How Fast Do Cruise Ships Go

Cruise ships are as long as football fields.

How fast do cruise ships go. In the early days of ocean travel long before traveling by air became affordable the aim of traveling by sea was to get to a destination. Back in 1978 a speedboat used a jet engine instead of a propeller to power the boat. Learn more about how fast Royal Caribbean cruise ships go.

The larger passenger cruise ships will travel around 21 to 24 knots which is 389 to 444 kmh. Cruise ships arent meant to fly through the sea but instead function to enhance the comfort of its passengers while also improving fuel efficiency. The average cruising speed is about 18 to 20 knots depending on the ship and itinerary.

Whereas those ships generally had top speeds of 15 to 20 knots today there are very few ships in the fleets of the major lines that have a top speed of less than 20 knots. 1 knot equals about 115 miles per hour. Maximum official speeds are around 30 knots.

A knot is a form of measurement that equals one nautical mile. For bigger ships the optimum cruising speed is 20-22 Kn 23 mph 37 kph. This is usually Full Speed.

Surprisingly cruise ships can move quickly. This speed translates into around 23 mph 27 mph. The average cruise ship speed in kilometers is around 32 to 40 kmh.

3176mph 511 kmh was the fastest boat speed ever recorded. Not as fast as they used to. Most cruise ships are powered by diesel electric engines or gas turbines and they have propellers that cut through the water to move them forward or backward.