Disney Cruise Lines – Cruise Line Review

(Before you read this article I would just like to take a moment to say that our thoughts and prayers are with Rebecca Coriam - a crew member who went missing from the Disney Wonder this past week - and her family. And though, the timing of this article and her disappearance are coincidental, it still seems inappropriate to me, to post something about Disney Cruise Lines this week, without mentioning Rebecca.)

I thought I would take this opportunity to introduce a new series of articles here on Ramblings. These articles will be cruise line reviews meant to help anyone reading this blog to get to know the cruise lines and the different products that they offer allowing you, the readers, to make the right choice when choosing who to sail with on your next cruise vacation.

Due to the success of our previous blog involving Disney Cruise Lines, I have decided to start off this series with Disney Cruise Lines! Let me just say first off, that, as you know, I myself have never been on a cruise (sad I know)...everything I write here is based off of years of learning about and getting to know the industry through reading, watching, internet, friends, and many many reviews.

Started in the early 1990’s as an extension to Disney’s extremely profitable theme parks, Disney Cruise Lines (DCL) is a relatively new player and the cruise industry operates three ships - the Disney Magic (1998), the Disney Wonder (1999) and the new Disney Dream (2011) -on cruises to the Bahamas, Caribbean, Europe, the Mediterranean and the Mexican Rivera. Disney currently is operating Disney Magic and Disney Dream in the Caribbean/Bahamas, while the Disney Wonder is sailing out of Los Angeles (YAY!!) to the Mexican Rivera and later in summer, Alaska for the first time in DCL’s history. Interestingly enough, this isn’t Disney first foray into cruising. Disney once had some presence on the ships run by the now gone Premier Cruise Lines.

Ever since it’s first sailing, DCL has been known for its high level of service, attention to detail and overall quality. The line receives consistently good reviews and is already much loved. But why? First of all…the ships… Disney operates some of the most beautiful ships currently sailing both inside and out. The outside is made to echo the beautiful curves and sweeping lines of the great ocean liners of old…the ships even have two funnels (though the forward one is fake). On the inside the ships are decorated in classic, timeless styles such as Art Deco (Disney Magic and Disney Dream) and Art Nouveau (Disney Wonder) and are really quite beautiful even with the Disney so called, “whimsy” (sorry I had to channel the Disney marketing there).

(Above photo - "Disney Magic" by flickr member CenterLine 717")

The ships offer many different amenities for all the different age groups that Disney carries. They have extensive kid facilities (Oceaneers Club & Oceaneers Lab), with spaces for babies, toddlers, young kids, tweens, and teens (Vibe & Aloft). Several areas are, likewise, dedicated to adults only, such as restaurants, clubs, bars, decks, and pools. There are also other spaces dedicated to family fun. The ships each have three pools on the top deck, the Mickey Pool at 2ft deep is for kids (also featuring a water slide), the Goofy Pool (the Donald Pool on the Disney Dream) is the main pool for anyone’s use, and then situated in front of the forward funnel is the Quite Cove Pool exclusively for adults. Disney ships are designed for almost anyone whether you are single, a couple, old, young, or a family.


Dining onboard is noteworthy itself. Disney Cruise Lines uses a dining system call “Rotational Dining” where instead of one large main restaurant there are three smaller ones that passenger rotate between (waiters and servers also rotate with you to insure good, personalized, service). The main restaurants on the different ships vary save for one, Animator’s Palate. On the Disney Magic and the Disney Wonder, this eatery magically (to use a Disney term) transforms from a colorless room with pictures of Disney animation cells on the walls, to a very colorful room that pays homage to Disney’s beautiful animation (to show you how detailed Disney is, for this one room they had a custom score written and recorded to go with the transformation). On the Disney Dream, Animators Palate has many video screens all over the room where Crush, the sea turtle from Disney – Pixar’s “Finding Nemo”, will come and interact with diners….personally, I prefer the older version but no doubt a lot of people will love the feature.

