M/V Athena Cruise Review
Fremantle
to Portsmouth UK
- March 6 to April 14, 2011
M/V
Athena seen berthed at Phuket Thailand
on March 15, 2011
*All Photographs of Athena by & © 2011 Reuben Goossens
Please Note: Cruise-Australia is a non-commercial and privately
owned cruise site and not connected with any cruise company or agency. Although
the author has worked in the passenger shipping industry since 1960 yet I am
now semi-retired, but has continued to write cruise and ship reviews as well as
articles in order to better to inform cruise and ship enthusiasts and provide
information for those intending a cruise in the future. However, if you are interested in a cruise, I am happy to
refer you to a dedicated cruise agent, be it in Australia, New Zealand
or further afield and you will find these on my various articles and on my
recommended “Cruise
Agents”
page. Be assured that all these are specialists in cruising and they will be
able offer excellent service you and the best fares possible! Please be
assured, I do NOT receive any commissions or favours from any agent and in the
vast majority of cases agents will not be aware of my, or this site’s involvement,
as I provide the reader with the agents (in their region) email and contact
details. Reuben
Goossens.
Page One
Introduction, History, Review and
Cruise Experience
Introduction
to the Cruise Review:
The
M/V Athena is a ship with the heritage of a genuine Trans-Atlantic liner,
however since her day as a liner she has been comprehensively been rebuilt into
a delightfully modern cruise ship as I have only during this superb cruise
experience having sailed on her for a, eventful 40 day voyage from Fremantle to
Portsmouth England. Apart from this ship being unique and this review will
spell out just why, what also sets her apart is the fact that she accommodates
just 550 passengers in twin/double bedded configuration and her cabins are very
comfortable, delightfully bright, modern and equipped with every possible
facility. Although Athena is a modern
looking ship, as I have already indicated she provides very much a
“traditional ocean going encounter” similar in style to those
elegant days of ocean liners of yesteryear! Thus the Athena
being a real ship, offers a genuine shipboard
experience in so many more ways than any of the modern and larger cruise ships
can possibly provide, and I am sure that by the time you have read this four
page review you will fully understand what I mean by this!
Contents
of the Review:
This Cruise Review is spread over
four WebPages and after the Introduction I will commence with a question asked,
a brief historical background of the Athena covering her details as she was
built and I will include a few of Athena’s specifications. Then I will
cover my cruise review starting with our boarding and the first wonderful night
on board and several other subjects. On Page Two there is a complete
photographic tour of the ship covering all her decks and venues. Page Three has
a complete guide of her cabins and then the page continues with my review and I
will then deal with an event we experienced whilst at sea a day out from
Phuket. Thereafter you can read what a good number of passengers on board
stated about their cruise experience and this is followed by my - “Five
Point Percentage Rating” which consists of the following points:
1… Service and staff performance in general. 2…
Meals, restaurant and buffet, 3… Entertainment, 4… General
condition of the ship and finally 5… Overall
cruise experience. I will then conclude with my closing comments,
including remarks regarding the staff on board and anything I have to say that
could be improved upon or implemented by the company. The final page, Page
Four, will have a variety of items, including entertainment details with some
photographs, menus, programmes, some further images and any other information I
have collected, which will complete this review, but this page, unlike pages 1 to
3, will be compiled upon my return home to Brisbane
and will come online at a later date.
Now let me commence with a question I was asked a number of times
during the voyage:
“Is Athena still considered to be a Liner?”
Holland
America Line’s 1938 built SS Nieuw Amsterdam was considered at the time
as a perfectly balanced
and the most beautiful ship ever constructed.
In addition she was a true “Liner” in every sense of the word!
From the author’s private collection
My reply – In short is is NO! In recent times we have seen countless new
cruise ships arrive on the scene and they are being coined by Cruise Companies
as “… heralding new era of Superliners” or
“Megaliners.” The fact is that many of the modern cruise companies,
regardless their if their names seem to be from the golden olden days, such as
the once great British Lines … Cunard and P&O, however we need
to remember that the truth these days is that these companies as are many other
cruise lines are mostly owned by the huge American companies such as Carnival
Cruises (Plc) or Royal Caribbean (RCI). These giant corporations tend to build
their new and large 80,000 to 220,000-ton floating resorts (cruise ships) that look
more like giant boxes, or as I call them “apartment bocks”
(condo’s) and they accommodate anything from 2,200 to a mammoth 6,500
passengers and even up to 3,500 crew, that is 10,000 souls on one single ship
and as far as I am concerned that is utter madness! For that is not a vacation
being part a massive crowd, just a number frequently standing in long queues
getting into venues or on and off the ship!
However, in relation to the question of the
“liner,” genuine ship lovers and maritime experts will all know
that these days there is not one single ship that is a genuine liner, for every
passenger ship today is officially classified as a “cruise ship.”
