20/02/2019 10:14 AM
Queen Elizabeth sails into Sydney
Sydney Harbour rolls out the red carpet for the first visit of the Queen Elizabeth cruise this season.
Sydney welcomed a royal arrival today (20 February) as the prestigious Queen Elizabeth cruise ship sailed into the harbour to the Overseas Passenger Terminal at Circular Quay.
This royal visit is the first ship of the historic British–American cruise line Cunard Line to visit Sydney this current cruise season. The art-deco inspired ship, with its famous blue hull, brought over 2000 passengers to Sydney following a 38-day voyage from its home port of Southampton, UK.
Image: The Queen Elizabeth made her first 2019 call to Sydney on 20 February
Arriving in Freemantle, Perth, the 294 metre-long Queen Elizabeth has made calls to Adelaide, Kangaroo Island, Melbourne, and Hobart before its arrival in Sydney. The ship will now head to New Zealand before returning to Australia in March.
Following a naming ceremony by Queen Elizabeth II, the Queen Elizabeth took her maiden voyage from Southampton on 12 October 2010 and is one of three cruise ships currently operated by Cunard Line.
Founded by ship owner Samuel Cunard and famed marine engineer Robert Napier in 1839, Cunard Line began life as the British and North American Royal Mail Steam Packet Company.
Image: The Queen Elizabeth at Sydney's Overseas Passenger Terminal
Once the largest Atlantic passenger line between Great Britain and the US and Canada, Cunard began its focus on the luxury cruise market following a decline in demand for transatlantic passenger ships due to the rise of airliners.
Today, Cunard’s three ships, the Queen Mary 2, the Queen Victoria and the Queen Elizabeth, are renowned the world over.
The Queen Victoria is scheduled to call into Sydney on the 28 February
See the full Sydney cruise schedule
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