Other restaurants onboard include Disney’s signature, ‘Palo’, an upscale restaurant located at the aft top deck on all Disney ships giving the space incredible panoramic views. The restaurant is adults only and features a great Italian inspired menu. Other than that, the ships, of course, have a buffet and other snack options. On the new Disney Dream Disney introduced a new restaurant called, ‘Remy’ after the main character, Remy, in the Disney – Pixar film “Ratatouille”, with a French inspired menu created by two noted chefs - Chef Arnaud Lallement from l'Assiette Champenoise (a Michelin 2-star restaurant) and Chef Scott Hunnel from award-winning Victoria & Albert's at Walt Disney World Resort –it is easily the most upscale and luxurious dining venue aboard any Disney ship. With its classic Art Nouveau style, and adults only atmosphere, Remy is located next to Palo, on the ships top deck aft, and similarly features beautiful wrap around ocean views.

As far as the entertainment on Disney’s ships goes, understandably it is some of the best, if not the best, at sea according to reviews. Disney original shows and musicals, such as Toy Story (made just for DCL) are preformed every night in the ships, Walt Disney Theater and are usually met with much applause. The ships also feature some of the only dedicated cinemas in the cruise industry, the Buena Vista Theater, which features many first run films on a giant screen. On top of these two options, the ships also have several clubs discos, pools (which I already covered…though I did forget to mention that Disney Dream has a 700ft water coaster), lounges, sports areas and several large parties such as the Sail Away Party, or the nighttime, Pirates of the Caribbean Party, both of which are on the top deck. One other thing that Disney does that no other cruise line in the world does, is a spectacular fireworks show at sea!

Disney has designed their ships to be accommodating to everyone, especially families. One area where this is greatly apparent is in the cabins. DCL standard cabin are larger than usual, better appointed, and on average can accommodate 4 people, and up to 5 in some. On top of this, they have split bathrooms where the bathtub (note that most standard cabin in the industry only have a shower) and a sink in one room, and then the toilet and a sink in another…this convenience allows multiple people to use the facilities at the same time…very nice! Most Disney cruises (at least those in the Bahamas and Caribbean) stop at Disney’s private island of Castaway Cay (previously known as Gorda Cay); a beautiful and lush island used exclusively for Disney Cruise Line guests.Castaway Cay (CAC - we will call it that for short instead of Castaway Cay because I am getting tired of writing Castaway Cay every time I want to refer to Castaway Cay and it is much easier just to say CAC instead of writing out Castaway Cay over and over) since it first entered into operation when Disney Cruise Lines started out, has been called the best of any of the private destinations that the Cruise Lines owe.

The island’s main attraction is its extensive beautiful white sand beaches, crystal clear blue water, and various boating and water activities, such as snorkeling, jet skiing, kayaking or paddle boating. On top of that you can go biking, hiking on a nature trail, eat, drink, play with, and feed stingrays, or go parasailing. The island has three beaches, each of which serves a different purpose. First is the Family Friendly “Castaway Family Beach” – the largest and closest beach to the ship - the teen beach (for teens…obviously), and then the secluded (it's separated from the rest of the island’s amenities by a long walk- or tram ride- down an abandoned runway) “Serenity Bay”, the adults only beach where you can relax, take yoga classes, swim, intertube, or have an open air message in a private cabana on the beach. There is also a small area just for little kids, were they can play different games and dig for whale bones. Unlike other private cruise lines destinations (save for Royal Caribbean’s Labadee), Disney has built a pier for the ship to dock at, allowing passengers to go back and forth between the ship and island whenever you want. Also convenient is the fact that CAC is connected to the ship’s system which allows passengers to charge any purchases made on the island, to their cabin. Everything is designed to make things easy and relaxing for Disney guests.

Disney is known for its great level of service and attention to detail. Often when reading reviews for DCL you will read a lot about the service and the gracious employees and how they made the cruise special. If you have ever stayed at a Disney Resort, you will know how great the service can be, employees are happy, personable, and attentive.