The fact is quite simple, in days long gone a liner was a ship that operated on
a full time “point to point - line voyage”, just check your
encyclopaedia! In days gone by shipping companies were headed by those who knew
the maritime industry, however today the vast majority of the modern cruise
company executives have at large been sourced from the hotel, banking,
accounting and marketing/advertising industry and they have had no
maritime/shipping knowledge whatsoever, and thus they know very little about
this fascinating industry. Their job description is to manage, sell and market
their product and to put it simply, place bums in beds and to ensure that the
hotel of the ships are fully stocked with food and their needs. Thus it is just
like keeping a hotel and resorts. In addition they keep the books. But sadly
they have a total lack of maritime understanding and thus they have a habit of
making total fools of themselves due to this lack of knowledge and thus they
wrongly call cruise ships – “Super” or
“Megaliners”, which is rather tragic! Thankfully the ships officers
and crew who are the true backbone of the industry and they know shipping to
the fullest and to be honest they quietly have a good laugh at their landlubber
counterparts!
Then again, there are those who have said to
me, “But Reuben are there not ships today that
still make the occasional line voyage?” Now at first this may sound to be
quite correct for you might even say that the voyage I am on at the moment is
in fact a “line voyage” from Fremantle Australia to Portsmouth England.
But in reality this voyage is in reality known as a “relocation
voyage” back to the UK and Europe, from where
she will recommence her UK
and European based cruise operation. Then she will return to Australia
in November with another relocation voyage after which she will recommence her
Australian summer series of cruises, but this does not make this cruise a
“line voyage.” OK, I am a maritime historian with almost 52 years
experience and thus I am stickler for facts!
Some may say that M/V Queen Mary 2 and several
other cruise ships occasionally operate a series of Trans-Atlantic line
voyages, but again these are just Trans-Atlantic cruises and none of these
ships have anything in common with the classic liners of days long gone and
thus they are in reality just cruise ships and floating resorts, no matter if
cruise companies use the term “liners” for they are certainly not
“liners” for if we look at ships like the American (Carnival)
designed QM2, Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth they are all based on the
Carnival based “Vista class” cruise ships, identical to those of
Costa Cruises, P&O and Holland America Lines and many other of the
Carnival’s associate lines.
However and thankfully there are still some
superb ships operating to this very day that were indeed past
“Classic Liners”, but these ships were superbly rebuilt, modernised
and completely updated to the very latest SOLAS (Safety Of Life At Sea) safety
and navigational standards to become modern “cruise ships,”
such as the much loved Classic
International Cruises, 16,144-ton M/V Athena, a cruise ship (no
longer a liner) with a genuine heritage as described below.
The elegant and sleek looking M/V
Athena was once a fine Trans-Atlantic Liner, but today she is a modern cruise
ship
A shortened version of her story
“From MS Stockholm to M/V Athena” is located below
As
you join me during my voyage to England, I trust
that you will find something that is of interest and that you will enjoy this
review enough that you may consider sailing on the Athena.
Should you wish to make any comments or ask a question you are more than
welcome to contact me and you will find my email details at the bottom of each page. Also should you wish to make a booking on the Athena or any of the CIC ships, I will only be to
happy to recommend a top cruise specialist in your region, just ask! However,
at the bottom of each page there is a link to the Classic International Cruises Website
which can guide you on your way and then you will need a really good cruise
agent and I mean, not just any travel agent but a cruise specialist who can
provide you not just with superb service because of their expertise, but also
with the correct up to date information and obtain the best fares possible,
etc!
The
author seen during one of his visits to the bridge
Photograph
by Mr. Hun-Hun-Eng Tan
Please Note: It is important to note that the author was on vacation and is not
associated with the cruise company or any travel organisation and thus was a
fare paying passenger and “NOT a guest of Classic international
Cruises!”
Reuben Goossens.
Cruise‘n’Ship
Reviewer, Maritime Historian & Author
Commenced in Passenger Shipping
in May 1960
Cruise-Australia is a 100%
non-commercial cruise site and does not accept advertising, commissions or
donations!
Ships
History:
“From MS Stockholm
to M/V Athena”
The stylishly modern M/V Athena was originally built for
the Swedish American Line (SAL). In October
1944, SAL gave the task of building their new, but smaller sized Trans-Atlantic
liner the MS Stockholm to the “Gotaverken shipyards” in Gothenburg.
Within six months her keel was laid down in Yard 611, then on February 7, 1948,
this two class 11,700-ton liner was delivered to her owners. MS Stockholm
departed Gothenburg for her maiden voyage to New York
on February 21, 1948.
