“World’s Largest Liner”, for two centuries, this title has often been on the front page. How not to think about the cover deployed around the liner Normandy, the French flagship, at the time of her commissioning between Le Havre and New York in May 1935. The disproportion of the ship was already underlined. A symbol of technical power and superb aesthetics, the liner Normandy It was a matter of liberation and pride for France at that time. Through him, France had a valuable tool. Able to build bridges across banks, unite minds and spread a piece of the French dream.
Almost a century later, the tone has decidedly changed. At the beginning of 2024, entry on the track of Sign-of-the-Seas, Royal Caribbean’s latest addition, made the front pages of news sites, newspapers and television. In fact, it has been a long time since the commissioning of a ship received this kind of coverage. It is that excessSign-of-the-Seas Enough to provoke Landerneau, as it raises questions and incites a certain amount of resentment. Interesting and reasonable, for the most part.
But there is also the risk of anathema to two complementary and important economic sectors: the tourism and cruise sector on the one hand, and the large tonnage naval industry on the other. Since the 1960s, which long marked the triumph of airliners, the liners of the past have given way to cruise ships.
However, this tourism model is not new. In the early 20’sE In the century, large transatlantic liners were repurposed for winter sailing, an invention part of the unique spirit of the voyage of discovery. Eighty-five years ago, under the triumphant sun of Rio, The Normandy On the occasion of the carnival, he was going out for a prestigious trip. In itself, cruising is an art of living in its own right. Relaxing in an enclosed space where mystery is created. Building a small travel company. Opening foreign locations. Provokes the possibility of exchange. Establishing links between what was and what will be.
Unfortunately, the aesthetic unity of ships, the exploration of distant lands and the art of taking your time are less and less associated with the contemporary cruise model. This tends towards massification and standardisation, with increasingly disjointed boats aimed at increasing short-term cabotage in already saturated and often vandalized tourist areas. Sign-of-the-Seas Becomes its symbolic flagship.
It is no coincidence that journalists have taken little interest in its programs, preferring to comment on features that confuse it with an amusement park: its brightly colored slides, its shops full of global gadgets, its numerous restaurants where we cook certified products.
The opening, increasingly, the Golden Ball was presided over by Lionel Messi and gave the impression of attending a show in a concert hall in Las Vegas. Not at the time of commissioning of the ship, reportedly the largest in the world. This destabilizes public opinion and exposes this model for what it is, which is to say totally anachronistic.
Royal Caribbean has arguably managed the world’s greatest anachronism. But we should not blame the entire sector and confuse it with this kind of proposal. There are companies with qualitative models, particularly in the United Kingdom and France, which offer respectable tour circuits with human-sized ships. It is up to them to continue to innovate the world of cruising. A renovation that will also involve more restraint.
The port of Sant-Nazaire remains at the forefront of this battle and The companies present have developed revolutionary marine principles and avant-garde technologies. This is particularly the case for SolidCell, which Chantiers de l’Atlantique has been developing for several years. This technology proposes the use of sails ensuring sail propulsion of new generation ships. The first images leave lovers of the beautiful Hull dreaming. Here is a display of French knowledge and a treasure trove of technical creativity and refined aesthetic expression.
At a time when globalization is crossing zones of unrest and questioning the direction of currents, we will be allowed to dream of the return of maritime transport lines, less polluting, rebalanced airways. The Sign-of-the-Seas
It is certainly the world’s greatest anachronism, but it does not tarnish the marine world, which holds a significant part of the solutions that will create the marine world of tomorrow.Adrian MotelHistorian and author of the book “Normandy, a French Dream” (Place des Victoires, 2022), winner of the Marine Academy Prize.
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