Cunard's 3 Queen ships - Queen Victoria, QM2, QE2 meet in NYC

The three Cunard Queen ships _ the Queen Mary 2, Queen Elizabeth 2 and the new Queen Victoria _ were expected to meet in the waters off Lower Manhattan Sunday night, with the Statue of Liberty as a backdrop, and fireworks marking the once-in-a-lifetime event.

The fireworks show, illuminating the rendezvous of the three grand ships twinkling in the winter darkness of New York Harbor, was scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

This is the only time the three Queen ships will ever meet. The QE2 will be decommissioned in the fall and turned into a floating five-star hotel in the United Arab Emirates.

The Queen Victoria and the QE2 left England and crossed the Atlantic in tandem for Sunday's event. The ships were scheduled to arrive Sunday morning at Manhattan's West Side pier before heading down the Hudson River to meet the QM2, which homeports in Brooklyn.

The Queen Victoria, Cunard's newest ship, was christened Dec. 10 in Southampton, England, by Camilla Parker Bowles, the Duchess of Cornwall and wife of Prince Charles.

The QE2, one of the world's most famous ships, is the longest-serving vessel in the 168-year history of the Cunard line. Since launching in 1967, it has traveled more than 5 million nautical miles, including 25 trips around the world and more than 800 trans-Atlantic crossings with 2.5 million passengers. The ship was sold for $100 million to Dubai World, an investment company that manages a portfolio of businesses and projects for the Dubai government.

All three Queen ships feature Cunard's trademark red-and-black smokestack and the iconic Queens Room ballrooms, but there are important differences among the vessels.

Carolyn Spencer Brown, editor of CruiseCritic.com, said the Queen Victoria is "more gorgeous than either of its sisters, possessing in some ways the best of QE2 and QM2."

Douglas Ward, author of the "Berlitz Complete Guide to Cruising and Cruise Ships 2008," says Victoria's "standard cabins are small and minimalist in decor in comparison with her two sister ships" but adds that the vessel does "provide passengers with a taste of the past, while being technologically and environmentally right up to date."

Queen Victoria's facilities include grand public spaces like a 6,000-volume, two-deck-high library, a light-filled spa, casino, and a show lounge that Ward compared to a London West End theater.

In contrast, the "QE2 represents a previous era, in style and substance, of ocean liners and it's an era that so many of today's younger, newer-to-cruising travelers will never see," said Spencer Brown. "It's an utterly unique experience with a dedicated 'class system' onboard - four classes of passengers who dine in four different restaurants that reflect the fares they pay. The emphasis on sea days, with erudite lectures and elegant meals, including afternoon tea that's the best in cruising ... will probably not be mimicked so beautifully in my lifetime."

The 151,000-ton QM2, which began sailing in 2004, is by far the largest of the three, carrying 2,592 passengers in 1,296 staterooms, plus 1,253 crew members.

The 90,000-ton Queen Victoria, which will homeport in Southampton, carries 2,014 passengers in 990 staterooms plus 1,001 crew members.

The 70,000-ton QE2 carries 1,792 passengers in 1,002 staterooms, plus 921 crew members.

Cunard Line, a unit of Miami-based Carnival Corp., is building a new Queen Elizabeth at Italy's Fincantieri shipyard - which built the Queen Victoria - with delivery in 2010. The new vessel will be Cunard's second-largest after the QM2, and it will allow Cunard to keep three Queens in service after the QE2 retires.

Source:RamblerNews