All of this said, there are some things that keep people off of Disney ships (or Disney Resorts for that matter)… the worry that the Disney-ness of it all will be over powering. On DCL you have the characters, you have the Disney movie references, hidden mickeys, Disney shows, Disney parties, Disney themes in the décor and you have Disney themed restaurants… Really, it sounds as if you will be drowning in a pool of Disney on these ships (I am drowning in it just from writing ‘Disney’ over and over again). I have good news though, this isn’t the case. What many people have told me, and what many reviews have said, is that the Disney in these ships is not overpowering, or even too much. Actually, it’s apparently tasteful and done in a way that doesn’t offend. Much of the Disney stuff can be avoided if you so choose, and you can have a great cruise without too much, Disney. Of course, I would be lying if I said that it's not there and that the Disney influence is not strong, but’s its not like you're going to get hugged by some man dressed like a dog (just kidding kids – or Disney fans…… that really is Pluto!) every time you turn a corner because you won’t. Of course if you can’t stand anything Disney, don’t cruise with them…your loss IMO, but really if you don’t want any Disney in your vacation, well, why would you choose them anyway? But really rest assured that you can sail with DCL without getting an overdose of Disney. Again, if you have ever stayed at a Disney Resort, then you will know that while there is a lot of Disney-ness, there is also a very tasteful and nice product.

One other thing that people worry about, is the idea that kids will be running rampant, and acting crazy all over the ship. Well according to what people have said in reviews, the kids are very well behaved, mostly, because they are so well entertained in their own areas. I personally can’t remember ever reading about a naughty kid on a Disney cruise (but I won’t be liable if you choose a Disney cruise after reading this and find that this is not the case ;) ).

Not everything DCL is all peachy and good. There is one major complaint I have about Disney Cruise Lines… the prices. I have griped about this on the blog before but… Disney is expensive and they are expensive pretty much across the board (as in, their parks are also expensive). This is odd because Disney Cruise Lines is part of the ‘mass market’ segment of the cruise industry (along with Carnival, NCL and Royal Caribbean) and knowing that you might, at first, think that their prices would reflect the mass market... Nope. They don’t…they are higher, sometimes by a lot. For example, on April 23rd (my birthday!!!!!) both the Disney Magic and the Oasis of the Seas will be leaving on a 7 day Eastern Caribbean cruise. On the Disney Magic, for 2 people in a standard balcony cabin, you will pay $4,489.02 total for the cruise, whereas on Oasis, with the same arrangements, you would pay $3,346.80 total for the cruise. To make this price contrast worst, the Oasis of the Seas - along with her sister ship the Allure of the Seas - is the largest and most amenity filled cruise ship in the world, it’s practically brand new (((the Disney Magic, by comparison, is around 13 years old))) and is itself, already more expensive than most other ships in the mass market. So basically, Disney is more expensive than a ship that is herself already more expensive than most. Also worth mentioning, is the fact that because of Oasis’ newness and amenities, she can more easily justify her prices as newer and bigger ships tend to be more expensive for the first few years of their operation. (Photo at right - "disney-dream-lobby hal" by flickr member Skimbaco )

The fact is, that Disney can charge for their name. Practically everyone has some sort of emotional attachment to Disney (including me) and will pay through the nose for them (and Disney knows it). However there is some justification to Disney’s prices...higher operating cost. The service level and attention to detail that Disney offers (arguably better than any of the other mass market lines), and the fact that their ships are always immaculate, is expensive for Disney; therefore, prices will be higher in order to recover expenses. Also worth noting is the fact that Disney includes some extra things in your fare (like soda I believe). All that considered, I still think that they charge a little too much…mostly because I really want to sail with them!! I will say though, that this does not apply to every cruise with them; some are available for a relatively good price.

Well, anyway all that said, if you are planning or thinking about a cruise, Disney Cruise Lines is not a bad choice. In fact, I would say they are a great choice whether you are a family, elderly, couple, or even single (apparently a lot of young singles and couple sail on Disney). I am sure you would have fun! I will also be incredibly jealous of you! Hopefully, I will sail with them soon, or maybe at least visit the Disney Wonder here in Los Angeles!

CHECK OUT OUR DISNEY WONDER IN LOS ANGELES ALBUM HERE : https://picasaweb.google.com/104983304629890664189/DisneyWonderInLosAngeles#

P.S. Have you sailed with Disney? If so, then we would love to hear your thoughts on them!

Blog Update

Hello Readers!

I just wanted to give you a quick update. As you, I am sure, have noticed, there has been a lack of new articles in the last week or so. Let me first say, sorry, things have been busy. Secondly, let me say, there is a lot of new things to talk about in upcoming articles, so keep reading!!

Cruise Shipping Miami, the industry's largest trade show, just took place in Miami, giving me much to say about the industry now and the future of the industry. So I will be talking about that but also Princess Cruises new ship, Royal Princess, and there will be the first of a new series of articles - "Cruise Line Reviews" - meant to help those of you who are not shipgeeks, get to know the different lines and products that we have in the cruise industry. The first will be a review of Disney Cruise Lines!

