INSIDE BALMORAL HOME

The Bridge  

Crew acommodation

Lounges

Upper Deck 

Hull construction

Engines, propellers & electrical system

Steering gear

Electrical systems  

Ropes and Anchors

             CREW ACCOMMODATION

Part of the charm of our ship is something never seen by visitors.  While those who have spent long hours there may not view it in the same way,  Balmoral's Officer's accommodation is a time warp.  Wooden built-in furniture, brass fittings and lights, traditional instruments and beautifully made folding wash stands designed to save space by folding up when not in use.

When the ship was fitted with new hull plates, the woodwork was carefully removed by our volunteer craftsmen and is now being refurbished and replaced so that the whole area remains as it was when she went down the slipway at Southampton four years after the end of the Second World War.

The various cabins are fitted out for the officers according to rank.  The  Master and Chief Engineer have the best, with each junior rank having slightly less space and a lower level of accessories and fittings, although no less functional.  Despite the wood and brass, this was still a working ship and there is no attempt to hide the pipes and cable trunking that passes through the  cabin area. However the quality of workmanship and the care is clear to see.  Interestingly, if you lift a hatch in the floor, you can see into the bilge, the bottom of the ship.  Despite being built in 1949 and riveted together ( time consuming but a superb way of joining metal ) the hull is absolutely dry.  Most ships have some water in the bilge.  Balmoral's hull  is dusty. A tribute to the craftsmen who built her.

Just waiting for the Captain to come off duty.

Officers cabins are unaltered and still in amazingly good condition after her years of service. Each has an original folding washbasin.

Hot water is provided by a steward who delivers it in a jug !

These have yet to be restored but even have the original chair and desk in place.

Accommodation for the crew and stewards isn't so well appointed but is serviceable.

There is always a waiting list of people who want to sign up for the Summer season.

The Purser has the best place on the ship. He is in charge of the money and tickets and is the business manager. He sleeps on the job, in a cosy cabin behind the Purser's Office.