FT. LAUDERDALE, FLA. -- A grand lady is patrolling the high seas and she deserves all of the respect that her regal name demands.

The Queen Mary 2 has been the subject of unprecedented media hype over the past three years, first as the world awaited her launch from a Southampton, England, shipyard in January 2004, and since as cruising enthusiasts have tracked her summer voyages across the Atlantic and throughout the Caribbean in the winter months.
 
When I stepped aboard QM 2 it quickly became evident that she is less a showpiece than a piece of history.

One passenger overheard passing through the ship’s Grand Lobby captured the feelings of those onboard—mine included-in just three words: “This is special.”

And it truly is.

At a height equivalent to a 23 story building and almost four football fields in length, she is the largest ocean-liner ever to cross the Atlantic and can carry approximately 3,090 passengers. Beyond sheer size, her launch was a signal to the cruise industry specifically, and the travel industry in general, that the day of the great, grand ocean-liner had returned.

The QM2's onboard nightclub G32. (Chris Atchison/ITD)

“First, there’s the historical aspect of day’s past and traveling in leisure.”

Gevanthor and Cunard have counted on names of old liners such as the Queen Elizabeth 2, and even that of the ill-fated Titanic, to romanticize the notion of sea travel.

“The other premium out there is time,” he points out. “The transatlantic process gives people the time to decompress.”

But Cunard’s key marketing strategy has been to remind people that air travel is not as commodious as in the past.

“The other thing we realized is that travel is not very comfortable anymore, Gevanthor adds. “You have to arrive at airports three hours early, and first-class isn’t what it used to be.

“We want people to think of this as a resort experience that connects two of the best cities in the world, New York and London.”
As with any first-class resort, this one offers an elite level of service. The onboard spa is operated by Arizona’s famous Canyon Ranch and boasts a space of approximately 20,000 soothing square feet. Standard cabins are combined with luxury duplex apartments, complete with butlers to provide a range of accommodation for all travelers.