I am hoping to have it up by tomorrow (Thursday) but I make no guaranties as over the next few days, our computer will be going through a very extensive overhaul and I won't be able to post.

Thanks for reading!

-Mark the Shipgeek!

What’s New? Cruise News!

Well it’s been a few weeks, at least, since I have done one of my updates on the cruise industry, so I figured I ought to do one. So……here you go. I will try to be brief.

Royal Caribbean’s New Order.

This past month Royal Caribbean signed a letter of intent with the Meyer-Werft Shipyards in Papenburg, Germany for an entirely new ship to be launched in 2013 with the possibility for more orders. Dubbed Project Sunshine, the ship will be around 158,000grt- which far out weighs the 120,000-130,000grt tons that I had predicted in an earlier article (SEE HERE)- and will feature some Oasis Class amenities…though RCI has not said which.

Rumors had been going on for weeks that RCI was working on something new. There was even speculation that it would be with the Meyer-Werft shipyard. These rumors were confirmed a few weeks back when Royal Caribbean Chairman and CEO confirmed at an earnings call, that RCI was working on something new, but offered no real detail into the ship. Now, we know where the ship will be built, its size, that it will have amenities from Oasis and we can even guess at some of its dimensions (based on the fact that ships built at Meyer-Werft have several things limiting there size, such as the fact that they are built indoors and then have to sail down river to reach the ocean).

The ships size puts it somewhere between the Voyager Class ships and the larger super-voyager Freedom Class, in terms of size. Some have already speculated that this means that essentially, this ship will be basically a modified Freedom Class ship. I disagree with that, however. The Freedom Class ships where built and partially designed in Finland, this ship will be produced by another yard. On top of that RCI has stated that she will have Oasis touches. If any of these touches are the bigger amenities, they will require an entirely new design to accommodate them. Also, I think considering RCI’s new build history, that they won’t disappoint. Fact is, we will just have to wait and see.

Australia’s Continued Growth

Australia’s cruise industry got another huge boost this week with Celebrity’s announcement that they will be basing the practically brand new, Celebrity Solstice (being launched in November 2008 she’s not even 3 years old yet) in Sydney for the 2012-2013 cruise season. This news comes just weeks after Carnival announced that they will be sending their own Carnival Spirit down under. This really is a big step for Australia as a cruise market.

The Celebrity Solstice is without a doubt, one of the most stylish and sophisticated ships currently in service. The first of the much praised, Solstice class, she is around 122,000grt and features many amenities such as the first grass covered deck at sea, a glass blowing museum and show, and some of the best interior (if not the best) design of any ship afloat. The onboard atmosphere is laid back and casual, but at the same time stylish and sophisticated and a little on the formal side, but very decidedly not stuffy………very Celebrity Cruise-esque. You Australians are really getting a great ship!

The Solstice will operate on 13 and 12 night voyages, starting in December 2012. She will also run a circumnavigation of Australia. (Photo at right - "Celebrity Solstice" by flickr member jens.steinbeisser )

Also in the news for Australia, Holland America has also announced this week that they too, will be basing one of their ships, the Oosterdam, out of Sydney for the 2012-2013 season. Fewer details have been released on her deployment, but according to Cruise Critic she will be sailing 10 to 25 day cruises.

Oosterdam, launched in 2003, is the second ship in the Vista Class. And while not quite as stylish as Celebrity Solstice, she is still a perfectly nice ship. The only sad thing about this deployment is that it represents a further loss for the California cruise market, as this ship, up until now, spends winter spring and fall sailing out of San Diego to the Mexican Riviera (In fact I spent several hours in October looking at the ship in San Diego).

(Photo above - "IMGP8934" by flickr member joshhikes)

Texan Princess

The Port of Galveston, TX, has been growing steadily as a prominent cruise port for several years now, with several cruise lines sending some of their bigger and nicer ships there. Ships like Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas, Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Conquest, and even Carnival's newest ship, Carnival Magic, will call the port home (when she's launched later this year, and after a few month sailing the Mediterranean for the Europe cruise season). Further, RCI’s Mariner of the Seas, which recently left Los Angeles, will be replacing the Voyager of the Seas, in Galveston, later in November of this year. Several smaller, less prominent ships, like Carnival Ecstasy, have also been based in the port.

