The traveling the high seas by container ship

There’s a certain romance to traveling by ship — it’s a slower way to travel, steeped in the rich lore of 19th century authors like Mark Twain. It’s also very appealing for those of us who loath flying.

Unfortunately traveling by container ship (just about the only option for today’s traveler) isn’t the budget-loving affair you might suspect it would be. However, with airfare continually on the rise, it may not be long before the two reach a price parity.

For a nice taste of what to expect, should you decide to book passage on a container ship one day, check out sevensixfive’s post about six days on the Eimskip container ship Dettifoss.

Although the actual journey took place back in 2005, it still provides a fascinating look at life aboard a ship:

I wave like an idiot at the first person I see. “Hi. I’m Fred, I’m a passenger.” And by passenger I mean moron. “Yes.” he agrees. “I’ll show you to the ship’s steward.” So I meet Jonas, the steward, and we climb seven flights to my cabin. That’s fine with me, the higher the better. He unlocks the door to an impossibly palatial room right below the bridge with table, chair, couch, fridge, television, VCR, stereo, closet, huge bed, and bathroom. “This is your cabin.” “Wow, that’s great!” I’m still in slack-jawed yokel mode. “Thanks!”

…

I dozed off and and when I woke, the ship was rolling and we were out in the North Sea. Outside was a thousand shades of grey: the water churns with waves at 7-10 feet and the sky is shot with dark patches everywhere loosing angled, blurry rain on the horizon. Breaks in the clouds let the sun spotlight through and turn bits of the sea to shiny silver, the only color anywhere is the turquoise being thrown up in our wake.

For some more practical tips and tricks on how to go about booking your own sea voyage, have a look that the Traveler’s Notebook’s How to Travel by Cargo Ship. According to that guide, expect to pay $80-140/day, but, as the author points out, “your ticket pays for room, meals, and a plethora of experiences that cannot be had anywhere else.”

[found via Kottke]