Britannia

The sun was barely up behind Sark when the Britannia arrived from La Coruna. Coming around the south east corner with the Pine Forest as a foreground the seas look empty apart from the liner.

If the Britannia had come a day earlier the guests could have enjoyed the Air Display.  This included the Red Arrows "Missing Man" tribute to the Island's much loved Lieutenant Governor who died suddenly last weekend.

No blue skies met the Britannia as she dropped the anchor on her day's visit. She is on a Iberian cruise and has sailed as far as the north coast of Spain before turning north to Guernsey and her home port of Southampton. For the winter season she will sail from Southampton at the end of October to Bridgetown, Barbados. Before that though she will return to Guernsey on Sunday on a two day cruise from Southampton.

Berlin

The Berlin is back today for another visit from London. The weather for tender operations was perfect with hardly any wind or swell, enabling guests to enjoy their day in Guernsey. She left in the early evening for Ijmuiden with the guests on board no doubt enjoying the two restaurants on board. She is back in local waters next week and the end of the year will see her cruising in the Red Sea on one week cruises.

In the late summer sunshine the steps leading to the high ground and back streets of St Peter Port provide hidden view at ever turn, you've just got to search them out. These steps lead down into the Market Square of St Peter Port with its cafes and shops in the old markets.

Guests who returned early to the liner or did not go ashore enjoy the afternoon sunshine on the stern of the Berlin, as do the crew on the lower deck. Two tenders were in operation, but no large queues developed with the small capacity of this liner at just over 400 guests.

Azores

Another day, another liner. This time the Azores back to St Peter Port on a "Treasures of the British Isles " cruise out of Bristol, although her previous port of Le Havre in Normandy seems a little out of the way. It's the time of year when islanders are making the most of the late summer sunny days. This was the first of two ferries returning from Sark this Sunday.

This tender from the Azores makes its way up the southern fairway to the cruise liner pontoon. As with the Marco Polo yesterday, the Azores was also once a trans-Atlantic ocean liner. Launched in 1946 as the Stockholm she was one of the smaller liners at the time carrying just under 400 passengers.

When she leaves St Peter Port the Azores  will be chasing one of yesterday's visitor, the Prinsendam,  to Tresco in the Scilly Isles before finishing her cruise in Bristol on Tuesday. At this time of day the local fishing boats return to port and the pleasure boaters finishing their sailing for the weekend.

Marco Polo & Prinsendam

Two today with the Prinsendam and the Marco Polo enjoying a September Saturday in Guernsey. An ideal day for tender operations although a long ride for the guests on the Marco Polo. The fast RIB which takes sightseers around Herm and the the rocky outcrops of Guernsey gives their passengers a close up view of the liners.

The Casquets Lighthouse to the west of Alderney was clear today although I'm not so sure it would have been visible to the guests on the Prinsendam from deck level. The Casquets have been the scene of many tragic ship wrecks over the years including the SS Stella, (marked by a plaque at St Peter Port Harbour) and HMS Victory, a predecessor of Nelson's famous flagship. Next port of call for the Prinsendam. is Tresco in the Scilly Isles as part of a Celtic and Gaelic cruise.

Marco Polo looks pristine in readiness for its next cruise.  After this British Isles Cruise, she will sail to Canada as part of her 50th Anniversary Voyage, not returning to Tilbury until early October. She is going back to her roots as in the 1960s she operated a trans-Atlantic service, as the Alexander Pushkin, between Leningrad and Montreal, being one of the fastest ships in the Soviet merchant fleet. A regular visitor to Guernsey, long may she be seen in these waters. The sun shone on the Marco Polo and the north of Sark, but Jethou lies in shadow.

Marina

The Marina arrived at St Peter Port this morning having sailed from Dover last night. She left Stockholm two weeks ago, and she will arrive in Civitavecchia in three weeks time. Guests could have joined the liner in Amsterdam, and some will leave in Barcelona rather than continue on to Italy. The weather was kind for the whole stay with the sun shining for the afternoon.  The anchor is not dropped yet as the Marina comes up to the anchorage, with the Golden Spur, St Peter Port pilot boat, close to the spot.

The cliff paths to the south of St Peter Port pass through Fort George and its fortifications. The soldiers from the fort use to bath at a bay called Soldiers Bay, but access was closed off for many years due to rocks falling and other safety issues. You can still reach it though judging by these two bathers enjoying the solitude of the area. Hidden in the other side of the cliffs  is a tunnel, used by the occupying forces in World War Two, which is now an aquarium.

