New around-the-world cruises will mirror trips the historic Cunard Line did a century ago
Get your flapper dresses ready -- or you Jay Gatsby-esque pinstripe suits. Cruising, 1920s-style, is about to make a comeback.
In an announcement this week that will no doubt excite ocean liner history buffs, the storied Cunard Line said it would operate two around-the-world voyages in 2023 that will mirror its first world-circling trips of the 1920s.
Designed as a celebration of the UK-based brand's first two circumnavigations of the globe in 1923 -- which also were the first circumnavigation of the globe by any line -- the voyages will feature many of the same port calls that were on Cunard's first two around-the-world sailings.
Cunard's original around-the-world sailings took place on Cunard's RMS Laconia and RMS Samaria -- two grand ocean liners of the 1920s. Both of the vessels had just debuted in 1922.
For 2023, Cunard's 2,081-passenger Queen Victoria will visit many of the ports that RMS Laconia visited on its first-ever around-the-world cruise, including Hong Kong; New York; Singapore; Cabo San Lucas, Mexico; Colombo, Sri Lanka; San Francisco; Hilo and Honolulu in Hawaii; Manila; and Naples, Italy. Other destinations on the schedule include Aruba, Jordan, Tonga and a full transit of the Panama Canal.
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Dubbed a Centenary World Voyage, the 92-day Queen Victoria sailing will kick off in New York and end in Southampton, England.
For its part, Cunard's 2,695-passenger flagship Queen Mary 2 will emulate the first around-the-world sailing of the RMS Samaria with an even longer, 117-day roundtrip voyage out of New York that will include stops at Colombo, Singapore and Hong Kong -- places the RMS Samaria visited in 1923.
Also called a Centenary World Voyage, the sailing will feature overnight stops in Dubai, Sydney and Cape Town, South Africa, as the Queen Mary 2 travels from Europe to Asia, Australia and South Africa.
Fares for the Queen Victoria sailing start at $18,499 per person. Fares for the Queen Mary 2 voyage start at $21,499 per person.
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"Cunard pioneered the World Voyage, and a century later we're as passionate about these very special voyages as ever," Simon Palethorpe, the president of Cunard, said in a statement accompanying the announcement. "Our Centenary World Voyages in 2023 will provide a unique opportunity for guests to celebrate 100 years of visiting the four corners of the world in true Cunard luxury."
In addition to selling the Centenary World Voyages in their entirety, Cunard is selling smaller segments of the voyages that range from two to 40 nights in duration.
The line this week also announced that its third ship, Queen Elizabeth, would sail in Australia for part of 2023 with itineraries that include a complete, 28-night circumnavigation of the country. Fares for the trip start at $6,199 per person.
Queen Elizabeth also will offer voyages to New Zealand in 2023.
Cruisers who have sailed with Cunard in the past who book before May 24 can receive up to $1,200 per person discount off launch fares, the line said.
Cunard has long been known as a leader in around-the-world voyages and typically offers at least one every year.
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