Your first cruise ship

[Copper10-8]

 

 

In July 2009, Carnival Corporation announced that Costa Europa would join British tour operator Thomson Cruises under a 10-year bareboat charter beginning in April 2010. Under the agreement, Thomson has an option to purchase the ship after five years. In Thomson’ service, the ship was renamed Thomson Dream with a capacity for 1,506 passengers. At 54,000 gross registered tons, she currently is Thomson’s biggest and most luxurious ship.

 

Thomson Dream is operating out of Palma de Mallorca, one of Spain’s Balearic islands, where she is joining Thomson Destiny during the summer months. She is sailing 3 and 7-night itineraries with port calls at Civitavecchia (Rome) and Florence, Italy as well as at Barcelona, Spain and La Goulette in Tunisia.

 

 

 

 

Edited August 23, 2010 by Copper10-8

[Guest LoveMyBoxer]

Quick question, how do you put the pictures within the message box and not as an attachment???? Thanks

[Copper10-8]

Quick question, how do you put the pictures within the message box and not as an attachment???? Thanks

 

Just another cut-and-paste job, LoveMyBoxer;) Liked your Veendam review a lot, especially the title!:D

[RevNeal]

Hey, Copper, it's interesting that the Thomson Line now has three different HAL ships -- the old N-class ships Nieuw Amsterdam and Noordam and, now, the old Westerdam! When you say that it's a "bareboat charter," what do you mean? It sounds like the term might mean that it is a lease of just the ship, and none of its contents. Is that what it means?

[Copper10-8]

For the wife: 1968 The "France".

For both of us : 1972 Italian American Lines "Homeric"

 

Pretty sure I got the years right.

 

Gramps

 

ss France (1962-2008) Built in 1962 as ocean liner ss France by Chantiers de l'Atlantique, St. Nazaire, France for La Compagnie Generale Transatlantigue (CGT) aka the French Line. She was constructed to replace the line's other, by then considered old and outdated ships, ss Ile de France and ss Liberte.

 

On 11 May 1960, she was blessed by the Bishop of Nantes, Monseigneur Villepelet, and launched by her godmother, Madame Yvonne de Gaulle, wife of the French President, and was then named France, in honor both of the country, and of the two previous CGT ships to bear the name. After her launch, her propellers were installed (the entire process taking over three weeks), the distinctive funnels affixed to her upper decks, her superstructure completed, life boats placed in their davits, and her interiors fitted out. She then undertook her sea trials on 19 November, 1961, and averaged an unexpected 35.21 knots. With the French Line satisfied, the ship was handed over, and undertook a trial cruise to the Canary Islands with a full complement of passengers and crew.

 

Her maiden voyage to New York took place on 3 February 1962, with many of France's film stars and aristocracy aboard. Once in service, ss France served as the line's flagship from 1961 until 1974 on the Le Havre to New York run, as well as gaining the distinction of being the world's longest liner of all-time (1,035 feet long). This record remained unchallenged until the construction of the RMS Queen Mary 2 in 2004. In service, ss France would combine regular transatlantic crossings - six days and nights - with occasional winter cruises, as well as two world circumnavigations.

After a little more than a decade of service that included 377 transatlantic crossings, the economics that doomed the North Atlantic ocean liner generally caught up with the ss France. It was decided to take her out of service resulting in massive protests from the French population and even a hijack by her crew. On 7 December 1974 however, she was moored at a distant quay in Le Havre, known colloquially as the Quai de l'oubli - the pier of the forgotten. The ship sat in the same spot for approximately five years, with her interiors, including all furniture, still completely intact.

 

 

There were no plans to scrap her, nor to sell her. However, in 1977 Saudi Arabian millionaire Akram Ojjeh expressed an interest in purchasing the vessel for use as a floating museum for antique French furniture and artworks, as well as a casino and hotel off the coast of the south-east United States. Though he did purchase the ship for $24 million U.S., this proposal was never realised, and others were rumored to have floated, including bids from the Soviet Union to use her as a hotel ship in the Black Sea, and a proposal from the People's Republic of China to turn her into a floating industrial trade fair.

In June 1979, Knut Kloster and Norwegian Caribbean Line came calling and purchased the France for $18 million U.S. She was towed from Le Havre to Lloyd Werft shipyard in Bremerhaven, Germany for an extensive and expensive (close to $65 million U.S.) refit to make her suitable for cruising as the largest cruise ship afloat. At Bremerhaven, among other renovations, she would receive a set of five side thrusters, upgraded air-conditioning and reinforced hull plating. Her former black hull was repainted in a medium-dark blue. She emerged from Bremerhaven in the spring of 1980 as ss Norway and made a special visit to the City of Oslo, Norway before once more crossing the North Atlantic to arrive in New York City on 16 May 1980.

 

 

Once she reached her new home port of Miami, Fl. on the north side of the Dodge Island cruise terminal, NCL put her to work on the seven-night Caribbean run which included a stop at St. Thomas, USVI. Her size, passenger capacity, and amenities revolutionized the cruise industry and started a building frenzy as competitors began to order bigger and larger ships. As cruise competition attempted to take some of Norway's brisk business, the Norway herself was upgraded several times in order to maintain her position as the "grande dame" of the Caribbean, including the addition of new decks to her superstructure.

