Passenger ship
A passenger ship is a ship whose primary function is to carry passengers.
An ocean liner is the traditional form of passenger ship, apart from smaller craft used for coastal voyages and as ferries. In the latter part of the 20th century ocean liners gave way to cruise ships as the predominant form of large passenger ship.
Although some ships have characteristics of both types, the design priorities of the two forms are different: ocean liners value speed and traditional luxury while cruise ships value amenities (swimming pools, theaters, ball rooms, casinos, sports facilities, etc.) rather than speed. These priorities produce different designs. In addition, ocean liners typically were built to cross the Atlantic Ocean between Europe and the United States or travel even further to South America or Asia while cruise ships typically serve shorter routes with more stops along coastlines or among various islands.
For a long time cruise ships were never as large as the old ocean liners had been, but in the 1980s this changed when Knut Kloster, the director of Norwegian Caribbean Lines, bought one of the biggest surviving liners, the France, and transformed her into a huge cruise ship, which he named the Norway. After the success of the Norway, several new cruise ships in succession became the largest passenger ships ever built, superseding the record held by the Cunard liner Queen Elizabeth.
The Queen Mary 2, which entered service in 2004, is of hybrid construction. She is marketed as an ocean liner as she is to enter the transatlantic market but her design is more like a cruise ship than any previous liner aimed at that market. She supersedes the Explorer of the Seas of the Royal Caribbean line as the largest passenger ship ever built and will be superseded by Royal Caribbean's next Freedom of the Seas.
List of largest passenger ships of their time
| Year | Name | Gross tonnage | Company | Flag |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1819 | SS Savannah | 320 BRT | Savannah Steamship Company | USA |
| 1831 | SS Royal William | 540 BRT | St. John & Halifax Steam Navigation Company | CDN |
| 1838 | SS Great Western | 1340 BRT | Great Western Steamship Company | UK |
| 1839 | SS British Queen | 1862 BRT | British & American Steam Navigation Company | UK |
| 1840 | SS President | 2366 BRT | British & American Steam Navigation Company | UK |
| 1845 | SS Great Britain | 3270 BRT | Great Western Steamship Company | UK |
| 1853 | SS Himalaya | 3438 BRT | P & O Steam Navigation Company Ltd. | UK |
| 1853 | SS Atrato | 3466 BRT | Royal Mail Line Ltd. | UK |
| 1857 | SS Adreatic | 4145 BRT | New York & Liverpool United States Mail S.S. Co. (Collins) | USA |
| 1860 | SS Great Eastern | 18915 BRT | Eastern Steam Navigation Company | UK |
| 1867 | RMS Great Republic | 4352 BRT | Pacific Mail Steamship Company Inc. | USA |
| 1871 | RMS Egypt | 4670 BRT | National Line Ltd. | UK |
| 1873 | RMS City of Chester | 4770 BRT | Inman Line Ltd. | UK |
| 1874 | RMS Britannic | 5008 BRT | White Star Line Ltd. | UK |
| 1875 | SS City of Berlin | 5526 BRT | Inman Line Ltd. | UK |
| 1881 | SS Servia | 7391 BRT | Cunard Line | UK |
| 1881 | SS City of Rome | 8415 BRT | Inman Line | UK |
| 1888 | SS City of New York | 10499 BRT | Inman Line | UK |
| 1893 | RMS Campania | 12950 BRT | Cunard Line | UK |
| 1893 | RMS Lucania | 12952 BRT | Cunard Line | UK |
| 1897 | SS Pennsylvania | 13023 BRT | Hapag | D |
| 1897 | Kaisr Wilhelm der Große | 14349 BRT | Norddeutscher Lloyd | D |
| 1899 | RMS Oceanic | 17274 BRT | White Star Line Ltd. | UK |
| 1901 | RMS Celtic | 21035 BRT | White Star Line Ltd. | UK |
| 1905 | SS Amerika | 22225 BRT | Hapag | D |
| 1905 | RMS Baltic | 23876 BRT | White Star Line Ltd. | UK |
| 1906 | Kaiserin Auguste Victoria | 24581 BRT | Hapag | D |
| 1907 | RMS Lusitania | 31550 BRT | Cunard Line Ltd. | UK |
| 1907 | RMS Mauretania | 31938 BRT | Cunard Line Ltd. | UK |
| 1911 | RMS Olympic | 45234 BRT | White Star Line Ltd. | UK |
| 1912 | RMS Titanic | 46329 BRT | White Star Line Ltd. | UK |
| 1913 | Imperator | 52117 BRT | Hapag | D |
| 1914 | Vaterland | 54282 BRT | Hapag | D |
| 1922 | RMS Majestic (ex Bismarck) | 56551 BRT | White Star Line Ltd. | UK |
| 1923 | Leviathan (ex Vaterland) | 59956 BRT | United States Lines Inc. | USA |
| 1935 | SS Normandie | 79280 BRT | Compagnie Générale Transatlantique S.A. | F |
| 1936 | RMS Queen Mary | 80774 BRT | Cunard-White Star Ltd. | UK |
| 1936 | SS Normandie (after reconstruction) | 83423 BRT | Compagnie Générale Transatlantique S.A. | F |
| 1940 | RMS Queen Elizabeth | 83673 BRT | Cunard-White Star Ltd. | UK |
| 1996 | Carnival Destiny | 101509 BRZ | Carnival Cruise Line Inc. | USA |
| 1997 | Grand Princess | 108865 BRZ | P & O Princess Cruises Ltd. | UK/USA |
| 1999 | Voyager of the Seas | 137276 BRZ | Royal Caribbean International | N/USA |
| 2000 | Explorer of the Seas | 137308 BRZ | Royal Caribbean International | N/USA |
| 2004 | RMS Queen Mary 2 | 148528 BRZ | Cunard Line Ltd. | UK |
| 2006 | Freedom of the Seas | 158000 BRZ | Royal Caribbean International | N/USA |
Note that the Great Eastern of 1867 has not been superseeded in size till about 1901, but has been converted to a cable laying ship after only a few voyages as passenger ships.
References
- Durand, Jean-François. Autour du Monde Paquebots. Cruise ships around the world. Editions marines, 1996. [bilingual text]
- Marin, Pierre-Henri. Les paquebots, ambassadeurs des mers. Paris: Gallimard, 1989.