This past week, Princess Cruises announced that their ship, the Crown Princess, will be based in Galveston, starting in December 2012. The ship is currently scheduled to be there until April of 2013.

Crown Princess, launched in 2006, is one of Princess’ largest ships, and number 7 in the Grand Class series of ships. In my opinion, this ship and Princess Cruises in general, are between the premium segment and the mass market segment of cruising. This makes the ship a step up for Galveston, because up until now, the port has been served by mostly RCI and Carnival, both of which are mass market. The ship isn’t the most stylish…in fact, Princess ships are often described as bland, however, this bland-ness gives Princess something of an advantage as it will offend no one, but at the same time, it offers a great cruise experience. Princess has a very solid and very consistent product. Texas is getting a nice and pleasant ship. (photo at right - "Crown Princess" by flickr member JohnFinn )

P.S. Don’t judge the ship by it exterior…she’s not really ugly but she’s no beauty queen either….she’s interesting and actually, in my own way, I kind of like her looks.

Oceania in Los Angeles

A couple of weeks ago, Oceania’s new ship, Marina, made her inaugural call in Los Angeles…of course I was there. (Check out our photo album! Look for the link on the “photos” page above).
While there is not much to say about my experience with the ship (I just looked at her and took a lot of pictures), there is still a lot to say about this ship. Launched just over one month ago in Miami, FL, the ship is the first new ship to be built by the relatively young Oceania Cruises. Her design is based on Oceania’s three smaller ships - Insignia, Regatta, and Nautica, (all of which are from the “R” Class of ships) – but still, the ship is distinctive in her own way. Her interiors are slightly more modern than her fleet mates, and somewhat flashier (in a good way). Foodies will be happy on this ship, as she is full of some great and exclusive food offerings, including famed Chef Jacques Pepin’s first restaurant at sea or on land.

Already, this ship is getting rave reviews.

Cunard’s Australia Royal Rendezvous

In the last couple of weeks, the Queen Mary and Queen Victoria Royal Rendezvous wasn’t the only one, no, the whole Cunard fleet had their time in the spotlight. In Sydney, the glorious Queen Mary 2, and the new Queen Elizabeth, sailed in tandem into port for a call in Sydney. Thousands of shipgeeks and non-shipgeeks alike lined the shores of Sydney Harbor to watch this great event.

This event has historical implications, as Sydney was home to a rendezvous between the two original Cunard Queens, Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth, during their heroic war time service in WWII. There was even a WWII veteran there, who apparently saved the Queen Mary from a U-Boat during her troop transporting days.

Cunard is probably the only shipping line in the world that can generate so much interest in its ships (even among non-shipgeeks) wherever it sails to. I was struck by just how many non-shipgeeks were on the Queen Mary, this past Thursday, to see her rendezvous with Queen Victoria.

Both QM2 and Queen Elizabeth are currently on their World Cruises.

Blog News

You might have noticed some recent changes made to our page. If not let me direct your attention to them… If you look to the top of our page, you will see a new menu bar with “Home, Cruise Lines, Ships, Photos, Other Sites, The Shipgeek and Contact Us”.

These changes are in response to the continued growth of our blog and in an effort to offer more things on here. While these pages are still being worked on, you can still use them to find a cruise line, see what ships we think are worthy of note, check out hundreds of cool pictures, look at other great cruise and ship related websites, read about me and my own shipgeek journey, and finally, you can contact us through email for any questions, comments or just to say hi!

It’s pretty amazing to see just how fast the blog is growing! I want to thank all of you readers for your continued support and readership! GASP!!! That word has ship in it!!! :D

(Above photo - "CELEBRITY SOLSTICE" by flickr member steamboatsorg)

Queen Mary, meet Queen Victoria!

Wow! Tonight has been really incredible! It was amazing! It was a spectacle of Cunard's greatness! It was so great, I nearly had a heart attack (not to mention the weird sounds and faces I made, as I “geeked out”).

For those of you who don’t know, the Queen Victoria, which has been based here in Los Angeles for the last few weeks, sailed over to Long Beach to – as Cunard puts it, "rendezvous with her older fleet mate and first Cunard Queen, the Queen Mary." It was beautiful! (*tear).