 

Competition eventually overtook the Norway, and she even started taking a back seat to other ships in NCL's lineup. No longer the "Ship amongst Ships", her owners severely cut back on her maintenance and upkeep. She experienced several mechanical breakdowns, fires, incidents of illegal waste dumping, and safety violations for which she was detained at port pending repairs. Despite the cutbacks, the ship remained extremely popular among cruise enthusiasts, some of whom questioned the owner's actions in light of the continuing successful operation of the RMS Queen Elizabeth 2, which had become a well-maintained rival operating 5-star luxury cruises for Cunard.

 

 

 

On 25 May 2003, after docking in Miami at 5:00 a.m., the Norway was seriously damaged by a boiler explosion at 6:30 a.m. that killed eight crew members, and injured seventeen, as superheated steam flooded the boiler room, and blasted into crew quarters above through ruptured decking. None of the passengers were affected. On 27 June, 2003, NCL and her parent, Malaysian-based Star Cruises, decided to relocate her. She departed Miami under tow headed towards Europe and eventually arrived in Bremerhaven, Germany on 23 September, 2003.

 

 

In Bremerhaven she was used as accommodation for NCL crew training to take their places on board the line's new Pride of America which was being build there. Due to large amounts of asbestos aboard the ship (mostly in machine and bulkhead areas), the Norway was not allowed to leave Germany for any scrap yards due to the Basel Convention. However, after assuring the German authorities that she would go to Asia for repairs and further operation in Australia, she was allowed to leave port under tow on 23 May 2005 arriving at Port Klang, Malaysia on 10 August 2005.

 

In December 2005, Norway was sold to an American naval demolition dealer for scrap value and she was to be towed to Alang, India for demolition. However, in light of protests from Greenpeace, potentially lengthy legal battles due to environmental concerns over the ship's breakup, and amidst charges of fraudulent declarations made by the company to obtain permission to leave Bremerhaven, her owners cancelled the sale contract, refunded the purchase price, and left the ship where she was.

 

She was eventually sold in April 2006 to Bridgend Shipping Limited of Monrovia, Liberia, and renamed ss Blue Lady in preparation for scrapping. One month later she was again sold, to Haryana Ship Demolition Pvt. Ltd., and was subsequently left anchored in waters off the Malaysian coast after the government of Bangladesh refused her entry into their waters due to the onboard asbestos. Three weeks later, the ship began its journey towards Indian waters, and mid-July 2006 found her anchored 100 km off the Indian coast.

 

After lengthy court battles, and the arrival of Blue Lady at Alang, India, the Indian Supreme Court ruled on 11 September 2007 (the 33rd anniversary of the ss France's last day on the Atlantic), that she was safe to scrap. By 4 December of the same year, the tip of her bow had been cut; a ceremonial move done to most ships that end up in Alang just prior to the full scale breaking of a ship. On 20 January 2008, scrapping of Blue Lady had commenced on the forward part of the sun deck. The suites added during the 1990 refit were gone by March. By 12 July 2008, the bow and the stern of the ship had been removed, with little of the ship's famous profile still recognizable. By September 2008, most of what remained above the waterline had been cut away, and the ship's destruction was essentially completed by late 2008.

 

 

[Copper10-8]

Some additional pics of a legend:

 

 

As France at Le Havre, France

 

 

As France for La Compagnie Generale Transatlantigue (CGT) aka the French Line

 

 

As Norway for Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL)

 

 

Departing Lloyd Werft in Bremerhaven, Germany under tow to Port Klang, Malaysia on 23 May 2005 and passing NCL's new Pride of America

 

 

Departing Lloyd Werft in Bremerhaven, Germany under tow to Port Klang, Malaysia on 23 May 2005

[RevNeal]

Quick question, how do you put the pictures within the message box and not as an attachment???? Thanks

 

In order to post photos on these threads without doing so as attachments, you must first have the photos you want to display here hosted somewhere on the internet: either in a subdirectory of your own website or on a photo collection website of some kind. One then uses the IMG hypertext links ( [ and ] ) with the web address of the photo you wish to link to and display on the thread in between them. The phone will then load on the page as a image, not as a hyperlink.

[brooklyn66]

I went in my early 20's with an aunt and uncle, he worked for AAA. Some italian line: don't remember the name. I loved it.

Then for a honeymoon, we did Alaska with an inside cabin... had a fabulous time! we didn't even have a double bed, twins across the room, but didn't faze us in the least! our first HAL and we loved it.

[Guest LoveMyBoxer]

In order to post photos on these threads without doing so as attachments, you must first have the photos you want to display here hosted somewhere on the internet: either in a subdirectory of your own website or on a photo collection website of some kind. One then uses the IMG hypertext links ( [ and ] ) with the web address of the photo you wish to link to and display on the thread in between them. The phone will then load on the page as a image, not as a hyperlink.

 

Thank you Rev Neal. Took me about an hour, but I finally figured it out, I think, as you saw the picture I posted.

