The bow of the RMS Titanic lies on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada…

THE RMS TIANTIC…

A high-tech expedition that aims to create a detailed map of the wreckage of the Titanic has begun exploring the ocean floor where the ship sank nearly one hundred years ago, the crew said Thursday.

Sonar onboard an automated submersible vehicle combined with high-resolution video will be used to create three dimensional images of the fabled ocean-liner.

The expedition, organized by the American group RMS Titanic, which holds exploration rights for the wreck, arrived on Wednesday aboard the scientific vessel Jean Charcot and started by laying flowers on the water’s surface to commemorate the 1,500 victims of the shipwreck.

Transponders were then deployed at the bottom of the Atlantic to determine, with the help of sonar pings from an automated underwater vehicle (AUV), the exact position of the Titanic.

Finally, the AUV “Mary Ann” was deployed at 0647 GMT. She reached the bottom after diving for an hour and 40 minutes.

“Surveying of the Titanic wreck site has begun,” said the expedition on its website.

Another robotic submersible equipped with a video camera will be deployed next.

Christopher Davino, president of RMS Titanic, said in a statement that the goal is to “create the most detailed portrait of Titanic’s wreck site to date.”

The team of experts, he said, “will be using some of the most advanced technology available to create a portrait of the ship unlike any that has been created before — virtually raising Titanic and sealing her current state forever in the minds and hearts of humanity.”

The mission, which set sail from St John’s, Newfoundland, will provide real-time video and photo updates on Facebook and Twitter during a more than 20-day expedition.

Other images and information will be found on the mission’s website, www.expeditiontitanic.com.

The Titanic, a luxury passenger ship once thought to be unsinkable, hit an iceberg on April 14, 1912 and sank in the early morning of April 15, 1912, killing 1,500 people.

After decades of searching, the wreckage of the Titanic was discovered in 1985 some four kilometers (2.5 miles) beneath the surface of the sea.

Holland America Line’s MS NIEUW AMSTERDAM carries on liner and cruise history of the famed cruise line.

Launched from Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri’s Marghera shipyard in Venice on July 4, 2010, the 86,000-ton Nieuw Amsterdam celebrates the glamour and history of New York City, formerly called Nieuw Amsterdam, with its inspired interior design and art collection.

Holland America Line has installed an array of works valued at over $3 million, ranging from antiques by traditional Dutch masters to creations by renowned contemporary artists. Some pieces reflect the Dutch Golden Age while others, such as the spectacular centerpiece in the atrium, express a contemporary curiosity. Adorning the ceiling of Nieuw Amsterdam is an eye-catching abstract sculpture of the inverted New York skyline made from clear translucent blocks that hang upside-down. The sculpture was created by husband and wife Italian artists Gilbert Lebigre and Corinne Roger of Creazioni Lebigre & Roger. The significant collection, which includes works by celebrated artists Andy Warhol, Richard Estes and Roy Lichtenstein, continues with astounding displays throughout the ship.

A complimentary self-guided iPod art tour is available for guests wishing to view the entire collection. The iPod art tour is also available to download at no charge at www.hollandamerica.com and on iTunes.

Nieuw Amsterdam joins the recently launched Eurodam to further define and expand the Holland America Line premium brand with new concepts such as the innovative pan-Asian Tamarind restaurant and Silk Den lounge surrounded by panoramic views overlooking the ocean expanse and the Lido pool. Other additions are an Explorer’s Lounge Bar, a premium wine-tasting lounge, an elegant luxury jewelry boutique, new atrium bar area, enhanced and reconfigured The Showroom at Sea, and a new photographic and imaging center.

The new ship continues several much-admired Holland America Line features, including outside-view, glass elevators at midship; the Explorations Café — a cyber-coffee house powered by The New York Times; the Pinnacle Grill and Pinnacle Bar; the innovative Culinary Arts Center presented by Food & Wine Magazine, where culinary experts provide cooking demonstrations and intimate classes in a state-of-the-art on-board show kitchens; an expanded Greenhouse Spa and Salon with thermal suites and hydro-pool, the largest gymnasium ever built for Holland America Line; and a youth facility that includes the teens-only Loft. In addition the ship will feature the family-style Canaletto Italian restaurant.