Now, in the over 40 years that the Queen Mary has been in Long Beach, this is only the second time that one of Cunard’s ships has visited her there. The first time was in 2006, when the great and beautiful Queen Mary 2 came to meet to her namesake and predecessor. That was really, really incredible, and I really wish Cunard would do that again! (even though I don’t think I was far enough along in my shipgeek-ness at the time, to really completely appreciate that moment…nowadays I would be head over heels in love).

It makes me really happy to see Cunard acknowledging the Queen Mary. Often, companies tend to forget about their history and move on. When Cunard does things like this though, it draws attention to their history and the Queen Mary, and in my opinion it shows that they care. I LOVE YOU CUNARD!!!!!!!!! AHHHH!!!!

Anyways, back to tonight (even though, by the time this is posted it will be last night), or rather today (cause it all really started before night time). In the early afternoon, I left my hometown of Pasadena (about 20 some odd miles north of the Queen Mary) for the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro. I was going there to see the Queen Victoria one last time before she left LA.

Upon arrival there, I saw her, the Queen Victoria, looking beautiful while docked at Berth 93 at the World Cruise Center. After fainting a couple of times (from the sheer awesomeness), I took many pictures from many different angles. Then, after being there for an hour, I left and headed on over to the Queen Mary in Long Beach. Luckily for me, the Queen Mary was free today, in honor of the event, so I just walked on.

After squeezing on to an elevator with 50 gazillion other people, I was on. Oh how I love to be on the Queen Mary…there really is nothing else quite like her, and even though I go there often, I never get tired of it. I walked around a little bit -noticing the crowd gathering already- and then bought myself pizza and a cookie (a tradition of mine). After I had finished eating, I went over to the aft boat deck, where many other shipgeeks were already gathering. There we waited for the next hour or so, waiting for the Queen Victoria to show herself. It sounds funny to say (or write) this, but, you really could feel the anticipation in the group. Everyone seemed excited, waving little British flags that had been handed out, and talking about our favorite thing…ships!

I had considered going back to San Pedro, to watch the ship depart from there and then race back to the Queen Mary for the rendezvous, but after figuring that there would be no time to do this, I walked forward to the Queen Mary’s bridge, from where, I could see the Queen Victoria moving in the distance. I took a few pictures, and then went back to the aft decks.

As Queen Victoria made her way on over, more and more people showed up. This actually took me be surprise. I expected a fair amount of people, but to be honest, I didn’t expect as many as we got. Queen Victoria doesn’t have the same “star power” that the QM2 has so I didn’t think she would draw that huge of a crowd. I am very happy to say that I was wrong…there were a ton of people!

(above image - "Queens Victoria & Mary" by flickr member Don & Stella )

Finally, Queen Victoria started to approach us. It was a beautiful sight in the light of the fading sky. The ship was all lit up for the occasion, and I swear there are not many sights more beautiful than a ship, lit up at night, or twilight. She got closer and closer (much closer than the Queen Mary 2 was able to get in 2006) and everyone was scrambling around trying to get the best picture they could. After about 10 or 15 minutes, a fireworks show started up, with fireworks shooting from the Queen Mary herself, her breakwater and a barge floating in the harbor. It was short, but quite beautiful! And very exciting!

After that, Queen Victoria turned around and very slowly sailed away as the crowds dispersed. I was one of the few that stayed and watched her till she was completely gone.

(above photo -"Long Beach, Ca." by flickr member RickWarrenPhotos )

It was a great and fun time. It was also great to be around that many other shipgeeks…we really are a special breed if you ask me. :D

I ended my Cunard night by walking around the Queen Mary which was nice…even though, I kid you not; at one point someone seriously thought that I was a ghost (interesting). And while I have been pretty much to every public space on the ship (not every one though), I did find a few new places (even though I wasn’t really supposed to go into these new places, strictly speaking ;) ).

I am home now, very happy after a great day. There were a couple of bummers though, firstly that I did not talk to anyone there! It’s kind of funny, but believe it or not, I am pretty shy. I wanted to talk to other people, especially some Cunard employees who were there, but when the time came to do it, I had a hard time getting myself to do so. The other bummer is how fast it all went. I have been so excited waiting for this day, and now its over. On top of that, Queen Victoria and Cunard, won’t be back on this side of the continent till December!