[Copper10-8]

Wow...So many replies!! Great thread!

 

Our first cruise was aboard the Noordam III to the Western Carribean in 1994. We loved it and the HAL experience. Once dh retires, we hope to take many more cruises and much longer ones.

 

Next cruise is aboard the Nieuw Amsterdam on November 7 and in December, we are going to enjoy the Oasis of the Seas. It will be quite a contrast and the first time we have sailed a line other than HAL.

 

Our 1st cruise was in early August, 1995, on HAL's old Noordam out of Vancouver, B.C. for 7 days through Alaska's Inside Passage. We caught the cruise bug and got hooked! We have yet to try the new Noordam but definitely want to.

 

ms Noordam III (1984-present). Built by Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard, St. Nazaire, France as ms Noordam and delivered to Holland America Line on 31 March 1984 as the second of two identical sisters which would be known as the "N"-class with HAL. Her older sister, Nieuw Amsterdam III had preceded her on 17 June 1983 from the same yard. They would be the last new-builds for the, at that time, Dutch-owned Holland-Amerika Lijn and both were designed in the Netherlands.

She was the third ship to bear the name Noordam in Holland America Line’s then 111-year history. Her name, Noordam, refers to the compass heading "North" as "Noord" in Dutch, stands for "North". Noordam I operated for Holland America Line from 1902 until 1923. She was built by Harland & Wolff Limited in Belfast, Northern Ireland and launched in 1902. After delivery to HAL, she operated on their regular Rotterdam to New York run. She was one of the few trans-Atlantic liners to maintain regular sailings during the First World War. In doing so, she was damaged by mines in the North Sea in October 1914 and in August 1917. As a result, she was laid up for the remainder of the war until 1919 and the resumed service. From 1923 until 1926 she was chartered to the Swedish American Line and renamed Kungsholm. Noordam I was scrapped in 1926 at Hendrik Ido Ambacht in the Netherlands.

The second Noordam was built by the P. Smit Jr. Machinefabriek & Shipyard in Rotterdam, the Netherlands and served the line between 1938 and 1963. She departed on her maiden voyage in September 1938 and marked a new era in trans-Atlantic travel; the “combi” liner combining deluxe one-class accommodation (all but one cabin outside and all with private facilities, the first on the Atlantic) and substantial cargo capacity. After the outbreak of World War II, HAL transferred Noordam to a New York to Java (Dutch East Indies) via Cape of Good Hope, South Africa service in February 1940. From 1942 through 1945 she served as a U.S. troopship and in July 1946 resumed her traditional Rotterdam to New York service. In May 1963 she was purchased by Cielomar S.A. who chartered her to France-based Messageries Maritimes under the new name of Oceanien on a Marseilles, France to Sydney, Australia service. In 1967, she was scrapped at Split, (then) Yugoslavia.

 

 

 

 

Noordam III ran her technical trials between 16 and 20 February and on 5 and 6 March 1984 in the Atlantic Ocean and English Channel. After her acceptance by her new owners, Noordam sailed from St. Nazaire to Le Havre, France, arriving there on 6 April. The next day, she was named by her godmother, Mrs. van der Vorm-van der Wall Bake, the daughter of then HAL president and CEO Nico van der Wall, and sailed that afternoon with for VIPs, travel professionals and media representatives on a one-day cruise to ’nowhere’. On 8 April 1984, Noordam set off on her maiden voyage, a trans-Atlantic crossing from Le Havre, France to Tampa, Fl with stops at Horta, The Azores and Hamilton, Bermuda. After reaching Tampa, she transited the Panama Canal on her way to Los Angeles (San Pedro), CA from where she sailed a Mexican Riviera cruise. Noordam spent the 1984 summer season operating Alaska Glacier route cruises from Vancouver, BC and Seward, AK. That same winter, she sailed Mexican Riviera itineraries from San Pedro. During her HAL career, she could also frequently be found in the Caribbean, i.e. sailing 7-day cruises to the Western Caribbean out of Tampa, Fl. with port calls at Playa del Carmen and Cozumel, Mexico, Ocho Rios, Jamaica and George Town on Grand Cayman in the Cayman Islands.

 

Noordam’s passenger capacity consisted of 122 deluxe staterooms, 235 large outside rooms, 32 standard outside rooms, 145 large inside rooms and 50 inside double rooms for a total of 584. The “N’s” did not have any large suites or private verandahs. When launched, Noordam came out with the two-tiered Admiral (main show) Lounge with, on its upper level, the Tasman Terrace (named for 17th Century Dutch seafarer and explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, think Tasmania) with the Tasman Bar, the Horn Pipe (night) Club with the Shanty Bar, the Explorers Lounge, the Piet Hein Lounge (named for Pieter Pietersen Hein, Dutch naval officer and folk hero during the Eighty Years’ War between the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands and Spain, and the one who captured the Spanish “Silver Fleet” off Cuba), which was the main cocktail lounge with the Silver Bar.