Nieuw Amsterdam features 11 guest decks and staterooms spotlight all the Signature of Excellence premium amenities. Also featured are innovative spa staterooms with additional spa amenities.

The first Nieuw Amsterdam.

Deck scene aboard the first Nieuw Amsterdam.

The first Nieuw Amsterdam was launched in 1906 and used both a full set of sails and steam engines. She was 17,149 tons and carried 2,886 passengers, 2,200 of them in third class. She sailed in regular service through World War I and then through to 1932.

A look at the second Nieuw Amsterdam.

(Left: 6/5/1948-New York, NY: Star of stage and screen Katharine Hepburn, becomingly clad in slacks, unbent and gave an interview to the boys of the press as she sailed from New York, June 5th, on the S.S. Nieuw Amsterdam.)

The famed Nieuw Amsterdam II joined the fleet in 1938 as the company’s flagship. The silhouette of this ship can still be seen today behind Henry Hudson’s Half Moon in the company’s logo. At 36,287 tons, “the Darling of the Dutch,” as she was known, was decorated in great style and was launched by Her Majesty Queen Wilhemina of the Netherlands.

Nieuw Amsterdam II served proudly in World War II completing 44 war time voyages carrying nearly 400,000 passengers (mostly troops).

Following the war she was rebuilt and, as the queen of Holland America Line’s “spotless fleet,” hosted countless well-known figures among her guests, including Katherine Hepburn, Rita Hayworth, Spencer Tracey and Albert Schweitzer.

The Nieuw Amsterdam III.

Nieuw Amsterdam III was launched in 1983 as one of the most elegant ships of her time. At 33,900 tons, Nieuw Amsterdam III sailed in Alaska in the summers and in the Caribbean in the winters.

With innovative design and guest offerings, Nieuw Amsterdam IV continues the proud tradition of her name and evolution of Holland America Line’s sophisticated mid-sized ships.

For complete information on Holland America Line’s cruises – click here.

The Prinzessin Victoria Luise was the world’s first cruise ship.

Cruise Ship History and Cruising The Past – The Prinzessin Victoria Luise was the world’s first cruise ship. Built for the Hamburg America Line, she was launched on June 29, 1900 and served as a cruising passenger ship until December 16, 1906 after being accidentally grounded off Jamaica.

Credit for many of the photos seen here are through the courtesy of The Gjenvick-Gjønvik Archives – The Future of Our Past. This wonderful website is one of the largest private archives of historical documents from the 1800s through 1954. Click here to visit this wonderful website.

Photos of the ship and her public rooms – as seen in Scientific American.

With cruises targeted toward wealthy travelers, the Victoria Luise was designed to look more like a private yacht than any of her commercial counterparts. She had a trim hull 52.2 feet wide by 407.5 feet long.

What must have been the first cruise passengers as seen aboard the Victoria Luise. They were rich Europeans and Americans – pioneers!

She was painted all white with two masts, one fore and aft, and two tall, slim funnels amidships.

She had a rounded stern and a richly decorated clipper bow, with bowsprit, ending in a figurehead of the German princess.

Onboard, she also did not look like other commercial vessels of the time. She contained 120 cabins, all first class. All staterooms were luxuriously appointed. Reportedly, Ballin instituted some interior modifications recommended by the Emperor.

There was also a library, a gymnasium, and a darkroom for the development of film by amateur photographers. Pushing all this at a steady 15 knots (28 km/h) were quadruple expansion steam engines. After fitting out, the Kaiser formally inspected the vessel and was unhappy that it was slightly longer than the royal yacht Hohenzollern.

