To me it is more than enough. There are lots of other cruiseships wich are also interesting and nobody talks about.

[ 01-17-2004: Message edited by: Johan C ]

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Originally posted by Johan C:
These days the whole world seems to be talking about QM 2. To me it is more than enough.

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Agreed!

You will speak about her when you will see her live visiting your places...believe me...

Kind regards

http://www.cruiseserver.net/travelpage/other/new_build.asp

Sure the QM2 looks like the steroid pumped up sister of the QE2, but she is a LINER and unique, one of a kind. Right now, there is NO other ship in the ENTIRE world as interesting, that captures the imagination of the cruising world than the QUEEN MARY 2. This is her moment in the spotlight.

And this news hysteria will pass once she enters the market full-time. We can expect a lull in news events until her arrival in Fort Lauderdale at the end of this month, then she will be in the news again in late April when she arrives like a royal queen in New York City. After that, she becomes 'old news'... but she will still be one of a kind and the largest liner ever built in the history of all mankind. An event like none other we have seen in decades.

And when the Ultra-Voyager hits the market in 2006, it will not be as newsworthy, because she is JUST another carbon copy of a line of ships that look exactly like her. She will not be unique, she will not even be pretty. Just a big, huge floating white cruise ship that looks like a block of flats.

How jaded we have become if something this important, this incredible, is not noted every step of the way. Shame on those who just want to just blow this off and move on.

This is history in the making, something you will talk about for many, many years to come. In all of your lifetimes, you will remember this event like none other in the history of ocean liners because YOU were seeing it as it happened. Savor this moment in ocean liner history. There will never be another like it as long as you live.

[ 01-17-2004: Message edited by: dmwnc1 ]

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Originally posted by dmwnc1:
In todays world of carbon-copy cruise ships, mass producing one design for multiple fleets, and all white hulls that lack imagination, it is nice to see a new ship come out that does not look like a exact mirror image of another. How many new cruise ships did we see introduced in 2003 that 'captured our imaginations' and that were so absolutely unique and stunning it was truly worth reporting on with this much news coverage? Eight? Ten? A dozen? None! And how many new cruise ships will debut in 2004 that will be so unique and will capture our imaginations? None! More carbon copies rolling out of the cruise shipyards factory assembly lines. Just as a reminder here is a listing:

http://www.cruiseserver.net/travelpage/other/new_build.asp

Sure the QM2 looks like the steroid pumped up sister of the QE2, but she is a LINER and unique, one of a kind. Right now, there is NO other ship in the ENTIRE world as interesting, that captures the imagination of the cruising world than the QUEEN MARY 2. This is her moment in the spotlight.

And this will news hysteria will pass once she enters the market full-time. We can expect a lull in news events until her arrival in Fort Lauderdale at the end of this month, then she will be in the news again in late April when she arrives like a royal queen in New York City. After that, she becomes 'old news'... but she will still be one of a kind and the largest liner ever built in the history of all mankind. An event like none other we have seen in decades.

And when the Ultra-Voyager hits the market in 2006, it will not be as newsworthy, because she is JUST another carbon copy of a line of ships that look exactly like her. She will not be unique, she will not even be pretty. Just a big, huge floating white cruise ship that looks like a block of flats.

How jaded we have become if something this important, this incredible, is not noted every step of the way. Shame on those who just want to just blow this off and move on.

This is history in the making, something you will talk about for many, many years to come. In all of your lifetimes, you will remember this event like none other in the history of ocean liners because YOU were seeing it as it happened. Savor this moment in ocean liner history. There will never be another like it as long as you live.

[ 01-17-2004: Message edited by: dmwnc1 ]

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quote:

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Originally posted by dmwnc1:

......Savor this moment in ocean liner history. There will never be another like it as long as you live.

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This post gets my vote as "best editorial post of the month". Well said!

Brian

[ 01-17-2004: Message edited by: Brian_O ]

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How jaded we have become if something this important, this incredible, is not noted every step of the way. Shame on those who just want to just blow this off and move on.

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Exactly. And there's still threads about other ships/ shipping - The Noordam, Etc. But this is QM2's moment, and I'm thankful to all those who have contributed so that those of us who couldn't be there could share in the moment! Thanks!

I like to keep an eye on what's being said about her but I'm getting fed up with sorting out all the garbage.

Once again, Please Joe can you give them their own place.

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Originally posted by gohaze:
...but I'm getting fed up with sorting out all the garbage.

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quote:

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Looking back at another 'world's largest'
16/01/2004
It was 16 years ago today that Sovereign of the Seas sailed on its maiden voyage from Miami. The vessel claimed the title of ‘the world’s largest cruise ship’ in a close competition with NCL’s Norway.
In tonnage (73,192gt) and total passenger count (2,512), Sovereign of the Seas outsized the Norway -- but the ex-France was longer: 1,035 feet compared to Sovereign’s 880 feet. (Later, a new deck of cabins increased the Norway's tonnage to 76,000 and raised the passenger count above 2,700.)