 

The Crow’s Nest observation/dancing lounge with an inlaid-wood dance floor designed to resemble the face of a compass, the Book Chest Library (named after Hugo de Groot, a Dutch jurist, historian and author who escaped from Castle Louvestein in a book chest), the Card room, De Halve Maen (the Half Moon, named after the Dutch East India Company ship used by British sea explorer Henry Hudson) room, the Princess (movie) theater (also used for lectures, meetings and religious services), the Big Dipper lounge, the Fotoshop, the Canael Straet (Canal Street) Shopping Arcade (with Gift Shop, Boutique and Jewelry Shop), the Mint Casino (offering blackjack on six tables, Caribbean poker, roulette and slot machines), The Square (including the Main Lobby, Main staircase, elevators plus offices of the Hotel Manager, Purser, Cruise Director and Maitre d’ Hotel), the Barber Shop and the Beauty Parlor, the Ocean Spa (with massage room and dual steam saunas) and Gymnasium (with treadmills, rowing machines, stationary bikes, isometric pulleys and free weights), the Lido (buffet) Restaurant, the Amsterdam (main) dining room complete with two small and private dining rooms, known as the Kings (starboard) and Queens Room (port side), a paddle/deck tennis and a volleyball court and two outdoor swimming pools, one with fresh water and whirlpool/Jacuzzi on Navigation Deck, and the other with salt water and a small wading pool on Promenade Deck.

The tradition of exhibiting art objects on board the passenger ships of the Holland America Line began in 1938, during the golden era of leisurely ocean cruising. The company’s first grand collection was displayed on the second Nieuw Amsterdam. Noordam III’s theme paid tribute to the Dutch East India Company or Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie (VOC) in Dutch of the 17th through 18th centuries, with more than U.S. $2 million worth of art and artifacts displayed throughout the ship. The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia. The VOC made regular voyages from Holland to the Cape of Good Hope (present-day South Africa and from there to Ceylon (Sri Lanka), India, Indonesia, Siam (Thailand), Japan and China to trade spices, silk, porcelain and other luxury goods. Its territories became the Dutch East Indies and were expanded over the course of the 19th century to include the whole of the Indonesian archipelago, and in the 20th century would form present Indonesia.

Noordam followed Holland America Line’s tradition with a historical collection of her own. The ship’s collection of paintings, sculptures, art objects and artifacts were from the 17th and 18th centuries, an era when commercial and cultural ties were being formed between Holland and other countries all over the world. The center piece inside the Piet Hein main show lounge was a scale model of the stern of a 17th century trading vessel. Across the dance floor of the Crow’s Nest was a large showcase of 18th century nautical equipment, while in another case was an antique model of a sailing vessel. There was also a 17th century painting of a naval engagement. Walking from the Tasman Terrace to the Mint Casino, her passengers were able to see a unique leather folding screen illustrating Marco Polo’s travels through Asia while a wooden showcase displayed wood carvings used for display on the rudders and helms of the ships that sailed the inland waterways. A third showcase displayed 17th century weapons, an antique strong box and various period helmets.

Inside the Horn Pipe Club, an authentic horn pipe (an obsolete musical instrument), as well as display of 17th century household utensils could be found. Among the other pieces of art that could be found inside the ship were a large painting of the city of Amsterdam with sailing ships in the foreground in the Explorers Lounge, card tables decorated with the coat of arms of the Dutch East India Company in the Card Room, a model of Henry Hudson ship “de Halve Maen” (the Half Moon) in the Half Moon Room and showcases with ship models carved from bone in the central staircase.

 

Noordam III was a very popular ship for the guests of Holland America Line and had a large following. She made her final cruise for HAL from Barcelona, Spain to Lisbon, Portugal where she arrived on 12 November 2004. She then sailed to Falmouth, England, where she received a five-month refit and repainting at the A&P Shipyard. On 30 November 2004, Noordam III was placed on a long-term bareboat charter to British travel operator Thomson Holidays, managed by their subsidiary Thomson Cruises.

 

On 8 May 2005, she began operating for Thomson Cruises under her new name Thomson Celebration and re-registered at Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, sailing a 14-day maiden voyage to the Mediterranean from Southampton. Things went badly wrong however, when just three days later, a large number of cabins and public restrooms experienced major plumbing problems. When the 33,930-ton ship docked at Bilbao in northern Spain on Tuesday 10 May, her first scheduled stop, all passengers were taken off and put up overnight in local hotels while engineers worked to repair the broken system. The passengers returned to the ship on Wednesday and the vessel sailed that evening, heading for her next port of call, Lisbon, Portugal. However, on Thursday evening the problem struck again, leaving the majority of passengers without plumbing. When the ship arrived in Lisbon, Thompson Cruises management took the decision to cancel the rest of the maiden cruise.

Thomson dispatched a fleet of three commercial aircraft to Portugal to pick up more than 600 passengers from the ship to fly them back to Bournemouth and London Gatwick airports. About 500 passengers not accommodated in cabins affected by the plumbing problem opted to stay onboard for the return voyage back to Southampton where Thomson Celebration arrive on Monday morning, 16 May.

