NAVIGATION-Cruising and Maritime Themes

New entry on the Blog about the "SAGA PEARL II", she is seen here at Hamburg this December, during a cruise on "COLUMBUS", she is a classic, beautiful ship, built in 1981, she has been owned and operated by SAGA CRUISES since 2009, photos Vitor Francisco 8.12.2018

The newest Cunard cruise ship, the 2010 "QUEEN ELIZABETH", is seen here departing Liverpool back in July of this year, next year CUNARD will once again visit the Mersey with the "QUEEN VICTORIA" and the "QUEEN MARY 2", photos Vitor Francisco

Recently I did a cruise with C.M.V., our ship was the magnificent "COLUMBUS", one of the highlights of the cruise was Hamburg and a visit to the superb Christmas Markets, Hamburg is steeped in Maritime History and has got to be an highlight of any cruise where this magnificent German Port is featured, as we were docking at the new cruise terminal, the S.S. "STETTIN" was just there in front of us, an icebreaker built in 1933, today preserved mainly as a museum, the ship still does the occasional sailings, a joy to watch, photo Vitor Francisco, 8.12.2018

One of the most beautiful passenger ships in service is the "BLACK WATCH", a regular in this Blog, she is seen here during a cruise that included Lisbon, she was built in 1972 as the ROYAL VIKING STAR, in 1996 she joined her current cruise operators, the prestigious FRED OLSEN, I took this photo back in 1997, Vitor Francisco

One of my favourite places to photograph trawlers, Ijmuiden on a Friday, the day the ships and their crews come home for a well deserved rest, photos Vitor Francisco, 2.11.2018

Recently I stayed in a Hotel in Ijmuiden, nearby Amsterdam and found this magnificent poster of the Splendid "NIEUW AMSTERDAM", also known as the "Darling of the Dutch", one of the most beautiful passenger ships ever built, she was built in 1937 and was the "ship of State" for the Netherlands, she was scrapped in 1973

11th of September of 2018, two FRED OLSEN cruise ships were in Lisbon, the "BLACK WATCH" and the largest of the fleet, the "BALMORAL", seen here departing the Portuguese Capital, photos Vitor Francisco

"SPIRIT OF FRANCE" looking very smart at Dover, photos from the "PRIDE OF KENT", photos copyright Vitor Francisco, 9.9.2018

One of the most beautiful passenger ships in service, the "BLACK WATCH" is seen here departing Lisbon after a full day visit to the Portuguese capital, this year, I had the opportunity to photograph the ship in three different European Ports, Liverpool, where the majority of her cruises start, Saint-Malo in Brittany, France and Lisbon, all photos Copyright Vitor Francisco, 11.9.2018

"MARCO POLO" of 1965 arriving Hull for another turnaround cruise, the ship is operated by C M V, photos Vitor Francisco, 7.7.2018