The cruise ship idea came from Albert Ballin. In 1866, he joined HAPAG (Hamburg-Amerikanische-Packetfahrt-Actien-Gesellschaft ) as manager of its passage department. Two years later, he became Managing Director. It was during this term that he realized his company’s largest and flagship vessel, the Augusta Victoria, lay largely unused during the winter season. Due to inclement weather, travelers largely stayed away from the North Atlantic route. It was then that Ballin, despite criticism from his fellow directors at HAPAG and other steamship companies, planned to send the Augusta Victoria on a 58-day “pleasure voyage” from Cuxhaven, Germany to the Mediterranean and Orient. This extended cruise would include well-planned excursions ashore to ports-of-call along the route and Ballin would be a passenger himself. The voyage was a success and similar ones were planned.

Despite their increasing success, these early cruises, called “excursions”, were difficult to plan with existing ships. Constructed as ocean liners, they did not meet the requirements of the pleasure-seeking market. They offered few amenities aboard.

This became apparent during long stretches at sea. Furthermore their construction as multi-class vessels also proved a hindrance as such vessels provided restricted access to deck space. Whatever deck space there was, was mostly sheltered, and designed to accommodate the rigors of the North Atlantic instead of the seas of more southern climes. Ballin believed that only a vessel specifically designed for cruising would be appropriate. Furthermore, such a vessel could spend the entire year doing so.

In 1899, Ballin became director at HAPAG and months later, in 1900, commissioned Blohm & Voss to construct such a ship to be named after Kaiser Wilhelm II’s daughter. The ship was launched on June 29, 1900 and christened Prinzessin Victoria Luise.

She was a revolutionary ship for the times but her career was short lived.

Prinzessin Victoria Luise left on her maiden voyage on January 5, 1901 from Hamburg, stopping at Boulogne, Plymouth, and finally reaching New York on January 17. She would depart New York on the 26th to the West Indies for her first cruise. Her second cruise, to the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, commenced from New York on March 9. Other cruises would take the ship to the Baltic. She would be used almost exclusively for cruising as she had limited cargo or mail capacity. Yet, she would be diverted from cruising on six occasions to make complete transatlantic crossings.

Almost five years after her debut, her illustrious career came to an end while on a West Indian cruise. On the night of December 16 the ship departed Kingston when her commander Captain Brunswig mistook the lighthouse at Plumb Point for that at the westernmost point of Port Royal. Heading north at 14 knots, the ship hit and climbed onto the rocks bow first at about 9 o’clock in the evening. In an attempt to dislodge the ship, the engines where put full astern to no avail.

The crew quickly calmed panicked passengers who were safely disembarked the following morning. The captain remained on the vessel after the evacuation, retreated to his cabin, and shot himself. A German Admiralty court found him negligent in May of the following year.

Salvage operations commenced immediately after the grounding. Within days, continued buffeting by waves and a storm pushed the ship broadside of the shore with a sharp list to port. Inspection revealed major structural damage to her frame and keel plates. Her engines had been displaced during impact and her port side was filled with 16 feet of water. She was declared a total loss on December 19.

Cunard Line was the only company to continue regular transatlantic ocean crossings by liners after the 1970s.  The French Line, Italian Line, the United States Line had gone out of business.  Swedish America Line, Holland America Line along with Home Lines continued but only operating cruise ships.  Liner service between New York and Europe was only offered by Cunard.   The QE 2 made numerous crossings into the 21st Century – making Cunard Line the only way to cross the pond and continuing the tradition of “getting there is half the fun.”

Of all the cruise lines in the market of today, perhaps the most venerable would be the Cunard line. A name that is synonymous with transatlantic crossing, the Cunard Cruise Ship Line is known in some capacity to just about everybody who knows anything about ships. The famous old brand is of course most famous for its White Star Line ships of the early part of the last century, and in particular the tragic and ill-fated liner Titanic, which even those who care nothing for travel of any sort know at least something about. Even if it is only in connection with Leonardo di Caprio and Kate Winslet, surely there is no-one reading this who does not know what happened, ultimately, to this most ambitious of passenger liners.

