Queen Mary 2 became the first ocean liner built specifically for transatlantic service since Queen Elizabeth 2.
Cunard Line commissioned the ship in the late 1990s as a successor to its famous ocean-liner tradition. French shipbuilder Chantiers de l'Atlantique constructed her at Saint-Nazaire, and she was formally named by Queen Elizabeth II in January 2004.
Queen Mary 2 entered service in 2004 and made her maiden voyage between Southampton and Fort Lauderdale. Unlike most modern cruise ships, she was designed for regular long-distance crossings, especially between Europe and North America, rather than primarily for leisurely voyages between warm-weather ports.
The ship is often called a cruise ship because she also offers extensive entertainment and resort-style amenities. However, “ocean liner” describes her intended role: a vessel engineered for scheduled ocean crossings, including demanding North Atlantic conditions. Queen Elizabeth 2, her predecessor in this distinction, entered service in 1969 and retired in 2008.