Eagerly Anticipated Hebridean Princess Video - Watch Now

You may have read in issue 29 of our newsletter, The Hebridean Times, the article about capturing the World of Hebridean Princess on video.

During last year, Upfront Photography from Glasgow, were invited to film on board Hebridean Princess to produce a video that would capture everything typical about a Hebridean Princess cruise.

We hope you enjoy watching the final video below.

>> The World of Hebridean Princess on Video

Alternatively, visit our home page:

>> Hebridean Home Page

Hebridean Island Cruises Increases its Support for UK Marine Conservation

Hebridean Island Cruises has been working with its customers to raise funds for Sea-Changers, the UK marine conservation charity, since 2012 and during this time their guests have donated nearly £30,000. Up until now donations have been made as an optional addition by Hebridean’s guests when they book their cruise aboard the Hebridean Princess. From now on the company itself will match-fund every donation made by its guests, effectively doubling the contributions. 100% of the money that guests donate will continue to fund marine conservation projects; whilst the company’s donations will help to fund Sea-Changer’s first employee post – since the charity has grown considerably, they now need a paid worker to administer the grant fund.


The combined funds will allow Sea-Changers to award more marine conservation grants across the UK. Over the years Sea-Changers has enabled a vast range of vital marine conservation activity, much of it in Scotland and including around the beautiful Hebrides themselves.
 

Some examples of such projects are:

• Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust – funding to purchase much needed computer equipment for their dedicated research vessel, Silurian.

• Marine Conservation Society - purchasing beach cleaning equipment for Scotland enabling MCS to clean and survey 240 Scottish beaches, engaging over 3,000 volunteers, and collecting data on key types of litter polluting Scottish seas and beaches.

• Beach Watch Bute – Funding for storage benches throughout the island in key areas affected by marine litter. The benches will contain handy grabbers, bags, and gloves.

• Basking Shark Scotland - running a series of clean ups in the remote islands of Argyll transporting their volunteers via ribs and an inflatable dinghy.

• Shetland Amenity Trust - funding to produce a film about the UK’s most successful voluntary litter pick which involves 20% of Shetland’s population volunteering to clean its beaches and coastlines annually.

• Craignish Restoration of Marine and Coastal Habitat (CROMACH) – for a pilot re-introduction of the native oyster to Loch Craignish, in order to improve water quality and increase biodiversity while exploring the potential for greater community-led regeneration of the loch using a keystone species.

• Firth of Forth Lobster Hatchery - funding to help the hatchery's economic cycle and enhance breeding stocks by allowing the hatchery to pay fishermen and release even more lobsters back to sea.

Helen Webb, Co-Founder of Sea-Changers said, “2018 has been the year when the UK really began to wake up to the problem of plastic pollution and its impact on our seas and wildlife. This and other marine problems can be tackled and with the support of caring marine-based businesses like Hebridean Island Cruises we can make a real difference. We are delighted that the company is going to match every guest’s donation in this way – the increased funds will make a huge difference to our work.”

About Sea-Changers
1. Sea-Changers is a charity with the mission of raising substantial funds for marine conservation charities and projects, primarily in the UK. Registered Charity No. England and Wales No. 1142119 and in Scotland SC043922 www.sea-changers.org.uk

2. They exist in order to harness the energy, good will and resources of those who love the sea, particularly those who use it for leisure activities such as diving, sailing, boating and cruising holidays.

3. Sea-Changers works through partnerships with commercial organisations that serve consumers who are accessing, enjoying or travelling via the sea.
About Hebridean Island Cruises
1. Featuring some fine tours ashore, the luxurious Hebridean Princess offers the highest standards of 5* accommodation, together with a level of service from an almost forgotten era. 
2. Carrying just 50 guests and a dedicated crew of 38, Hebridean Princess has an enviable reputation for exceptional service. She has 30 spacious, elegant and well-appointed cabins, 10 designated especially for the single traveller.

3. For more information and to book visit www.hebridean.co.uk or call 01756 704704.

North Norfolk Travel Show - Sunday 10th March 2019

Discover the world in one day - and all under one roof!

Hebridean's Business Development Manager, Hannah Cockell, will be on hand to showcase everything Hebridean and provide answers to any questions you may have about Hebridean Princess, as well as our European river cruises programme on board Royal Crown.

In addition, you will be able to explore the endless holiday options on show and plan your next trip face-to-face with travel experts.

There will be exclusive show-only specials and trip giveaways.

The North Norfolk Travel Show is being held on:

Sunday, 10th March 2019 between 11am and 4pm.

At:

Holkham Hall, Holkham Road, Wells-next-the-Sea NR23 1AB

Should you wish to attend please register using the following link www.nntravelshow.com and enter 'Hebridean' under 'Where did you hear about the show'.

We look forward to seeing you on the day.

Cruise of the Week - The Romantic Main and Rhine

GERMAN GREATS ON THE ROMANTIC MAIN AND RHINE - by Stella Grace Lyons

German art has often been overlooked and neglected. This is particularly the case for the artworks produced during the middle ages and Renaissance. Yet Germany has an extremely rich and varied tradition in the history of art; from the precise Renaissance woodcarvings and prints, to romantic paintings imbued with beauty and mystery, to tumultuous period of the Third Reich, where art was distorted into a tool of terror. In July 2019, guests on the Romantic Main and Rhine river cruise will have the wonderful opportunity to explore this tradition, and see gems by the german greats: Albrecht Dürer, Hans Holbein the Younger, Lucas Cranach the Elder, Stefan Lochner, Max Liebermann, Max Beckmann, and Caspar David Friedrich.

