Veendam 'too big' to get into St Georges, Bermuda

[Spender Nui]

I've sailed to Bermuda on several different ships that went to both Hamilton and St George. There never was a restriction regarding getting off in one port and meeting the ship in the other.

[RuthC]

Does anyone seriously believe that if you go ashore in St. George's, and don't make the last tender back, that HAL will prohibit you from reboarding in Hamilton? Really?

[sharpasahmarble]

Does anyone seriously believe that if you go ashore in St. George's, and don't make the last tender back, that HAL will prohibit you from reboarding in Hamilton? Really?

 

One never knows. Surely they would let you reboard, but they might bust your chops for awhile just because they can.

[modelman]

I am going to bet that they will change the itinerary so that Veendam sails early morning from St. George's and gets into Hamilton by 8:30am on Wednesday morning. That people still get a full day in St. George's and then full days in Hamilton, with no time really missed for the transfer.

[RuthC]

Surely they would let you reboard, but they might bust your chops for awhile just because they can.

Ooooo. Let the games begin! :D

[TPKeller]

I can see the cruiseline wanting pax on board while moving from Hamilton to StG since docking in StG can often be a problem. But going from outside StG where anchored to Hamilton should be no problem for the Veendam. I can see many pax being upset they can't spend the day on the island.

That's exactly what I was thinking. It would have to be pretty bad weather to keep the ship out of Hamilton.

 

Theron

[MERIDIAN]

Whenever docking in STG,i've always rented a moped there for the Bermuda stay and have always gotten off the ship before repositioning to Hamilton and rode the bike to the pier to see my ship come in.I always ended up killing time because it takes about 2 1/2 hrs for the ship and about 35min.by bike.

[Tamaracboy]

One never knows. Surely they would let you reboard, but they might bust your chops for awhile just because they can.

 

Chops ?,

Did someone say CHOPS ? ?

Grilled or Southern Fried = Mmmmmmmmm :rolleyes:

 

But honestly "Is this any way to run a Cruise Line?"

Somebody somewhere should have been capable of figuring out if the Veendam could "make the cut" post-retrofit.

After all this was to be the big plan for her.

Then again . . . . this would probably be the same "Somebody" who did that to her rear end !

 

My one question is:

Is all this more Three Stooges or Marks Brothers ? :confused: :confused:

 

r.

PS: Just waiting for the proper photo from Copper or . . . . .

[A.S.]

Has anyone else noticed that the taxes and fees have gone down $20 pp?

 

Is this because the ship is not docking at St Georges?

[Flyingfish]

I opt for the Three Stooges!

[RichNY]

Marx Brothers

 

[CruisFran]

Whenever docking in STG,i've always rented a moped there for the Bermuda stay and have always gotten off the ship before repositioning to Hamilton and rode the bike to the pier to see my ship come in.I always ended up killing time because it takes about 2 1/2 hrs for the ship and about 35min.by bike.

 

By your avatar I assume you were a Meridian cruiser? Three cruises..to Bermudas on her. What a grand ole gal!!

 

Has anyone else noticed that the taxes and fees have gone down $20 pp?

 

Is this because the ship is not docking at St Georges?

 

Bermuda's port charges are among the highest! If they went down it may well be because of tendering!!

[Copper10-8]

[Tech problems

[sbloom]

My point was that, if you choose to, you'll still have a chance to visit St. Georges via private tender(s), an operation that HAL is very familar with since they've been doing it at HMC (and other places like Belize) for several years, that's all

Ditto..ya know..some people u just can't ..whatever...For us we have been there down that too many cruises to list..many to Bermuda...Hamilton is the port here...on/off all day lol

[MERIDIAN]

By your avatar I assume you were a Meridian cruiser? Three cruises..to Bermudas on her. What a grand ole gal!!

I miss that ship too,too bad she's on the bottom.Great food,big pass/space ratio,high speed-that was a good looking ship too.People new to cruising today would never understand,without balconies-I would still cruise her today but she was fuel hungry @ 460 tons a day while Zenith and Horizon used only half of that.

