Maritime history

Maritime history concerns the history of boats, ships, shipbuilding and life at sea.

Understand
People have travelled at sea since time immemorial. Some ancient peoples such as the Maori and the Vikings braved oceans, but it was only the Age of Discovery from the 15th century which charted all the world's oceans. In the 19th century, steam power revolutionized seafaring.

For much of history, the most advanced ships have been warships, making maritime history relevant for military tourism. Destinations includes stationary museum ships, museums on land, heritage ferries, lighthouses and other places and vessels relevant to seafaring. Some museum ships are hotels or nightlife venues, as well as attractions in their own right.

Australia




China (Mainland)




Hong Kong
The nearby Star Ferry to Kowloon operates several older vessels, in 2023 it includes ferries built in the 1950s.

New Zealand

 * Elsewhere in New Zealand, the Edwin Fox Maritime Museum in Picton and Wellington Museum are worth a visit.
 * Elsewhere in New Zealand, the Edwin Fox Maritime Museum in Picton and Wellington Museum are worth a visit.

United Kingdom




Itineraries
These journeys are listed in chronological order.
 * Trojan War, supposedly 12th century BC
 * Silk Road, antiquity
 * Voyages of Zheng He, 1405 to 1433
 * Voyages of Columbus, 1492 to 1502
 * Cape Route, since 1498
 * Magellan-Elcano circumnavigation, 1519 to 1522
 * Voyages of James Cook, 1761 to 1780
 * Voyages of George Vancouver, 1791 to 95
 * Voyages of Matthew Flinders, 1795 to 1810
 * Voyages of John Franklin, 1819 to 1847
 * Around the World in Eighty Days, 1872
 * Voyages of Roald Amundsen, 1903 to 1923
 * RMS Titanic, 1912
 * Voyages of Thor Heyerdahl, 1947 to 1979