As a luxury cruise brand, Cunard Line is always looking for ways to elevate its voyages to the next level. One of the ways the British-operated cruise line does this is by offering a limited number of special event sailings.
Cunard will offer seven unique, themed cruises onboard three of its four Queens – Queen Elizabeth, Queen Mary 2, and Queen Victoria – with the earliest sailing scheduled to embark from Sydney, Australia, on February 6, 2025, onboard Queen Elizabeth.
Queen Anne – which is the first new ship to join the fleet in more than a decade – will not be offering a special event cruise in 2025, perhaps because she will be busy sailing her 111-night Maiden World Voyage that is scheduled to embark from Hamburg, Germany, on January 7, 2025.
The special cruises each orient around a key theme meant to appeal to specific fans, and in 2025, will include a culinary voyage, a film festival at sea, a history-based sailing to celebrate Cunard’s 185th anniversary, and a cruise all about wine.
Looking at the arts, there will also be an Anthony Inglis and the National Symphony Orchestra cruise, another itinerary that celebrates the world of dance, and finally, a literature festival on the high seas.
The Carnival-owned cruise line also offered seven event voyages for 2024, which were quite positively received.
Although the year is just about half over, cruisers who don’t want to wait until 2025 can still book a special event cruise that will be operated by Queen Mary 2.
For example, the Anthony Inglis And The National Symphony Orchestra cruise will embark from New York on October 4, 2024 and the Literature Festival at Sea cruise is scheduled to begin in Southampton, UK, on November 13, 2024.
Special Event Voyages For 2025
Queen Elizabeth, which joined Cunard Line in 2010, will operate the first of seven specially themed voyages, which is entitled “Great Australian Culinary Voyage.” The round-trip sailing will embark from Sydney, Australia, on February 6, 2024, and will call on Hobart, Tasmania.
Throughout the voyage, guests aboard the 2,081-passenger ship will get the opportunity to learn from some of Australia’s most successful chefs, producers, and food critics. The Britannia and Grills restaurants will also feature a special three-course dinner offered for this sailing only.
Queen Victoria will offer one special event sailing of her own later in the year. Beginning on October 13, 2025, the 2,081-guest ship will operate the 11-night Voyage du Vin cruise out of Barcelona, Spain.
The 2007-launched ship will call on Palma De Mallorca, Spain; Cartagena, Spain; Cadiz, Spain ; Vigo, Spain; and La Coruna, Spain, before disembarking in Southampton, UK, on October 24.
The voyage, which is offered through a partnership with Corney & Barrow – one of the UK’s oldest independent wine merchants – will feature exclusive talks, tastings, and events with wine industry experts.
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The remaining five event cruises will all be offered onboard Queen Mary 2, which is currently the oldest ship operated by Cunard.
The 2,691-passenger vessel will kick off her special event cruises with a Film Festival at Sea, which is a 7-night Westbound Transatlantic crossing from Southampton, England, to New York City, New York.
Although this itinerary doesn’t include any port calls, guests will have plenty to do between attending screenings, talks with film industry icons, quizzes and trivia, and special Q&A sessions.
Between June 24, 2025 and September 3, 2025, the 148,528-gross ton ship will host the 185th Cunard Anniversary sailing, which will include talks from maritime historians and a commemorative dinner; the Dance the Atlantic cruise, which will feature performers from the English National Ballet; and the return of Anthony Inglis and the National Symphony Orchestra, who also will be joining Queen Mary 2 later in 2024 to immerse guests in classical music.
Queen Mary 2 will close out the year with a literature festival at sea, which is a 7-night Eastbound Transatlantic crossing from New York City, New York, to Southampton, UK.
Once again, no port calls will be included on this voyage. However, guests will be busy attending events curated by The Times, The Sunday Times, and the Cheltenham Literature Festival.
