Five years ago we posted about the beginning of the construction of “A Close to Unsinkable Titanic in China’s Sichuan Province.” Construction began on November 30th, 2016 in Suining, Sichuan province, China, 745 miles from the sea. The full-sized replica will be a fixed attraction, rather than a ship, as a part of Star Energy Investment Group’s plans for a tourist resort called Romandisea, along the Qijiang River in Sichuan’s Daying County.
Our recent post about the collapsing ice wall on the half-scale partial mock-up of the Titanic in an attraction in Pigeon Forge, TN, brought to mind the Chinese full-sized replica. While the replica Titanic was originally expected to take just over a year to complete, CNN reports that the replica is still under construction, with no announced completion date.
The replica will feature the same amenities as its namesake, including banquet halls, theaters, observation decks, and a swimming pool. Guests will be able to pay to spend the night aboard the ship, which will be permanently docked in a reservoir in the Qijiang River, about 130 kilometers from the provincial capital Chengdu — several hundred miles from the sea.
The Romandisea Titanic is not to be confused with Clive Barker’s much-ballyhooed Titanic II project that notionally will build a near (sort-of) replica of the ill-fated ship, which may or may not ever be built.
According to the AFP, it’s taken 23,000 tons of steel and cost one billion yuan ($153.5 million) to build the Romandisea replica. By comparison, the mock-up structure in Pigeon Forge cost $25 million to build.
Below is a short video showing the progkress in the construction of the replica Titanic.
With scantlings etc. as in original, seemingly. Even prop shafts, looking pretty authentic. Enthusiasm on a whole different level.
Yikes. Now I’m feeling sorry for the ship– like a dolphin in a small tank, or something like that.
Waiting for the flood that puts her out on the ocean.