Cruise control is taken to new levels

WITH A magnificent fireworks display and the popping of hundreds of champagne corks, Freedom of the Seas, the world’s largest passenger ship, left Southampton on its inaugural cruise last week.

Its owners, Royal Caribbean, are not superstitious; in 1912, the Titanic began its maiden voyage at the same docks. Happily, on this occasion, no icebergs were encountered on the two-day celebratory trip to the Channel Islands. Everything, including the lavish on-board entertainment, went perfectly.

Freedom of the Seas is 339 metres long, the equivalent of 37 large buses placed end-to-end. It weighs 160,000 tonnes, compared to the Titanic’s 46,000. There are 3,500 kms of electric cable, 5,800 msq of window glass and 750,000 light bulbs. From the top deck, 14 stories up, the gannets flying off the bow seemed as small as pigeons. Visiting the bridge, I discovered that the ship has no wheel, just a little joystick no larger than those used for computer games. The navigational systems are incredibly sophisticated. According to Captain William Wright, the variation from its ideal position, as the great ship turned in Southampton Harbour, was never more than 60 centimetres. The liner can accommodate up to 4,375 passengers. The crew of 1,397 includes 64 nationalities. There are 140 cooks.