The
Trans-Atlantic liner - MS Stockholm is seen at sea as built in 1948
A postcard from the author’s
private collection
Although she had a riveted
solid steel hull, but this stylish Swedish built ocean liner was considered to
be far too small to be a genuine Trans-Atlantic liner, especially by the
Americans. It was for this reason she did not prove to be very successful for
the company’s new Trans-Atlantic service as in the past their ships had
been well over 22,000 tons and their interiors were far more grandiose! However
the MS Stockholm did have that something very special for due to her intimate
size as well as her slender and elegant design and her more relaxed charming
and comfortable interiors she became very popular with the American public in
the role as a cruise ship rather than a Trans-Atlantic liner. As built she did
not have stabilizers and sadly she did have rather a bad habit of rolling badly
during heavy winter seas whilst crossing the Atlantic, however in 1955/56 the Stockholm
was finally fitted with those all important stabilizers, which did give her a much smoother ride. Yet this attractive
looking liner was never a great success for the Swedish America Line on the
Atlantic and certainly not a great financial success, although she did make
countless voyages to and from Gothenburg to New York and return and countless
cruises which were reasonably profitable, but it was not enough for the company
decided to return to their more popular larger and grand liners. Finally in
1959 she was sold to an East German Trade Union group who used her as a full
time cruise ship named the “Volkerfreundschaft” (Translation: Peoples Friend Ship) and she continued in this role for some twenty years. Later she was
berthed in Olso as an accommodation ship named the
“Fridtjof Nansen.”
*For MS Stockholm’s complete history please see the bottom of each of these review pages as there is a
link to my comprehensive Stockholm
feature. This feature is located on my ssmaritime.com site.
However in 1994
an Italian company had purchased this superb classic ship and decided to strip
her right down to her solid ice strengthened all steel hull
and rebuild her with brand new cabins and a modern stylish superstructure. The
result was a premium rated contemporary luxury cruise ship, named MV Italia
Prima. The cost for this mammoth rebuilding programme cost her owners well over
US$150 million, which at the time was a massive amount!
Cruise Ship M/V Italia Prima seen whilst being completed in August 1994
Image from the author’s private collection
Upon completion
the now a luxurious fully stabilised cruise ship had also been fitted with a
large sponsoon (also known as a “Duck Tail”) at her stern to
improve her speed, fuel consumption and of course her stability. Soon this
stylishly modern and looking much like a brand new cruise ship Italia Prima
commenced cruising and she did so with huge success.
During a world
cruise in 1997 the Italia
Prima visited Australia including a visit
to Sydney
and the author was fortunate to be invited on board for a tour and lunch and I
well recal that she was a delight indeed, as she is
still to this very day! As I remember stating at the time that she was “A
superb cruise ship, first class in every respect!” Passengers agreed that
their cruise experience was as one stated … “Beyond perfection I
just love this ship as it has not only a special style of her own, but you know
that you are sailing on a real ship. She is the perfect cruise ship!” Now fourteen years later (2011) she is owned
by Classic International Cruises and she has had various refits and a good
number of improvements have been made on board and she remains that same
“superb cruise ship”, which is a great testimony to her owners due
the rigid and superb maintenance schedule that has been continuously upheld and
this was also obvious during our voyage! To this day the Athena is simply
spotless throughout and to be honest, she is by far cleaner and in superior
shape than most modern ships I have been on and you will not find any rust or
wear or tear out on her decks anywhere!
M/V
Italia Prima seen in Sydney
in 1997
Photograph by & © Reuben Goossens
I honestly believe that she met with her greatest
success when Classic International Cruises officially obtained her in 2005 after she had been renamed M/V Athena
and she become CIC’s flagship. She was soon registered in Madeira Portugal,
and just like all the CIC fleet, the Athena
commenced cruising offering the companies famed traditional classic style and
excellent service!
Classic International Cruises in Australia: M/V Athena’s popular running mate,
the M/V Funchal commenced cruising from Fremantle Western Australia
during the summer of 2004/2005 and she set a new standard of style and service
with rhis delightful ex classic liner, she continued
to do so with huge success. Then having gained huge popularity, early in 2008
M/V Funchal, as she did each year after her summer season in Australia, she
sailed back to Europe, when I boarded her in Singapore. However, soon Western
Australian’s would discover that CIC’s flagship the Athena would replace the Funchal later that year and
take over from the Funchal. Upon arrival Athena
very quickly won over the many Funchal supporters and gained countless new
friends and she became a huge hit with the Australian public during her very
first West Australian summer cruise season as she had already done in the past
in the United
Kingdom and all around Europe! She returned to Australia
for the next two summer seasons and is due to return again for an exciting
summer season arriving in Fremantle arriving in December 2011.
Prior to M/V
Athena’s voyage back to Australia in September she will be receiving a
comprehensive refit at the famed Monfalcone Ship Yards in Italy, which will see her
being completely refreshed throughout with new carpeting and upholstery and her
delightful cabins will be upgraded even further. Thus this already beautiful
ship will be like new in 2011/2012!
