The Watershed Year
1966 started as a watershed year for Caronia. Cunard had spent £500,000 ($1.5m in those days and around $12m these days) on major refitting work in the last 10 weeks of 1965. The object of this was to restyle Caronia in an attempt to suit the demands of a more modern clientèle.
Page from 1966
World Cruise Brochure
New Lido Deck
The most visual change outwardly was the new 13,000 square feet lido deck with enlarged kidney shaped swimming pool, all surrounded by new windscreens and furnished with colourful umbrella decorated tables. A new bar was also provided, where swimmers could get refreshments without having to observe the dress-code of the other public rooms.
The page from the 1966 World Cruise brochure, seen right, shows how the Cunard publicity machine used the 1965 refit to great advantage. Elsewhere on the ship, modifications had been made to the main lounge, the Balmoral Restaurant and the galley.
From a painting by G.H. Green and published in the later brochures
On Caronia's call to Fort Lauderdale in January 1966, the ship was stopped so that some brochure photography of her new lido deck could be done. The two photographs seen below, were taken by AB Roger Birch at this time.
Note below how Caronia's stern is covered on the first two main 1966 cruise brochures. This would be because the cover designs were created before the aft refit during November and December 1965 had been completed, so no accurate broadside pictures could be used.
Great World 
World Cruise
