Repositioning Cruise Day 15 – April 22 – Southampton

Ship’s Position (Southampton Docks)

50°53′34″ N 1°23′55″ W

Total Distance Traveled: 5,022 Nautical Miles

The ship docked in Southampton at 5:00am local time. All that is left to do is to disembark & take the bus to Heathrow Airport.

Prior to leaving on this trip I learned one night on the news that 2017 is projected to be a record year for icebergs off the coast of Newfoundland. I didn’t think much of that other than perhaps I might get lucky & spot a few icebergs (from a very safe distance) on this repositioning cruise.

Well, we did not encounter any icebergs (at least not that I know of!) but I was somewhat surprised to learn (after we had left Fort Lauderdale) that this year is also the 105th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic (April 14/15, 1912). Was I tempting fate by taking this trip across the ocean on this infamous anniversary? I tried to keep that thought out of my mind – at least until we reached Southampton!

On April 14 this year (the calendar day that the Titanic struck the iceberg) the Crown Princess was at sea and approaching the Azores Islands for arrival the next day – so, technically, we were not that far from the resting place of the Titanic

Here are some interesting comparison statistics between the Crown Princess & the Titanic:

Crown Princess

Item Crown Princess Titanic
Length 951 feet 882 feet
Width 118 feet 92 feet
Tonnage 113,000 46,000
Speed 21.5 knots 23 knots
Passengers* 4,281 3,542

* passengers and crew

Titanic

Almost time to get off the ship. I’m really looking forward to meeting up with Catherine & starting the next phase of our adventure.

Cheers!