mikeymars

You can find models of cruise ships in this site:

www.scherbakshipmodels.com

They are larger ( 10-15") and more expencive - $235-335, but much better made full hull models in cases .

Nice models, albeit limited selection (understandable, demand for replicas of vintage liners in particular is a niche market to say the least).

Of course, after I find and start working on the France kit, look what turns up on eBay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=14053&item=6508362699&rd=1

Albeit the Glencoe version I have is bigger and more detailed. Whatever, moral of story is, whatever cruise ship model you're looking for, check eBay from time to time. You never know what will show up there....

If I wanted to stay in the same corner of town as Busch Gardens, and wanted to be rather close to it, I'd stay up on Fowler Ave around 30th St at the Wingate Inn, Embassy Suites, or LaQuinta Inn. It's better there than down on Busch.

 

Y'all stay warm up north.;)

 

Ken

Phew -- thanks Ken, for clarifying where it is and isn't "good" to stay if you want to be north of downtown to have access To Busch Gardens. I read the original parts of this thread, and based on your comments about "the Busch area" was somewhat concerned about our plan to stay at the USF Embassy Suites before our cruise in February (we're taking an airport shuttle there, and same thing to the pier). But now I realize staying two and a half miles north of the park puts you in shall we say a different neighborhood.

And while we're at Busch (taking the complimentary hotel shuttle there and back), we certainly don't plan to go wandering around outside the park!!!

Until then, we're trying to stay warm (not sure which is worse - 26 degrees in Tampa, or -1 up here).

I've been collecting the models too. Like rsjc, I'm missing a couple of the early cruise ships that probably didn't even have models at that time.

Don't know if it's showing up in my signature, but the first ship I ever sailed on (back as a child in the 1960s) was the S.S. France (which was sold when the French Line closed in 1979 and subsequently became the Norway of the Norwegian Line, before going out of service in 2003 after a boiler room explosion; the ship is now laid up in Bremerhaven, Germany, future fate unclear).

I always wanted a model of the France, but couldn't find one until last year, when Glencoe models introduced a big, hugely detailed 1:450 scale plastic model kit of the ship (picture of kit attached). I've started working on it, and it's going to be a beautiful 22 inch long exhibit of wonderful memories when I'm done. Now if only some firm would produce a model of the Michelangelo....