Caronia Dutch Masterpiece Cruise, 5-12th December 2003

I stepped on board the good ship Caronia with a great sense of anticipation. I have long admired the lines of the ship, originally built in 1973 as Vistafjord by Swan Hunter Shipbuilders. She came to Cunard in 1983 and retained her name, but in 1999, at 24,492 tons, she was renamed Caronia. Her red and black funnel was a welcome sight at the Southampton quayside on that December day. The ship was at Berth 36 and I was soon on board and guided to my cabin 349 (a single with bath and shower) on Main Deck. It was light and spacious, and the sight of Champagne in an ice bucket and fresh strawberries made for a delicious welcome.

The next treat was going up to Bridge Deck, to pat the red paintwork of the funnel. It comes straight out of the teak deck, just as I had been told. What fun. The upper levels of the huge Carmania and Saxonia Grand Suites are on this Bridge Deck Upper Level.

One deck down is Bridge Deck Lower Level with Suites 3-14 located here.

One deck down again is Sun Deck, with Staterooms 101-132. At the forward end of this deck is a curving staircase, going down to the Promenade Deck. At the aft end of Sun Deck is the Tivoli Restaurant, for alternative dining. There were wide views out over the stern end of the ship.

One deck down again is Promenade Deck, wide and clean in the sunlight, which showed the satisfying sheer of the vessel. It was a great treat to be able to walk at will around the whole of this Deck during the cruise. Staterooms 151-190 are sited on this deck, as is the Piccadilly Club at the aft end.

Veranda Deck is below, with two of what turned out to be my favourite places on board. Forward is the beautiful Garden Lounge, with a panoramic view from its two tiers of seating. Chairs of light green fabric, with light coloured wooden arms and frame, made the most delightful sight both in daylight, and by night light under the beautiful chandeliers. The central area circular wooden floor, with inset curtained dais and piano, provided an attractive focal point in the lower seating area, with lots of greenery provided by artificial healthy-looking plants. What a delightful room.

On the port side leading out of the Garden Lounge is my other favourite location on board: the White Star Bar. The dark-wood panelled bar area, blue and gold curtains and chair coverings, brass table lamps, and aqua-blue patterned carpet made a very comfortable and inviting venue. I also loved the high black leather barstools, with their silver chrome supports reflecting beautifully off the mirror tiles of the immediate deck area below them and the adjacent bar footrest. A White Star Line poster behind a favourite seating area completed the scene for me.

Further aft on the port side is the Casino, with the Regent Shops, Library and Book shop on the starboard side. These all give access to the Ballroom with its Dance Floor and views from the windows. This is another elegant area, two tiered, with attractive gold furnishings. The area of the recessed ceiling lights duplicates the similar-sized lower area on the carpet below.

The rear end of the Ballroom gives access to the Lido Café, for casual dining. This horseshoe-shaped area looks out onto the Pool, with access to the Lido Deck.

Upper Deck has staterooms 201-285, and the Purser’s Office facing out into what I happily called Bureau Square! Immediately aft of this was access to the very attractive Franconia Dining Room, which has single seating dining. I loved the light-coloured wood framed dining chairs, setting off the light green upholstery, and crystal and silver on the tables.

One deck down again is Main Deck with staterooms 276-441, the Tour Office, Computer Learning Centre and Medical Facilities.

One deck down again is A Deck, with staterooms 501-670, as well as the Photo Gallery, Beauty Salon, and Cunard Royal Spa. The Spa has a pool, sauna massage, health club and gym.

After boat drill and patting the red funnel, it was departure time and then tea in the Lido Café. Chatting with friends, pre-dinner drinks and then dinner in the Franconia Dining Room made for a happy start to the holiday.

