UNPARALLELED LUXURY
In June 1911 the fitting out of the world’s most luxurious liner began. Scores of carpenters, engineers and painters poured into her empty hull and begun to work their magic. Everything was either especially made or bought new.
Each public room was decorated to a particular style or theme – from the white panelled reading room, designed for the ladies to use while the men were in the smoking room, to the veranda café with its real palm trees.
There was a fully equipped gymnasium, a swimming pool, a squash court and huge Turkish baths. No expense was spared.
First-class passengers able to afford to travel in the staterooms (private rooms) had two bedrooms, two dressing rooms, a sitting room, a bathroom and a private deck. And leading from the first-class dining room to the first-class promenade deck was a magnificent central staircase encapsulating the opulence of the Titanic. It was huge, descending five levels with sweeping banisters. The sun shone through a glass dome at the top by day and gold-plated crystal lights illuminated it by night. The effect was absolutely stunning.
It took nearly a year before the Titanic was ready for her maiden voyage.