 

Currently, Thomson Celebration sails mostly on low-price cruises around Europe, ranging from Norway to Greece, Turkey and Croatia. She has also operated 7-day Red Sea cruises from Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt with a port call at Aqaba, Jordan. Thomson Celebration remains the property of HAL Antillen N.V. and their subsidiary, Holland America Line.

 

[/url]

Edited September 2, 2010 by Copper10-8

[LynnObie]

LynnObie, great ship! I'll work on her history tomorrow, okidoki? Just discovered that Wikepedia is down tonite:(

Thanks, John.... I appreciate your efforts in posting the history of the Noordam! Enjoyed the info which brought back good memories of our first cruise.

[Copper10-8]

Thanks, John.... I appreciate your efforts in posting the history of the Noordam! Enjoyed the info which brought back good memories of our first cruise.

 

Anytime Lynn!;)

[Druke I]

I don't know if it was just our cabin (Main 344) on Noordam III, but it had the poorest sound insulation of any of the 27 cruise ships I've sailed. We could everything from the cabin next door.

 

The only ship with noisier compartments that I have been on was USS Texas CGN 36.

[LynnObie]

Here's a picture of the Noordam taken in 2004, a few months before HAL sold her to Thomson Cruises. We were pleasantly surprised to see our very first cruise ship join us in port while were were on the Oosterdam visiting Tortola, BVI.

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HAL Noordam - Jan 22, 2004 - Tortola, BVI - Taken from Oosterdam deck - Noordam sold late 2004 to Thomson Cruises

[Druke I]

I put the wrong hull number for the USS Texas. It was CGN 39.

[Copper10-8]

my first cruise was on the disney wonder. a 3night bahamas cruise in february 2010. we missed castaway cay because the magic was stuck in port. next up is the disney magic for a 5night bahamas double dip for new years!

 

ms Disney Wonder (1999-present) Built in 1999 as ms Disney Wonder by Fincantieri - Cantieri Navali Italiani S.p.A., Marghera (Venice), Italy for Disney Cruise Line. She is the second cruise ship operated by the line, their first being her sister Disney Magic (1998). Both ships are virtually identical in their design, with a few variations in restaurants and entertainment venues. Both contain areas designed exclusively for various age groups, including toddlers, young kids, teens, and adults. Unlike most ships of their type, they do not include casinos.

 

After delivery on 1 July 1999, Disney Wonder had her inaugural cruise from the Fincantieri shipyard, stopping in Southampton, England before crossing the Atlantic and arriving at her homeport of Port Canaveral, FL. two weeks later. Her godmother is none other than Disney's character Tinkerbell.

 

 

Disney Wonder has a wraparound promenade deck and three swimming pools, including a children's pool with waterslide . Her Sports deck features paddle tennis, table tennis and basketball courts as well as a golf driving range. There are three themed main dining rooms with rotated guest usage and there is also a reservations-only Italian restaurant for adults only. Lots of fast food outlets and a cafe provide the informal eating options. Entertainment is provided in the four-deck Walt Disney Theater and an adult entertainment area offering a Jazz Piano Lounge, Rock and Country & Western Lounge and a Comedy Club. There is also a dedicated movie theater offering Disney and new release movies.

 

Disney Wonder has been alternating between three and four-night cruises, visiting Nassau and Disney's own private island, Castaway Cay, both in the Bahamas, The four-night cruise offers an additional day at sea. From 30 May through 22 August 2010, Disney Wonder sailed five-night cruises, alternating between an itinerary that adds an additional stop at Castaway Cay and one that adds a stop at Key West, Fl.

 

 

In October 2006, the Wonder entered dry dock at the Norshipco shipyard in Norfolk, Va. for a general sprucing up and the addition of new features, many of which were introduced to her sister Disney Magic in 2005. A toddler pool was added that features interactive fountains and splash zones. A new computer simulator was put into the refurbished Oceaneer Lab that lets kids "steer" Disney Wonder in and out of port. A 24 x 14 foot LED screen was affixed to her forward funnel, overlooking the Goofy Pool and offering Disney movies and television programs.

 

In addition, her Vista Spa, her meeting and conference facilities as well as the Quiet Cove adults-only pool were renovated and expanded. Like Disney Magic, Disney Wonder also features a ship's whistle or horns which plays the opening seven-note theme from Disney's Pinocchio, "When You Wish Upon A Star", in addition to the traditional whistle. As on the Magic, Disney characters hang off the Wonder's stern and dominate her bow. The Magic’s Goofy has been replaced on the Wonder with Donald Duck and his nephew Huey on the stern, while Mickey on the bow has gone from Sorcerer Mickey to Steamboat Mickey.

 

 

On 22 February 2007, Disney Cruise Lines announced the order for two new ships which will be be added to the fleet in 2011 and 2012. The two ships are being built by the Meyer Werft in Papenburg, Germany and will be named Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy.

 

 

In addition, Disney Cruise Line has succesfuly negotiated with the Port Canaveral port authority to extend their contract for fifteen more years, through 2022. As part of this contract, the port authority will expand and upgrade the cruise ship dock in order to accommodate the new ships, both of which will be home-ported there. The cruise terminal will be enlarged to accommodate more passengers and luggage and,last but not least, a parking garage will be built and completed by 2011.