Compared to other cruise ships of the era, though, Sovereign was massively larger. Carnival’s 1987-built Celebration, for example, was 47,262gt and the 1988-built Crown Odyssey was 34,242gt. Moreover, Sovereign introduced Caribbean cruising’s first multi-deck atrium, the five-story ‘Centrum’ designed by Njål Eide. The ship was built at Chantiers de l’Atlantique at a cost of $190m. In his 1992 book, Crossing & Cruising, maritime historian John Maxtone-Graham calls Sovereign ‘a giant step beyond anything the company had ever undertaken’ and noted it was the first Royal Caribbean newbuilding not ordered from Wärtsilä.

‘At the time, no one was sure if a ship of that size was capable of attracting a sufficient number of passengers to keep it at full capacity week after week once the "newness" wore off,’ recalls industry itinerary consultant Rick Strunck who, at Sovereign’s launch, was serving as Royal Caribbean’s manager of vessel deployment and development.

With all the current media focus on the new ‘world’s largest’ titleholder, Queen Mary 2, Strunck remembers Sovereign’s arrival at the Port of Miami as ‘truly the most high-profile ship introduction ever ... Radio shows were doing live broadcasts from the park at the southern tip of Miami Beach, and the rock pilings were covered with spectators from the entrance jetty right down Government Cut ... The channel was jammed with spraying tugs and pleasure craft of all sizes and shapes. The sky overhead had seven helicopters covering the arrival.’ Sovereign’s picture plastered the front pages of Sunday newspaper travel sections. The maiden voyage departed Jan. 16, 1988.

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Posted by lebelty: Radio shows were doing live broadcasts from the park at the southern tip of Miami Beach, and the rock pilings were covered with spectators from the entrance jetty right down Government Cut ... The channel was jammed with spraying tugs and pleasure craft of all sizes and shapes. The sky overhead had seven helicopters covering the arrival.’ Sovereign’s picture plastered the front pages of Sunday newspaper travel sections. The maiden voyage departed Jan. 16, 1988.

We will surely see this news media blitz duplicated and the crowds gather in huge numbers when the Queen Mary 2 arrives in Fort Lauderdale at sunrise on January 26th.

[ 01-17-2004: Message edited by: dmwnc1 ]

However, innovation in the cruise industry is very short lived these days. For example, she will not be the biggest ship for very long. Her facilities will probably not look state of the art within a few years.

If NCL do renovate the SS United States, with some sensitivity, and return her to service, that will certainly be an achievement worth talking about.

If you are getting fed up with posts about QM2, go out on a limb and make the choice to ignore them...you're allowed. The rest of us, who are able to understand the importance of the event, can certainly get by without your input or approval.

And, yes, there are many other interesting cruise ships out there; and I'm sure some would consider many of them on par with QM2. But they are not a Cunard Queen and, if you don't "get it" as to why there's a difference, well, that's your problem....and loss.

Peter's suggestion of a QM2 forum is a great idea. It would just go to show that the ship is so important that she deserves her own space on these boards.

Truth be told, the folks who are fed up have been reading all the posts; otherwise it wouldn't bother them. Even THEY can't stop reading about QM2!

You're right, she won't be the largest forever. But, when Carnival Destiny became the first passenger ship to surpass Queen Elizabeth in size, it didn't put one dent in the famous Cunarder's importance or appeal...

The re-entry of the SSUS would be extremely important and would receive worldwide attention. And I'm sure that, IF it happens, the same folks will get fed up with all of us talking about it.....

It's funny so many people have said in the past that the Voyager class (and other mega-ships) are just too big, for various very valid reasons. However, I've yet to hear this said about the QM2 - strange!

I am looking forward to reading some constructive criticism. No ship is all good! I have a lot of serious questions, yet to be answered;

Does she feel like the worlds biggest ship?

Is 150,000 tons simply too big?

Is there not a lack of intimacy?

Does the quality of the Cunard experience not drop on a ship of this size?

Has the Cunard experience been replaced onboard the QM2 with 'Carnivalized' experience?

Is the Britannia food and service better than the QE2’s Mauritania grade?

How does the Grill Class compare to that of the QE2?

Which room decor works, which does not?

Are her public rooms better or worse than the QE2’s, in terms of function?

Does she feel crowded? Where are the bottle-necks?

Are her interiors really very much different to other newbuilds?

Will all of the QE2 fans take to here?

Will she attract the wider cruising public?

Is she not just a floating holiday camp, like the Voyager class, disguised as a liner?

Does she really feel any different or special when onboard, than any other new build?

Will she make money in the long run?

[ 01-17-2004: Message edited by: Malcolm @ cruisepage ]

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Originally posted by Malcolm @ cruisepage:

It's funny so many people have said in the past that the Voyager class (and other mega-ships) are just too big, for various very valid reasons. However, I've yet to hear this said about the QM2 - strange!

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quote:

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Originally posted by Johan C:
Sorry if I did upset some of you people but as said before if another cruiseline (or even Carnival ) would have launched the same ship I'm sure the impact should have been much lower.

I am a big fan of chantiers and I was very much impressed by their RCCL vision class ships but they get almost no attention

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A french built ship paid by an American company and some British flavour to upgrade things

[ 01-17-2004: Message edited by: Johan C ]