Titanic 100th Anniversary Cruise
Centennial of Maritime Disaster to Be Marked by Voyage
Apr 21, 2009
On April 14, 1912 the RMS Titanic hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic; she sank two hours and forty minutes later in the early hours of April 15. The disaster took that lives of 1,517 passengers and crew.
Cruise to Follow Titanic Route
A cruise liner, The Balmoral, has been chosen to mark the 100th anniversary of the tragedy by sailing on the same route as the Titanic. Writing in The Daily Telegraph on April 14, 2009 Charles Starmer-Smith reported that “Bookings for the historic cruise opened today - exactly 97 years after the Titanic was lost - with the departure date set for early April, 2012.”
The 12-day voyage is priced between £7,995 ($14,500) for the Owner’s Suite to £2,595 ($4,700) for an inside cabin on “I” deck. Keep in mind it was the budget-conscious travellers who suffered the highest casualty rate on the Titanic.
Similarities with the Titanic Voyage
The Balmoral is operated by Fred Olsen Cruise Lines, which is owned by Harland and Wolff, the company that built the Titanic.
The voyage will start at Southampton, U.K. early in April 2012. It will stop at the Irish port of Cobh (formerly Queenstown), where the Titanic made her final call on April 11, 1912. There is space for 1,309 passengers, the same number that sailed on the Titanic.
The timing of the cruise is slightly different from that of the Titanic because the Balmoral is not as fast as the earlier liner. However, she will arrive at the exact location of the collision with the iceberg at the same time as the Titanic did. Charles Starmer-Smith notes that when the cruise reaches that spot “there will be a special memorial ceremony between 11.40pm (when the ship hit the iceberg) and 2.20am on April 15 (when the ship sank).”
With luck, the ship will then continue to Halifax, Nova Scotia where passengers can visit the Fairview Lawn Cemetery where 121 Titanic victims are buried. The Balmoral will then sail to New York.
Recreating the Era
Aboard the Balmoral the food served will match the menus of the original voyage. The music will be the same in an attempt to evoke the styles of a century ago. Also, there will be lectures about the history of the ill-fated vessel.
However, there are a few modern conveniences unavailable to the Titanic’s passengers; the travellers on the memorial cruise are encouraged to “enjoy a workout in the gym, pamper yourself in the spa or join in the various activities.” In addition, the Balmoral carries enough lifeboats for everybody on board should something terrible happen. One of the reasons for the high death toll on the Titanic was that the liner had lifeboat spaces for only a third of the ship’s complement.
Miles Morgan heads up the travel company that is organizing the memorial cruise. He is quoted in The Daily Telegraph as saying: "We have started taking registrations earlier than planned as there are so many rumours circulating on the internet about plans to mark the anniversary. The fascination for the Titanic is as strong as ever."
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