I did'nt mind Kings Wharf for 4 days/w mopeds but today with two mega ships there and busses(Kid),I would'nt want to go there. So we're now set for the VEEN and really don't mind paying extra because we have the better itinerary with or without docking in STG.

 

 

Bermuda's port charges are among the highest! If they went down it may well be because of tendering!!

 

Are the charges going to go down?

[MERIDIAN]

I don't know how I highlighted most of my own reply but you know where i'm coming from.

[CruisFran]

Are the charges going to go down?

 

From what I read above, by $20.00.

 

I don't know how I highlighted most of my own reply but you know where i'm coming from.

 

You have to leave the quotee things i.e.

, around both ends. I read "between the lines"...LOL

 

Loved, loved, loved the Meridian...poor girl is at the bottom, off Malaysia, I think. She was a true oceanliner. Every cabin a little different, no such thing as balconies...huge public lounges, especially mid-ship, and the best promanade deck!!......ah, I could go on...sigh. If she were still sailing we probably would still be on her. Our three sailings were from Boston, she came up here at the end of the Bermuda season each year.

 

Regarding Kings Wharf, we have no problem being out there...granted it was better when the Meridian did it...the ferry to Hamilton came right up near the ship, made access much easier. Never did mopeds, DH did back in early 70's, when there was much less traffic on the island.

[Copper10-8]

....................

Loved, loved, loved the Meridian...poor girl is at the bottom, off Malaysia, I think. She was a true oceanliner. Every cabin a little different, no such thing as balconies...huge public lounges, especially mid-ship, and the best promanade deck!!......ah, I could go on...sigh. If she were still sailing we probably would still be on her. Our three sailings were from Boston, she came up here at the end of the Bermuda season each year.

.........................

 

ss Galileo Galilei (1963-1999) Built in 1963 by Cantieri Riuniti dell'Adriatico, Monfalcone, Italy as ss Galileo Galilei for Trieste, Italy-based Lloyd Triestino di Navigazione S.p.A. Galilei and her younger sister, Guglielmo Marconi, were designed to replace the line’s three older ships, Australia, Neptunia and Oceania on the immigrant service from Italy to Australia.

 

 

The 27,888 gross registered ton ocean liner was launched on 2 July 1961. Her new owners took delivery of her on 23 March 1963 and she operated some Mediterranean cruises for them. She would then depart on her official maiden voyage from Genoa to Sydney on 22 April 1963, arriving there on 15 May 1963. Due to their increased speed, both Galileo Galilei and Guglielmo Marconi were able to reduce what used to be a month-long voyage to twenty three days, simultaneously introducing a new standard of luxury to immigrant travel.

 

Originally the ships traveled to Australia via the eastern route, passing through the Suez Canal in both directions, but in the later years the return trip to Europe was via the Panama Canal. Both ships sailed successfully for several years until the 1973 oil crisis struck which, combined with the increasing use of commercial airliners, contributed to the demise of the ocean liners. Galilei was scheduled to operate a cruise from Sydney in December 1973 however this was cancelled and she laid idle until 3 January 1974. On 13 January 1975, she struck a reef off the coast of West Africa which forced her to divert to Monrovia, Liberia. She sustained substantial damage to her hull plating and sailed for Genoa where she entered dry-dock for repairs, returning to service in March of that year.

 

 

Galileo Galilei continued to operate on the Italy-Australia run until quietly departing Sydney on 13 April 1977. (Her sister Marconi had left Australia for the last time on 23 November 1974). It had been originally planned for Galilei to operate the Aussie service until the end of 1977, however a 23 May 1977 departure was suddenly cancelled without explanation, stranding some 1,000 passengers. Upon arrival back in Genoa, she was withdrawn from service and laid up. Her lay-up was short however, and on 21 October 1977 she arrived at the Cantieri Navali Riuniti’s Palermo, Sicily yard for a lengthy reconstruction into a full-time cruise ship.