Today, the Cunard line still sails the sea, though today it is owned by the Carnival Corporation and has just two active ships – the Queen Mary 2 and the Queen Victoria. There are also plans afoot to build a third ship, which will be named for Britain’s current monarch Queen Elizabeth, after the old Queen Elizabeth II (or QE2) was retired from active service pending its conversion to a hotel ship, which will be moored off the coast of the United Arab Emirates. The current fleet is used principally for world cruises, and mixes the stately grandeur of its forebears with the inescapable touch of modernity – no cruise liner of the present day can afford to be without a spa complex, after all.

The ships of the present day notwithstanding, those who know the name Cunard will most likely know it through its impact on history. The sinking of the Titanic is as inextricably linked with the Cunard name as any company can be with a past event. No-one who has heard the story of the Titanic can possibly forget it. Spoken of before its launch in such glowing terms as to become legendary, the Titanic’s end was all the more shattering to the Cunard brand. The very moment the word “unsinkable” was uttered in connection with the ship, it was as though its fate were sealed. We all know what happened next – inevitably, tragically, the ship sank to a watery grave after a huge collision with an iceberg holed it beneath the water line.

It is, then, to Cunard’s credit that it is still in operation today, regardless of its status as part of the Carnival Cruises portfolio. On the Cunard Cruise Ship Line website there are still references to the company’s renowned “White Star Service”, even though two of the three White Star Line ships ended up sinking. The present day ships, although possessed of the same grandeur for which Cunard became a watchword, have made a seamless fit for the present-day requirements of the cruise liner. As indeed they must, for any ship that undertakes a world cruise taking up to three months at a time will need to lay on the very best in comforts for its passengers. In years to come, people will still remember the Titanic – but anyone who has sailed aboard the current Cunard fleet agrees that there is far more to the famous name of Cunard than that.

Cunard continues to be the gold standard for transatlantic ocean liner service.  It is really a point to point crossing.  Not a cruise – since you are going from New York to Southampton.  It is a passenger service in the sense that you can enjoy transportation at a comparable price to a Business Class or many times full fare Economy Class airline ticket.  You get six nights lodging, meals and the perks of a resort hotel.  It is an ideal way to come back from Europe – because the time change is gradual.  You don’t return exhausted from a long horrendous airline flight.

Cunard’s current success rests upon a rich heritage of 170 years of building and operating ocean liners on transatlantic voyages. From its earliest days, the Cunard name has been synonymous with leadership in ocean liners and transatlantic travel, a tradition that continues to this day.

Lord and Lady Astor arriving aboard a Cunard Line ship at Southampton

Significance

As its current company tag-line conveys, throughout history, Cunard has operated “The Most Famous Ocean Liners in the World™.” The first company to take passengers on regularly scheduled transatlantic departures, Cunard has built and continuously reinforced a reputation as an ocean liner pioneer. Today, it remains a transatlantic cruise leader, operating the world-famous Queen Elizabeth and Queen Mary 2 vessels.

Founder: Sir Samuel Cunard

Canadian entrepreneur Sir Samuel Cunard (1787-1865) founded the British and North American Steam Packet Company (later named Cunard Line) in 1839, when he and several colleagues won a bid to carry the British Royal Mail to the U.S. and Canada. Cunard, who had a reputation for being a savvy and diplomatic businessman, was inducted into the American Society of Travel Agents Travel Hall of Fame for his role in helping to develop transatlantic travel.

The Evolution of Cruising

In 1840, Cunard Line introduced four steamships making weekly transatlantic voyages with passengers and cargo. By 1881, the company introduced its first ocean liner intended solely for passenger travel. In the late 1940s, the Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth began transatlantic voyages and in 1949, Cunard introduced the first vessel akin to modern cruise ships. By the 1950s, Cunard had 12 ocean liners in service. In the following decades, Cunard continued to add features and enhance the luxury of its liners, leading to today’s top-of-the-line cruising experience.