She will sail
from Rome and arrive at
Fremantle on December 18, 2011. For her Australian summer season she will
operate an exciting new series of extended, as well as shorter cruises. These
will include some brand new and certainly some exciting ports of call that have
never been visited before, countries will include: Vietnam, Japan and China.
In addition there will be new Australian destinations with cruises departing
from Adelaide will visit Sydney, Eden, Melbourne, as well as a number of Tasmanian ports. At the
conclusion of her summer season she will operate one of the most exciting
return voyages to Portsmouth
England,
but this time she will be sailing via the Indian Ocean and South Africa.
MV Athena will depart Fremantle on April 14,
2012 and will arrive in Portsmouth
on May 24. There will be further details regarding M/V Athena’s 2011/2012
itineraries at the end of this review on page Four!
-----
M/V Athena’s 2011/12 and 2012/13
Australian summer season cruise brochures are now available
Brochure
provided by Classic International Cruises
– Please Note: The 2011/12 e-Brochure i
available at the bottom of the page
M/V
Athena’s Specifications:
Although
the M/V Athena may not a big ship, but I can assure you that she certainly does
not feel like a small ship either. Well certainly not whilst I was on board
sailing to England,
via Asia and the Suez Canal.
She is just a delightful ship to sail on to say the very least she has a feel
of intimacy and something that is extra special and not found on any other ship
unless you buy a 6 Stay super luxury ticket, for there is never a crowd, never
a queue and no rush EVER! Athena has 8
passenger decks and all are accessible by her lifts, located forward and aft.
I have provided the following details for
my many readers who are ardent ship lovers, although I have kept it somewhat
short!
M/V Athena is 160m long, has a width of 21m
and a draught of 7.60m. She is powered by two Wartsila Diesels engines
(2 X 7,500 BHP) operating two propellers and she is
able to sail at a speed of 17 knots, but tends to cruise at a comfortable 15 to
15.5 knots. She has Denny Brown
Stabilizers providing a pleasant voyage.
M/V Athena is registered in Madeira Portugal,
thus flies the Portuguese flag. Her Call sign is: CQRV and her IMO number is:
5383304.
My Cruise Experience & Ships Facilities:
1 … Boarding -
Fremantle March 6.
My good friend and
assistant, Mr. Hun-Hun-Eng Tan and myself arrived at the Fremantle Cruise
Terminal per chauffer driven car from the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Perth (sadly
the worst Hyatt stay ever!) having arrived from Brisbane the day prior with
Qantas, and we noted that the RCI cruise ship M/V Rhapsody of the Seas was also
in port and that she had long lines of passengers queuing up in order to board
her. However, happily we noted that on the other hand the boarding procedure
for the Athena was more civilised,
obviously there were no queues considering this being due to her far smaller
passenger capacity. In addition her boarding procedure was superbly organised,
thus from arrival at the terminal to entering to our stateroom took just 20
minutes and this covered going through security, then the CIC check in where we
received our white cruise cards, which are used to board and leave the ship and
for all purchases onboard, etc..
Next it was immigration and then the
obligatory pose for the ships photographer, but I must say it all went
extremely smoothly and before we knew it we were ready to step on board and
commence the classic experience we had been waiting for. What felt was so
enjoyable was the moment we stepped on Promenade Deck, besides receiving a
friendly greeting and a “welcome on board” from an officer, a
steward takes your hand luggage and escorts you to your stateroom and this is
something that is seldom done these days any of the large modern cruise ships
where you are mostly pointed in the right direction and you have to find your
own way to your cabin and left to carry your own bags! Classic International
Cruises has obviously turned back the clock and has revived the great
traditions of the sea to the days when passengers really mattered and you are
treated like a honoured guest on board, therefore we
and all passengers who boarded the Athena
immediately felt that we were really WELCOME!
Our stateroom is located on Mediterranean Deck
(4) being a Premium Junior Suite, number 448 located amidships on the starboard
side. Upon entering the room we found it to be in perfect shape in every
respect. These suites are spacious and certainly comfortable to say the least.
All in all the boarding procedure was simply effortless and as an old sea dog,
the moment I stepped on her Promenade Deck I really felt that I was on a real
ship once again, for I had boarded a ship that seemed to have a crew that
understood old time values of the sea, and Athena certainly had that special
feel and she looked like a real ship!
Having checked out our room and left our hand
luggage, we soon headed from to the Lotus Grill Buffet located aft on Calypso
Deck (4a) to enjoy some lunch and I immediately noted that there was an
excellent variety on offer along the two and a half massive buffets, there was
delicious soup on offer together with a variety of main courses, as well as
excellent salads, fruits, to die for desserts and so much more. It quickly
became obvious that the stewards present were not just very friendly, but also
extremely helpful as they were more than willing to take your plate/s to your
table each time you had made your selection from the buffet, again something
not seen on any other ship! Our first meal on board was not just delicious but
a delight indeed! And here come the best news of all for a genuine coffee
lover, the coffee on Athena proved to be the best I have tasted on any ship I
have ever been on and that is a fact, and let’s face it, this is my 124th.cruise, so I have tasted some really bad to
reasonable coffee, but the coffee and teas on board the is simply wonderful and
available most of the day. The coffee is always made from freshly grounded high
quality beans and not some cheap coffee essence or Nescafe like on all other ships.
