Cornelis

On a regular base you can read stories of guest who miss the sailing time of theyr cruise ship and start blaming teh captain and cruise company through socail media Some times you read that they blame the cruise company in not waiting for them. But that is wrong. It is your own responsibilty to be back in time on board, and always consider as we always do to be back at least one hour before sailing time. You have to understand that the ships are sailing under a tight sailing scedule. When the ship is not arriving in a port on its scedule there can be long delays before the ship is moored and guests can go ashore. So there is one advice book your tours on the ship which are organised by the cruise ship itselves. I know on shore many may people are waiting to give you an excursion for less money but this can end in the disaster of missing your ships departure time. They al promise we will be back in time but as a cruise guest you do not know the local situation on roads etc. It is your own risk doing a local tour, never the captains one. One example : we took once the train from the port to Rome. On the way back it was complete Italian chaos on the station , it was nearly impossible to find the right platform and gave a lot of stress. Yes it was cheaper as the coach from the cruise ship, but for us it was a lesson learned. Make the best out of your cruise but keep the ships clock in your brains all the time when ashore.😃

CRUISE SHIPS BREAKING FROM MOORING LINES This is a very dangerous situation for guest, crew, and cruise ship. These day's these vessels are hugh and wind catchers The mooring lines are of course made of material which can handle safe mooring. But, when strong winds appear they are like big sails and the mooring are getting under high pressure and can break. What if guests are just using the gangway, or what dammage can ocuure when the ship is sailing away not under control. The cruise industry is a muly miljon business involving a lot of money. But pressing the ports of call for better reliable mooring systems : It looks that nobody is interested, while safety has high standards on cruise lines. In our port of Rotterdan we already have solved the problem with a fantastic invention. The largest container ships of the world, who moore in our always very windy ports near the sea, are moored now with a Dutch invention, which keep mooring lines at place , alway's what ever the weather is. The last breaking of mooring lines from a Cunard cruise ship, which lucky had no victims is an example : You can make the ships as big as you can, but secure the mooring lines like we do in Rotterdam do not break, and the system is there. Cornelis Kloppenburg photomaassluis@gmail.com