Oh well, that aside, I still had a great day!

For more photo's of the event you can check out our Picasa Album https://picasaweb.google.com/104983304629890664189/QueenVictoriaQueenMaryTheMeetingOfTheTwoQueens3311#

The First Lady of the United States…

Back in her day she was the fastest and greatest that had ever been produced. She was an international symbol of American power, ingenuity and quality. She was, and still is, the SS United States, the flagship of our nation and the crown jewel in our maritime crown.

Though most people wouldn’t know her, her place in our nation’s proud maritime history is irreplaceable.

Though she was, as one person put it, “a symbol of America at peace”, this beautiful liner was actually designed and built with war in mind. During WWII the Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth ferried hundreds of thousands of troops to the front, safely and fast, with each voyage carrying upwards of 10,000 men. One Queen Mary voyage still holds the record for the most people ever carried at one time, with over 16,000 troops carried. The heroic and valuable wartime career of the two Cunard Queens was credited by Winston Churchill, as having lessened the war by more then a year, a fact not lost on the United States.

Because of the great war-time service of the two Queens, by the late 1940s, the United States wanted such ships for themselves. They wanted a great ocean liner to symbolize the post war power, might and ingenuity of the US, on an international level, the North Atlantic ferry. But they also wanted a ship that could provide fast, safe and reliable troop transporting services in the time of war.

To design this great ship, the US called upon the self taught Naval Architect, William Francis Gibbs, one of the pre-eminent naval architects of his day. The ship he designed was larger than any passenger ship yet built in the US, and was faster, safer and more powerful then any other ship in service. Designed with exacting Navy specifications, the ship was heavily compartmentalized to maximize survivability, was designed to be able to sail non-stop for 10,000 nautical miles, and was completely fire proof (according to legend the only wood onboard were the chopping blocks and the piano). His design was revolutionary. An awesome combination of warship and luxurious ocean liner. (photo at left- William Francis Gibbs with his creation)

Built in Newport News, Virginia, the project was a joint effort between the United States Navy and the United States Line. Of the $78 million it cost to build her, the US government contributed $50 million, while the operator, the United States Lines, contributed the remaining $28 million.

The ship was equipped with the most powerful steam turbines of any merchant ship. This gave the ship immense speed and power. On her speed trials the ship was reported to have reached over 40 knots (close to 50 mph) while other more conservative reports say the official top speed was 36 knots…to this day no one seems really sure which claim is true.

Out of all the work, testing, building and designing, came one of the most beautiful ships to ever grace the Atlantic, or any of the world's oceans. Just looking at her, she conveyed a sense of power and prestige. Her two huge red, white and blue funnels looked beautiful atop the gleaming white superstructure and her shining black hull. With a low profile, the ship looked just as fast as she was. She had the angles and structural look of a warship, but still had the graceful lines and beauty that could rival any ocean liner.

Setting off on her maiden voyage on July 3rd, 1952, the ship smashed all speed records (which have previously been held by the Queen Mary for 14 years), crossing the pond in 3 days, 10 hours and 40 minutes (QUEEN MARY WAS STILL GREATER!!!!!). Then again on the return crossing, she conquered the westbound record at 3 days, 12 hours and 12 minutes, officially wining the coveted Blue Riband (the unofficial accolade given to the liner with the fastest crossing time between Europe and America) for the United States; the first time the US won it in over 100 years.

(Photo above- The United States (top) passing her older fleet mate the America (bottom) in NYC)

For the next 17 years the ship sailed the line between England and her home port of New York. During that time she was the ultimate way to cross (apart from the Queen Mary of course….but that goes without saying), carrying many of the worlds elite, from the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, movie stars, kings, presidents (including a young President Clinton) and many others. She was safe, reliable, fast and profitable.

She was the pride of our nation’s merchant fleet, and known all over the world. Everybody wanted to cross on her (obviously because their first choice, the Queen Mary, was full so they went to the next best thing), there were books, songs and records made for, or about the ship. In fact, Walt Disney, while sailing on the United States, was so taken with her that he made her the center piece of the film, “Bon Voyage”. To sail on the SS United States was to sail on the best (after the Queen Mary).

