The Past, Present, and Future Cruise Ship

Consider getting yourself and your family a luxury cruise vacation. On a particular date of departure, you will embark one of those first-class, hotel-alike cruise ships for the rest of your vacation.

It will serve as your sailboat, temporary home, shopping center, massage parlor, entertainment center, and so on.

A cruise ship can house all of these and other amenities in an urban area. Yes, it can. It makes a cruise a vacation not only an escapade to remember but also as an excellent option for your next holiday.

Cruise ships, or also known as cruise or luxury liners, are passenger ships used for pleasure voyages. The voyage itself and the amenities, which can be found on-board, are all essential part of the cruising experience.

The rapid growth of cruising in the travel industry prompted cruise lines to build modern ships that will cater to the needs of the growing number of cruise passengers.

It includes itineraries to transatlantic destinations, where engineers and sailors designed cruise ships that can survive different sea-related conditions.

History and Development

The famous Titanic is one of the ancestors of cruise ships today, which houses fine dining areas, well-appointed staterooms, and other amenities needed by the passengers on-board.

During the late 19th century, Director Albert Ballin of the Hamburg-America Line was the first individual to conduct a regular practice of sending his transatlantic ships on long southern trips during the worst winter condition in the North Atlantic.

Others followed, building specialized ships made to withstand summer and winter cruising conditions.

Other cruise destinations were introduced, like to the islands of Caribbean and through the Mediterranean. Thus, newer ships were built to accommodate cruises for these areas.

Not only as a ship, it is also used as propaganda to promote cruising vacation. The Love Boat-- a 1970’s television series-- featured Pacific Princess, the cruise ship of the Princess Cruise.

It raised the awareness of cruises as a vacation option not only for rich individuals but also for ordinary people in the United States.

Cruise Ships Now

In 2004, there are several hundreds of cruise ships, which have a carrying capacity of over 3,000 passengers and displacing over 100,000 tons. Thus, it is the largest ships ever built.

It can cruise to destinations as far as Antarctica. Modern ships are also considered much of a “floating hotel” with a complete staff in addition to the regular cruise ship crew.

These ships are also designed to handle adequate provisioning of foods. Cruise ships serve thousands of meals at each setting. Storage facilities for raw ingredients and beverages are equipped with the latest in storage technology.

Cruise ships can consume foods and beverages more can you expect on an average seven-day voyage. For instance, the passengers and crew of the ship Mariner of the Seas by Royal Caribbean International can consume 20,000 pounds of beef, 28,000 pieces of eggs, 8,000 gallons of ice cream, and 18,000 slices of pizza in a week.

Currently, Queen Mary 2 is the biggest ship at operation. It has 151,400 gross register tons and owned by the Cunard Line, one of the subsidiaries of the Carnival Corporation, the largest cruise ship company operating today.

This British cruise liner is 1,132 feet long, 236 feet high, and can carry 2,620 passengers. It is capable of venturing through the North Atlantic at a speed of 30 knots.

Queen Mary 2 has five on-board swimming pools, sweeping staircase, a ballroom, a 360-degree promenade deck, and different specialty shops. It is built to revive the glamour of ocean liners, which business has almost sunk when jet travel started its prominence across the Atlantic route.

Cruise Ship of the Future

Recently, the Royal Caribbean International announced last February 6, 2006 that they will be releasing in the fall of 2009 the largest and the most expensive cruise ship in the world, which amounted to an estimated price of $1.24 billion. It is named Project Genesis, which can also hold up to 6,400 passengers.

It is estimated to have a gross register ton of about 220,000. A gross register ton that is the standard measurement of a ship’s size, is equivalent to 100 cubic feet. The $1.24 billion cost will cover all the expenses required for interior finishing of the ship.

Now, what can you expect more from these cruise ships?