Posted on 01/12/2004 1:15:12 PM PST by 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.
At 41,525 dollars per person, I doubt those people are in the habit of being thrifty.
My grandmother died a few years ago in her late 80's. She had worked well into her 70's, had an 8th grade education and had worked for a salary other than the years she owned a dress shop in Wink, Texas. Her only spending came from buying a new car every four years, and taking a cruse every other year.
Every payday, for most of her life, she bought a share or two of Humble Oil stock, average price about $2.00 a share if you try to figure all the splits. When she died she left 15,000 shares of Exxon Stock, which has since split again.
...would not blow 42 grand on one boat ride.
A red flag. The last time I remember a red flag waving prominently in the news was on August 23, 2001, when it was being waved by the SOL. I don't remember seeing birds, though. Well, there was a helicopter. And a swinging Frenchman.
This is the maiden inaugural i.e. the virgin Queen Mary 2 voyage. The ship is named after the queen's grandmother. Reading some of the FR threads about the immoral, disfunctional, inbred royals, one could come to the conclusion that Queen Mary was a mother of harlots and abominations. :-/
Its operator Cunard Line, part of American cruise group Carnival Corp, said the maiden voyage sold out months ago. It hopes the ship will revive the mystique of ocean liners from the age before jets made travel across the Atlantic routine.
World's largest cruise ship sets sail
These cruise operators have a really strange hope for the QM2. Looks more like a curse.
Each freeper cruiser will enjoy a $41,000 per week memorable voyage for as little as 700 smackeroos. This price includes everything but the name "Mary".
Leni
FReeps Ahoy 3 Cruise Chair
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