Cunard Firsts

Cunard built its legacy in part through many famous firsts. For example, in 1881, Cunard introduced the first ship to be lighted by electricity. Cunard’s Mauretania, in 1907, was the first ship to offer multiroom suites.

In 1934, the Queen Mary became the first merchant ship to be launched by a member of the Royal family. And the Queen Elizabeth 2 was the first (and still is the only) ship to sail 5 million nautical miles.

Recent History

Cunard has continued to build upon its history of excellence into recent times. In 2003, the Queen Elizabeth 2 won a maritime Oscar above all other vessels in the large-ship category. In early 2009, tickets for the Queen Elizabeth’s October 2010 maiden voyage sold out in a record 29 minutes—beating the Cunard’s previous sellout record of 36 minutes for the Queen Elizabeth 2’s final voyage. Cunard continues to draw passengers with its strong reputation and growing array of on-board luxuries, such as Canyon Ranch Spas and five-star restaurants.

Great Video – save the SS UNITED STATES

Every ship has a soul – Franklin D. Roosevelt

The great steamships and liners – UNITED STATES, AMERICA, CONSTITUTION, BRAZIL, SANTA ROSA, LURLINE, PRESIDENT WILSON – were the pride of the nations that built them, an integral part of history, and a glorious symbol of an age passed. Their preservation should have been assured as a legacy to be gazed upon with a sense of wonder by the generations that followed the golden decades of transatlantic travel.

Great Britain had the Mauretania, the Olympic, and the Queens, Mary and Elizabeth. Italy built the Rex and the Conte di Savoia; Germany, the Imperator. The French launched the Ile de France and, later, the Normandie. America produced one ship that could fit into that august company of legendary ocean liners: the S.S. United States.

With the exception of only two, they are gone forever. They may have outlived their times, but the magnificent liners of the past earned a greater respect than what was ultimately accorded to them. Some of mankind’s grandest achievements were reduced to piles of metal junk.

Allied bombing during World War II destroyed the Rex. The Queen Elizabeth was consumed by fire in Hong Kong harbor. The Olympic, Imperator, Conte di Savoia, and Ile de France all fell victim to the scrap yards, as did the Normandie after she was ravaged by a blaze during refitting for war service in 1942. Franklin Roosevelt stated that sinking the Mauretania in the deepest part of the ocean was a far more worthy fate for her than the indignity of being stripped naked and then dismembered. He was right.

Marlon Brando and Salvidor Dali enjoying after dinner coffee in the First Class Lounge of the SS United States.

One of the Queens escaped. In 1967, the Queen Mary was converted into a hotel, museum and tourist attraction in Long Beach, Calif. Work is ongoing to restore her to her former glory.

At the other end of the country, time has not been as kind to the S.S. United States. She is moored, structurally sound and intact, beside Pier 84 on the Delaware River just south of downtown Philadelphia. Although the ship still presents an impressive sight, recalling the awe that she must have conjured as the flagship of the United States Lines, a closer look gives the viewer the unnerving feeling that she is slowly, but inexorably, just fading away.

Tracks of brownish rust now cascade down the once immaculate white superstructure and large flakes of peeling paint hang from the black hull. At one time, her two gigantic winged funnels were brightly painted in the nation’s colors, brilliant red, with a gleaming white band and topped in blue. Today, the stacks look as if they are both enveloped in a fine mist, the once vibrant tones are as muted and indistinct as a photograph left too long in the sun.

SS UNITED STATES – waiting for fate.

On her maiden voyage, the United States broke the speed record held by the Queen Mary for the previous 14 years, besting the Cunard liner’s time by 10 hours, to become the recipient of the coveted Blue Riband. It is an honor that she still holds over half a century later.

The United States was 108 feet longer than the Titanic and boasted three more decks than the fabled White Star liner. She was built in Newport News, Va., at a cost of $78 million. No wood was used in the ship’s framing or in her interiors to minimize the risk of fire. Launched in 1952, the vessel made 400 crossings during her 17-year career, traveling a total of 2.8 million miles.