 

 

With the arrival of Disney Dream in 2011, Disney Wonder will be relocated to, and home-ported at, Los Angeles (San Pedro), CA. That agreement will be for two years, with a potential extension of an additional three years. On 11 September 2009, Disney Cruise Line announced that the Wonder will operate eighteen 7-night sailings to Alaska in 2011.

 

[Copper10-8]

Here's a picture of the Noordam taken in 2004, a few months before HAL sold her to Thomson Cruises. We were pleasantly surprised to see our very first cruise ship join us in port while were were on the Oosterdam visiting Tortola, BVI.

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HAL Noordam - Jan 22, 2004 - Tortola, BVI - Taken from Oosterdam deck - Noordam sold late 2004 to Thomson Cruises

 

Great pic of NA III!:) There has been some confusion as to who owns Thomson Celebration today and since November 2004. She has not been sold, rather chartered to Thomson Holidays. Thus, she is still the property of HAL Antillen NV, meaning Holland America Line, and Carnival Corporation are the current owners

[Copper10-8]

I put the wrong hull number for the USS Texas. It was CGN 39.

 

Thanks for serving!

 

USS Texas CGN-39

 

http://www.navysite.de/cg/cgn39.htm

[Druke I]

I wasn't in the Navy. Went on a "tiger Cruise" on the Texas. My step-son was a crewmember at the time.

 

I was in the Army, Military Police Corps, mid 1950s.

[tulsacubfan]

ss France (1962-2008) Built in 1962 as ocean liner ss France by Chantiers de l'Atlantique, St. Nazaire, France for La Compagnie Generale Transatlantigue (CGT) aka the French Line. She was constructed to replace the line's other, by then considered old and outdated ships, ss Ile de France and ss Liberte.

 

On 11 May 1960, she was blessed by the Bishop of Nantes, Monseigneur Villepelet, and launched by her godmother, Madame Yvonne de Gaulle, wife of the French President, and was then named France, in honor both of the country, and of the two previous CGT ships to bear the name. After her launch, her propellers were installed (the entire process taking over three weeks), the distinctive funnels affixed to her upper decks, her superstructure completed, life boats placed in their davits, and her interiors fitted out. She then undertook her sea trials on 19 November, 1961, and averaged an unexpected 35.21 knots. With the French Line satisfied, the ship was handed over, and undertook a trial cruise to the Canary Islands with a full complement of passengers and crew.

 

 

Her maiden voyage to New York took place on 3 February 1962, with many of France's film stars and aristocracy aboard. Once in service, ss France served as the line's flagship from 1961 until 1974 on the Le Havre to New York run, as well as gaining the distinction of being the world's longest liner of all-time (1,035 feet long). This record remained unchallenged until the construction of the RMS Queen Mary 2 in 2004. In service, ss France would combine regular transatlantic crossings - six days and nights - with occasional winter cruises, as well as two world circumnavigations.

After a little more than a decade of service that included 377 transatlantic crossings, the economics that doomed the North Atlantic ocean liner generally caught up with the ss France. It was decided to take her out of service resulting in massive protests from the French population and even a hijack by her crew. On 7 December 1974 however, she was moored at a distant quay in Le Havre, known colloquially as the Quai de l'oubli - the pier of the forgotten. The ship sat in the same spot for approximately five years, with her interiors, including all furniture, still completely intact.

 

 

There were no plans to scrap her, nor to sell her. However, in 1977 Saudi Arabian millionaire Akram Ojjeh expressed an interest in purchasing the vessel for use as a floating museum for antique French furniture and artworks, as well as a casino and hotel off the coast of the south-east United States. Though he did purchase the ship for $24 million U.S., this proposal was never realised, and others were rumored to have floated, including bids from the Soviet Union to use her as a hotel ship in the Black Sea, and a proposal from the People's Republic of China to turn her into a floating industrial trade fair.

 

In June 1979, Knut Kloster and Norwegian Caribbean Line came calling and purchased the France for $18 million U.S. She was towed from Le Havre to Lloyd Werft shipyard in Bremerhaven, Germany for an extensive and expensive (close to $65 million U.S.) refit to make her suitable for cruising as the largest cruise ship afloat. At Bremerhaven, among other renovations, she would receive a set of five side thrusters, upgraded air-conditioning and reinforced hull plating. Her former black hull was repainted in a medium-dark blue. She emerged from Bremerhaven in the spring of 1980 as ss Norway and made a special visit to the City of Oslo, Norway before once more crossing the North Atlantic to arrive in New York City on 16 May 1980.

 

 

Once she reached her new home port of Miami, Fl. on the north side of the Dodge Island cruise terminal, NCL put her to work on the seven-night Caribbean run which included a stop at St. Thomas, USVI. Her size, passenger capacity, and amenities revolutionized the cruise industry and started a building frenzy as competitors began to order bigger and larger ships. As cruise competition attempted to take some of Norway's brisk business, the Norway herself was upgraded several times in order to maintain her position as the "grande dame" of the Caribbean, including the addition of new decks to her superstructure.

