Last Updated on June 22, 2020 by Amanda Stancati
It’s finally happening. I’ve been wondering how long it would take for one crazy billionaire to decide it’s time to rebuild Titanic. I thought it might have been Trump or Branson, but it turns out it’s going to be Australian mining billionaire Clive Palmer who plans to build a 21st-century replica of the infamous unsinkable ship.
Tired of the same old golf courses, mining projects and hotels, Palmer had to dig deeper to continue satisfying his urge to push the limits of what money can actually buy. A typical cruise ship costs about $500 million to build–that’s no small feat for someone in the cruise liner business, let alone a newcomer to the industry like Palmer.
Palmer claims the replica will have 840 staterooms just like the original, which sank on April 15, 1912 off the coast of Newfoundland. Also like its predecessor, the ship will have 9 decks, swimming pools and gymnasiums, and will be “every bit as luxurious as the original Titanic,” he said, adding that it will, of course, also have state-of-the-art technology and the latest navigation and safety systems. (At the risk of sounding pessimistic, that’s basically what they said about the first one.)
Blue Star Line (similar to the original White Star Line) was registered on April 18th as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Palmer’s Mineralogy Pty. Worth $5.3 billion, Palmer is Australia’s 5th richest person in the world, according to BRW magazine rankings.
Titanic II is set to sail some time by the end of 2016 from England to New York, accompanied by the Chinese navy. I have just two questions: a) how much will a ticket cost? b) would you buy one?
