From the Pilot House

A Salute to Travel: National Travel & Tourism Week 2013

Did you know that each U.S. household would pay $1,060 more in taxes without the tax revenue generated by travel and tourism? This week, we’re recognizing National Travel and Tourism Week and the importance of our industry to the economy as well as our part to help create lasting memories. Courtesy of the U.S. Travel Association and Travel Effect, check out these fact sheets about the widespread impact our industry is having on jobs, families and relationships.

Download Fact Sheet - Creating Lasting Memories

• 84% of respondents 55 or older still reminisce with their family about vacations they took years ago.

Download Fact Sheet - Travel Brings Families Closer Together

• More than half (55%) reported that “I have fond memories of vacations that I took as a child, and I want to create similar experiences for my family.”

Download Fact Sheet - Travel Strengthens Relationships

• Couples that travel together are significantly more likely to report that their relationship is more romantic, intimate and balanced.

Download US Travel - A Leading American Industry

• 1 out of every 8 U.S. jobs depends on travel and tourism.

Hornblower has been a leader in creating amazing experiences for over 32 years. During that time, we’ve attracted thousands of travellers in the 8 cities we cruise and held ourselves to the highest standard by providing excellence service and accommodations. Within the last decade we’ve expanded our role to enhance the experience at Alcatraz, Statue of Liberty, and most recently, Niagara Falls, where we will be opening in 2014.

You can follow and participate with us this week on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and From the Pilot House as we emphasize the significance of travel and tourism with fun facts and important tips. We'd love to hear some of your best memories cruising with Hornblower!

Great New Bag Designs

Crewmembers at Hornblower are constantly on the go! We work from boats and Islands, in California, New York and Canada and we need to be able to work from all these places. We also like to look to good! That's why we love HP's new partnership with Project Runway to create the perfect work bag.

For a few more days voting is open to the public! Our favorite is the 2 (Ways) 2 (Wear) Ultrabag! We think the flexibility is perfect when you spend your days hopping from shore to boat and we know and love the designer, Camille!

Vote for your favorite!

A Taste of the Far East

Today, we see sushi as a delicacy, something accessible, but also a treat. Sushi requires boldness, with its variety of intense flavors and raw fish, making it hard to believe that it was essentially a sandwich when originally created in South East Asia.

Luckily for you, we’re big fans, and in the spirit of diversity and adventurousness, we’ve crafted a snazzy new cruise…

Introducing our sushi and karaoke cruise! What better way to get to know your coworkers or get closer with your friends than rolling delicious sushi, sipping on sake, and belting your heart out as the beautiful San Diego scenery floats by. Our experienced sushi chef will help hone your craft while you enjoy every bite, sip, and sight!

The Olympics

Unless you live under a rock, you are well aware that the Olympics are in full swing. It seems every television is tuned to the same channel, with every fan out to support their nations finest in their pursuit of Olympic gold. These are the fields, the arenas, the pools, where dreams either come true or are crushed, where a single defining moment has the power to make years of training worth it.

Historically speaking, the first Olympic games began in Olympia (surprise, surprise…), Greece, in the year 776 BC. The games were closely linked to religion, and served to celebrate athletic prowess and perpetuate peaceful relations between the city-states.

Today we use the games for a similar mission. Sure, we’re not focused on glorifying Zeus, but we do seek to provide athletes with the stage and audience to be celebrated. Additionally, the games are a diplomatic feat, bringing nations together under five rings. So, show your support and national pride during this Olympic season! Even just watching is enough.

Photo Credit: http://www.olympic.org/photos/olympic-flame-burns-bright

Here Comes the Bride

If you’re headed anywhere near Pinterest prepare yourself for an onslaught of wedding ideas, decorations, dresses, cakes, flowers, and more. To a 21 year old, this at first seemed a bit daunting, but after clicking here and there and pinning this and that, I’ve been truly blown away by what I’ve found. 

Firstly, the amount of thought put into every tiny detail is extraordinary. Whether it’s a napkin ring or a seating chart, nothing is overlooked. At first I couldn’t get over the amount of work it all looked like, but as I continued to pin and repin I realized that every little thing was an expression of love. It is easy to approach weddings like a production, but in reality it is a celebration of love. Accordingly, it only makes sense that the thought, the attention to detail, are like saying “I love you” a million times.

It is impossible not to believe in love and surf Pinterest. Pinterest is like peering into a window of someone else’s life and then stealing whatever ideas strike your fancy. In this way, we get to bring some of that happiness into our own lives. 

As I continue to work at Hornblower, I’ve noticed that we are quite similar. We come up with grand ideas, and sort out even the smallest, seemingly insignificant detail, and then we get to make them a reality. The opportunity to provide the environment and the situation where people can find joy is pretty extraordinary, and it’s the reason our informal motto is “We create amazing experiences.” Day by day we work to provide the backdrop to your happiness. You are the reason we’re on Pinterest, just like you’re the reason we come to work every day. We want to know what you’re after so feel free to pin it, post it, like it, tweet it...we’ll be here.

Sweet Summertime

As the temperatures inch higher and higher and the sky is cloudless more often than not, I find myself with a problem; blindness. While the sun is enjoying its time out and about, my eyes are squinting into nothingness and begging for protection. For all of you with this problem, we've cruised (haha get it?!) around to find you the best of the best sunglasses to keep those peepers safe! And the best part is, they not only look great on your face, uping your "mysterious" vibe, but perfectly complement that casual yacht in the background...

I personally love the classic Ray Ban Wayfarer. So mysterious. You celebrity, you.

Speaking of celebrities...for further sunglasses inspiration check out these studs who recently accompanied us on the Emerald Hornblower in San Diego...

