Andrea Zelinski
The Titanic II is back, again.
Australian billionaire Clive Palmer has relaunched his bid to build a replica of the Titanic, the ocean liner that famously sunk in 1912 after hitting an iceberg.
The executive chairman of Blue Star Line, Palmer held a press conference last week to announce the project's revival. He said he was still nailing down construction contracts but expected building to begin in early 2025 and the ship to sail in 2027.
Its first sailing would leave Southampton and sail to New York, the same as the original ship's ill-fated journey.
The big difference between his ship and the original will be better technology and "a full complement of state-of-the-art lifeboats," Palmer said. The top deck would have a modern cruise ship feel, but the interior would retain the look, feel and configuration of the original, he said.
Palmer brought up the movie "Titanic" several times during his press conference, both pointing to its popularity as a box office hit and how the love story between the characters Rose and Jack resonated with viewers.
It still does today. I was on a sailing of the Sun Princess last week and enjoyed watching two karaoke hosts during a singing of "My Heart Will Go On" mimic one of the most iconic scenes where Jack and Rose are standing at the tip of the bow with their arms outstretched. Cruisers around me were loving it.
Palmer, pointing out the war and conflicts happening around the world today, said he hopes his ship can be a catalyst for love and friendship. That's the emotional appeal he's hoping will drive demand for a ship that plucks so many heartstrings.
But there are a lot of questions, including: Will this project actually get off the ground? And should it? Palmer has spent 11 years floating this idea, repitching it every few years.
Is there demand -- or desire -- to sail on a ship named after and modeled on the most well-known sunken ship in history? Should we let the past stay in the past?
However, interest in the Titanic continues to fuel demand for various travel experiences. The OceanGate submersible, which imploded last year, was selling for $250,000 a seat to explore the Titanic's wreckage. Others have organized commemorative Titanic cruises that visit the location where the ship sank.
When the movie came out in late 1997, the film was thought to have helped cruise bookings instead of hurting it. Looking back into Travel Weekly's archives, we reported that cruise lines reported "impressive sales" during that January, although officials were expecting strong bookings anyway.
Maybe perpetual talk about a Titanic II will spur additional demand for cruising, or just make for a fun topic to debate about around the bar of your next cruise.