Less than a week after Peter Deilmann announced the imminent demise of its river cruise operation, its ocean-going vessel, Deutschland, arrived in London on a round-Britain voyage.
The vessel was moored in the Thames at Greenwich, it's usual spot by Tower Bridge having been closed. That's a real shame for passengers, who still had to tender ashore when they were by the bridge but at least they didn't have to negotiate the DLR once on dry land.
With river cruising almost gone - it finishes at the end of the season in October 2009 - Deilmann is pinning its hopes on Deutschland and ocean-going cruising, and especially the US and UK markets, which are seen as the growth markets.
The problem is, Deutschland feels very German, which could put off most Brits (although there were four on board, I am told, who had travelled to Hamburg to join the ship and sail back to the UK).
It comes across in the name of the ship (and the names of some lounges and restaurants - Berlin, Lili Marleen), which helpfully is on the chairs so you'll never forget where you are (as the average age is 72 maybe that is considered a possibility)...
...the fact that so many passengers are German or German-speaking and the slightly decadent, verging on kitsch, very 1930s Germany decor. This is the Terrasse Lounge (note the statues), below is the ballroom, below again the Old Fritz Pub.
The spa is interesting. This is called a Kraxen Oven and it is basically a sauna for people who don't do saunas (with apologies to Ocean Village). You sit here with a towel covering your front half and the hay behind is heated, which in turn heats the top half of your body. It costs €5 for 15 minutes.
And this is Cleopatra's Bath. It's filled with either goat's milk or coconut milk and you can lie here for half an hour with a glass of Champagne and the one you love (they reckon two can fit in it), doing oodles of good to your skin. It costs €45 for 30 minutes, but I suspect that excludes the bubbly.
I have to admit I was not a great fan of the ship when I first saw it a few years back, but it has grown on me. The little bit of service I experienced in my very short time on board was lovely - the passenger-facing crew all speak good English - and I was impressed with the food.
I also loved the fact there are nuts on tap in the Terrasse throughout the day. Such a mark of civilisation, but a bit of a killer where the diet is concerned. It's probably also one of the reasons why the average per diem is an eye-watering £250. And that excludes drinks.
You don't have to be elderly to cruise on Deutschland, but if you need to find that kind of money, it certainly helps.
Jane Archer