The low spring tide shows up the many rocks highlighting the dangers that local mariners have when navigating these waters. No one on the balconies of the Marina, no doubt all enjoying the day ashore. Next port of call is Concarneau, a walled town with a delightful small ferry on the south west coast of Brittany. These destinations demonstrate the ability of this Oceania Cruise small luxury liner to visit different ports that the larger liners bypass.

Berlin

On the last day of August the Berlin arrived at St Peter Port for a day's visit. One of the smaller liners visiting this month, with a capacity for 400 guests, the experience will be a bit different from the Azura which visited yesterday. One day there will be some guests standing on the top of the bunkers at Castle Cornet, but not today.

The Berlin left London yesterday giving the guests on board time to see the Tall Ships moored by the Tower of London. Early this evening she will leave for Ijmuiden, the port on the North Sea coast connected by canal to Amsterdam and Haarlem.  Unusually there were no yachts or ferries outside the harbour as a tender heads back to the liner.

Balmoral & Azura

A good sunrise this morning but the 'sparkly bits' didn't quite reach the Balmoral and only Sark got the warmth. She enjoyed a long day in Guernsey having arrived from Southampton, and just after tea time she left for Honfleur. La Coupee which joins Little Sark to Sark is the flat part of the island behind the middle of the liner. It is just wide enough to take a horse and carriage and is not for the vertigious.

No rays of light for the Azura as the sun disappeared into clouds for the rest of the morning. With the pilot on board she heads for the anchorage position where she will spend the last day of her cruise having visited Lisbon and other west coast ports in Spain and Portugal.

Guests on board the Balmoral took advantage of the Bank Holiday weekend  to enjoy a three night cruise to Guernsey and Honfleur from Southampton. Both liners tower above the roof tops of St Peter Port on a grey Sunday afternoon.

Royal Princess

It's Bank Holiday weekend in a few days in England. Many people take holidays this week to tag the Bank Holiday on as a extra day. So the weather this morning is rain, strong winds, rough sea, mist and not the day to take a tender ride into St Peter Port. Stay on board and enjoy the amenities of the liner. The Azamara Quest had already cancelled and sailed from Southampton directly to Bordeaux. Royal Princess arrived early this morning and was already straining at the anchor as it got less dark.

After the many successful visits of the Royal Princess this year it was a shame that this last one was not. When she arrives back in Southampton after circumnavigating the British Isles she will cross the Atlantic and spend our winter cruising out of Fort Lauderdale to the Caribbean. She will spend next summer cruising from Barcelona and Civitavecchia.

After an hour or so the decision was made to abort the visit to Guernsey and the Royal Princess sailed for Cork. The last view of the liner this year in Guernsey waters looked rather lonely with no tenders or ferries around her. Winter is coming fast it seems. Some of the guests on board may enjoy the liner for almost a month as they combine their British Isles cruise and then the Atlantic crossing.

Ventura & Hebridean Princess

It was not so lucky for the Ventura today with the weather forecast at 7.00 am this morning leading to the cancellation of the visit. She continued on passage for her next port of call, Lisbon on her cruise of Portugal and Spain. The weather over Brittany gives a hint of what was coming towards the island with heavy rain and strong winds during the day.

Anybody on the cliff path at Jerbourg, on the south east corner of Guernsey, had a close look at the Ventura as she headed south into the hopefully warmer weather. She is due to make one more visit in September when she will return  on a two night cruise from Southampton.

No such problems for the guests on the Hebridean Princess whose liner was tucked up in St Peter Port, although she did have to move berth during the day. She is on a "Jewels of the English Channel" cruise having left the pier by the Tower of London last Wednesday. Early September will see her back on home ground on the west coast of Scotland. The inter island ferries shown probably had a quiet day today.

Ocean Majesty

The Ocean Majesty arrived this morning from Torbay on the south coast of England.for a half day visit.  She has spent the early part of summer operating cruises to Norway, Greenland and the Baltic States from ports in Germany. She will head south when she leaves Guernsey for Bordeaux on the Atlantic coast of France before returning to Germany. In the autumn she will will be cruising in the Mediterranean.

Originally built as a ferry in 1966 serving the Balearic Islands she was refurbished to become a liner in 1988 as the Ocean Majesty. The weather was kind for the visit but at times provided dramatic lighting.

Guests on board had plenty to watch with a powerboat race providing entertainment on the way back to the liner. Being a Sunday most of the shops in St Peter Port will have been shut but guests made the most of the tours provided to enjoy Guernsey in the last days of summer.