 

On 24 March 1979, Galileo Galilei started Mediterranean cruise service from Genoa for Italia Crociere (owned by Italia di Navigazione S.p.A., also known as the Italia Line). However, this venture proved unprofitable as soon as 29 September 1979 when Galilei was withdrawn from service and laid up again, this time for four years, interspersed with occasional charters. (Italia Crociere ceased trading in 1980).

 

In August 1983, the vessel was purchased by the Greek-owned Chandris Group. She was again rebuilt, this time with additional cabins on her forward deck, and her name was shortened to just Galileo. In 1984, Galileo began operating Caribbean (short) cruises from Miami, Fl on charter to Fantasy Cruises. This was followed in May 1985 with summer cruises, mostly to Bermuda from New York, but also to Nova Scotia, the Bahamas plus some cruises to ‘nowhere’. After her summer season, Galileo returned to Miami from where she operated five-day cruise to Key West, Playa del Carmen and Cozumel.

 

In October 1985, Chandris purchased Fantasy Cruises outright, making it their new subsidiary, Chandris Fantasy Cruises, and operating the Galileo (but also their Amerikanis, Britanis and the Victoria) under that banner. Galileo would receive a refit in early 1986 and would continue to operate Caribbean cruises during the winter and Bermuda cruises during the summer seasons.

 

 

When Italy-based Home Lines collapsed in 1988, Chandris made a decision to enter the upscale market. Galileo was therefore sent to the German Lloyd Werft in Bremerhaven for a multi-million dollar refit between October 1989 and February 1990. Most of her interiors were rebuilt, and externally her rear superstructure enlarged. On 1 March 1990 she emerged as the ss Meridian, the first ship of Chandris’ new subsidiary, Celebrity Cruises. She received a more stylished white “X” (Greek for “CH” or Chandris) on her funnel, dark blue markings on the upper part of her hull and would operate Caribbean cruises from Port Everglades, Fl as well as a Boston/New York to Bermuda run during a very successful Celebrity career.

 

 

In 1997, following Royal Caribbean International’s acquisition of Celebrity Cruises, Meridian was sold to Singapore-based Sun Cruises, which operated her as ss Sun Vista, cruising throughout the Malaccan Straights from her home port of Singapore. In doing this, Sun Cruises took on giant Star Cruises (the owner of Norwegian Cruise Line) who operated similar itineraries but with newer and superior ships, a battle Sun Cruises would lose.

 

 

During the night of 20 May 1999, while enroute back to Singapore from Phuket, Thailand in the Straits of Malacca, a fire broke out in Sun Vista’s engine room. During the following morning, only a small amount of smoke was observed near the ship’s funnel. However, the fire would spread uncontrollably and this would ultimately result in a total loss of power on the ship. During the late afternoon of 21 May 1999, Meridian’s master, Captain Sven Hartzell ordered the ship abandoned. All 472 passengers and 632 crew were safely evacuated and rescued. Sun Vista went down on 22 May at 0121 hours, 45 nautical miles west of Penang Island in the Andaman Sea.

 

[CruisFran]

Thanks for all the info! We knew a lot of her history, but not all. Felt like we lost a friend when she went down. Didn't know she became the first Celebrity cruiseline ship.

 

Our cruising history began much farther back...by coincidence also with Chandris....onboard the Atlantis!! Yet another ship, with interesting history if I recall!

 

Back to Bermuda....our favorite place in the sun!! :) The worse thing would be having weather have the Veendam diverted to Canada or Bahamas...nothing wrong with those places, but NOT when Bermuda is the preferred destination!!!

[Copper10-8]

Thanks for all the info! We knew a lot of her history, but not all. Felt like we lost a friend when she went down. Didn't know she became the first Celebrity cruiseline ship.

 

Our cruising history began much farther back...by coincidence also with Chandris....onboard the Atlantis!! Yet another ship, with interesting history if I recall!........................

