£473 million cruise ship Britannia sets out on British cruise

The P&O ship Britannia, launched in March 2015 and constructed at a cost of £473 million, arrived as part of a day trip to Newhaven on its maiden British Isles Cruise.

The visit has been billed as ‘Britannia meets Britannia’, with the cruise liner berthed close to the home of the Royal Yacht Britannia.

Britannia’s itinerary from today onwards: 8 July – Newhaven, 9 July – Invergordon, 10 July – Kirkwall, 11 July – cruise by Cape Wrath, 12 July – Greenock, 13 July – Liverpool, 14 July – Dublin, 15 July – Cobh, 16 July – cruise by South Cornwall, 17 July – St Peter Port, 18 July - Southampton.

The facts: Britannia rules the waves

P&O’s Britannia is the largest ship built exclusively for Britain and has a top speed of 22 knots (over 25mph).

Over 3,400 passengers booked on the maiden cruise after The Queen christened Britannia at Southampton’s Ocean Terminal in March 2015.

Britannia displays upon her bow the longest version of the Union Flag anywhere in the world at 308 feet.

Britannia’s four engines generate 62.4 Megawatts or 84,000 horsepower which is equivalent to the power generated by 168 supercars Britannia’s power is equivalent to that of a city of 70,000 inhabitants.

Britannia is 1,082 feet long – longer than both The Shard and Eiffel Tower - weighing 141,000 tons with 15 decks and 1,837 cabins.

Britannia has 4,000km of electrical cables, the distance from Venice to Southampton and back.

Britannia can carry 5,000 people: 3,647 passengers and 1,350 staff, and has 13 restaurants, 13 bars and reportedly £1million worth of art on board.

Britannia has a three-deck high atrium with illuminating Star Burst sculpture and also has the largest British spa at sea, a theatre with LED wall, four pools, gym and a multi-million pound art collection including a specially commissioned representation of the “Spirit of Modern Britain” from artist Johnny Bull.

‘Britannia’s Food Heroes’ offers gastronomic experiences by James Martin, Eric Lanlard, Atul Kochhar, Olly Smith, Marco Pierre White and Charlie Turnbull.

In the new Cookery Club, celebrity chefs and experts demonstrate their skills, joined throughout the year by other famous chefs including Mary Berry, Pierre Koffmann, Paul Rankin and Commendatore Antonio Carluccio.

The ‘Great British Beer Menu’ in Brodie’s features 70 different bottled beers, ales and ciders from 56 UK counties, the largest range of British beer available at sea.

On a seven-night Norwegian fjords cruise in April, the rate for a single balcony cabin was £1,649 per person, compared with £769 per person (twin-share).