Top 10 Greatest Ocean Liners

The Queen Mary was a great ship and had a long, successful career on the North Atlantic run, but the Normandie was simply better. Although she was slightly slower than the Queen Mary, she used significantly less fuel to achieve a speed only a fraction of a knot slower, making her much cheaper to operate.

Normandie was also better looking, both inside and out. Her interiors were light and airy, while the Queen Mary's were dark and stifling. Normandie's exterior, with her wide funnels and sleek superstructure, rested on an innovatively designed hull. In every way, Normandie was the superior ship, and it was a shame that she was destroyed due to carelessness during her conversion into a troopship.

Probably the second most famous ship after the Titanic. This Queen wasn't too remarkable, in my humble opinion, especially compared to the Normandie, but her historical significance is undeniable.

That's what puts her up here.

One of my all-time favorite ships, and I would love to visit the floating hotel/museum in Long Beach, California.

She set a speed record, served as a troop ship, touched millions of lives, and is now a floating hotel and museum in Long Beach, California.

Ah yes, the liner that carried Cunard into the 21st century. What can I say? She's not just special for surviving past the '60s. She's special for maintaining the tradition of transatlantic travel (alongside the QM2).

This is a liner that you could just say, "thank you" to. Glad she's still around!

Paved the way for the modern ocean liner/cruise business and was a combination liner/cruise ship.

From her symmetry and luxurious yet balanced interior design, Old Reliable was a perfect ocean liner. She wasn't just an extremely successful passenger liner but also a war hero, having sunk an enemy U-boat - something no other ocean liner can claim. She also survived multiple attacks and accidents.

Olympic was a cut above the rest, and as time passed, her popularity endured. Her crew even claimed she ran better at the time of scrapping than when she was new, which is a testament to the ship's crew, engineers, and quality. While time brings evolution and new technology, the RMS Olympic remains timeless and charming.

The RMS Titanic is my #1 favorite ocean liner. Although other liners may tie with Titanic for the top spot on my list, she will always be my true love - at least in terms of ocean liners. There will never be another ship like her. There can only be one RMS Titanic.

My connection to her is more personal. I share the last name of the final Titanic survivor to pass away. I don't know what to make of this, as I'm unaware of much of my family history. Is it possible I share a familial connection to Millvina?

The Lusitania was a very fast ocean liner for her time, averaging between 25 and 27 knots. (The Mauretania's average was 24 to 26 knots.) Lusitania even hit top speeds of 32 knots.

For some reason, she made a transatlantic crossing in just 4 days, 19 hours, and 52 minutes (while Mauretania's best was 4 days, 22 hours). Lusitania held the Blue Riband until 1909, when her sister, the Mauretania, claimed it - despite being slightly slower. Unfortunately, the Lusitania sank in 1915, resulting in the deaths of over 1,200 people.

Beautiful design. It's awful that she was sunk by a U-Boat, and around 1,201 people died in 15 - 18 minutes, almost as many as on the Titanic.

She was also very fast, along with her sister ship, the Mauretania.

I was on board trailing a hurricane up the Canadian coast. The waves were crashing and heaving, but the coffee in my cup never moved.

On another voyage, we lost a day because the dock in Brooklyn was unavailable, and we had to cross the Atlantic a day early. The captain just cranked it up to almost 30 knots and... no problem.

I have commercially fished the Pacific Ocean for over forty years. Many times, I have encountered gales and high seas, battling my way back to my home port of Mooloolaba.

Now I was on board the Queen Mary 2. Around 10 PM, we let the pilot off at Mooloolaba, and the ship turned to starboard into a gale. I found a spot up on the bow, where the wind was blowing across the deck at 70 to 80 knots. I had the biggest smile on my face - the adrenaline rush and emotion were indescribable. For once, I wasn't on my small 'cat' with my heart in my mouth, nor was I on just a cruise ship battling the roaring ocean. I was now aboard the greatest ocean liner ever built. The ocean had to concede defeat. Though nobody could hear me over the wind, I unashamedly shouted, "You are not going to get me tonight."

I went below a couple of times for a cup of tea and the food - something one could write a book about. While sipping a quiet cup of tea inside, you were completely oblivious to the storm raging outside. Finally, at about 2 AM, with the Cape Moreton light fading to a small glow, I had another cup of tea and retired to the plushest bed. The Queen Mary 2 truly is a magnificent ocean liner.

Richard Freeman.

The Grand Old Lady. The largest and fastest ship at the time of her launch. Holding the Blue Riband for 20 whole years is something only the SS United States surpassed.

Cunard's response to the Olympic Class. Nicknamed "The Ship Beautiful," and it truly holds its own.

She served in both World Wars and has a legacy and charm all her own.

One of the longest-lasting ships of its time, close in age to the Lusitania and Mauritania.

Normandie's daughter. An unfortunately timed liner that didn't get to thrive on the Atlantic. Her significance lies in how she shaped the modern cruise industry as we know it, leading to the creation of the somewhat controversial mega-cruise ships of today.

And might I add, she's gorgeous.

France's last super liner became part of the Norwegian Cruise Line fleet and was renamed Norway. It was scrapped in 2008.

One of the last great liners built. Elegant and beautiful, she had a real soul. Even with her hideous superstructure additions and paint job during her life as SS Norway, she oozed grace and sophistication from a bygone era.

She managed to hold her own among the modern cruise ship monstrosities.

A lovely ship at the tail end of the classic liners.

The final sister ship of the Titanic. The ship had a saying that is rarely known, but it was this: "Britannic is as perfect a specimen as man's creative power."

She could have ruled the Atlantic, been in service through the '40s like the Aquitania, and possibly been saved!

She was the best of the Olympians.

One awesome and beautiful ship, and a heroic one as well (you all know why). I absolutely hate the Germans for torpedoing her.

But I think she would have been scrapped just like Mauretania and Aquitania if she hadn't been torpedoed anyway.

Combined an iron hull and a propeller and became the first passenger ship to do so.

British ocean liner, loved by many, that was ultimately sold for scrap after a glorious career.

Innovative and incredibly underrated.

The beautiful Green Goddess. A Saxonia-class liner, she was built to cruise as well as make crossings.

One of the first cruise ships. This ship was painted in four shades of green.