Guest Author - Samantha Eyre-Herring

For the ultimate luxury cruise, the Queen Mary 2 (QM2) sits right at the top of the list. Holding 2,620 passengers, and 1,253 crew, the QM2 has a passenger to crew ratio of approximately 2 to 1. Making her debut in 2004, the QM2, which is the current flagship of the Cunard Line, is the largest cruise ship in the world, dwarfing her much older sister the Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2) which has been around since 1969.

The QM2 is currently the only ship that regularly makes the journey from New York to Southampton, taking 6 days on this transatlantic crossing, and being infinitely more enjoyable than sitting in a cramped aircraft.

The accommodations aboard the QM2 are quite spacious, the largest of which are two-story duplexes that include their own private butler. The more modest staterooms begin at around 155 square feet, and approximately 80% of them have ocean views.

In 2007, the QM2 will begin her maiden world voyage and will travel “around the world in 80 days” (actually it’s 81) and will visit 20 cities around the globe including Rio de Janeiro, Sydney and Dubai. Beginning at Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and ending in Southampton, U.K. the trip can be broken up into smaller cruises for those with less time or a smaller budget. This is the ultimate in world travel.

While at sea, the QM2 offers her passengers the opportunity to engage in a wide range of programs including acting classes provided by London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Passengers are also given the opportunity to take classes offered by Oxford University including literature, modern art, and astronomy. The full-scale planetarium onboard the QM2 is the first to be found at sea.

The QM2 caters to the more upscale passenger and obviously this type of cruise will cost far more than your average cruise. However, it is certainly something that any cruise lover will want to experience at least once.

Keep your ears open for information on another Cunard ship, the Queen Victoria, which will be smaller than the QM2 and scheduled to debut in 2007.