Bermuda's Horseshoe Bay, Royal Princess, Celebrity Constellation

 I've just returned from Bermuda where I was again struck by the beauty of the island's South Shore beaches. These lie in a line along the south west coast and have the island's patented pale pink sand. The waters that lap upon the beaches are turquoise in color. To add some drama, there are periodic rock outcroppings that rise up vertically from the water and/or sand.

The most popular and best known of the South Shore beaches is Horseshoe Bay. It is quite large and has the most facilities of this group of beaches including a place to snack and a place to rent umbrellas and beach chairs.

Horseshoe Bay is not far from the Royal Naval Dockyard where essentially all the cruise ships dock these days. The cruise lines offer transfers to Horseshoe Bay. However, there are a number of other alternatives. Therefore, I've put together an article with some information about how to get to Horseshoe Bay. It is posted at http://www.beyondships3.com/getting-to-horseshoe-bay.html

While Horseshoe Bay is the most popular of the beaches, some of the neighboring beaches are even prettier. Chaplin's Bay, Stonehole Bay, Jobson's Cove and Warwick Long Bay have the pink sand, the dramatic rock formations and the added advantage of being more secluded. They are linked together by a sand trail that I've walked many times. I've put together a video showing some of the vistas along the way. http://www.beyondships3.com/bermudas-south-shore-beaches.html

Last Friday was the first anniversary of the naming of Princess Cruises' Royal Princess by the Duchess of Cambridge. Accordingly, in honor of Royal Princess' first birthday, we present a photo feature showing the ship in St. Maarten and in Southampton during her recent eastbound transatlantic crossing. http://www.beyondships2.com/royal-princess-photo-feature.html

We also have a photo feature and video showing Celebrity Constellation leaving Fort Lauderdale and sailing out at sea. The photo feature is at http://www.beyondships2.com/celebrity-constellation-photos.html and the video is at http://www.beyondships2.com/celebrity-constellation-video.html

Royal Princess: Talking with the Captain and Hotel Manager; Reviews

This week we talk to two of the people who are responsible for running Royal Princess, Princess Cruises' newest ship.

Captain Dino Sagani is a veteran Princess captain. We spoke with him about Royal Princess from a nautical perspective. He explained that the ship is not just innovative in its passenger amenities but also as marine technology. Among other things, Royal Princess is more fuel efficient and has more safety systems than previous cruise ships. Our conversation with Captain Sagani is at http://www.beyondships2.com/royal-princess-captain.html

We also spoke Hotel General Manager Dirk Brand. On a cruise ship, the hotel department provides just about everything that makes up the guests' cruise experience including the accommodations, the dining, and the entertainment. Mr. Brand not only has manged Royal Princess' hotel department since the ship went into service but he was at the shipyard creating that department. Thus, he is in a unique position to talk about what the cruise experience on Royal Princess is all about and to point out some of the new features and amenities guests will encounter onboard. http://www.beyondships2.com/royal-princess-hotel-general-manager.html

One feature that has been enhanced on Royal Princess is The Sanctuary. This is an adults-only retreat dedicated to pampering and relaxation. There are Sanctuaries on the other Princess ships. But like many things on Royal Princess, this one is larger and has more features than those on the earlier ships. We gave it a try and our review is at http://www.beyondships2.com/royal-princess-sanctuary.html

Another enhanced venue is Alfredo's Pizzeria. Most cruises ships have a pizzeria but not like this one. Indeed, Alfredo's is so different from the type of pizzeria that guests expect to find on a cruise ship that Royal Princess has another pizzeria that is designed to meet such expectations. Alfredo's is a sit-down restaurant that serves gourmet, authentic Italian-style pizza. As discussed in our review, it is quite amazing. http://www.beyondships2.com/royal-princess-alfredos.html

Royal Princess profile and photo tour,

This week the focus is on Princess Cruises' latest ship, Royal Princess.

Royal Princess is a significant ship. Not only is she the first new ship brought into service by Princess Cruises since 2008 but she is the first new design implemented by Carnival Corporation in several years.

During this interim, competitors Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Lines have brought out ships that are a radical departure from the past - - Oasis of the Seas, Allure of the Seas, Norwegian Epic and Norwegian Breakaway. Not only were these ships big but they offer a new model of cruising. One in which the guest has quality choices not just about dining but also about entertainment. How would Princess and its parent Carnival Corporation respond.

Royal Princess is a much bigger ship than the rest of the Princess fleet. Indeed, she is the biggest ship in the 100-plus ship Carnival Corporation fleet leaving aside Cunard's Queen Mary 2. At the time of her entry into service, Royal Princess was the ninth largest cruise ship in the world. Thus, she is competitive in size with the new ships launched by Princess' competitors.

She also offers guests more dining options and more entertainment options. However, Princess has been very successful with its existing formula. Therefore, Princess was careful to preserve the feel and style of its existing fleet. It has enhanced rather than abandoned its formula.

Technology underlies many of these enhancements. But an equally important ingredient was space. Princess has used the additional space provided by the great size of the ship to produce visually impressive rooms such as the Piazza but also to ensure that guests do not feel crowded. Passengers frequently have the impression that the ship is not full, even though all of the staterooms are usually occupied.

Beyondships's profile of Royal Princess, with menus, daily programs, information and photos of the ship is at http://beyondships.com/Princess-RP-Profile.html

The multi-page photo tour of the interior and the public spaces of the ship begins at http://beyondships.com/Princess-RP-Tour-1.html

Next, week we will be adding more to our Royal Princess' section including interviews with the captain and the hotel director.