QUEEN MARY 2
July 15, 2004 | Northern Europe Cruise – Day 5: Hellesylt and Geiranger, Norway
On Day 5 of our July 2004 Northern Europe cruise, Queen Mary 2 (Cunard Line) made her first visit to Norway, calling at Hellesylt before continuing through Geirangerfjord to Geiranger on July 15. The inaugural-year visit placed the new ocean liner among the steep mountains and waterfalls of the Norwegian fjords, where Marco Polo (Orient Lines) was also anchored at Geiranger.
Queen Mary 2 entered the Norwegian fjords on July 15, 2004, marking Day 5 of our Northern Europe cruise aboard Cunard's new flagship. The day was particularly significant because it marked the ocean liner's first visit to Norway. After reaching Hellesylt in the morning, Queen Mary 2 continued through the dramatic fjord landscape to Geiranger, where she anchored surrounded by steep mountains and waterfalls. Marco Polo of Orient Lines was also at Geiranger, bringing together two very different generations of passenger ship during the inaugural year of Queen Mary 2. This gallery forms part of the Ocean Liner Photography record of our July 2004 voyage aboard the new Cunard liner.
Information List
Name: Queen Mary 2
Operator: Cunard Line
Builder: Chantiers de l'Atlantique, Saint-Nazaire, France
Yard Number: G32
Keel Laid: July 4, 2002
Launched: March 21, 2003
Delivered: December 26, 2003
Named: January 8, 2004
Godmother: Queen Elizabeth II
Maiden Voyage: January 12, 2004
Ship Type: Ocean liner
Length: Approximately 1,132 feet / 345 meters
Beam: Approximately 131 feet / 40 meters at the waterline
Draft: Approximately 34 feet / 10.3 meters
Gross Tonnage: Approximately 148,500 GT when delivered
Passenger Capacity: Approximately 2,620 passengers at double occupancy
Crew: Approximately 1,250
Service Speed: Approximately 28 knots
Maximum Speed: Approximately 30 knots
Original Registry: Southampton, United Kingdom
IMO: 9241061
Voyage: July 2004 Northern Europe Cruise
Cruise Day: Day 5
Visit Shown: July 15, 2004
Locations: Hellesylt and Geiranger, Norway
Waterway: Geirangerfjord
Milestone: First visit to Norway
Other Ship: Marco Polo (Orient Lines)
Personal Voyage: Traveled aboard Queen Mary 2
History and Features
Queen Mary 2 in Her Inaugural Year:
Queen Mary 2 entered Cunard service in January 2004, making the July Norwegian visit part of her inaugural season.
Built by Chantiers de l'Atlantique in Saint-Nazaire, France, she was designed specifically to continue Cunard's transatlantic ocean-liner service.
At completion, Queen Mary 2 was the largest passenger ship ever built and the largest ocean liner in history.
During 2004, her early cruises introduced the new flagship to destinations throughout Europe.
Her arrival in Norway on July 15 was one of the significant first-time visits made during this Northern Europe voyage.
Our 2004 Northern Europe Cruise:
We embarked aboard Queen Mary 2 at Southampton on July 11, 2004, beginning our 11-day Northern Europe cruise during the ship's inaugural year.
Day 2 was spent at sea as the ship sailed north from Southampton.
Day 3 brought Queen Mary 2 to South Queensferry and Edinburgh, Scotland.
Following the Scottish call, the voyage continued north toward Norway.
On Day 5, July 15, Queen Mary 2 reached Norway for the first time, visiting Hellesylt and Geiranger.
The Norwegian portion of the voyage continued with Ålesund and Bergen before the cruise later visited Germany and the Netherlands.
This gallery is part of the larger Ocean Liner Photography record of that July 2004 voyage.
Day 5 – First Arrival in Norway:
On the morning of July 15, Queen Mary 2 reached Hellesylt at approximately 8:00 a.m.
Contemporary Norwegian reporting described rainy, misty conditions during the ship's arrival at Hellesylt.
Later that day, Queen Mary 2 continued to Geiranger, marking her first day operating in Norwegian waters.
Thousands of spectators gathered in Geiranger to see the new Cunard flagship.
The ship was greeted with a three-salute welcome and responded with three blasts from her whistle.
Contemporary reports emphasized the exceptional scale of the new liner within the confined fjord landscape.
Hellesylt:
Hellesylt lies at the head of Sunnylvsfjorden in western Norway and serves as a gateway to the surrounding fjord region.
The community is closely associated with cruise itineraries visiting Geirangerfjord.
Queen Mary 2's morning visit on July 15 marked the beginning of her first day in Norwegian waters.
Contemporary accounts record the ship arriving at Hellesylt at approximately 8:00 in rainy and misty weather.
From Hellesylt, the voyage continued deeper into the fjord region toward Geiranger.
