The Queen christens Britannia

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has christened P&O’s new flagship vessel Britannia during a glittering ceremony in Southampton.

The 3,647-passenger vessel, which cost £473million to build, is the largest cruise ship ever designed purely for the British holiday market.

During a press conference the previous day, David Dingle, CEO of Carnival UK, the parent company of P&O, said that the ship epitomised the “spirit of modern Britain”.

“The history of P&O and the UK are entwined,” he said, adding that consumers are now far more sophisticated and the company had wanted to build a ship to reflect that.

“Britannia takes the best parts of our other ships and brings them together,” he said.

Arnold Donald, CEO of Carnival Corporation, the holding company of Carnival UK, said that he did not see Royal Caribbean’s Anthem of the Seas as competition for Britannia.

“Britannia is for the British market. Anthem is not that,” he said explaining that the two ships will be focusing on very different markets.

The 141,000 ton ship features 15 passenger decks, 13 bars and 13 restaurants.

To see our gallery of Britannia click here