Carwardine Beta

Carwardine Beta is a cruise ship launched in 1991.

Construction
This ship was built at Chantiers de l'Atlantique in France between 1989-1991.

Launch
The ship was launched on May 4th, 1991.

Maiden Voyage
On August 31st, 1991, Carwardine Beta set sail for the first time.

Relocation to Baltimore
The ship was moved to Baltimore starting in 1992.

1996 Drydock
The ship's first drydock happened in 1996 at Newport News Shipbuilding, in which it gained the "BlueHorn 2" remodel, which included the addition of Emerald City Steakhouse. The ship now sailed out of Norfolk, Virginia.

2000 Drydock
The ship's second drydock happened at Meyer Werft in Germany. The ship would gain the "BlueHorn 3" remodel, including the addition of an internet cafe, replacing the in-suite VCRs with VCR-DVD combo players, the funnel being repainted due to wear from years of ash sticking on them, and Emerald City Casino gaining more digital slot machines.

2003 Drydock
The ship's third drydock happened at Newport News Shipbuilding, wherein the PBS Kids play section was added along with in-room Nintendo GameCubes being added alongside the VCR-DVD combo players in every Diamond Suite, which allowed guests to either bring their own games and controllers, or rent them at an upcharge. The in-room GameCubes were modified versions of the LodgeNet GameCube, with the controllers having control access towards the on-board TV channels, along with the VCR-DVD combo player, besides just for playing games.

2008 Drydock
In 2008, the ship was put into drydock at Grand Bahama Shipyard, which several changes were made, including repainting Roller Skater, The Jogging Track and The Water Slide, giving the McDonald's the "Forever Young" remodel and updating the in-room TVs from CRTs to LCD flatscreen TVs. The VCR-DVD combo players and the Nintendo GameCube were replaced with a modified Nintendo Wii that allows DVD playback, the GameCube controllers and games are however still sold for rental, due to the Wii being backwards compatible, but with the addition of Wii Remotes and Nunchucks now being rentable as well.

2011 Drydock
In 2011, the ship was once again drydocked at Grand Bahama Shipyard, in which a few more changes were made.

2015 Drydock
In 2015, the ship returned to drydock, this time at Alabama Shipyard.

2019 Drydock
In 2019, the ship once again returned to drydock, this time at Ingalls Shipbuilding.

Ports sailed out of

 * Newport News - 1991-1992
 * Baltimore - 1992-1994
 * New York City - 1994-1996
 * Norfolk - 1996-1998
 * Charleston - 1998-2000
 * Jacksonville - 2000-2006
 * Port Canaveral - 2006-2008
 * Miami - 2008-2011
 * Fort Lauderdale - 2011-2012
 * Tampa - 2012-2014
 * Mobile - 2014-2018
 * Galveston - 2018-2020
 * Riviera Beach - 2021-present

Routes

 * TBA (1991-1992)
 * 14 Day Southern Caribbean (1992-1994)
 * 8 Day Eastern Caribbean (1994-1996)
 * 8 Day Canada & New England (1996-1998)
 * 6 Day Bahamas (1998-2000)
 * 4 Day Bahamas (2000-2006)
 * 4 Day Bahamas (2006-2008)
 * 4 Day Western Caribbean (2008-2011)
 * TBA (2011-2012)
 * 4 Day Western Caribbean (2012-2014)
 * 4 Day Cozumel (2014-2018)
 * 4 Day Western Caribbean (2018-2020)
 * 4 Day Bahamas (2021-present)

Details

 * Owner: Carwardine Parks of Virginia, Inc.
 * Operator: Dire Dire Docks Maritime & Boating, Inc. (aka Carwardine Cruise Lines, LLC.)
 * Port of Registry: Monrovia, Liberia
 * Route: Bahamas
 * Builder: Chantiers de l'Atlantique, France
 * Launched: May 4, 1991
 * Sponsored by: Wayne Carwardine II
 * Completed: 1991
 * Maiden Voyage: August 31, 1991
 * In service: Fall 1991-present
 * Tonnage: 62,000 GT
 * Length: 720 ft
 * Beam: 102 ft
 * Draft: 7.50m
 * Decks: 10
 * Speed: 22 knots
 * Serial Code: CL-12-90/1-1

Bronze Deck

 * Bronz-tieriors (Interiors)

Silver Deck

 * Silver Views (Ocean views)

Gold Deck

 * Gold Balconies (Balconies)

Platinum Deck

 * Plati-lobby (A lobby)

Diamond Deck

 * Diamond Suites (Suites with balconies)

Emerald Deck

 * Emerald Casino (A casino)
 * Emerald City Steakhouse (A steakhouse)
 * Emerald Restaurant (A dining room)
 * The Carwardine Cruise Entertainment Band (An animatronic band)

Amethyst Deck

 * Amethyst Pool (A pool)
 * McDonalds (A McDonald's location at sea, originally had murals of the McDonaldLand characters and Mac Tonight before being removed in the 2008 dry-dock)

Ruby Deck

 * Roller Skater (A Vekoma Roller Skater that's nearly the same as the one on Alpha, but with a turntable due to the large capacity of the ship, this coaster has been repainted from pink track and blue supports to blue track and white supports in 2008)
 * Water Slide (A ProSlide Twister that goes into the Amethyst Pool, repainted from beige to blue in 2008)

Sapphire Deck

 * Jogging Track (A jogging track, was originally colored red, but repainted blue in 2008)

Bronze Crystal Deck

 * Crystal Lounge (Adults only area, with a suntan area, hot tubs, an adults-only pool, a sauna, a salon, a massage area and a bar)

Taglines

 * No cameras can properly record this Beta. (Main launch)
 * I don't think we're in Kansas anymore... (Emerald Deck related; launch)

Design Alterations from the Alpha
This ship had some alterations from the Alpha, as it was intended for much longer cruises with much more people. For example, the McDonald's at sea had it's waiting and dining area separated for easier guest throughput for guests intending to take food back to their room or take it outside on deck.