The Beach Online! Seriously? Well, we cruisers are not getting to it by ship, so here is my logic for the swiftly ever-changing future. Some of you will know I wrote some very futuristic screenplays, and do talk on ships about that and the difference between writing a screenplay and a novel. So here is my vision of the future; Online shopping has rocketed with the extended stay-at-home period. Even though some shops are open, and a very few shoppers venture out, it will never be the same. Many shops have gone never to return, others have opened but the footfall will never return to being enough for them to sustain staying open. What will happen to our huge shopping centres? They will have to learn from cruising. They will need to build a serious beach; not a small one. They will need to surround it with beach shops and ice cream stands, fairground rides, water slides, surf machines, climbing walls and much more. They have to become event centres, not sellers of future landfill. Take a leaf out of the biggest cruise ships, see the walkthrough tour of the Symphony of the Seas below. BUT BEWARE he shouts. The beach is coming online. We all know when we buy a watch or a bag on the beach it is fake. Now, fakes are the tsunami of the online fodder for sale and you would never know. I recently blogged about my wives Dyson Hairdryer, warning that I had been sold a fake and found out just over a year later when it stopped working. The new one, Jean reports is nothing like the old one, but powerful and wonderful. The last one was weak, just like a normal hairdryer and she couldn’t work out what the fuss is about. Researching I have discovered that solid and good online retailers like Currys are seriously worried about the volume of this traffic catching the public out. Manufacturers are even more worried. I bought the unit online for a saving of about £35, but have now bought it twice. Buy Cheap, Buy Twice. So, beware the moving beach.