L'Austral

Le Boreal is our normal visitor at this time of year from Ponant Cruises but she had an incident in the South Atlantic in November 2015.  This involved the evacuation of the crew and guests into life rafts with Royal Air Force Sea Kings from the Falklands and a Royal Navy ship taking them to Stanley. She made her way back to Europe for repairs aboard the COSCO Heavy Transport ship, HLV Kang Sheng Kou.

So, L'Austral, one of her sister ships, arrived at midday from Brittany and made her way past Herm, and its White House Hotel, to anchor only a short tender ride from St Peter Port.

Normally many of the guests on board would be French and their  primary destination would be Victor Hugo's house in Hautville, on the outskirts of St Peter Port. The house is owned by the City of Paris and is open daily except Wednesdays through till the end of September. He lived in Guernsey for 15 years and the Island provided the background to some of his works. Some of the American guests on this Vassar cruise may have studied French Literature and this will be their chosen destination. The liner is chartered on a 'Stepping Stones of Western Europe' cruise with Dwight David Eisenhower II as a guest speaker.

What a glorious sunset does for the light as L'Austral left for St Malo on Wednesday evening. The large Tricolore flies proudly. The liner entered service in 2011 and caters for guests who do not want large liner cruises preferring this more 'superyacht' experience. She will end her cruise by sailing under Tower Bridge on Saturday and dock alongside HMS Belfast.

Azura

Not a lucky day for Azura.  This is what it looked like on her last visit in early April with tenders running all day. The seas did not oblige today.

The Azura arrived at St Peter Port early this Tuesday morning and with the harbour tantalizingly close the guests on board did not have an opportunity to enjoy the Island. With the sun shining on her the Union Jack colours give no doubt of the heritage of this liner.

Unfortunately the seas were not suitable for tender operation and with a cold northerly wind blowing Azura left at midday bound for her next port of call Amsterdam.

Emerald Princess

April Showers, April Rain, April Wind, April Sunshine; all of these greeted the guests from the Emerald Princess when she spent the full day in Guernsey. She left Southampton on Saturday and spent yesterday in the Western Channel. Some guests I met at St Barnabas told me how sunny the weather had been there. I hope they found Market Square on their way back to the ship! This morning the sun shone on the boats in Bordeaux Harbour in the north of the Island with Emerald Princess in view on the outer anchorage.

The inclement weather in the afternoon led to a large number of guests wishing to return to the liner at the same time creating a queue that snaked its way around the Albert Pier. This is the view from St Barnabas which gives good views of St Peter Port, Castle Cornet and any visiting liners.

The strong winds are shown by the strain on the anchor as the 'Last Tender' is hosted aboard before the Emerald Princess departed at tea time for Southampton. She will home port in Southampton for the summer this year before heading for southerly climes

AIDAvita & Marco Polo

One regular visitor and one  new arrival when the AIDAvita and Marco Polo arrived in St Peter Port this morning. The AIDAvita left Miami on the 7th April on her positioning cruise back to Germany for the summer. She arrived early this morning from Falmouth. She was built in 2002 and will spend the summer with Keil as her home port.

The changing face of tourism in Guernsey as Condor Liberation leaves for the south on her journey to Jersey with the more traditional visitor, whilst the two liners bring ashore three times the capacity of the ferry but for a shorter stay. Condor Liberation provides fast ferry connections between Poole and the Channel Islands.

The Marco Polo is a regular visitor to the Island and arrived this morning from the Isles of Scilly and spent the day in Guernsey before departing for Honfleur. She will be back in Tilbury on Monday and will spend most of the summer cruising from the more northerly ports of England. In the far background is the Normandy coast, with the closer sunny beaches of Herm beckoning to locals.

Ovation of the Seas

Missed the liners in Guernsey this week as there were only a few opportunities to see the Ovation of the Seas in Europe before she leaves for the Far East. The chance came with a trip to first Cherbourg and then Le Havre. The morning of her arrival on Monday 18th April brought a glorious sunrise which gave enough light just as she entered the Petite Rade.

There were a few locals down the harbour as she came to her berth at the Transatlantic Terminal on her maiden visit. The Terminal now contains La Cite de la Mer and also the submarine Redoubtable. Not too many guests on the balconies though for this early arrival.

The liner dominated the town from where ever you looked including from Place Napoleon, where the newly renovated statue of the French Emperor looks down on this modern invader from the sea.

Not much standing room by the Transatlantic Terminal when the Ovation of the Seas departed for Le Havre.  Going astern off the berth she swung in front of the crowd before heading out of the western entrance. Cherbourg will only get one more chance to see her in the foreseeable future on the 28th April.

The locals in Le Havre weren't so lucky as the Ovation of the Seas arrived before sunrise and was just putting her ropes ashore as the fishing boats were returning to sell their catch on the harbour side.

The walk into town is not as pleasant in Le Havre as in Cherbourg but guests had the choice of a shuttle bus. Now I know why the short walk into St Peter Port is much appreciated. The Ovation of the Seas had company just after she berthed when the AIDAmar came alongside.

Azura

Sunny Saturday in St Peter Port brought the P&O Liner Azura at the start of her 7 night cruise to Spain. The weather was kind and winds were light allowing tenders from the ship, as well as the Herm Trident, to operate the whole time during the visit.

Some guests on board took advantage of a day trip to Sark, or hire car availability next to the embarkation area allowing an independent look at Guernsey. Even with the Herm Ferry acting as a extra tender small queues built up as the time to leave arrived with the coaches returning from the afternoon tours adding to them. The new arrangements have had their first real test today with the increased numbers from the Azura and continue to perform well.

The Azura makes an imposing sight outside St Peter Port with the sunshine illuminating her at the end of her full day visit. Early evening she departed for La Coruna where she will arrive on Monday morning giving guests on board time to enjoy the facilities of the liner after her refit in April 2015.

Amadea

She is almost home, her last port of call before arriving in Hamburg. Amadea left Europe before Christmas last year, sailed down the coast of Brazil, visiting amongst other ports Rio de Janiero and Buenos Aires, before sailing around Cape Horn into the Pacific.

The beginning of February this year found her off the coast of Chile visiting the "Cape Horners" port of Valparaiso, before continuing to Peru and Ecuador. In March she was sailing through the Panama Canal visiting Cuba and other Caribbean Islands and by the end of the month she was back this side of the Atlantic in La Coruna before heading north and home.

With the trees still looking wintry with no summer growth the Amadea opens the season in Guernsey being the first liner to visit in 2016. With an arrival at breakfast time she was on her way to Germany early afternoon. Sunday will see in her Hamburg where this well traveled lady rests before heading south to the Canary Islands in mid-April.

The waters outside St Peter Port Harbour look very empty at this time of year, no ferries or visiting yachts yet, only the Amadea looking part of Castle Cornet. A lack of tourists on top of the Castle as well on this warm April day.

Amadea is the first liner to use the pontoon with the longer access ramp giving a less steep climb from the tenders to the shore. St Peter Port continues to improve the arrival for guests and this is the second year to use this area to land in the heart of St Peter Port