Queen Mary 2 prepares for its first Atlantic crossing with storm looming (pics)

yahoo ^ | 1/12/04

[finnman69]

SOUTHAMPTON, England (AFP) - The world's newest and biggest cruise liner, Queen Mary 2, was set to depart Monday on its first transatlantic voyage, braving a nasty North Atlantic winter storm en route to sunny Florida.

AFP Photo

The black-hulled 345-meter (1,139-foot) flagship of Cunard, the upmarket British unit of US cruise line group Carnival, was scheduled to sail at 5 pm (1700 GMT) for a 14-day journey to Fort Lauderdale.

It had yet to slip its moorings by 6:15 pm (1815 GMT), however, as it continued to load baggage at Southampton harbour.

"It's just an unusual amount of luggage that's being loaded," Cunard spokeswoman Penny Guy told AFP from the ship. "The last iron box is going on right now."

Once out of the relatively calm waters of the Solent, which separates the Isle of Wight from England's south coast, the Queen Mary 2 was expected to be tested by the storm moving up the English Channel.

Torrential rain and winds of up to 160 kilometers (100 miles) per hour were forecast and the sea was expected to be extremely choppy for the 1,400 passengers and crew.

The voyage, via the Canary Islands and the Bahamas, was to be the first serious test of Queen Mary 2's seaworthiness since it was constructed and launched last year at Saint Nazaire, on the French Atlantic coast.

A Cunard spokesman said the ship -- formally named by Queen Elizabeth II (news - web sites) at a ceremony in Southampton, its home port, last Thursday -- would set sail regardless.

"She is built to go through the worst Atlantic storms," he said.

"If she was a normal cruise ship there may be an impact, but the QM2 is constructed for this. The only possible change there could be will be to the firework display to send her off."

The early days of the Queen Mary 2 were marked by tragedy -- 15 people were killed and 28 injured in an gangway accident at Saint Nazaire in November.

If the huge, towering ship rides out the storm, passengers will begin to enjoy the unrivalled luxury it offers, including 14 bars and restaurants, four swimming pools, a cinema and a theater with over 1,000 seats.

Ticket prices reflect the comfort available and the passenger list is made up of well-off, mainly North American, travellers.

The most expensive Grand Duplex cabins, equivalent to suites in a five-star hotel, cost 22,429 pounds (32,394 euros, 41,525 dollars) per person.

For this price, Cunard provides a private butler to serve the suite's guests, binoculars to observe the horizon and, for a finishing touch, a portraits of Queen Elizabeth linking arms with husband Prince Philip.

For those unable to afford Grand Duplex, the Royal Suite with private balcony or the Balmoral Suite with state-of-the-art entertainment system and gym machine, there is still top class service on offer.

Some cabins are admittedly smaller and some are not fitted with a porthole. But even their occupants can enjoy a game of golf, smoke a cigar in the Churchill bar or relax in one of the many jacuzzis.

[Shooter 2.5]

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[Eric in the Ozarks]

SS United States. Now, there's some history.
Is she parked on the east coast ?

[ItisaReligionofPeace]

CEOs, business owners, lotto winners, entertainers, people who have lots of family money...

[1066AD]

Think so, but NCL has purchased it.
http://www.ss-united-states.com/

[Alter Kaker]

For example, the former flagship of the French cruise lines "S.S. France". When she was built, she was the longest ocean liner of her day. One of her designers boasted "There isn't a straight line on her".

I know the French build good ships. I was on the Liberte - it was most amazing experience of my life after war and family.

[Johnny_Cipher]

The black-hulled 345-meter (1,139-foot) flagship of Cunard, the upmarket British unit of US cruise line group Carnival ...

That's surprising to me. When did Cunard get bought out by Carnival? Cunard has been around since before Titanic (White Star Line) days (the first rescue ship on the scene after Titanic went down was the RMS Carpathia, a Cunarder).

I wonder if Cunard will eventually put the QM2 on their World Tour circuit? Its a 6-month cruise, costs hundreds of thousands of dollars to stay with the ship for the entire voyage. If I ever win the lottery or nail a particularly good stock tip, I'll do that while they build my new house.