 

Competition eventually overtook the Norway, and she even started taking a back seat to other ships in NCL's lineup. No longer the "Ship amongst Ships", her owners severely cut back on her maintenance and upkeep. She experienced several mechanical breakdowns, fires, incidents of illegal waste dumping, and safety violations for which she was detained at port pending repairs. Despite the cutbacks, the ship remained extremely popular among cruise enthusiasts, some of whom questioned the owner's actions in light of the continuing successful operation of the RMS Queen Elizabeth 2, which had become a well-maintained rival operating 5-star luxury cruises for Cunard.

 

 

 

On 25 May 2003, after docking in Miami at 5:00 a.m., the Norway was seriously damaged by a boiler explosion at 6:30 a.m. that killed eight crew members, and injured seventeen, as superheated steam flooded the boiler room, and blasted into crew quarters above through ruptured decking. None of the passengers were affected. On 27 June, 2003, NCL and her parent, Malaysian-based Star Cruises, decided to relocate her. She departed Miami under tow headed towards Europe and eventually arrived in Bremerhaven, Germany on 23 September, 2003.

 

 

In Bremerhaven she was used as accommodation for NCL crew training to take their places on board the line's new Pride of America which was being build there. Due to large amounts of asbestos aboard the ship (mostly in machine and bulkhead areas), the Norway was not allowed to leave Germany for any scrap yards due to the Basel Convention. However, after assuring the German authorities that she would go to Asia for repairs and further operation in Australia, she was allowed to leave port under tow on 23 May 2005 arriving at Port Klang, Malaysia on 10 August 2005.

 

In December 2005, Norway was sold to an American naval demolition dealer for scrap value and she was to be towed to Alang, India for demolition. However, in light of protests from Greenpeace, potentially lengthy legal battles due to environmental concerns over the ship's breakup, and amidst charges of fraudulent declarations made by the company to obtain permission to leave Bremerhaven, her owners cancelled the sale contract, refunded the purchase price, and left the ship where she was.

 

She was eventually sold in April 2006 to Bridgend Shipping Limited of Monrovia, Liberia, and renamed ss Blue Lady in preparation for scrapping. One month later she was again sold, to Haryana Ship Demolition Pvt. Ltd., and was subsequently left anchored in waters off the Malaysian coast after the government of Bangladesh refused her entry into their waters due to the onboard asbestos. Three weeks later, the ship began its journey towards Indian waters, and mid-July 2006 found her anchored 100 km off the Indian coast.

 

After lengthy court battles, and the arrival of Blue Lady at Alang, India, the Indian Supreme Court ruled on 11 September 2007 (the 33rd anniversary of the ss France's last day on the Atlantic), that she was safe to scrap. By 4 December of the same year, the tip of her bow had been cut; a ceremonial move done to most ships that end up in Alang just prior to the full scale breaking of a ship. On 20 January 2008, scrapping of Blue Lady had commenced on the forward part of the sun deck. The suites added during the 1990 refit were gone by March. By 12 July 2008, the bow and the stern of the ship had been removed, with little of the ship's famous profile still recognizable. By September 2008, most of what remained above the waterline had been cut away, and the ship's destruction was essentially completed by late 2008.

 

 

 

My first cruise was on the Norway. We sailed on May 4, 2003. Left Miami and went to St. Maarten, then to St. Thomas, then to NCL's private island in the Bahamas. It was our honeymoon. Two voyages later, she is gone. While she may have been "showing her age", to me she was and is still the "grande dame" of the Carribean.

[LynnObie]

Great pic of NA III!:) There has been some confusion as to who owns Thomson Celebration today and since November 2004. She has not been sold, rather chartered to Thomson Holidays. Thus, she is still the property of HAL Antillen NV, meaning Holland America Line, and Carnival Corporation are the current owners

Thanks John.... I misunderstood the ownership status of the Thomson Celebration formerly known as HAL's Noordom III. :o I will always remember her fondly as the Noordam, our first cruise ship. :)

 

Lynn

Edited September 3, 2010 by LynnObie

[Copper10-8]

I wasn't in the Navy. Went on a "tiger Cruise" on the Texas. My step-son was a crewmember at the time.

 

I was in the Army, Military Police Corps, mid 1950s.

 

Got it! Still, thanks for serving!

[beta98beta]

Carnival Destiny, 1995... to this day I STILL feel it was the best cruise we have ever been on. Perhaps the Panama Canal on HAL will surpass... we will see. So much has changed since the 90's... I wish some things that cruiselines used to do would come back in vogue but I know some never will due to security reasons, for instance bon voyage parties with none cruising guests.

Edited September 3, 2010 by beta98beta

[Copper10-8]

Had to post on the longest thread ever .......

First cruise was in 2005 in my mid 30's. Carnival Spirit. Mexican Riviera.

