Alt 2nd or 3rd class

[Stefan Christiansson]

I saw on the blueprints for Olympic and Titanic that the area aft of the food storage are on G-deck is marked "Alt. 2nd or 3rd class, counted 3rd class". Does this mean that this area could easily be turned over to usage by 2nd class passengers or was it uncertain at the time of drawing these blueprints if they needed the space for 2nd or 3rd class usage?

 

[Daniel Klistorner]

It depended on the demand. If there were too many 3rd class passengers booking and not so many 2nd class passengers, this area was used for 3rd class accommodation. Perhaps at times there was more demand for 2nd class passenger accommodation, thus this area would have been open for 2nd class and closed for 3rd class. However there was other areas such as E deck which was alternate 1st or 2nd class accommodation that was more likely to be used for 2nd class. So my guess, unless there was a phenomenal amount of demand for 2nd class cabins that the area on G deck was basically always used for 3rd class accommodation.

Daniel.

 

[Ana Florencia Pinton]

I wonder what the First Class passengers would have thought if they knew their cabin was being the same as a Second Class one... Or Second Class passengers with Third Class cabins... Hehe

 

[Bob Godfrey]

Feature films like Titanic can give the impression that the relatively large and and finely-furnished suites in which much of the action takes place were typical of 1st Class accommodation. Not so. Most 1st Class cabins were featureless boxes little different from the 2nd Class accommodation and not a huge improvement on 3rd Class. Most people, in any case, spent little time in their cabins and didn't expect them to be sumptuous. The real difference between the Classes was in the greater variety and quality of public facilities (especially for dining) and the level of personal service provided by a larger army of stewards.

 

[Ana Florencia Pinton]

Oh yes, I'm aware of that. I've seen some very good 3D renderings of the cabins on the Boat Deck, and I don't know where did I read that they were more or less all the same with the exception of the suites or some very few cabins. I didn't mean that they would have expected their cabin to look different, but maybe they still thought (not knowing or having seen the other cabins) that what they were seeing was better than the Second Class.

Actually the biggest "deceiver" for me was Titanic: Adventure Out of Time Who remembers the spacious luxurious hallways (even on A Deck they were huge and with beautiful paneling and carpets)?