Cunard have recently shown off pictures of their new ship the Queen Elizabeth, to be launched in September 2010. The new Queen will join the Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria as Cunard’s flagship ships and takes the name of a former Cunard ship the Queen Elizabeth that first sailed with Cunard White Star Line in 1936 and was later retired in 1969 when the QE2 took to the seas. The theme of this new ship is much like her namesake with some wonderful art deco designs that are reminiscent of the 1930’s. hit up the full page for a gallery of the plans. Read the rest of this entry »
There is no shipwreck more popular than the Titanic so its only fitting there are a few museums that are devoted to the ship that would be nearly 100 years old today. Recently Belfast announced a £100 million plan for a Titanic museum on the shipyards where she was built, that is due to open on the sinking’s centenary in 2012. There is also a travelling Titanic exhibition that we have seen in a few places as well as this interesting one in Branson, Missouri. Shaped like the front bit of the Titanic in half scale, the museum claims to be the worlds largest museum attraction The museum looks cool with recreations of the grand staircase as well as other parts of the ship, an iceburg and a bit of memorabilia. We understand the reason for Belfast building their museum but we just wonder who come up with the idea to build a ship shaped attraction in the landlocked state of Missouri. A TV ad for the museum is above that should give you an idea what its grand staircase is like. Read the rest of this entry »
You don’t get much for nothing in this world without a catch- well here’s one and the the catch is one of the best views in the world. The ferry carries some 20 million people a year between Staten Island and lower Manhattan, which is about 60,000 a day. The ride takes about 25 minutes and you get a very good look at the majestic Statue of Liberty and the amazing skyscrapers of New York City and New Jersey. Weekdays there are over 100 trips a day with a few less on weekends, avoid the peak hours for the journey. Bus and Train are easily available from both ferry terminals to explore more of either Manhattan or Staten Island. Read the rest of this entry »
Today’s Youtube pick is of the Cunard cruise liner the Queen Victoria. It’s the newest in the Cunard fleet and pretty darn flash judging by the video above. She is the running mate to the RMS Queen Mary 2 and RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 (until the QE2 is retired later this year). A sister ship is also planned to be built named the Queen Elizabeth, this is amazing that Cunard will have 3 fairly new luxury liners at sea as it wasn’t long ago many predicted the death of cruise travel. Today cruising has become big business with heaps of new ships launched each year all trying to out do each other.
Cunard’s RMS Queen Elizabeth II is currently sailing though the Magellan Straights of the South American continent on its way to on one of its last voyages. The ship is probably the best know of all ships (except that of the Titanic of course). Launched in 1967 by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the craft has sailed over 5.5 million nautical miles and carried over 2 million guests. The original cost of building the ship was just over 29 million pounds over 15 times that has been spent in the last 40 years refitting the craft, and it is not over yet. The ship is going to be the centerpiece of a new development in Dubai called Palm Jumeirah and is going to be completely refit to match the original 1960’s decor then become a luxury floating hotel as part of the monstrous palm shaped island entertainment complex. It is expected the ship will be open for business some time in late 2009. Read the rest of this entry »
The Murray River bordering Victoria and New South Wales in Australia was once the country’s busiest highway with paddlesteamers shipping cargo up and down the mighty river system. Today the legacy continues with several paddlesteamers still sailing the river today cargo has been replaced with excited tourists. The Emmylou at Echucha is one of the more grand and popular of the vessels. This paddlesteamer dates back to 1906 and was beautifully restored during the 1980’s. She is in fact the only wood fired paddlesteamer in the world that offers overnight cruising. There is nothing more tranquil than standing on Emmylou’s wooden deck listening to the kookaburras, frogs and the spinning water wheel while cruising up the mighty Murray River at a leisurely pace. Read the rest of this entry »
Step back to a bygone era and ride the Star Ferry across Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour for an amazingly cheap and fun trip from Hong Kong Island to Kowloon. With trips starting at only $2.20 HK each way you can cross one of the world’s most amazing waterways where you will see the skyscrapers of this bustling city and the rugged backdrop of the island’s mountains. The ferry service has been operating for over 100 years with the most popular service being between Central on Hong Kong Island and Tsim Sha Tsui on Kowloon, boat was the only way of crossing the water until the Cross Harbour Tunnel was opened in 1972. There are 12 ferries in service operating on four different routes and over 70,000 people use the services every day.
The American Queen is a magnificent paddleboat on the which sales the mighty Mississippi. This vessel has 222 state rooms and is 6 decks high, 418 feet in length and 89 feet wide. The 160 crew on board cater for the436 guests on board offering luxury service and an experience to remember. The huge exhaust stacks can be lowered to allow the boat to go under low bridges and the 45 ton paddle wheel is powered with the help of authentic steam engines and a little help from some state of the art diesel engines.
The Queen Elizabeth 2 is set to find a new home after she retires from duty in 2008. It has been announced by the Dubai government that after her last voyage to Dubai the ship will be purchased and transformed into a floating hotel to be berthed at Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah, the world’s largest man-made island. One of the QE2’s predecessor’s the Queen Mary found a similar fate, and is now berthed in Long Beach California, when the QE2 replaced it in 1969. The QE2 is to be replaced by a new ship called the Queen Victoria. The QE2 was the flagship of the Cunard line until it was joined by the new flagship the Queen Mary 2 in 2004.
Sick of the standard hotel room on your tour of Europe, well here is the answer, a Botel- its a hotel but its a boat. This one is in Prague in the Czech Republic on the Vltava River. It is a stationary vessel which has bar, restaurant, lobby and all the things you would expect in a budget hotel only it is a boat. on the It might not be 5 star luxury (or even 2 star for that matter) but it sure is fun and good value. The cabins are fairly small and sparse but for novelty value who cares and lets face it your only sleeping there as there’s so much to do and see in Prague you will hardly find time to sleep. Prague has a few different botels to choose from and you will find them in other European cities including Amsterdam.
