Talking with Cunard Commodore Rynd and Oasis of the Seas Photos

We have two new items this week.




First, we speak with Commodore Christopher Rynd of Cunard Line. The commodore of a passenger ship line is the senior seagoing officer in the line’s fleet. Traditionally, he has been the master of the line’s flagship and unlike a commodore in the military, his role has been pretty much limited to that ship.



Commodore Rynd, who was appointed commodore in April 2011, aims to break with tradition. While his two immediate predecessors as commodore were necessarily focused on bringing the line’s flagship, Queen Mary 2, into service and establishing her as a viable competitor in the modern cruise industry, Commodore Rynd sees his role as extending fleet-wide - - the goal being to further facilitate a unified Cunard product across the line’s three ships.



I sat down with Commodore Rynd during a transatlantic voyage on Queen Mary 2 and asked him about his vision for his new role. As in past interviews, his answers were well-thought out and well-articulated. Our conversation is at http://www.beyondships.com/QM2-Rynd-3.html



The second item this week is a new photo essay on Oasis of the Seas. On November 23, 2011, Oasis paid a call at the Caribbean island of St. Maarten. Although there were five other first-class cruise ships in port with her, Oasis was the center of attention. As the photographs of her during the course of the day and into the evening show, she attracts attention not just because of the enormity of her size but also because of the sense of excitement that she generates. The photo essay is posted at http://www.beyondships.com/RCI-OOS-StMaarten.html

Profile and Photo Tour - Celebrity Constellation

A problem that arises when a cruise line builds a series of new and innovative ships is the effect on the line’s existing ships. Your new ships make your competitors’ ships look less attractive. But without all of the new features of their new fleetmates, your existing ships are also going to look less attractive. The last thing you want is for a customer who has been attracted to your cruise line because of a great experience on your new ship to be disappointed when he or she cruises on one of the line’s older ships.

To avert this outcome, Celebrity Cruises is investing millions of dollars to “Solsticize” its existing fleet. This means taking features that have proven popular on its new Solstice class ships and putting versions of those features on its Millennium class ships. This includes new specialty restaurants, new bars and lounges as well as changes to the décor of the ships. At the same time, the line is refurbishing the ship’s accommodations.

Solsticizing the four Millennium class ships is a complicated undertaking. The Millenniums have always been popular in their own right and so Celebrity would like to maintain their character. However, while they are large ships (91,000 gross tons), they are not as large as the Solstice ships (122,000 gross tons) and they do not have larges areas of unused space. Thus, in order to add new features, some of the existing features would have to go.

Celebrity began this process last Spring with the youngest of the four Millenniums - - Celebrity Constellation. At least in my view, the line managed to carry out the Solsticization very well. The new features add to the cruise experience but at the same time what made Constellation a standout premium ship has been maintained. Constellation is still Constellation; not a mini-version of Solstice.

The best example of this is the addition of the Tuscan Grill specialty restaurant. This concept debuted on Celebrity Solstice and combines Italian cuisine and an American-style steakhouse - - two very popular types of dining. The atmosphere is upscale but not overly formal. On the Solstice ships, this restaurant occupies a large area along the stern of the ship. The comparable space on the Millennium class ships is occupied by the main dining rooms, which are spectacular. So, Celebrity could not simply transplant the Tuscan Grill concept as is to Constellation.

Looking around the Millenniums, Celebrity saw that an area at the top of the ship that had been used as a conservatory/florist shop was rarely used by passengers. Adding some space that had been used for ping pong tables and a lobby area, Celebrity saw there was enough space here for a restaurant. The conservatory’s tall glass windows bring in natural light just as the large windows in the Tuscan Grill on Solstice do. As a result, Celebrity was able to transplant the Tuscan Grill concept to Constellation.

The Beyondships’ photo tour of Constellation has been re-photographed to show the changes that have been made to Constellation. It begins at http://www.beyondships.com/Celebrity-Constellation-Tour-1a.html
In addition, the profile page has new menus, daily programs and other information about the ship. http://www.beyondships.com/Celebrity-Constellation-Profile.html
Finally, we have added a new part II to our photo essay Constellation in the Caribbean showing the ship in more Caribbean ports of call. http://www.beyondships.com/Celebrity-Constellation-Caribbean-2.html
Changing topics, this week Commodore Bernard Warner of Cunard Line retired. Commodore Warner’s firm hand did a great deal to shape Queen Mary 2. We wish him well in his future endeavors.

Cunard also announced that it had appointed Captain Christopher Rynd as its new commodore. Commodore Rynd brings with him a wealth of experience from his time at Princess Cruises and P&O. He is also one of the few masters who can claim to have commanded three of the Cunard Queens - - Queen Mary 2, Queen Victoria and the legendary Queen Elizabeth 2. For more information about Commodore Rynd’s career, see our interview at http://www.beyondships.com/QM2-Rynd-1.html