In addition there is top quality Barista espresso coffee available at the
Sirene’s Bar for just AU$2.15 from early to 0200 hrs, but I seldom
obtained it as the free coffee at the Lotus Grill is that good!
The
Lotus Grill Buffet
After lunch we took a quick
tour of the ship and returned to our room and found our baggage had already
been delivered, thus we felt it best to unpack and get ready to enjoy the
balance off the afternoon out on deck beside the pool and the Elpinor Bar and
enjoy the band and join the sail‘a’way party that included throwing
streamers around the deck and at each other. As the Rhapsody of the Seas was
bunkered first that day, Athena was attended to in the afternoon and for that
reason alone we departed Fremantle several hours late, but out on deck we still
enjoyed our sail’a’way party with gusto as described and thus all
had a wonderful start to our voyage to England.
M/V Athena departed Fremantle for Singapore at
1900 hrs sharp, whilst we were about to partake of our first delicious evening
meal, which was a delight to behold and we met our two superb waiters, our
senior waiter John who hails from Goa (India) and his more than able assistant,
the delightful Cosmin who hails from Romania, who I
have dubbed my “Coffee Director” as he never failed to pour the
perfect cup!
These are our two superb waiters for evening meals are
Cosmin and John,
although John also attends to us
during breakfast and lunch
We very quickly discovered that
John and Cosmin proved to be a superb pairing, but I
should say that John could well be serving in the Queens Grill on the M/V Queen
Mary 2 or on any 4 or 5 star cruise ship, for the standard of his service was
that high, as well as a good number of waiters on board, such as Bargus (Indonesia) and Romeo (Philippines). These two fine
men frequently attended us (as well as various others occasionally) for
breakfast and lunch and did so in the most efficient manner, but with the kind
of friendliness and a superb memory for detail which just makes an ordinary
voyage very special! At this time we should remember that the Athena is not classed as a luxury cruise ship, yet
she and the CIC fleet pride themselves in a very high standard of service and
cuisine. We are more than grateful to John, Cosmin, Bargus and Romeo, as well to the two fine men at the top of
the Restaurant Maitre D’ Hotel, Mr. Nicola Arba
(Romania) who is a real gentleman and his ever helpful assistant Mr. Denny Gunawan (Indonesia) as well as the many other superb staff
for making our voyage one to remember.
The
Olissipo Restaurant amidships on Atlantic Deck 3 – looking aft
Welcome Aboard show.
This
is a wide angle view of the Calypso Show Lounge looking forward
In
the evening we headed for the spacious Calypso Show Lounge for the
“Welcome On board Show” that proved to be quite a hit! Our cruise
director is Marcos
Teixeira
ably introduced us to the show which would provide us a good idea of the
standard of entertainment that we could expect throughout the voyage and we
would soon discover that the shows on offer were certainly top class as were
all the ships entertainers! Later in the evening we were introduced to the
charming Portuguese Captain Pedro Pinto, his officers as well as that all
important person, the executive chef Mr. George Podder
and other officers and senior staff members, including the delightful Maitre
D’ Hotel, Mr. Nicola Arba (from Romania) as
well as all Marcos’ assistants - the ships superb, talented, “super
mad and funny” entertainment staff.
Our
excellent Cruise Director Marcos
Teixeira
is ready to introduce the ships Captain at the Welcome Aboard
Show
Sofystic Dance Troupe.
The ships main Dance Troupe is a sublimely
talented five member dance team named “Sofystic Dance Troupe”,
which is headed by the superb choreographer Sofy sophysticchic@hotmail.com
and the dancers included; Stephanie Lutenbacher,
Julie Boyer-Teixeira, Audrey Moreau, Ethel
Gonzalez-Salmon and male dancer, Andre Soares. What
became clear as the cruise continued that not only was their technique beyond
extraordinary and simple perfection, in fact I believe I have seen some of the
finest dancing I have seen on any ship, ranging from modern to classical
ballet, but also their costuming was varied, colourful to simply sublime! For
bookings email Sofie, or contact the author for phone
details and believe me they are that good and I would recommend this group to
any cruise company worldwide!
