Want to be king of the world? The Titanic is set to sail once again.
Australian billionaire Clive Palmer has noodled for years with the idea of building Titanic II: a full replica of the doomed luxury liner that sank on its maiden voyage in 1912. Now he’s set a date for the successor’s first voyage.
“We are very pleased to announce that after unforeseen global delays, we have re-engaged with partners to bring the dream of Titanic II to life. Let the journey begin,” Palmer said in a statement. The ship is scheduled to set sail in June of 2027, although tickets are not yet available.
First, Blue Star Line, of which Palmer is CEO, has to build Titanic II.
That’s something the mining billionaire and politician has hoped to do for more than a decade. He first announced his plans to do so in 2012. Nothing happened. He made another announcement in 2017, but blamed the pandemic for scuttling those plans. Now, he says, construction will begin next year—and Blue Star is seeking proposals and construction plans from builders.
There will be some differences from the original, of course. Palmer has said he wants cutting-edge navigation equipment (the better to avoid those icebergs) and a lot more lifeboats than the Titanic featured in James Cameron’s film.
Otherwise, though, the plan is to make it as exact as possible, with grand staircases; 835 cabins over nine decks; and first, second, and third/steerage class cabins. Folks who opt for the budget option will be served stew and mash at communal tables, just as the original passengers were (though they can opt for other meal choices).
Palmer even says that depending on the weather, they’ll have delousing for third-class passengers, just as the original vessel did.
The ship will begin its voyage in Southampton, England, according to Blue Star Line’s website. From there, it will head to Cherbourg, France, before sailing to New York.
Palmer, who jokes that his wife has tried to talk him out of re-creating the Titanic, says he is funding the project himself and has already allocated “a couple of hundred million dollars” for the recreation, adding, ”and certainly there’s more available.”
“One of the problems we had with the Titanic is that you have to make it safe,” he told Rolling Stone. “You’ll remember, in the movie you had the guy in the crow’s nest saying “Iceberg!” That was because from the bridge, you couldn’t see over the bow. We can’t do that today. So we had to put a whole new deck in the Titanic. And it’s got a lot of the modern conveniences that you want. We’re going to make sure that in every room there’ll be a little panel that will tell you the history of the person who occupied your cabin. Did they survive, did they prevail? Everyone will get a costume so that they can come up to dinner, and it will be a real experience for them.”
By funding the construction of Titanic II, Palmer is also able to put his own stamp on the cruise line. Passengers, he says, will not be required to be vaccinated for COVID, and the ship, he says, will reflect traditional values instead of ‘woke’ ones.
“Titanic ll is something that can provide peace,” he said in the press release. “It can be a ship of peace between all countries of the world. Millions have dreamt of sailing on her, seeing her in port and experiencing her unique majesty. Titanic ll will be the ship where those dreams come true.”