UK Cruise Line Cunard recorded the busiest booking day in ten years. The company underscores the pent-up demand for cruising that has seen cruise companies worldwide record numbers in the last months.
The bookings coincided with the release of the maiden season for its newest cruise ship, Queen Anne. That ship won’t be sailing until early 2024 but is already a popular addition to Cunard, which currently has three vessels operating, Queen Mary 2, Queen Elizabeth, and Queen Victoria.
Maiden Season For Queen Anne Boosts Cunard Bookings
Cunard recorded the busiest day in the last ten years during the opening day for its newest cruise ship, Queen Anne.
The maiden voyage for the first new ship in the Cunard fleet since Queen Elizabeth in 2010 sold out on the first day. The cruise will sail from Southampton on January 4, 2024, with demand for the Princess & Queens Grill Suites incredibly high for the first ten voyages on sale.
“Since we began to unveil details of our fourth ship, the reaction to Queen Anne from guests and travel advisors alike has been phenomenal,” said Matt Gleaves, VP, Commercial, North America and Australasia, for Cunard. “The first day of sales shows the incredible strength of demand for our new ship and the Cunard brand is at record levels.”
Cunard has seen hectic booking periods, with the busiest three in the last decade occurring since March 2021. These were fueled by the UK sailings as the brand returned to service, the launch of the summer 2023 program, and now the launch of Queen Anne’s maiden program.
The ten voyages on sale include the 7-night maiden voyage to Lisbon, with an overnight in the iconic Portuguese capital. A 35-night roundtrip Caribbean cruise from Southampton sails on January 27, visiting Fort Lauderdale, Barbados, St Lucia, St Maarten, and St Thomas USVI, returning to the UK on March 2.
From March, the ship will be sailing roundtrip cruises to various destinations, including Norway for the Northern Lights, the Mediterranean, and the Canary Islands. All voyages sail roundtrip from Southampton.
The Fourth Cunard Cruise Ship
Queen Anne will be entering service in 2024. Based on the Pinnacle-class of ships sailing for Holland America Line, the vessel shares many of the same features as seen on MS Koningsdam. Queen Anne is the 249th ship sailing for the Iconic cruise line.
With space for 3,000 passengers and a gross tonnage of 113,000, Queen Anne will be the second biggest ship in the Cunard fleet, just behind the world-famous Queen Mary 2. The building is underway at Fincantieri’s Castellammare di Stabia shipyard.
Master for the newest member in the Cunard fleet will be Captain Inger Klein Thorhauge. A native of the Faroe Islands, her first tour onboard cruise ships was with Cunard’s MS Vistafjord as the second officer.
Captain Inger Klein Thorhauge: “Working for Cunard is something that I started 25 years ago, and in all those years I have been extremely proud of working for the brand and it will never change, that feeling. When I discuss Queen Anne with Cunard crew it is so clear how excited and proud they are too, to welcome a new ship to the fleet,”
Thorhauge also worked with Seabourn, Princess Cruises, and P&O Cruises. She rejoined Cunard in 2010 onboard Queen Victoria when she became the first female Captain for Cunard.