One
of the many magnificent costumes worn by the “Sofystic Dance Troupe”
during the cruise
This
was the Venetian Masked Ball Dance – during Folklore Night
Besides
their talent, the variety of costuming, staging and props that “Sofystic
Dance Troupe” had to offer was simply stunning to say the least
In addition on this night we enjoyed the
delightful vocal cords of the ships three superb female vocalists, Portuguese
superstar Ines Santos,
Balinese Ika Arcana and
Jazz singer Sandra
Russo. Then there were the
brilliant talents of the Magician Romao Rui, as well as the ships excellent bands, being the
“Puzzle Band” featuring Antonio
Freitas (keyboards), Luis Romano (Guitar &
vocals), Jao
Cid (drums/band leader) and Sandra Russo
(vocalist/saxophonist). We were then amazed by the amazing talents of an
excellent Paraguayan duo by the name of “Los
Paraguayos”, with Sergio Gaona
who played the unique 39 stringed Paraguayan harp and a
ever happy and delightfully wonderful tenor and guitarist Silvio
Ferdandes.
Finally there is the ships super smooth pianist Jose who also plays daily in
the Sirene’s Piano Lounge and do many of the aforementioned artists also
perform there pre dinner, and at night after the main show. Thus as you can see
from this there is a vast variety of entertainment available and Page Four will
have further details available.
As you will have noted by their names, most of
these artists hail from international backgrounds, although some have a
Portuguese, Spanish background yet they sing in all languages and proved to be
wonderful entertainers and were certainly greatly enjoyed by all passengers on
board throughout the voyage and many have sailed on various cruise ships with
different cruise lines over the years. I felt that the entertainment was simply
quite unique and now looking back having been on board for quite some time, I
would say “It was rather special!”
*Further entertainment photographs and details
are to be found on Page Four.
As the night eventually came to a close it was
time to retire to our room and I felt absolutely assured that this voyage to
the UK had started very well indeed and I was quite sure that this was going to
be a very special cruise on what is, as all my readers will know, what I
believe this to be a superb classic style cruise ship. Yet having said that,
and as I have already indicated earlier, the Athena feels as modern as can be
and delightfully she is operated more like ships were in those gracious days of
the great ocean liners and thus we discovered many wonderful traditional
touches that are still alive and well on board the Athena. I find it rather sad
that so many of these have been lost and are no longer to be found on the big
modern cruise ships of today, for most have just become huge ultra modern
floating hotels and in so some cases they are vessels (often they cannot even
be called ships anymore, why, just because they have a hull?) Most of these
giant playgrounds with rock climbing walls and ice skating rings, planetariums,
countless optional dinning facilities that you pay extra for and huge shopping
centres, come holiday resorts, these vessels just don’t have a soul and
they are extremely overcrowded. Yet, there are a few fine cruise companies out
there as my readers well know for I have them listed as my favourites, but then
there are those I will simply not sail on at any price!
Some have asked me; “You say that CIC
has turned back the clock, if this is so will I miss out on anything?”
the answer is simple … Certainly not! You will not miss out on a thing,
except for the never ending marketing campaigns as found on all modern ships
these days, such as the never ending art auctions that will occupy your
favourite lounge were you like to read a book, which is usually taken over for
the whole day more than once a week and then there are the continued attempts
to have you heading for one of the optional restaurants on board, which means
you have to pay an additional US$25 or $30 extra for a meal that in reality you
have already paid for. Thankfully this is never the case on Athena for
everything is included in your fare, from breakfast, morning tea or coffee,
lunch, afternoon tea or coffee, dinner and delicious late hot and cold night
snacks, which is actually served by waiters around lounges and the aft deck
areas, thus you do not have to go anywhere, it actually comes to you! Your fare
even includes all port charges, taxes and yes even your tips are included in
the printed brochure fare, whilst on other cruise ships around AU$ or US$12.00
per person per day is usually added to your daily account for tips. Athena is without doubt great value for money in many
more ways than one!
The truth is the Athena
is simply wonderful and thankfully we were going to have 39 glorious nights on
this classic cruise ship!
Our
Premium Junior Suite
448 located on Mediterranean Deck
Soon enough we were settled in
into our sublimely comfortable oceangoing home as we sailed via Christmas
Island (March 10) and Krakatau Volcano (March 10) to
Singapore
(March 13) and Phuket (March 15).
A question that many have asked me in the
past: With Athena being a smaller ship
how does the she sail?
As we sailed out of Fremantle we were well
aware that there was quite a swell out on the Indian Ocean and that we would
experience some movement from the ship, which is certainly not unusual for any
ship, regardless their size. That evening and part of the next day Athena did a little, both in pitch and a little roll,
but not uncomfortably so and I can say did not see anyone seasick, which amazed
me. However, after the first 18 hours at sea the ship has been behaving
perfectly and you would not even know you are at sea as we have had a super
smooth ride indeed and we are currently at the time of adding this some 35 days
out of Fremantle. Thus M/V Athena rides the sea perfectly and her stabilization
combined with her sizable sponsoon aft has worked together very well, with the result
being that we have had a more than a smooth voyage, thus there is not a
complaint in that department from anyone on board!