But even all this popularity and fame could not stop a large change that was about to come to the North Atlantic. In 1957 the first jet powered crossing of the Atlantic took place and practically overnight, clumsy jets were taking over the business from the stately ocean liners. Though the United States continued sailing, not even she was safe. Over time as more and more passengers flew, passenger numbers on all the great liners began to fall drastically. Finally in 1969, the United States Lines pulled the United States out of service and laid her up in Virginia. After only 17 years of active service, she would never sail under her own power again…

In the decades following, she passed from owner to owner with several different ideas on how to utilize her. One plan was to use her as a time share cruise ship, another, considered by NCL, was to use her as their new cruise ship (before opting for the SS France instead), and yet another was to use her as a hospital ship. None of these plans even came close to materializing.

In 1984 her remaining fittings were removed and sold at auction and are now in various collections all over the country. Then in the early nineties, the ship became the center of attention because of asbestos onboard. Subsequently, the ship was towed across the Atlantic to Turkey and the Ukraine, where she underwent asbestos removal in 1994. Returning to the United States, the ship was laid up in South Philadelphia where she remains to this day.

In 2003 the most solid, though still unlikely, idea for the ship's future started to materialize when NCL bought the ship with the intention of restoring her, and returning her to active service for their newly announced NCL America initiative. The idea was that the ship would sail inter-island cruises in the Hawaiian Islands. Being US built and registered, the United States was one of only a few ships that could do this service, as the Jones Act limits the service of foreign built and flagged ships in inter-island Hawaiian cruises.

After purchasing the liner, NCL conducted studies of the ships condition and found that the she was in sound condition (a testament to the skill of her designer and builders) and it was stated that the Big U (as she is affectionately called) would be their next project. However, like all the other plans, this was not to be. NCL America ended up as a large and expensive failure. Starting off with 3 modern cruise ships, NCL America was downsized to a one ship operation after only a short time in service. This doomed any idea that the Big U would serve NCL, and in 2009 the ship was up for sale.

Enter the United States Conservancy (USC). For years now, the USC has worked hard to ensure that this wonderful ship has a positive future that would preserve it in some form for future generations, whether that be in an active cruising roll, or as a static attraction, much like the Queen Mary in Long Beach, California. After years of hard work and lobbying, the Conservancy has brought attention to the sad plight of our nation's forgotten flagship, and the ship's story has appeared in many prominent news outlets around the country, gaining it any supporters.

Recently, after years of effort the USC was able to buy the ship from NCL for $3 million. NCL had previously received bids from scrappers for almost $6 million but luckily choose the USC’s smaller, but much more worthy bid. (THANK YOU NCL!!!!).

Now though, starts the real challenge. The USC only has a limited amount of time to find a home and come up with a viable idea for the ship's future. Currently several cities including New York, Miami and Philadelphia are being considered for the future home of this ship. The hope is to turn the ship into the center of a large housing, retail, convention and entertainment center. The ship could serve as a boutique hotel, with designer rooms (remember that the ship interiors were removed necessitating the installation of new ones), shops and restaurants. On top of that there could be parks, apartments and more, in the area surrounding her. (picture at left- a concept drawing of what could be)

To make sure that this happy future happen for the Big U, the conservancy needs help. I would like to encourage my readers to make any donation that you can to the United States Conservancy. I am sure I probably fail in this article to convey the great historic importance and value of this ship, but please, let me assure you that this ship is worth saving. Many other great liners and ships have gone to the breakers; this ship should be the exception. She is the last real remaining piece of America’s proud passenger ship heritage, there are none like her. Of all the great ocean liners and Ships of State, she and the Queen Mary are pretty much the last substantial examples remaining. We can’t let her go.

I find it kind of ironic that in a city famous for its American history, with things like the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, or the many other historical artifacts/sites, that a major piece of American history like the Big U can sit in disrepair, forgotten. It’s really quite sad.

Even in her current state, however, the ship still has immense presence and beauty. She’s one of my favorite ships. I love her like crazy (not as much as the Queen Mary of course), everything from the huge oversized funnels, to her unique place in our history. She’s something special. Now me, and the many others who love her, can only hope that this beautiful ship continues, preserved, for many years to come.

(The Big U sailing out of New York on one of her crossings)

Please visit the United States Conservancy website @ http://www.ssunitedstatesconservancy.org/