 

General W. P. Richardson AP-118 (1944-2004) Built in 1944 by Federal Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company, Kearny, NJ in 1944 as General W. P. (Wilds Preston) Richardson. AP-118 was laid down under Maritime Commision contract on 2 February 1944 as General R. M. Blatchford on 15 April 1944. She was renamed General W. P. Richardson on 1 July 1944 and launched on 6 August 1944. She was acquired by the United Staes Navy on 31 October 1944, and commissioned at Bayonne, NJ on 2 November 1944 with Captain Joseph S. Rosenthal, USCG, in command.

General W. P. Richardson sailed from Boston, Mass on 10 December 1944 with over 5,000 fighting men and, after delivering them to Southampton, England on 21 December, returned to New York, arriving there on 4 January 1945 with troops and casualties. Ten days later the busy ship got underway from Newport News, VA with 5,000 soldiers bound for Naples, Italy, disembarking them on 25 January and then returning to Newport News on 9 February with rotation troops and casualties. Underway again on 18 February with 5,000 more soldiers, she disembarked them at Naples on 1 March and subsequently carried 5,500 British troops to Marseilles, France. She once again returned to Naples on 9 March to embark 4,600 homeward-bound American troops and casualties who were delivered safely at Boston, Mass on 21 March 1945.

 

General

She then sailed to Le Havre, France in April 1945 with 2,500 troopers and carried over 1,000 liberated American prisoners of war from France plus 2,900 troops and casualties from Southampton, home to New York on 28 April 1945. Following a troop-carrying run from New York to Naples and Trinidad and back, she sailed from New York to Southampton, putting in at Boston on 26 June with 4,300 wounded and other troops. Through the summer and fall of 1945 the transport made four more round-trip voyages from Boston to France, two to Le Havre and two to Marseilles, to help insure an even flow of men and supplies from the New World to the Old.

 

On 14 October 1945 she sailed from Boston to Karachi, (British) India, via the Suez Canal and returned to New York on 24 November with over 5,000 World War II veterans. On 30 November she embarked 4,500 rotation troops at New York and delivered them to Naples on 10 December 1945, then steaming via the Suez Canal to Koorramshar, Iran to take on board 3,800 men of the Persian Gulf Command, returning via Naples and Casablanca, Morocco to New York on 23 January 1946.

General W. P. Richardson was decommissioned at New York on 14 February 1946 and returned to the Maritime Administration for peacetime operations as a U.S. Army transport until 10 March 1948 when she was laid up.

 

Between 1948 and 1949, she was converted at Pascagoula, Miss. to a civilian passenger liner and then chartered on 6 May 1949 by American Export Lines as La Guardia. Her first voyage took her from New York to Naples to Genoa, Italy on 27 May 1949. She would also make port calls at Palermo, Sicily, Piraeus, Greece and Haifa, Israel. Her last Mediterranean voyage begun in New York in November 1951. She was returned to the U.S. Maritime Administration on 1 December 1951 and returned briefly to troop service as USAT General W.P. Richardson for the Korea conflict, before being laid up as part of the National Defense Reserve Fleet on the James River in November 1952 for the next four years.

 

 

In 1956, she was bought by the Hawaiian-Steamship Company, renamed Leilani, and refitted for California - Hawaii service. Her first voyage from San Francisco to Honolulu took place on 5 February 1957. Her itinerary would include San Francisco or Long Beach to Hawaii, but she also completed several Mexican Riviera cruises in 1958. This service turned out not to be popular and was discontinued in December 1958. She was laid up in San Francisco and then moved across the Bay to the Todd Shipyard in Alameda. She was seized by the U.S. Government on May 12, 1959, put up for auction in June and bought once again by the U.S. Maritime Commission.

 

 

She was purchased by American President Lines in July 1960 and sailed to Seattle, WA for a $10 million refit for luxury liner service which started in March 1961. She subsequently sailed from Seattle to San Francisco in May 1962 as President Roosevelt and began her first voyage from San Francisco to Los Angeles to Yokohama, Japan on 11 May 1962. She conducted a world cruise in 1966.