I envy your parents a bit - here's hoping they enjoy every minute of their cruise.

[finnman69]

the Carnival buyout happened a few years back. Im sure QM@ will go on the world circuit.

[finnman69]

Looked on the cunard site. No world cruise for QM2 yet. QE2 just started one. And you can do it for $24,000.

http://www.cunard.com/CruiseItinerary.asp?cruiseid=2498&LeftNav=Planner&Active=&Sub=&OB=&Region=

Voyage of the Explorers III
Queen Elizabeth 2 · 104 Days

Fares From: $23,999


January 2004
5 Mon New York, NY, USA Depart 4:45 pm
6 Tue Cruising the Atlantic Ocean
7 Wed Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
8 Thu Cruising the Great Bahama Bank, USA
9 Fri Cruising Caribbean Sea
10 Sat Cartagena, Colombia 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
11 Sun Transiting the Panama Canal, Fuerte Amador, Panama 6:30 am - 11:59 pm
12 Mon Fuerte Amador, Panama 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
13 Tue Cruising Pacific Ocean
14 Wed Cruising Pacific Ocean
15 Thu Acapulco, Mexico 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
16 Fri Cruising Pacific Ocean
17 Sat Cabo San Lucas, Mexico 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
18 Sun Cruising Pacific Ocean
19 Mon Los Angeles, CA, USA 8:00 am - 10:00 pm
20 Tue Cruising Pacific Ocean
21 Wed Cruising Pacific Ocean
22 Thu Cruising Pacific Ocean
23 Fri Honolulu, Hawaii, USA Arrive 2:00 pm
24 Sat Honolulu, Hawaii, USA Depart 6:00 pm
25 Sun Cruising Pacific Ocean
26 Mon Cruising Pacific Ocean
27 Tue Cruising Pacific Ocean
28 Wed Pago Pago, American Samoa, USA 1:00 pm - 6:00 pm
29 Thu Cruising Pacific Ocean
30 Fri Cross International Dateline - Lost Day
31 Sat Lautoka, Fiji 7:00 am - 6:00 pm
February 2004
1 Sun Cruising Pacific Ocean
2 Mon Noumea, New Caledonia 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
3 Tue Cruising Pacific Ocean
4 Wed Russel, Bay of Islands, New Zealand 9:00 am - 6:00 pm
5 Thu Auckland, New Zealand Arrive 7:00 am
6 Fri Auckland, New Zealand Depart 10:00 pm
7 Sat Cruising the Southern Ocean
8 Sun Wellington, New Zealand 7:00 am - 8:00 pm
9 Mon Lyttelton, New Zealand 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
10 Tue Snares Islands, New Zealand Arrive 1:00 pm
11 Wed Cruising the Tasman Sea
12 Thu Hobart, Tasmania, Australia 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
13 Fri Melbourne, Australia Arrive 5:00 pm
14 Sat Melbourne, Australia Depart 6:00 pm
15 Sun Cruising the Tasman Sea
16 Mon Sydney, Australia Arrive 6:00 am
17 Tue Sydney, Australia
18 Wed Sydney, Australia Depart 6:30 pm
19 Thu Cruising the Great Barrier Reef
20 Fri Cruising the Great Barrier Reef
21 Sat Yorkeys' Knob Marina (Cairns), Australia 7:30 am - 6:00 pm
22 Sun Cruising the Coral Sea
23 Mon Cruising the Solomon Sea
24 Tue Lae, Papua New Guinea 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
25 Wed Cruising the Bismarck Sea
26 Thu Cruising Pacific Ocean
27 Fri Apra, Guam, US 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
28 Sat Cruising Pacific Ocean
29 Sun Cruising Pacific Ocean
March 2004
1 Mon Yokohama, Japan 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
2 Tue Cruising Pacific Ocean Arrive 12:00 am
3 Wed Kagoshima, Japan 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
4 Thu Cruising the East China Sea
5 Fri Keelung (Taipei), Taiwan 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
6 Sat Cruising the South China Sea
7 Sun Hong Kong, China Arrive 8:00 am
8 Mon Hong Kong, China
9 Tue Hong Kong, China Depart 6:00 pm
10 Wed Cruising the South China Sea
11 Thu Cruising the Gulf of Thailand
12 Fri Laem Chabang, Thailand Arrive 8:00 am
13 Sat Laem Chabang, Thailand Depart 7:00 pm
14 Sun Cruising the South China Sea
15 Mon Singapore Arrive 8:00 am
16 Tue Singapore Depart 6:00 pm
17 Wed Cruising the Strait of Malacca
18 Thu Phuket, Thailand 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
19 Fri Cruising the Indian Ocean
20 Sat Cruising the Indian Ocean
21 Sun Colombo, Sri Lanka 8:00 am - 8:00 pm
22 Mon Cruising the Indian Ocean
23 Tue Mumbai (Bombay), India Arrive 1:00 pm
24 Wed Mumbai (Bombay), India Depart 11:59 pm
25 Thu Cruising the Arabian Sea
26 Fri Cruising the Arabian Sea
27 Sat Cruising the Arabian Sea
28 Sun Victoria, Seychelles 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
29 Mon Cruising the Indian Ocean
30 Tue Cruising the Indian Ocean
31 Wed Port Louis, Mauritius 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
April 2004
1 Thu Cruising the Indian Ocean
2 Fri Durban, South Africa Arrive 7:00 am
3 Sat Durban, South Africa Depart 6:00 pm
4 Sun Cruising the Indian Ocean
5 Mon Cape Town, South Africa Arrive 8:00 am
6 Tue Cape Town, South Africa Depart 5:00 pm
7 Wed Cruising the Atlantic Ocean
8 Thu Walvis Bay, Namibia 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
9 Fri Cruising the Atlantic Ocean
10 Sat Cruising the Atlantic Ocean
11 Sun Cruising the Atlantic Ocean
12 Mon Cruising the Atlantic Ocean
13 Tue Cruising the Atlantic Ocean
14 Wed Cruising the Atlantic Ocean
15 Thu Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Islands 8:00 am - 10:00 pm
16 Fri Cruising the Atlantic Ocean
17 Sat Lisbon, Portugal 7:30 am - 5:00 pm
18 Sun Cruising the Atlantic Ocean
19 Mon Southampton, England Arrive 7:00 am

