Cruising The Past Cruise News

Shipboard scenes from the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s… aboard the Italian Lines, Cunard Lines and the Greek Lines… Can you imagine what it was like to say goodbye to your family, your home and your friends? To leave for a strange country, not knowing the language, and with little or ... Read More »

It is a retro look at gay life. Operated by gay pioneer RSVP the passengers dubbed the ship Bermuda Star Cruise Line ship the SS BRENDA STARR. Retro cruising on the “SS BERMUDA STAR” – the ship was a.k.a. “SS Brenda Starr”.. One of the first all gay cruises – Cruising ... Read More »

Eastern Steamship Lines was one of the last American flag coastal passenger services. In 1901, Charles Wyman Morse merged together the Boston &. Bangor Steamship Company, the Portland Steam Packet Company, the International Steamship Company, and several local lines on the Maine coast to form the Eastern Steamship Company. 1910 ... Read More »

The RMS Orcades was an ocean liner serving primarily the UK – Australia – New Zealand route. She started service as a British Royal Mail Ship (RMS) carrying first and tourist class passengers. Orcades carried many migrants to Australia and New Zealand and was later used as a cruise ship. Built ... Read More »

On the morning of 8 September 1934, en route from Havana to New York, the ship caught fire and burned, killing 137 passengers and crew members.   She was a luxury ocean liner of the 1930s that was built for the Ward Line for runs between New York City and ... Read More »

Pianist, gossip columnist, TV star, and above all a giver of great parties, Elsa Maxwell was famous for being herself. She was most likely far more interesting than the celebrities she covered. Elsa Maxwell first worked as a theatre pianist after leaving school at the age of 14 and before ... Read More »

One of Princess Cruises’ smallest ships, the 672-passenger Ocean Princess, soon will be joining the Oceania Cruises fleet. Oceania’s parent company, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NCLH), today announced a definitive agreement to buy the 15-year-old vessel from Princess with the transfer set to take place in March 2016. Originally designed ... Read More »

First as the trans-Pacific record holder liner, then serving during World War 2, followed by being renamed the Empress of Scotland on the trans-Atlantic run and then finally sailing under the German flag. It was ironic, the allied ship used during WW 2 to fight the Nazis, was sold to ... Read More »

Visiting San Francisco. 1960s – Photo from Cruise History – San Francisco, California…  P&O liners SS CANBERRA (docked at the Matson Line pier) and the SS ARCADIA (in background) sailing away. Read More »

When Ernie Byfield opened The Pump Room in the Ambassador East Hotel on October 1, 1938, he undoubtedly had little idea that he was beginning an enterprise that would still be thriving to this day. Today, The Pump Room remains highly acclaimed restaurant and Chicago landmark. Located in Chicago’s Gold ... Read More »