beyondships.com/Princess-RU-Photos-1.html