[Johnny_Cipher]

Yes, the World Cruise is about 100 days instead of the 6 months I claimed in an earlier post. I was drooling over the itinerary at Cunard's web site yesterday.

I think QE2 left New York on the Fifth.

[finnman69]

I bike daily on the hudson river past the Passenger Ship Terminal in Manhattan. Occasionaly there are 3 ships docked. The real treat is when the QE2 is in town. Fleet week is also impressive.

[Petronski]

She does thirty knots? Great googly moogly!

[Petronski]

I christen thee, the H.M.S. Hubris!"

[PBRSTREETGANG]

I'm hoping to win passage in steerage in a poker game.

[Dr._Joseph_Warren]

Those poor Brits!

They once were Masters of the Seven Seas capable of building and sailing the best ships in the world.

Now their Queen's name is given to a ship built in France and owned by a Norweigian company. The only thing British is the name.

Sad really.

[Dr._Joseph_Warren]

>>I hope no one quipped "She's unsinkable."

No, but they did say "She is built to go through the worst Atlantic storms,".

Same type of brag, hopefully with different results.

[LN2Campy]

These newer cruise ships all seem rather topheavy, with very tall and chunky "O" levels. I'm sure this is to maximize cabin space, and is probably necessary to make the ships economically feasible, but I like the sleeker looks of vessels like the original Queen Mary, SS United States, etc.

Still would love to travel on her one day.

[LN2Campy]

Moored in Philly, just north of the old shipyard. She's pretty sad looking. Her sister (SS AMERICA) apparently broke in half while being sold for scrap, somewhere off Africa, I believe.

[uglybiker]

..it was constructed and launched last year at Saint Nazaire, on the French Atlantic coast.

It was built by the French? And you're letting your folks cross the ocean in it?

[finnman69]

i know i know, at least the French are not sailing it. Or worse, the Italians.

[CathyRyan]

I do not know why but this ship gives me the creepy willies. *shudder*