Queen Elizabeth in Tallinn, 2011
MS Queen Elizabeth is a Signature class cruise ship operated by Cunard Line. She is the second largest ship to be constructed for Cunard, exceeded only by the QM2 and is running mate to the Queen Victoria, and the Queen Mary 2
The Elizabeth is a modified design from earlier Vista class vessels, she is slightly larger than Queen Victoria, at 92,000 GT, largely due to a more vertical stern. Capable of carrying up to 2,092 passengers, she is the second largest Cunard ship ever built, after RMS Queen Mary 2.[2]
The ship's name was announced by Cunard on 10 October 2007. The company now operates three vessels once more (since the retirement of QE2 in 2008).[3]
The naming of the ship as Queen Elizabeth sees a situation similar to that between 1940 and 1948, when Cunard's original Queen Elizabeth was in service at the same time as the Royal Navy battleship HMS Queen Elizabeth. In 2016, six years after this ship joined the fleet, the Royal Navy plans to introduce the aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth into service.[4][5]
The first master of Queen Elizabeth is Captain Chris Wells.[6]
At the end of October 2011 Queen Elizabeth and her fleet mates changed their registries to Hamilton, Bermuda, in order to host weddings aboard.
Design
Exterior
The Queen Elizabeth is almost identical in design to her sister ship Queen Victoria, although because of the steeper stern, her passenger capacity will be slightly higher (2,058 to Queen Victoria's 2,014).[8] Also because of this difference, the largest suites at the stern of the Queen Elizabeth will have smaller balconies.[9][10] At the forward end of deck 11, there is a glass roof covering the games deck, unlike the sports deck on the Queen Victoria.[11]
Also unlike many previous Cunard Queens, Queen Elizabeth is not a true ocean liner as she does not have the heavy plating throughout the hull nor the propulsion system of a dedicated transatlantic liner. However the bow was constructed with heavier plating to cope with the Transatlantic run, and the ship has a high freeboard. The recently completed Queen Mary 2 had cost approximately $300,000 US per berth, nearly double that of many contemporary cruise ships, so Cunard made the economical decision to base Queen Elizabeth on a converted Vista-class cruise ship.
Interior
Although having an almost identical interior arrangement to the Queen Victoria, the decor is very different. The ship is a tribute to the two previous Queen Elizabeths: the original Queen Elizabeth and the QE2. It also evokes the era of the 1930s, in which Cunard's first Queen Elizabeth was launched, with manyart deco interior touches.[12] The ship also features a Britannia Club section of the main restaurant, which is a feature popular on the Queen Mary 2, but not available on the Queen Victoria. This service allows passengers in the Britannia staterooms to have single seating dining arrangements, without having to upgrade to the more expensiveGrills classes.
Launch
After manufacture in Italy from 2007 to 2010, Cunard Line officially confirmed that Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II would name Cunard's new ship.[14] The ceremony was held inSouthampton on Monday 11 October 2010 before the ship set sail on her maiden voyage to the Canary Islands the following day. The Queen was also the sponsor of the now-retired Queen Elizabeth 2 in 1967 and Cunard's current flagship, Queen Mary 2, in 2004.
MS Queen Elizabeth in Cádiz, 2010
Service History
On Monday 4 October, 2010 Queen Elizabeth was formally handed over to Cunard. She sailed on her maiden voyage from Southampton on Tuesday 12 October, 2010, following a naming ceremony with the monarch on Monday 11 October 2010. Her maiden voyage included calls at the Spanish port of Vigo before heading for Lisbon, Cadiz, Gran Canaria,Tenerife, La Palma and Madeira.
The ship made several European cruises until she departed on her first world cruise, leaving Southampton on 5 January 2011 and calling at New York, Fort Lauderdale, Aruba and Limon before transiting the Panama Canal. She would then call at Acapulco, Cabo San Lucas and Los Angeles before crossing the Pacific Ocean to Lahaina, Honolulu, Apia, Pago Pago, Fiji, Bay of Islands, Auckland, Wellington, Sydney, Melbourne, Fremantle, Kota Kinabalu, Hong Kong (thus sailing close to the location where her predecessor RMS Queen Elizabeth caught fire and capsized in 1972). Stops in south-west Asia would include Nha Trang, Ho Chi Minh City, Ko Samui, Langkawi, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Penang. She would then cross the Indian Ocean westbound for Kochi, Mumbai and Muscat. This would be followed by a journey westbound again across the Arabian Sea before passing through the Strait of Hormuz to call at Dubai in the Persian Gulf, where she would be berthed close to her predecessor RMSQueen Elizabeth 2 for the first time. After calling at Salalah and Aqaba, the ship would transit the Suez Canal. Westbound Mediterranean calls would be at Athens and Rome, then passing through the Strait of Gibraltar to make a final call at Lisbon before returning to Southampton. The voyage is expected to take 103 days.
She will then make many European cruises before September 2011 when she is expected to make her maiden Round Britain cruise, departing Southampton on 2 September 2011, making her way to Edinburgh, Invergordon for Inverness, Greenock for Glasgow,Liverpool, Dublin, Cork and St Peter Port in Guernsey, before returning to Southampton. She will then make various other European cruises until departing for a Caribbean cruise in November and December 2011.
Cunard Royal Rendezvous
13 January 2011:
Two years after the first Cunard Royal Rendezvous, RMS Queen Mary 2 met up with the Queen Victoria and the brand new Queen Elizabeth for another Royal Rendezvous in New York City. Both the Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth made an Atlantic crossing in tandem for the event. All three ships met in front of the Statue of Liberty at 6:45 pm for a Grucci fireworks display. The Empire State Building was lit up in red to mark the event.[15]
Two years after the first Cunard Royal Rendezvous, RMS Queen Mary 2 met up with the Queen Victoria and the brand new Queen Elizabeth for another Royal Rendezvous in New York City. Both the Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth made an Atlantic crossing in tandem for the event. All three ships met in front of the Statue of Liberty at 6:45 pm for a Grucci fireworks display. The Empire State Building was lit up in red to mark the event.[15]
5 June 2012:
All three 'Queens' will meet once more, but this time in Southampton in order to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.
All three 'Queens' will meet once more, but this time in Southampton in order to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.
Queen Elizabeth First Birthday
On 12th October 2011 Queen Elizabeth celebrated her first birthday in Valletta, Malta. In her first year, Queen Elizabeth visited 108 different destinations and travelled 123,351 nautical miles. As part of her insights programme she has had 78 speakers onboard; some of these celebrities and speakers were Lord Jeffery Archer, Ruth Scott, Brian Hoey, and Robert Kershaw.
The ship has consistently received a rating of 90% on the customer satisfaction questionnaire and ranks third behind sister ship MS Queen Victoria and the Celebrity Eclipse in the top 10 cruise ships at Cruise.co.uk cruise ship passenger ratings, which are based solely on passenger reviews.
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