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Story: The voyage out

New Year’s Eve on the Royal Dane

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New Year’s Eve on the Royal Dane

Although many immigrants put up with sometimes horrifying experiences, not all voyages were disagreeable from beginning to end. Cabin passengers could use the poop deck, from which steerage passengers were excluded. On calm days, if the vessel was not in the tropics or the Southern Ocean, those in cabin class could enjoy their time aboard. This watercolour shows that, for cabin passengers, shipboard life could be congenial.

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Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: B-064-022

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

John Wilson, The voyage out – Departure to landing, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/artwork/2641/new-years-eve-on-the-royal-dane (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by John Wilson, published 4 March 2009.