Having travelled through the North Sea overnight, next morning saw us on deck in a bitingly cold wind to watch the Pilot come aboard at 11 am to guide us into the 1929-built lock, which will lead us eventually through the waterways into Amsterdam. We arrived alongside the new Passenger Terminal after lunch, and the below-freezing temperature ensured that the walk to the Maritime Museum was brisk in the afternoon sunshine. The bookshop immediately drew my attention and so did the large display cases. Happy moment – there was a copy of my book! Mr & Mrs Hilgersom pride themselves on their large stock of maritime books and it was well worth another visit on our second day in Amsterdam. The Museum has some fascinating floating and indoor static exhibits, dating back many centuries. I enjoyed seeing the Queen’s Barge, and the collection of sextants. On board ship that evening we were treated to a show of Sea Songs from the Amsterdam Harbour choir. One sung in English was "Johnny come down from High Low" but I realised that the words I heard then were somewhat more politically correct than the ones my father used to sing as a lullaby to me and my sister when we were little!

Whilst in Amsterdam a visit was paid to the Tuschinski Theatre. Talk about a time warp – it is a 1929 Art Deco theatre, with stained glass, inlaid wood panels, red carpet, patterned wallpaper, lights, fabric lampshades, interesting door handles, armchairs in brown/black plush fabric, low backs and arms, very Deco and enthralling.

A group of passengers joined Caronia in Amsterdam, so I was pleased to meet Mr Willem van der Leek and his wife Ank for the first time. Willem is a committee member of the SS Rotterdam Foundation, so there was lots of ‘ship talk’ for the rest of the cruise.

Early next day we arrived at the port of Zeebrugge, Belgium, with the tide out and mud banks exposed along the area where we were berthed. I took the shuttle bus into the nearest little town of Blankenberg, and enjoyed an exhilarating walk along the 3.3 km beach in the intense cold. The tide was far out, the sun shone, the wind blew in a cloudless blue sky, and I admired the frost on the sand ripples on the beach. I decided not to visit the Titanic Café for morning coffee, but chose one used by local townspeople. Other passengers had taken tours to Bruges, or gone there by local train or taxi

Eight of us had dinner that night in the Tivoli Restaurant on Sun Deck, and that was excellent – both for food and service. This dining experience has no extra charge for passengers, who are allowed to eat there once during a cruise, and I would certainly recommend doing so.

Lunch time drinks the next day at sea gave us the opportunity for a special treat: the maritime artist Captain Stephen Card and his wife showed us his portfolio of paintings commissioned for the Queen Mary 2.

The visit to Honfleur was a great contrast to the last time I was here in the heatwave of last summer! It is a delightful little port town, with the busy port of Le Havre just across the River Seine in the far distance, and the delicate-looking Bridge of Normandy gleaming like cobweb strands in the other direction. We berthed alongside quays stacked with HUGE tree-length logs, from the Finland forests according to the warehouse name. Walking into the town through the country lane, under tall trees laden with mistletoe, was a delight to the eye. The freezing air in the late afternoon sun produced ethereal colours against the hilly backdrop of the town. There is a Maritime and other museums and exhibitions to see, lots of shops and several tea shops to be recommended (Le Petit Chine in particular). On arriving back at the ship, I enjoyed seeing a sign at the top of the gangway which read "Welcome Home".

A birthday was celebrated at the dining table the next evening with balloons and birthday cake from Cunard – happy birthday David!

A call at St. Peter Port in Guernsey was scheduled for our last day, but the weather intervened and so we all enjoyed a day at sea – travelling along the English Channel and watching ships and the sea. Elegant Tea was provided in the Garden Lounge and a Chocolate Formal Tea was available in the Ballroom. Oh dear – decisions, decisions! White gloved waiter service with Earl Grey tea, sandwiches and cakes, with piano music in the background, made me think I had made the right choice.

The whole cruise had been a very enjoyable experience, and I would give full marks for food, service, comfort, cleanliness, and care from everyone under the command of Captain Nick Bates. I liked the itinerary, the unexpected day at sea, the way the sand-filled ashtrays outside the lifts were always clean and imprinted with the Cunard logo (!) and the general feeling that everyone working on board Caronia wanted us passengers to enjoy our holiday.

I know that this delightful ship is now owned by Saga Holidays and is chartered back to Cunard until November 2004, so you might like to go and enjoy Caronia in Cunard colours while you can. But bear in mind that Saga Holidays is also a much-loved organisation so you might like to enjoy Caronia in her new colours and under a new name when she sets sail next Spring 2005. Bon Voyage.

Review and photographs by Ann Haynes, December 2003

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