After the United States Lines withdrew her from service in 1969, the ship passed through a series of owners. She was purchased by the Norwegian Cruise Line in 2003. The company’s plans to put her back into passenger service fizzled and she is now up for sale.

Even as the waters of the Delaware constantly slap gently against her hull, the specter of the scrap yard forever hangs over the great liner. The country that once took such an immense pride in the ship as a symbol of American might, ingenuity, and accomplishment seems to have largely abandoned her.

She has not been completely forgotten, however. Since 2004, the S.S. United States Conservancy has been attempting to save the ship from the ignominious fate that befell other great passenger vessels of the 20th century. Norwegian Cruise Line spends around $750,000 annually in docking fees for the United States, and they are understandably anxious to divest themselves of that expense. Last year, NCL granted the Conservancy first refusal on the sale of the ship, but the group has, thus far, been unable to raise enough funds to meet the $1.5 million purchase price.

We are a people who traditionally place a great value upon our past. Four American presidents were passengers on the ship. The loss of this noble vessel to the scrapper’s yard would be tantamount to blowing up Mt. Rushmore for the sole purpose of increasing the nation’s supply of driveway gravel. The preservation of the S.S. United States would endure, not merely as evidence of a maritime marvel, but as testimony to the people who built her, who sailed in her, and who recognized and rewarded the immeasurable contribution that she made to our nation’s sense of pride.

Conservancy member Mark Perry has produced an award-winning documentary film, “S.S. United States: Lady in Waiting,” that was broadcast on Public Television. Visit bigshipfilms.com to watch the trailer or purchase the DVD. It is also available at the Northshire Bookstore in Manchester.

Please consider donating to the efforts to save the ship affectionately known as The Big U. My son was married a few days ago, and I would love to be able to take a grandchild to see her in all of her restored splendor some day.

Go to www.ssunitedstatesconservancy.org or www.ssusplankowner.org on the Web for more information or to make your contribution.

SS LURLINE Arriving in Hawaii on 1940s Maiden Voyage after WW 2.

Cruising the Past – Matson Line’s SS LURLINE – History of a great ship:

Design and Construction (1931 – 1932):

The Lurline was built by the Bethlehem Steel shipyard in Quincy, Massachusetts. She was launched on the 18th July 1932.

Prewar Matson Line era (1932 – 1941):

On the 27th December 1932 the Lurline sailed on her maiden voyage from San Francisco to Australia via Los Angeles, Honolulu, Auckland, Pago Pago, Suva, Sydney and Melbourne.This was the heyday of the great Matson Liners, crack passenger trains were adopted as “Boat Trains”, carrying passengers from New York and Chicago to connect in San Francisco with the liner sailings.

Visit to Australia during the 1930s.

The Lurline and her sister ships were attracting the Hollywood stars sailing to Hawaii in ever increasing numbers. These stars including famous names such as William Powell, Carole Lombard, Jimmy Durante, Claudette Colbert, Myrna Loy, Joel McCrea, Frances Dee and Shirley Temple. Despite the difficulties of the Depression, the popularity of travel to Hawaii remained high.

During this period the Matson Liners became such a popular institution in San Francisco that during the Golden Gate Exposition celebrations on Treasure Island in 1939, the City named the 9th August 1939 as Matson Day!

After returning to San Francisco on the 24th April 1934 after her Pacific cruise, the Lurline joined the Malolo on the route from San Francisco to Hawaii. She continued on this service until 1941.

War Service (1941 – 1946):

On the 7th December 1941, while the Lurline was about half way from Honolulu to San Francisco, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbour. The Lurline immediately set sail at full speed for San Francisco. Then she and her sisters were requisitioned by the US Government as troopships and they returned to Hawaii with troops and supplies. The Lurline and her sisters had a proud wartime history as troopships in the Pacific including visits to Australia. She even carried the Australian Prime Minister, John Curtin, to America in 1944 to meet with President Roosevelt.