[Copper10-8]

 

In 1970, she was purchased by the Greece-based Chandris Line and extensively refitted (she was cut down to two decks above the waterline and had her upper hull and superstructure completely rebuilt) at Perama, Greece for cruising. She was renamed Atlantis and commenced cruising from New York and Port Everglades, Ft. Lauderdale to the Bahamas.

 

In October, 1972, she was sold to the Eastern Steamship Company as Emerald Seas and used on three and four-night cruises to Nassau, The Bahamas, Western Caribbean and Mexico out of Miami, Fl. She was one of the first cruise ships to offer moderately priced short duration (3-5 days) cruise vacations.

Eastern

 

Steamship Lines became Eastern Cruise Lines and then Admiral Cruise Line. Changes weren't done yet as Admiral Cruises was taken over by/merged into Royal Caribbean Cruise Line (RCCL). RCCL had no use for Admiral's two older ships (Emerald Seas and Azure Seas) so disposed of them in 1992.

 

 

In 1992, she was bought by Festival cruises and renamed Sapphire Seas, cruising to Egypt and Israel. She was laid up at Piraeus in October 1994. In the summer of 1998, she was renamed Ocean Explorer I for use at Lisbon, Portugal as one of three Hotel ships for the Expo 98. At the conclusion, she returned to Eleusis, Greece and was laid up once again.

 

 

Beginning in November 1999, the World Cruise Company, of Ontario, Canada, began operating her for global cruising with three back to back world cruises from Athens.

 

 

In May 2000 however, she was taken out on service at the completion on only the first circumnavigation, and she once again was laid up at Eleusis, Greece. Discussions of her possible use as an hotel-ship for the 2004 Olympics in Greece came to nothing. Her long life finally came to an end when, in April 2004, she was sold for scrap to breakers in India.

[Milaandra]

Are they going to deny you boarding in Hamilton or send you to your stateroom without dessert?

 

They told me that we would be reported to the Bermudian authorities as missing persons. :eek:

 

What that means in real life, I really don't know. Personally, I think the authorities in St. George would be happy to have a ship load of people AWOL in town...

[ziggypup]

They told me that we would be reported to the Bermudian authorities as missing persons. :eek:

 

What that means in real life, I really don't know. Personally, I think the authorities in St. George would be happy to have a ship load of people AWOL in town...

 

Missing..........LOL. How about if I left a post it in the cabin stating that I will be playing golf all day so start without me. And if you really need to confirm that I am not missing, feel free to call me on my cell at ***-***-****

 

:)

[MERIDIAN]

Thanks Copper10-8,

I knew a sound technitian on the Meridian and he had to complete the transfer from Celebrity to Sun and told me that after the last "X" cruise they took the ship to baltimore to remove her funnel markings and smashed her beautiful chapel to pieces.

the altar and stained glass were all thrown in a dumpster to make a meeting room.

I thought that cursed the ship.The greeks refurbed that ship from stem to stern but left the beautiful chapel intact,what a shame.

The Zenith has a nice model of Meridian in the fleet bar but nobody knows what happened to the fleet bars furnishings when they sent her to Pullmantur.

Those are nice pics you posted,when I get a chance I'll scan some of Meridian's drydock pics in Singapore that were given to me by that sound tech. His name is Jake McMullen and I still believe he works on cruise ships.

[Copper10-8]

Thanks Copper10-8,

I knew a sound technitian on the Meridian and he had to complete the transfer from Celebrity to Sun and told me that after the last "X" cruise they took the ship to baltimore to remove her funnel markings and smashed her beautiful chapel to pieces.

the altar and stained glass were all thrown in a dumpster to make a meeting room.

I thought that cursed the ship.The greeks refurbed that ship from stem to stern but left the beautiful chapel intact,what a shame.

The Zenith has a nice model of Meridian in the fleet bar but nobody knows what happened to the fleet bars furnishings when they sent her to Pullmantur.

Those are nice pics you posted,when I get a chance I'll scan some of Meridian's drydock pics in Singapore that were given to me by that sound tech. His name is Jake McMullen and I still believe he works on cruise ships.

 

YW - Here's one more - There are not that many quality pics of here in her X colors