Passenger Ship Website - www.simplonpc.co.uk - Simplon Postcards Home - Recent Updates - Search - Copyright Information - Contact Simplon
This website has no connection with any shipping company, cruise line, boat operator or other commercial organisation
 
 
 
Premier Cruises - Page 2
 
 
 
These pages are devoted to postcards and photographs of the 'new' Premier Cruises fleet, which was an amalgamation of Dolphin Cruise Line (SeaBreeze, OceanBreeze & IslandBreeze), Seawind Cruise Line (SeaWind Crown) and the original Premier Cruise Line (Oceanic - The Big Red Boat). The classic liner Rotterdam was then acquired to become the Rembrandt. A stylish new blue colour scheme was applied to all vessels except Oceanic, which had long been marketed as "The Big Red Boat". Unfortunately, other members of the fleet later became Big Red Boat II, III ,IV etc. The final addition to the fleet was the chartered Edinburgh Castle, which became the Big Red Boat II. The new Premier Cruises collapsed in September 2000. Only the Oceanic (The Big Red Boat) sailed on after the failure, serving with Spanish operator Pullmantur.
 
The table below gives links to complete postcard career histories of the various ships. Below the table I have added a Premier Cruises Fleet List showing postcards of the 'new' company in the deep blue livery, plus repainted Big Red Boats, as cards became available.
 
 
Ships Shown on this Page:-
Big Red Boat I
Big Red Boat II
Big Red Boat III
Big Red Boat IV
IslandBreeze
OceanBreeze
Oceanic
Rembrandt
SeaBreeze
SeaWind Crown
 
 
Associated Web Pages:-
Premier Cruise Line - Page 1 - the Original 'Big Red Boats'
Dolphin Cruise Line
Seawind Cruise Line - Link to their single ship, the Seawind Crown
Pullmantur
Thomson Cruises - Operated Dolphin IV, OceanBreeze and IslandBreeze on Charter
Cruise Ship Postcards
Ocean Liner Postcards
Simplon Postcards Home Page
 
Search This Website:-

powered by FreeFind  
 
 
 
 
 
Table of Ship Histories
Name  Other Names  Built
 Big Red Boat I  Oceanic, StarShip Oceanic

 1965
 Big Red Boat II  Eugenio C, Eugenio Costa, Edinburgh Castle

 1966
 Big Red Boat III  Transvaal Castle, S.A.Vaal, Festivale, IsldanBreeze  1962
 Big Red Boat IV  Rotterdam, Rembrandt

 1959
 IslandBreeze  Transvaal Castle, S.A.Vaal, Festivale  1962
 OceanBreeze  Southern Cross, Calypso, Azur Seas, Imperial Majesty

 1955
 Oceanic  StarShip Oceanic, Big Red Boat I

 1965
 Rembrandt  Rotterdam, Big Red Boat IV

 1959
 SeaBreeze  Federico C, Royale, StarShip Royale

 1958
 SeaWind Crown  Infante Dom Henrique, Vasco da Gama

 1961
 StarshipMajestic  Spirit of London, Sun Princess, Southern Cross, Flamenco  1972
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Premier Cruises Fleet List
 
 
 
Oceanic
Big Red Boat I
 
A complete history of this ship is available on this link.
 
 
A Premier Cruises official card of Oceanic - The Big Red Boat.
 
 
Another Premier Cruises official card of Oceanic - The Big Red Boat, using the same image as the card above.
 
 
 
 
 
Big Red Boat II
 
Premier Cruises have chartered Edinburgh Castle, previously EugenioCosta, and renamed her the Big Red Boat II.
 
Complete History of Big Red Boat II
 
 
A Direct Cruises card of Edinburgh Castle is shown below.
 
 
Chantry Classics postcard CC/S320 of Big Red Boat II, at Freeport.
Photo: © Vincenzo Miele (Staff Captain - Fantasy).
 
 
Two photographs of Big Red Boat II, in a sorry state at Freeport.
Note the Rembrandt behind - she did not receive the indignity of becoming a Big Red Boat before Premier's collapse.
Photographed from the bridge of Carnival's Fantasy.
Photo: © Vincenzo Miele (Staff Captain - Fantasy).
 
 
Photo: © Vincenzo Miele (Staff Captain - Fantasy).
 
 
Can anyone assist with an official Premier postcard of Big Red Boat II?
I suspect that none were issued, but if you know otherwise please email simplon@simplon.co.uk
 
 
 
 
 
IslandBreeze
Big Red Boat III
 
IslandBreeze was built as the Transvaal Castle, launched in 1961 by John Brown & Co, Clydebank. She was delivered to Union-Castle Line, and served on their route to South Africa from Southampton from 1962. Transvaal Castle remained in Union-Castle colours only until 1966, when she was transferred to the South African Marine Corp (UK), remaining on the same service under the British flag, with Union-Castle crew and management as S.A.Vaal. In 1969 she was transferred to the South African flag.
 