*This last sentence has been added after I
have reached home in Australia and I can say that we had a little weather in
the Gulf of Biscay and the North Sea, but Athena handled the seas superbly and
frankly when I sailed on a much larger ship (almost 80,000 tons) several years
ago, she moved a great deal more than Athena, which I felt behaved really well
and there was little to no seasickness to be found on board, sorry doctor!
The
Bridge
is attended by the helmsman as well as several other officers of the watch,
although they are out of shot here
What Passengers have told me
& the coffee situation on board - Over the past
three summer seasons Athena has sailed
from Fremantle and Adelaide,
and I can honestly say that I have received countless emails, well over 1,100
in fact. I do remember that after a number of rather staunch Funchal
supporters, who at first were not too sure about this “larger ship
Athena, that new ship,” but soon enough these Funchal supporters got used
to CIC’s Flagship and the reviews have been nothing short from glowing
and well over 99.7 of those received have been positive reviews indeed, in fact
I have some of these online.
However, there have been just the odd few and
I mean only the “odd” couple that had what I consider to be just I
minor (or rather a personal) problem.
Let me explain.
M/V Athena by definition is not a luxury 5
star cruise ship and it is quite obvious that she is not marketed as such. We
would all know that the fares reflect this fact. However, the standard on board
I can say is greatly superior than I have found on a certain so-called
“Premier” cruise ship that I sailed on in 2009, whilst on a 104
night around the world voyage Sydney/Sydney. Although on Athena
we may not have 24 hour free coffee available, but I don’t know about
you, it just happens I do happen to sleep at night. Yet there are some folk who
are rather desperate and obviously do not sleep and a few of these folk have
emailed me with their tedious complaints about the “lack of coffee”
and I mean over and over gain and believe me there was one person in
particular. To be honest it came to the point that I listed this person and one
other as a professional complainer, for frankly how desperate can you be?
Everyone on board Athena
knows that coffee and a vast variety of teas is available for most of the day,
in fact it is officially available at the following times at the Lotus Grill
Buffet, as well with your meals in the Restaurant.
At the Lotus Grill Buffett it is from 0630 to
0930 hrs, but often runs overtime to 1000 hrs, then again for morning tea at
1030 to 1100 hrs and more often than not this runs also into overtime to 1130
hrs. Then it is available again in the Buffett as well as the Restaurant from
1230 to 1415 hrs. Afternoon is tea is available between 1600 to 1645 hrs and
during this cruise evening meal was in the Restaurant at 1700 to 1830 hrs. Ice
cold water is always available in the Buffett.
Above
and below: Coffee and a variety of teas are available for most of the day and
evening
In addition to coffee available freely as per
the above, you can always buy a superb “Barista Espresso Coffee” or
a variety of speciality coffees for a mere A$2.15 at the Sirene’s Bar and
Lounge for a full 19 hours per day, starting from 0700 hrs (7 AM), try to get a
coffee for that amount in Australia! Speciality coffees obviously cost a little
extra.
But believe me or not I still have some of
these folk (and I am being really nice here) write me and complain, just
because it is available for free 24 hours per day in the buffet on a five star
ship, yet they conveniently forget to mention 1. That these companies only
offer either a cheap essence coffee or instant rubbish, whilst on the Athena
all coffee is always made from freshly ground beans and the coffee on board is
top quality and it is certainly the best I have ever tasted on any ship in the
world, and I am a coffee connoisseur! 2. On these 5 star ships, they
tend to forget that they have already paid more than double for these so-called
free coffees when they paid their fares.
The point is, when they joined Athena the fares they paid were certainly a great deal
less, yet for some strange reason I never heard them complain about the low
fares that they paid. As a cruise reviewer, who cannot be bought by any
company, nor bribed, I am delighted that every single passenger on Athena right now will tell you that this is a fine
ship, that she has an excellent crew, and that the food and service on offer is
wonderful and that they are having a superb experience! There is not one
complaint to date and I have spoken to the vast majority of passengers on
board. Although very early in the cruise there were a few very minor individual
items that required attention, but all these were rapidly attended to through
the Information Desk and some passengers received a new cabin, or had their
air-conditioning adjusted, and as I have been advised it was all attended to
very efficiently so.
I am sure that I have made my point and I feel
that by now you will well and truly realise that I am delighted with this
voyage as we have now continued further into the cruise heading close to the Suez Canal, and it just seems to improve day
by day. Why is it that CIC just can’t do anything wrong? I believe it is
because that CIC is one of just a very few independent shipping companies with
a reputable 30 year history and they have the experience in operating classic
ships and offering a classic style service that is unique in the industry, thus
Classic International Cruises provide a cruise experience that I feel is simply
beyond compare - an ocean voyage to remember!