For some more real life inspiration, we've also snagged this gorgeous couple for you off another recent cruise...

Happy hunting!

 

The Rise of the Internship

Internships are valuable tools for both interns and employers.  Staffing younger, inexperienced individuals offers employers the ability to get more work done while paying little or no wages, and obtain a fresh new perspective.  For the intern, the opportunity means work experience, a resume builder, and the chance to test out whether you actually enjoy working in a particular field.

These days some universities are requiring undergraduates to amass a certain number of internship hours before they receive their degree.  What was once a fun learning experience is becoming a necessity for many college students to find a job after graduation.  While some object to little or no wages, many enjoy the experience and are optimistic about the effects of real on-the-job experience on their chances for the stable, well-paying job they aspire to.  Hornblower is proud to say that all of its interns are paid, and are often rehired when they reapply for employment

One of Hornblower’s summer interns had this to say about his internship: “In the month and a half I’ve been here, I’ve already learned so much.  Everyone in the office is extremely personable and has offered to teach me something new.  I never thought I’d get the chance to work like this while in college, and I’m really looking forward to the next couple months here!”  Another intern commented as well, saying: “I was required to find a full-time internship my last semester of college in order to graduate. I didn’t know what to expect but was excited to get hands on experience. The Hornblower team made me feel welcome, valued my opinions, and they were great mentors throughout my internship.  It was the perfect chance for me to get real work experience and expand my professional network."

If you are interested in an internship or employment with Hornblower you can search for openings and apply here. 

The Loooooongest Day of the Year

Today, Wednesday June 20, is the summer solstice.  Ok sure, so it’s the longest day of the year.  Big deal.  Why does it matter?

Like most models you may have seen, our solar system actually lies in one flat plane, for the most part.  However, Earth does not rotate on a vertical axis like a top.  Instead the entire planet is tilted at a 23.5° angle towards the Sun, and rotates on an axis that points directly towards the North Star.  This is why the North Star never moves throughout the night sky, and is directly overhead if you’re at the North Pole.

As the Earth travels around the Sun, some parts are more directly exposed to sunlight than other parts.  This is why it is winter in the Southern Hemisphere when the Northern Hemisphere is in the middle of summer.  Today on the Solstice, Earth’s axis points as much toward the sun as it will throughout its orbit, which for us means the most hours of sunlight throughout the year.  People above the Arctic Circle are at a high enough latitude that they will actually experience daytime for a continuous 24 hours, and in Antarctica there is no sunlight at all!

The orbit of Earth, and all of the planets actually, is not a perfect circle but instead is in the shape of an ellipse, or a special type of oval.  The two Solstices occur at the points on the ellipse when the Earth is farthest from the Sun; since the force of gravity is slightly lessened by this increase in distance, the oceans experience noticeably lower low tides than occur at other times during the year. 

So be sure to pack up your sunscreen and your bathing suit and enjoy the sun while it lasts!  Although today may be the first day of summer, the days will only get shorter from here, so be sure to make them last!

In Honor of Father's Day...

I have a special story to share about my Dad. 

In the second semester of my freshmen year in college, I decided to join a fraternity.  My parents were supportive of the idea, and my Dad, who joined a fraternity in college but never told me anything about the experience or even the name of it, was especially excited.

I’ll never forget the phone conversation I had with him that night; after rambling on about how excited I was to be making this decision and that I knew I had found the right house, his reply was short:  “You know that’s the fraternity I joined in college, right?”  My heart immediately jumped straight up into my throat, and I could hear the smile in his words as he said them.  As excited as I had been just moments before to talk to him about my decision, I now knew without a doubt that it was absolutely meant to be.

So the weeks of pledging went by, and towards the end of the semester we had a large chartering ceremony planned, for the fraternity I chose was new to my campus and hadn’t yet been officially established.  After all of the formal ritual business had concluded, we all gathered with our family and friends to have a celebration cruise onboard the California Hornblower.  Ecstasy doesn’t come close to describing the feeling of seeing my Dad for the first time in months and shaking his hand, knowing we had just become closer than ever before, if that was possible.  I feel as though I stood a little taller that day, knowing that I was taking a step in the right direction towards becoming the good, honest type of man that my Dad has always been.

Oh, and to top it off, fireworks went off as we passed AT&T Park that night after the San Francisco Giants won.

Do you have any special memories onboard a Hornblower Cruise?  Share it with us in the comments or on Facebook!

From the Pilot House?

Ever wonder what the title of our blog actually means?  It may seem intuitive, but the pilot house is a room occupied by the ship’s pilot who controls most of the ship’s operations.  The term is interchangeable with wheel house, and in some cases can also be synonymous with the “bridge”.  But when and how did these terms actually develop?

In the old days of sailing ships, the ship’s wheel was located towards the stern (rear of the ship), behind the ship’s main mast.  When paddle steamers were created, the engineers onboard needed tall platforms from which they could inspect the individual paddle wheels, and from which the captain could have an unobstructed view.  An elevated walkway, or bridge, connected the platforms enabling the engineers onboard to inspect the individual paddle wheels more easily; because the bridge was in the ideal location to command the ship, pilot houses were built to shelter the commanding officers from wind and rain.  The wheel became enclosed in a “wheel house” where the helmsman could steer the ship and issue orders, frequently in the same room as the pilot and captain.

Hornblower Cruises and Events’ corporate office is located on the Ferryboat Santa Rosa at Pier 3 in San Francisco.  Much of the ship, including the bridge, has been converted into office and meeting space.  Although it is permanently anchored here, the Santa Rosa acts as the command center for all of Hornblower’s operations—in this way, you know that all posts on our blog are physically and figuratively coming From the Pilot House…