Geirangerfjord:
Geirangerfjord is one of Norway's most recognizable fjord landscapes, characterized by steep mountains, narrow waterways and waterfalls descending from the surrounding cliffs.
The approximately 1,132-foot Queen Mary 2 created a dramatic contrast with the scale of the surrounding landscape.
Her deep-draft ocean-liner design made the Norwegian fjords a very different environment from the open North Atlantic for which she had primarily been designed.
The July 2004 visit occurred before the West Norwegian Fjords, including Geirangerfjord, were added to UNESCO's World Heritage List in 2005.
The fjord would become a recurring destination for major passenger ships during the following decades.
Arrival at Geiranger:
Weather conditions improved as Queen Mary 2 approached Geiranger later on July 15.
Thousands of people gathered along the shore to see the world's newest major passenger liner.
Contemporary reporting recorded three salutes greeting the ship upon arrival.
Queen Mary 2 responded with three blasts from her powerful whistle.
The event demonstrated the considerable public attention surrounding the ship during her first year of service.
Seven Sisters and the Suitor:
Among Geirangerfjord's best-known natural features are the Seven Sisters waterfalls.
Across the fjord is another waterfall traditionally known as the Suitor.
These waterfalls descend from the steep mountainsides directly toward the fjord.
Their location along the route to Geiranger created some of the most distinctive scenery experienced during our Northern Europe cruise.
The waterfalls and towering cliffs provided a dramatic setting for viewing and photographing Queen Mary 2 during her inaugural season.
Queen Mary 2 and Marco Polo:
Marco Polo of Orient Lines was also anchored at Geiranger during our July 15 visit.
The two ships represented very different periods of passenger-ship design.
Marco Polo had originally entered service in 1965 as the Soviet passenger liner Aleksandr Pushkin.
By 2004 she was operating as a cruise ship for Orient Lines.
Seeing the much smaller and older Marco Polo alongside the newly introduced Queen Mary 2 created an unusual comparison between two generations of ocean-going passenger ships.
Our photographs document both ships together within Geirangerfjord.
Designed for the North Atlantic:
Although the Norwegian fjords provided a spectacular setting, Queen Mary 2 was fundamentally designed as a transatlantic ocean liner.
Her high freeboard, long bow, deep draft and reinforced structure were developed for repeated operation in North Atlantic conditions.
Her lifeboats were positioned unusually high above the water to provide additional protection from heavy seas.
Integrated electric propulsion driving four podded propulsors gave the ship the speed required for scheduled liner service.
Seeing these ocean-liner proportions surrounded by the steep walls of Geirangerfjord emphasized the scale of the new Cunard flagship.
Continuing to Ålesund:
After the visit to Geiranger on July 15, Queen Mary 2 departed the fjord and continued toward Ålesund.
Contemporary Norwegian reporting stated that the ship would sail to Ålesund that evening and remain there the following day.
After the visit to Geiranger on July 15, Queen Mary 2 departed the fjord and continued toward Ålesund.
Continuing Through Norway:
After Ålesund, Queen Mary 2 continued to Bergen.
Contemporary reports scheduled the Bergen visit for Saturday, July 17.
The liner's arrival there generated considerable public interest, including spectators along the waterfront and around the Askøy Bridge.
Queen Mary 2 passed beneath the bridge with only a small amount of clearance before docking at Jekteviken.
These successive calls introduced Cunard's new flagship to several of Norway's best-known maritime destinations.
Ocean Liner Photography Voyage Series:
This gallery forms part of the Ocean Liner Photography record of our July 2004 Northern Europe cruise aboard Queen Mary 2.
The master voyage page documents the cruise as a whole.
The South Queensferry / Edinburgh gallery documents Day 3.
This Hellesylt and Geiranger gallery documents Day 5 and the ship's first visit to Norway.
The following Norwegian galleries will continue the verified cruise-day chronology through Ålesund and Bergen.
Connecting the individual galleries through the cruise-day sequence creates a more complete record of traveling aboard Queen Mary 2 during her inaugural season.
Legacy:
July 15, 2004 marked Queen Mary 2's first visit to Norway and placed the new Cunard flagship in one of Europe's most dramatic maritime landscapes.
The visits to Hellesylt and Geiranger occurred only six months after the ship entered passenger service.
The presence of Marco Polo at Geiranger added another layer of passenger-ship history to the day.
For Ocean Liner Photography, Day 5 preserves both a significant inaugural-year milestone for Queen Mary 2 and one of the most memorable settings of our 2004 Northern Europe cruise.
The photographs now form part of a connected day-by-day record of our voyage aboard Cunard's new flagship.
OLP Social: Day 5 of our Northern Europe cruise marked the new liner’s first visit to Norway. At Geiranger, the much older Marco Polo shared the anchorage beneath the fjord’s steep mountains and waterfalls.
