Please Note: Firefox and some other search engines are not suitable – Use “Internet Explorer” for this page to load perfectly!
Click the logo above to reach the Cruise-Australia FrontPage for News Updates & “Ship of the Month”
With Reuben Goossens
Maritime Historian, Cruise‘n’Ship Reviewer, Author & Lecturer
Please Note: All ssmaritime and my other related ssmaritime sites are 100% non-commercial and privately owned sites. Be assured that I am NOT associated with any cruise or shipping companies or travel/cruise agencies or any other organisations! The author has been in the passenger shipping industry since May 1960 and is now semi-retired, but continues to write article on classic liners and cruise ships in order to better inform cruise and ship enthusiasts for their pleasure!
Page Three
Brochures, Photographs and other Items
A Background to the First Brochure - 1972:
Originally it had been intended to operate the TSS Fairsea and Fairwind on the Australian service as regular passenger liners, but Mr. Boris Vlasov soon put a stop to that idea for he decided to go upmarket and rebuild them as luxury all First Class cruise ships for his new company, “Sitmar Cruises” and the ships would be aimed mostly at the luxury American Market! Although Australia remained very much in the picture for this country had been had been very close to Sitmar and Mr. Vlasov’s heart, for from the early 1950’s, his late Father’s, now Boris’ ships had sailed to and from Italy, Germany, Holland and England to Australia and New Zealand with their latest ship having commenced in 1964, being the TSS Fairstar and she became a full time Australian based cruise ship as from August 24, 1974!
Thus, whilst both
ships were still laid up in the
On our
“Brochure and Other Images” page I will feature an American
produced brochure “Australian –
The next is a smaller brochure that covers the Fairsea that hosted the 1973 “Opus III Music Festival at Sea,” which featured some famous stars.
Sitmar Cruises
introduced their brand new cruise ship the TSS Fairsky in 1984 that had been
built by Chantiers de Nord et
de la Mediterranee of La Seyne-Sur Mer in France. She was an amazing ship and offered
every luxury expected from Sitmar and her lounge layout was very much based on
the Fairsea and Fair Wind. I own a brochure that covers Sitmar’s three
ships, but sadly it is also the very last ever Sitmar Cruises brochure that was
ever produced, but sadly in the middle of that very same year P&O obtained
this great company and transferred the three ships to Princess Cruises! Down
the page, I have the front and the back cover of the 1988 Sitmar brochure and
they show together.
The excellent TSS Fairsky seen at
anchor in 1985
Please Note: All brochures shown are from my private collection and they MUST NOT be copied and used on any kind of media, be it in print or online for I will have to take legal action. Considering that they are all very rare and no longer available, I am placing these online for your personal enjoyment with the hope and prayer that my trust will not be betrayed! Should you wish to use one of the brochures for a special reason, you can email me at rg@ssmaritime.com and I will be pleased to send you the one requested, but you must use the one that is sent, therefore do not copy from my site which is © and prohibited! Thank you.
Reuben Goossens.
The
cover of the 1972 “South Seas Cruises Tours” between the
Above & below: pages One & Two of the brochure that outlines the departures and the ships and services, etc
The other pages all cover the days to day activities including all the land packages, and fares as well as an early deck plan
A 1972 Advertisement for the Fairsea Mexico cruises
The
Fairsea would be hosting the 1973 Opus III Music Festival at Sea, featuring
some very famous stars
With voyages from January 6
through to December 30, but P&O took over the company during the year, and
they became Princess ships
This brochure was released in mid 1987
Below is a 1973 Bar Price List and for those who enjoy a drink or two these prices must bring some joy, for these days prices onboard cruise ships have skyrocketed! We need to remember that in those early days’ drinks onboard where Duty Free, but that was stopped and now you pay the same as you would at a four or five star hotel, resort! Yes, you can buy Duty Free alcohol onboard, but you can only collect it on the morning of disembarkation as you are forced to drink all alcoholic drinks from the bar!
A brochure containing a special travel agents advance preview of Sitmar’s 1976 cruise programme and fares
As
the TSS Fairwind was mostly based on the West Coast, she is seen at one of the
A
delightful image of the radar mast and funnel, up on Sun Deck from one of the
1976 brochures
A wonderful 39-page Passenger Information book that covers every aspect of the Sitmar ships
However, on 22 pages there is n excellent full colour deck plan, with one deck covering two pages
This book was published in 1979
A
superb view of the Fairsea transiting the
Here we see the Fairsea in a
Great to see that wonderful Cunard stern with her stern anchor & those large propellers
Sitmar Cruises INDEX:
Page One … The Ships History - From Liners to
Cruise Ships!
Page
Two … Deck
Plans - 1972, 1973/74, 1985 & 2000.
Page Three … Brochures, Photographs & Other
Items.
Page Three B … Sitmar Cruises Final
Brochure for 1989, but these cruises never eventuated.
Page Four … Sitmar Memorabilia and Menus.
Page
Five … Other
Sitmar Cruises Ships to 1988.
Page Six … MV Arcadia, launched as Sitmar FairMajesty
. with a 1998 Author’s Photo Album!
****************************************