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Steam ships such as The Great Western were developed in the industrial revolution and mainly transported mail and cargo. They'd also transport migrants one way between Europe and North America
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Cunard operate the worlds first scheduled UK-USA service
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The first ship to be made with iron and with a propeller, rather than a paddle. This made is a lot faster than previous ships
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P&O advertise their frist cruise to Gibraltar, Malta and Athens
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To make ships visible at night and during poor weather a signal lights system was introduced. White lights on mast, Green on Starboard and red on port side
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Servia sets sail- The first steel ship which meant it was lighter and faster it also had electrical lighting and en suite bathrooms
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Ships started to become more luxurious and cater for the super wealthy- Cruises were becoming a status symbol
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Prior to 1901 ships couldn't communicate at sea only via telegrams over wires at land. They can now send out distress signals and warn of icebergs
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The "unsinkable" titanic sinks on its maiden voyage. Titanic didn't have enough lifeboats to save everybody on board
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As package holidays grew cruise operators had to adapt to be able to compete with cheap holidays to Greece and Spain. Modern ships started to be introduced which could carry more passengers which bought the cost of cruising down to affordable levels which could appeal to the mass market- The industry started to see a rise in companies and ships and 40 new ships were launched in the 1980's
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The QE2 was the first ship to have private facilities in every cabin
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Thomson cruises were launched in 1995 and were rebranded by TUI as Marella Cruises in 2017
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P&O Princess merged with Carnival cruises- Together they form the worlds largest integrated cruise company
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Ocean Village is launched, a cheap cruise line aimed at people who didn't like cruising. Ocean Villages' cruises were "dressed down" and very informal, people didn't have to dress up for meals and could drink and have fun. They operated from Southampton as well to appeal to people who couldn't drive or did not want to fly. Ocean village pioneered low cost cruises which everyone else in turn followed
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The Queen Mary 2 is one of the largest luxury ocean liners ever built by Cunard. Its based in Southampton and travels to New York, It measures 345m in length and has a tonnage of 149,215 tonnes; It has 14 decks which can accommodate 2600 guests. Onboard there are amenities such as fine dining, broadway style shows and live music aswell as a spa, gym and pools to appeal to travellers who want a high end, comfortable cruise experience
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Oasis class ships can hold over 4000 passengers. These ships have made cruising into something everyone can do
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Cruises start to be marketed as the perfect trip for multi generational families as onboard there is something for grandparents, parents and children to do. In 2013 Norwegian cruise lines said between 15-20% of their guests are part of a multi generational group and Carnival state that more than half of their bookings involve more than one stateroom
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Launched in 2014 and rebranded to Virgin Voyages in 2016 part of the vertically integrated Virgin Group which has an airline, tour operator and retailer
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Named after a Norwegian explorer, the ships weighs 20,890 tons and has 11 decks which can carry 530 passengers. It uses a Hybrid engine which uses battery power in addition to the traditional fuels to cut down on pollution and make it more environmentally friendly compared to other ships. It mainly travels to the Arctic and Antarctic and other polar regions
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Cruise demand stayed high throughout the cost of living crisis but cruise companies have to make adjustments to keep bookings high, for example more cruises from Southampton which keep costs low since flights aren't involved and flexible payment plans
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Following people being unable to travel demand for cruises went through the roof as people rushed to tick off bucket list items. Cruise companies were forced to release next years itineraries earlier in the year to cope with the demand, P&O Sold out a 40 day cruise within six hours