S.A.Vaal was withdrawn in Southampton on October 10th, 1977 and sold to Carnival Cruise Line, who rebuilt her in Japan with extra decks, almost doubling the passenger capacity. The external appearance was not spoilt, however, and she has remained the handsome ship of Union-Castle days. Internally, the public rooms were much changed from the traditional liner. She returned to service in 1978 as Festivale, on Caribbean cruises in partnership with ex-Canadian Pacific liners Mardi Gras and Carnivale, revolutionising the cruise industry. Transvaal Castle - Page 2 shows postcards from the Carnival era.
 
Following the delivery of purpose-built cruise ships to Carnival, she was sold to Dolphin Cruise Line who renamed her IslandBreeze. She was chartered to UK holiday company Thomson during the late 1990s, and passed to Premier cruises with the rest of the Dolphin ships. Transvaal Castle - Page 3 shows postcards of the IslandBreeze. IslandBreeze was later renamed Big Red Boat III.
 
On 4th June 2003 Big Red Boat III (sailing as Big Boat) steamed from Freeport enroute to the shipbreakers at Alang, India, via Gibraltar. She had the sad distinction of being the first Carnival Cruise liner to be scrapped.
 
Complete postcard history of IslandBreeze.
 
 
A Premier Cruises official card of IslandBreeze, originally Transvaal Castle.
Can anyone assist with a card as Big Red Boat III - please email simplon@simplon.co.uk?
 
 
A Premier Cruises official card of IslandBreeze.
 
 
If anyone can assist with cards of other ships in the fleet as "Big Red Boats", please email simplon@simplon.co.uk.
 
 
 
 
 
 
OceanBreeze
 
Complete history of OceanBreeze
 
 
A Premier Cruises official cards of OceanBreeze, originally the Southern Cross.
Link to complete postcard history history of this ship.
 
 
 
OceanBreeze was latterly under charter as Imperial Majesty, although showing registered name on the bow. She ran short cruises out of Fort Lauderdale. She is shown below leaving Fort Lauderdale, by Ian Boyle, in March 1999. In March 2000 Majesty Cruises bought the OceanBreeze from Premier. In 2003 they acquired the Regal Empress, and the furure for Imperial Majesty looked bleak. Can anyone assist with any Majesty Cruises cards - please email simplon@simplon.co.uk?
 
 
This is Simplon Postcards release sc2143, issued June 1999.
Follow this link to see a list of all Simplon cruise ship postcards.
 
 
 
 
 
Rembrandt
Big Red Boat IV
 
A Premier Cruises official card of Rembrandt, originally the Rotterdam.
 
 
A Premier Cruises official card of Rembrandt, originally the Rotterdam.
 
 
Simplon Postcards release sc2130, issued July 1998. She is photographed off Funchal, Madeira, by Rui Manuel Gouveia Sa, 27th April 1998.
 
 
Photograph of Rembrandt at Freeport.
Photographed from the bridge of Carnival's Fantasy.
Photo: © Vincenzo Miele (Staff Captain - Fantasy).
 
 
 
 
 
SeaBreeze
 
A complete postcard history of this ship is available on this link.
 
 
A general Premier Cruises official card, showing a small view of SeaBreeze.
 
 
Premier Cruises official card of SeaBreeze, originally the Federico C.
 
 
Premier Cruises official card of SeaBreeze, originally the Federico C.
 
 
Premier Cruises official card of SeaBreeze, originally the Federico C.
 
 
 
 
 
SeaWind Crown
 
Complete history of Seawind Crown
 
 
A Premier Cruises official card of SeaWind Crown, originally the Infante Dom Henrique.
 
 
A Premier Cruises official card of SeaWind Crown, originally the Infante Dom Henrique.
 
 
A Premier Cruises official card of SeaWind Crown, originally the Infante Dom Henrique.
 
 
Simplon Photographs isc2008, released September 2002, showing SeaWind Crown laid up in Barcelona.
She remained here in October 2003, but was due to sail for the breakers soon afterwards.
Photo: © Ian Boyle.
 
 
 
 
Premier Cruises Page 1 - Dolphin Cruise Line - Seawind Cruise Line
Cruise Ship Postcards - Ocean Liner Postcards
Top of Page - Simplon Postcards Home Page
 

         
 
 
 
©1999-2007 Copyright Ian Boyle/Simplon Postcards (all pages on web site)
All Rights Reserved
 
Free Web Counter
Times viewed since 19/07/2007: