British royal mail ship Queen Elizabeth 2, which has been in service for four decades, anchored off the Waigaoqiao Harbor in Shanghai on Monday morning for a farewell half-day visit before its retirement next year.
The 294-meter colossus, with 1,006 crew members on board, brought this year’s largest overseas tourist group, about 1,500 travelers, to Shanghai, the Shanghai Morning Post reported on Tuesday.
Foreseeing a possible long queue at customs, Shanghai Customs sent officers to work on the ship upon its departure from Hong Kong days ago.
Christened in the 1960s, the liner’s previous riders include a multitude of well-known celebrities.
The ship will soon settle in her new home at Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah artificial island after her final voyage beginning this November. It will be renovated as a luxurious offshore hotel and recreational complex.