Why have we dismissed German art? The truth is we haven’t, at least, not always. In the late 19th century Britons were extremely knowledgeable about German culture; literature, poetry, music and art. At this point, and in the 18th century, German culture laid the foundations for the Western world. Germany invented the romantic sensibility, and it was Caspar David Friedrich who depicted this sensibility in paint, in his melancholic and highly imaginative works.

But in the 20th century it all went wrong; people struggled to appreciate the new art emerging from Germany. Perhaps it was too raw for their taste. Max Beckmann for example, described the effects of World War I as an ‘injury’ to his soul and produced images reflecting his experience that are confrontational, powerful and haunting. Knowledge and appreciation for German art dwindled during the first world war, and disappeared almost completely by the time of the second.

In July, we will be lucky enough to explore German works in some of the finest collections in the country, as we cruise along the Main and Rhine. We start the week with a visit to Schloss Weissenstein, an opulent Baroque palace complete with marbled staircases, frescoed ceilings, and a shell-studded grotto. Here guests can admire Lothar Franz’ large collection of Old Masters, including works by Dürer and many by other European painters including Breughel, van Dyck, Rubens and Titian.

A particular highlight of our trip for art lovers will be a visit to the Städel museum in Frankfurt. The collection spans 700 years of art; from the middle ages, to the present day. Look out for the German greats here; the collection includes works by Hans Holbein the Younger, Lucas Cranach the Elder, and an exquisitely coloured early work ‘The Little Garden of Paradise’ by an anonymous artist, known as the Upper Rhenish Master. The Städel museum is also the location of some fantastic 20th century German paintings. These include works by Max Liebermann, a German-Jewish Impressionist painter who became the leading painter in 1890s Berlin. His portraits and impressionistic landscapes were in great demand in the 19th century, but due to his Jewish background, his work was confiscated during Nazi rule. Max Beckmann, Otto Dix and Ernst Ludwig Kirchner are also represented; three ‘degenerate’ artists who explored the brutalities of the war in works exploding with colour, power and expression. The collection also houses masterpieces by European artists, including works by Jan van Eyck, Vermeer, Botticelli, Monet, Degas and Picasso.

In Cologne, guests will be treated to two artistic wonders. The prestigious Wallraf-Richartz collection will again provide an opportunity to see German masters, including works by Dürer and Caspar David Friedrich. Personally, I am extremely excited about finally visiting a work known as the ‘Cologne Mona Lisa’, by Stefan Lochner, one of the most famous German medieval painters. The work, officially titled ‘Madonna in the Rose-bower’, is a panel painting that dates from around 1440. It is one of the finest examples of Mary shown in a hortus conclusus (an enclosed garden), a symbol of her virginity. Our final excursion will be to Cologne cathedral, a building adorned with treasures, including the altar at the heart of St. Mary's Chapel, painted in 1442 and considered to be a masterpiece from the late Gothic Cologne School of Painting.

This trip will be full of varied delights for art and culture lovers. Expect to be bombarded with artworks that are opulent and beautiful, but also those that are powerful and provocative. I look forward to seeing you and to discussing the works on board!

>> Click here for more information and fares

Visit Hebridean at Alnwick Rugby Club

Hebridean has teamed up with Travel Counsellors to support Alnwick RFC under 15's fundraising Cruise/Travel Event, to raise monies to help fund a trip to the Japan 2019 Rugby World Cup.


Hebridean, along with other cruise lines and travel suppliers, will be showcasing its 2019 line up of cruises and we would be delighted if you came along to see us.

There will also be speciality suppliers and demonstrations from:

Aesthetics, Make-up, Jewellery, Clothing, Coffee, Life/Business Coaching, The Real Taste of Northumberland

Entry to the event is FREE and included is a glass of Fizz and Canapes on arrival.

Sunday 17th February - 3pm to 6pm.
Alnwick Rugby Club, Northumberland.

Cruise of the Week - Outlook on the Clyde

Outlook on the Clyde
Hebridean Princess
5th March 2019 - 7 Nights
Greenock - Rothesay - Strachur - Crarae - Sanda Island - Holy Isle - Great Cumbrae - Greenock

Doubles from £3,190 per person
Singles from £3,140

 

Sheltered from the Atlantic by the Kintyre peninsula, the Firth of Clyde is one of the largest areas of sheltered deep water in the British Isles.  The Firth’s many long lochs penetrate far into the Highlands, whilst its outer reaches comprise a scattering of islands, each of different size and character.



Venturing ashore at the Victorian resort of Rothesay, we admire the astounding Victorian Gothic mansion, Mount Stuart House, ancestral home of the Marquesses of Bute, before navigating the narrow Kyles of Bute and Loch Fyne.

From Strachur we explore Sir Robert Lorimer’s finest work, Ardkinglas House, and enjoy a private tour of Strachur House by Sir Charles and Lady Maclean.  Before transiting Loch Fyne and Kilbrannan Sound, the private apartments of Inveraray Castle are opened exclusively for us to uncover the secrets of the Dukes of Argyll.

Springbank Distillery is the oldest independent family-owned distillery in Scotland and its story spans centuries of whisky history.

The tiny isle of Sanda is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest and at its southern tip we discover the lighthouse built in 1850 by Alan Stevenson, nicknamed ‘The Ship’.

The sea cliffs of Ailsa Craig offer tantalising views as we steam north to Holy Isle guarding the entrance to Lamlash Bay and a place of worship and meditation since the 6th century. 

On the Isle of Arran, we explore the grand baronial castle, formal gardens and woodland country park at Brodick ahead of our final landing on the delightful island of Great Cumbrae which boasts the smallest cathedral in Britain.

>> Click here for availability, all prices and more information