Postwar Matson Line era (1946 – 1963):

In 1946 the Lurline was decommissioned from her war duties and returned to Matson Line. She immediately was sent for an extensive refit at Alameda during 1947/48. However the expense of her refit caused Matson to shelve the refits of the Mariposa and the Monterey and those two ships were laid up.

On the 15th April 1948 she returned to service on the San Francisco to Honolulu route. Just as before the war she soon regained her status as the top liner on the Pacific. She continued to sail on this service for the next 7 years. Since 1948 she handled this service single handedly after taking over from the Matsonia (former Malolo). In 1950 due to the huge success of the Lurline it was decided to return to service the laid up Monterey, which was renamed Matsonia.

In the early to mid 1960s increasing competition from air travel and union disputes and strikes caused passenger demand to fall. In 1962 the Matsonia (former Monterey) was laid up and again the Lurline continued the service single handed. However on the 3rd February 1963 while arriving at Los Angeles from Honolulu, the Lurline suffered an engine failure. Due to the expensive repair needed, Matson Line decided to lay up the Lurline and replace her with the Matsonia.

As a result the Matsonia was reprieved and returned to service. She was renamed with her sister’s name as Lurline. The original Lurline however was sold to Chandris Lines in 1963 and was renamed Ellinis.

Chandris Lines era (1963 – 1986):

After an engine failure in 1963 caused the Lurline to be retired from service by Matson Line, she was laid up and then sold to Chandris Lines on the 3rd September 1963. Chandris renamed her the Ellinis. Her engines immediately were repaired in the United States and then she was sent for a refit in North Shields, England. Her exterior was modernised and her Matson Line interiors were retained. She soon became renowned for her interior beauty. During the refit her capacity was increased to accommodate 1,668 passengers in one class. Looking smart in her new Chandris livery and with her modernised superstructure and funnels, she made a fine sight as she sailed on her maiden voyage from Piraeus to Sydney on the 30th December 1963. Her homeward voyages were alternately routed via the Panama Canal to Southampton from 1964.

For the next 10 years, the Ellinis made regular line voyages to Australia as well as occasional cruises. For several years she was employed on an eastward round-the-world service.

Sadly in April 1974 the Ellinis was on a cruise to Japan when once again major problems reoccured with her engines. The Ellinis immediately returned to Europe. At this time Home Lines had sold her former sister ship, the Mariposa (now named Homeric), to shipbreakers in Taiwan. Chandris Lines took the opportunity to purchase one of her engines which was transported to Rotterdam and fitted on board the Ellinis. As a result this fine ship was able to return to service in March 1975 and commenced Mediterranean cruises until early 1977. By 1981 she had been in service for over 50 years and was a venerable old lady. As a result Chandris Lines decided to retire her from service and in October 1981 she was laid up in Greece. She remained laid up for 5 years until she was sold for scrapping in Taiwan in 1986. However many of her fittings and parts were removed and kept as spare parts for the Britanis (former Monterey) which by this time was also in the Chandris fleet.

A sad end after a remarkable career for this fine example of American marine engineering showcasing the best of America.

Long may she be remembered.

Crystal Symphony

Crystal Cruises carries on the tradition of the great luxury cruise ships such as the SS Rotterdam, RMS Caronia and MS Kungsholm.

Famous cruise ships of the last century : RMS CARONIA, MS KUNGSHOLM and the SS ROTTERDAM.

Crystal Cruises carries on the tradition of the great luxury cruise ships such as the SS Rotterdam, RMS Caronia and MS Kungsholm. Celebrating a new mark in travel histroy, the elegant cruise company has once again been voted the “Best Large-Ship Cruise Line” for 2009 by the readers of the prestigious Conde Nast Traveler magazine (U.S.). Crystal’s overall score of 92.7 is one of its highest in the survey’s history. The luxury line’s 16 “wins” is unprecedented by any cruise line or hotel in the world.