Big Red Boat

[scheat]

Just wondering if anyone has any memories of the Big Red Boat(Premier Cruise Line)? In case some of you don't remember, this cruise line was affiliated with Disney before the new boats came around. This was our very first cruise in '93 on our honeymoon after staying at the CR. We had a blast, but I was looking at some of our old pics and that boat looks like a klunker compared to what Disney has today. That was also our first trip to Disney-people laughed when we told them our honeymoon would be spent there. I still remember vividly the feeling of awe on our first trip to WDW-especially EPCOT at the time. Anyway, just wondering if anyone had any memories to share of those little "Big Red Boats?"

 

[nibblesandbits]

Actually, yes. I do...they aren't real vivid as I was only 8, but I have a picture of me with Mickey and Minnie and then autographs of all the characters. As a kid, I really thought this was a very cool experience.

 

[DivineMadness7]

We went on the Big Red Boat not soon after it switched over to Looney Tunes characters....not nearly as fun. I was about....13 at the time? So my guess would be this was around 1996. Of course, we did a Disney cruise a few years later and were much more pleased with the experience. :wave:

 

[hawkwood]

Wow, I haven't even thought about the old Premier cruises in years. I actually went on a couple of them back in the day. I remember they used to tout that every cruise would have celebrity entertainment on board.

The few times I was on their cruises, we had for the "headliners", The Imperials, Alan Thicke, and Jacky Mason.

They had their obligatory private island in the Bahamas, though I can't remember the name ("something" cay). I do remember it was the same island that they filmed the Gilligan's Island "specials" (after they got rescued), as well as some of the scenes in the movie Splash.

I enjoyed them a lot, though they would be considered somewhat spartan by today's standards.

 

[onetimeDisney]

Yes I do...YUCK!!

We went and it was horrible. We took our kids ages 2 and 4 then. The food was awful and they had discontinued characters of any kind shortly before we went. They closed a few months after we took our trip and I could see why!!!! I guess we didn't go in our heyday. We chose it instead of Disney because my 2 boys could be together. AT Disney, my 2yo would have to do babysitting and at that time my oldest hated to be away from us. We left him crying and screaming (he always stopped at church and on the boat as well 2 minutes after I left...so don't think I'm a horrible mom. But it really helped him to have his brother there. ) We wished we had tried Disney. Now I have 3 kids: 13, 11 and 6 and it is WAY too expensive.

 

[Timmay]

My wife and I spent our honeymoon in 1990 on the Majestic and at WDW. Two years later we followed that up with a trip on the Atlantic

The history of Premier Cruise lines can be found here.

I still have most of our stuff from those trips im a box somewhere...I should find it, scan it all and post it. I have a lot of good and fun memories from those trips. I will tell all when I post the scans. (Well, not all...it was our honeymoon)

 

[coltow]

I believe my parents were on this cruise line when it went out of business and they were completely stranded in Nova Scotia for 3 days.

 

[ThinkTink721]

We took a cruise on the Big Red Boat in 1994 to the Bahamas!
I believe it was the Oceanic.
Some Warner Bros. characters were actually aboard.
I don't think it was affiliated w/ Disney then.

 

[Macaylasmom]

My family went on the Disney Cruise w/ Premier 3 times. We had a lot of fun. This was in the 80's so I don't have too many memories. My Father saved most of or cabin papers and now I have them. It really is a lot of fun to look at the stuff. We combined the cruise with a land stay at the Disney Village. One stay was in the Treehouses. The other 2 were in the Townhouses.