Happy Birthday Queen Mary 2

Cunard’s most famous flag ship has just celebrated her 10^th birthday during a world cruise that included her second circumnavigation of Australia.

Crew members from every role on board ship gathered on deck for a memorable photograph, taken during stop-over in Sydney. These included the resident ships Ice carver and even the Kennel master

PHOTO: James Morgan

When built, the ship incorporated many design features that enabled it to provide the most stable and comfortable sailing experience for passengers, as it navigated some of the most notorious stretches of ocean around Cape Horn and Antarctica.

Some quirky facts...

Since she first set sail she has covered the same distance as travelling to the Moon and back three times! A total of 419 sailings including over 200 transatlantic voyages! During this time carrying 1.3 million passengers who have used 13.5 million tea bags.  If you didn’t already know the ship is quite long, having a length which is only 117 feet less than the height of the Empire State building. Also if you jog three times round the promenade deck you will have covered exactly one mile. A first at sea is the Planetarium which offers a variety of constellation shows… amazing!

To mark this memorable birthday, Cunard have plans for special events during two transatlantic crossings on the 9^th and 16^th of May 2014, there is still some availability but you will have to be quick!

Written by Rosie Taylor