Become a member of the COMMODORE CLUB and enjoy unlimited sailings aboard Waverley or Balmoral in your area and beyond! Purchasing a Commodore Ticket not only helps support the future of these wonderful Heritage ships but also guarantees the holder a place on board any public sailing throughout the season. Waverley & Balmoral sail from many ports and piers around the UK so choose the area you wish to visit and join today!
BENEFITS OF MEMBERSHIP * Club membership entitles you to all 'added attractions' at no extra charge. * A guaranteed place aboard Waverley & Balmoral
Conditions of Use - Tickets for 2 comprise one ticket valid for up to 2 companions travelling together. - Commodore Club tickets are not valid on days, or departures, as indicated on National & Bristol Channel Timetables. - Whilst Commodore tickets guarantee a place aboard Waverley & Balmoral, advance is advised for Club members wishing to undertake Shore Excursions. - Commodore Tickets are not transferable and valid for use only by the person to whom the ticket was originally issued.
BOOK ONLINE or send your cheque or Postal Order, Made payable to Waverley Excursions Ltd, to: COMMODORE CLUB, WAVERLEY TERMINAL, 36 LANCEFIELD QUAY, GLASGOW G3 8HA or CALL 0845 130 4647 (local call rate) to book by CREDIT/DEBIT CARD
PSPS GRAND DRAW 2007
During the sailing season raffle tickets were sold on board to raise funds - the grand draw has now taken place and the winners are........ 1st prize - FRED OLSEN CRUISE - Ticket No 089034 - Mr D Crouch of Harrow.......Congratulations!!! 2nd prize - Commodore Ticket - Ticket No 088986 - Ms S Blackwell of London 3rd prize - Case of Wine - Ticket No. 001246 - Mr & Mrs Grilli of Norwich 4th prize - £100 - Ticket No 032333 - Mr B Lamont of Garelochhead 5th prize - £50 - Ticket No 088956 - Mrs M.I. Dawson of Herne Bay Congratulations to all our winners and thanks to everyone who supported the ships through the purchase of raffle tickets.
WAVERLEY NEWS MESSAGE FROM DAVID RODGERS - Chairman of Waverley Excursions.
Waverley's Diamond Jubilee was marked by special days in all major cruise sectors. Part of these celebrations involved the auctioning of Diamond Jubilee commemorative flags, which together raised a total of £1000. Sincere thanks are due to the huge number of people who contributed to these celebrations, and in particular to the many representatives from local authorities, tourist information centres, ticket agencies and port authorities who sailed in the ship during the season. Many cakes were cut, and several replicas of the famous one pound note which secured the ship from Caledonian MacBrayne were seen to be circulating.
In terms of weather, 2007 gave us much to forget. Several periods of flood, and generally memories of periods of very wet windy weather at varying times in almost every area in which we sailed. Balmoral lost a total of 12 days sailing due to bad weather. Nevertheless, overall income for both ships was very slightly ahead of last year and it seems obvious that the visits of both ships around the coast during the season are welcomed by the local communities, and that they bring not only pleasure to those who sail in them, but also visible benefits to the piers and towns at which they call.
Our slogan of 'Great Days Out' applies on board and ashore !
It will be difficult to provide such a unifying theme as a diamond jubilee - until Balmoral's in 2009. However, we have noticed how popular the TV programme 'Coast' - now being repeated in shorter units - has been in its three series. Taking a cruise on board Waverley or Balmoral is one of the few ways to see large parts of the UK coastline. So why not celebrate Britain's coast and islands aboard Britain's famous excursion ships.
The 2008 advance programmes are designed to build on the successes of 2007.
With Easter being so early, Waverley's season begins May 2 with a shorter Western Isles season before completion of the annual drydock, and then restarts before the end of the month in the Bristol Channel, on the same day that Balmoral begins her operations in the Irish Sea. This year we hope and trust that the weather will allow us to carry out our Northern Ireland programme, which was very heavily supported, without cancellation.
Balmoral will return to the Irish Sea and will be in Liverpool for the Tall Ships race in July before moving to the Bristol Channel for the majority of the Summer. At the time of writing, we are investigating a short programme for her to 'follow' QE2 on what must be her final tour of UK ports before becoming a hotel ship in Dubai - shades of Gracie Fields.
Sixty years ago, Britain almost had a surfeit of piers around the coast, there were several fleets of excursions ships making use of them, and road transport was a fraction of what it is today. Even fifty years ago things had changed little. Today, much of Waverley Excursion's time is taken up with a watching brief on those which remain and are sometimes in a fragile physical or economical state. Last year, Ian McMillan - former Chairman, remarked on the effect both on local income and on us of the closures of Southend and Swanage. This year, we have seen the positive effect of a full year's reopening of Southend, but the negative because of the loss of Llandudno. At both Llandudno and Swanage, there are efforts to renew the facilities and we urge you to make your words heard if you come from those areas. On the brighter side, moves to replace Arrochar pier in the new National Park look to be coming to fruition for 2009, and we are talking to the relevant authorities about the possibility of a 'stage stop' on the Clyde between Glasgow and Greenock.
WAVERLEY ON FILM The popular website youtube.com now carries some 85 different film clips of Waverley - from engine shots to Waverley sailing in the most scenic parts of Scotland and through London's Tower Bridge - its worth a look!