Sirene’s
Bar and Lounge
As I have been told over and
over again as I speak with my fellow passengers, they are more than delighted
with their cruise and many on board have sailed with various companies, but
somehow this ship have taken their imagination for it is an unique experience
in so many ways, as I am sure you will have will have gathered by now. You may
ask by now, but are there any negatives at all? Of course, nothing is ever
totally perfect and I will have a few comments re this on Page Three, however,
I do need to state here that like everything with human nature, not all things
can be 100% perfect and I never expect it to be, but it always depends on how
any problems are handled on board as well by the management later.
Athena’s Captain Pedro Pinto, Mr. Hun-Hun-Eng
Tan and the author
Ships
Photographer
2 … Athena’s
Venues and Facilities.
Before I continue
this review, let say that it has been wholly written whilst I was on board
Athena, for I felt it better to write it whilst it was fresh on my mind and
also that I could update it as required, as you will have already seen above
with various dates and even parts of “day one” of the boarding
section, as parts of it will include items that may be of a later date, but I
felt it was still relevant to the basic story.
On the next page - Page Two I will take
you on a comprehensive tour of the ship, which I will do with words and with a
vast selection of photographs taken during the voyage. At each venue I will
provide a brief description and related details, this will provide not just a
better understanding and insight of M/V Athena, but also you will have seen ALL
her delightful facilities.
I trust that this review as a whole will have
given you with a comprehensive guide to this delightful ship and that it will
assist you on your journey towards booking a cruise on this ship, for once you
have read these pages you will a good idea what to expect on this friendly and
intimate lady of the sea - M/V Athena!
A reminder: The
author was on vacation and is not associated with the cruise company or any
travel organisation and thus is a fare paying passenger and “NOT a guest
of Classic international Cruises!”
PS: The author
will sail again to the UK
in 2012!
Reuben Goossens.
Cruise‘n’Ship
Reviewer, Maritime Historian & Author
Commenced in Passenger Shipping
in May 1960
Cruise-Australia is a 100%
non-commercial cruise site and does not accept advertising, commissions or
donations!
M/V Athena 2011 Review –
Index:
Page
One …
Athena Cruise Review
Page
Two …
Ships
Facilities & Photo Page
Page
Three … Accommodation
Page, Review Continued, Closing Comments, Negatives &
Information
Page
Four
… Menus,
photos and other items
MS
Stockholm …
Athena’s History
as the MS Stockholm – New & Updated
CIC’s
other ships:
M/V
Funchal … Sailing
around Europe and could be visiting Australia
in 2012 whilst on a world cruise
M/V
Princess Daphne … Sailing from Singapore
and Hong Kong Summer 2010-2011 & to return again for 2012
M/V
Arion … An intimate, charming and delightful
cruise ship sailing around Europe
and the Med & Mid East
Also
the Princess Danae … Sailing
from a variety of ports around Europe
(See M/V Princess
Daphne)
******************************************
For information
on M/V Athena, Funchal and Princess
Daphne and their itineraries …
CLICK
the “Classic International Cruises” LOGO above to enter their
Website
& Cruise AT108 - 40 nights Fremantle to Portsmouth UK
But to
make a Reservation - Email Corie Lisignoli: info@cruisespecialists.com.au
(Please
NAME the SHIP you are enquiring about)
Contact the:
“The
Cruise Specialists”
Australia’s number One and First fully registered “Australian
Cruise Agency” – Established in 1982
Australia wide – Phone Poll Free
For
other specialised “Recommended” Cruise Agencies
There
is a listing of “Recommended” Australian, New Zealand & International Cruise’n’Travel Agents
Enter my “Recommended
Cruise Agents” page
******************************************
Who is the Author of
Cruise-Australia & ssMaritime?
Commenced
in the Passenger Shipping Industry in May 1960
Contact
the Author …
When
sending an email please name the ship you are requesting information or
speaking about
Please Note:
Cruise-Australia is a non-commercial and privately owned cruise site. The
author has been in the passenger shipping industry since 1960 and is currently
semi-retired, but continues to write cruise and ship reviews and articles in
order to better to inform cruise and ship enthusiasts and provide information
for those intending a cruise in the future.
However, if you are interested in a cruise, I am happy to refer you to a
dedicated cruise agent in Australia, New Zealand
or further afield on my recommended “Cruise
Agents” page, for these are
agents that specialise in cruising and they will be able offer excellent
service you and the best fares available! Be assured, I do NOT receive any
commissions or favours from these agents, and in the vast majority of cases
these agents will not even be aware of my, or this site’s involvement, as
I provide the enquirer with the requested information of the agents (in their
region) including their contact details. Reuben Goossens.
Return
to the - Cruise-Australia.com
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*Photographs on the M/V Athena review were taken by the author
and several by travelling companion Mr.
Hun-Hun-Eng Tan.
The ships historic images are all from the author’s private collection. However the majority of cabin photographs on Page Three, except those
marked otherwise, were kindly provided by Classic International Cruises.
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by Reuben Goossens - All Rights Reserved