 

Have cruised 2-3 times a year since then. So I guess I am hooked

Carnival, Princess & HAL

 

ms Carnival Spirit (2001-present) Built as ms Carnival Spirit in 2001 by the Kvaerner-Masa yard aka Helsingin uusi telakka or Helsinki New Shipyard (now known as STX Europe) at Hietalahiti in downtown Helsinki, Finland, for Carnival Cruise Line (CCL). She was the leads ship of Carnival’s Spirit class. Her sisters are Carnival Pride (2001), Carnival Legend (2002) and Carnival Miracle (2004)(plus two ships of the Costa Line; Costa Mediterranea and Costa Atlantica). The Spirit class of ships were built to Panamax specifications, allowing them to pass through the Panama Canal. Carnival Spirit is able to carry a total of 2,680 passengers (lower beds: 2,124 passengers) in 1,062 staterooms. Her maximum crew capacity is 961. Eighty percent of her staterooms have ocean views, and eighty percent of those feature private balconies.

 

 

The ship was floated out from Kvaerner-Masa’s covered new building dock in ??? and the successful sea trials took place in January 2001. The ship was delivered to her new owners during a hand over ceremony at the Helsinki yard on 11 April 2001. She departed Helsinki the next day and commenced a transatlantic crossing without passengers to Miami, Fl. Upon arrival there, she was christened on 27 April 2001 by her godmother, former American Red Cross President, politician and U.S. senator from the state of North Carolina, Elizabeth Dole. That evening, holding more than 2,000 VIP's, dignitaries and travel professionals, Carnival Spirit departed Miami on a two-day preview voyage to "nowhere."

On 29 April, the ship departed Miami again on her inaugural 16-day Panama Canal cruise to Los Angeles, CA, arriving there on 15 May 2001. Following various introductory functions on the West Coast, Carnival Spirit was Carnival's first new ship to sail to Alaska where she operated a summer schedule of seven-day voyages from Vancouver, BC. Also included in her 2001 inaugural season were two 12-day Hawaii cruises and a 14-day Panama Canal cruise from San Diego back to Miami. On 3 November, Carnival Spirit began her eight-day "exotic" Caribbean program from that port.

 

As the first in a new series of "Fun Ships," Carnival Spirit featured a number of innovative amenities and facilities, including an outdoor wrap-around promenade, the line's first wedding chapel, and the highest percentage of ocean view and balconied staterooms in the Carnival fleet. The ship's dining options include the 156-seat two-level reservation only Nouveau Steakhouse/supper club featuring crab claws from Miami Beach's world-famous Joe's Stone Crab Restaurant, making the first time that the delicacies have ever been offered on a cruise ship menu. Other dining venues include the two-level, 1,250 seat Empire main dining room, 86-seat Napoleon Room restaurant annex, 112-seat Fountain Cafe patisserie, 458-seat La Playa Grill (casual) Lido restaurant, Fountain Cafe and a 24-hour pizzeria. All of these options are part of Carnival's Total Choice Dining program offering a variety of formal and casual choices at sea.

A nine-deck-high atrium provids access to sixteen bars, lounges and nightspots and the 278-seat Louis XIV casino. Among other things, the vessel's 12 passenger decks house the 1,167 seat, three-deck-high Pharaoh's Place main show lounge that offers Las Vegas-style productions, an expansive 13,700 square feet Spa Carnival two-level health and fitness club and the Fun Shops duty-free shopping arcade along the Fashion Boulevard.

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Other ship’s amenities include the 66-seat Deco Lounge, 135-seat Club Cool jazz lounge, Dancin' night/dance club, 106-seat Shanghai Piano Bar, 67-seat Champions Sports Bar, 85-seat Artists' Lounge wine bar, Spirit lobby bar, Sushi Trolley sushi bar, 23-seat Chippendale library & Internet Cafe, 20-seat Monarch's card room and 100-seat Conference Center.

In addition, a miniature golf course, a running track, the Sun forward pool, the Dome main pool with a 3-deck high Twister corkscrew water slide, the Fantail adults only aft pool, five whirlpools/jacuzzis and the Fun House, an enclosed children’s facility for kids ages 2 to 14 featuring an arts and crafts center and computer lab (plus Wizards arcade, plus Circle C), can be found on the ship.

 

 

Carnival Spirit last underwent a refit/dry-dock in March 2009 in San Francisco for regular maintenance and upkeep.

 

Carnival Spirit currently sails in the summer months (mid-May to September) from Seattle, WA, offering 7-day cruises to Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway, AK and Victoria, BC.

During late September and October, the ship sails the Hawaiian Islands on 12-day cruises to Lahaina, Maui, Kailua-Kona and Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii and Nawiliwili-Port Allen, Kauai. Hawaii is often the stopping point between the summer Alaskan cruises and the winter Mexican Riviera cruises. For those Mexican Riviera cruises during the winter months, Carnival Spirit sailes roundtrips from San Diego, CA to visit Acapulco, Zihuatanejo/Ixtapa and Manzanillo.

 

 

[url=http://boards.cruisecritic.com/"http://media.shipspotting.com/uploads/photos/rw/687148/Ship+Photo+CARNIVAL+MIRACLE.jpg&quot]

[Kittycat2009]

We sailed on the Ryndam from Vancouver to Alaska in September 2009. We are now booked on the Nieuw Amsterdam to sail Barcelona to Venice next week. Yeah, I think we are hooked. :D