National Geographic Traveller UK April 2020

3

the number of women on board who

were at least six months pregnant

2

the number of dogs taken on board

alongside goats, pigs and chickens

128

the number of days spent at sea — a

long journey hampered by poor weather

98ft

the estimated length of

the Maylower

53

the number of passengers who survived

the journey (the ship launched with 102)

DON’T MISS

The Embarkation

Festival, which is dedicated

to the traditions, cuisine and

music of the original settlers

and the native Wampanoag

along the waterfront in

Plymouth, Massachusetts.

plymouth400inc.org

Across the pond

Meanwhile, behind the scenes in

Massachusetts, cratsmen are inishing

restoration of the MAYFLOWER II — a full-

scale replica of the ship that was originally

built in 1955 as a git to the US following the

Second World War. The faithful reproduction

has been docked in Connecticut since 2016,

but will sail into Boston Harbour alongside

the historic USS Constitution this spring to

great fanfare. It will dock in Charlestown

Navy Yard for a six-day maritime festival

from 14-19 May, so expect live music, ship

tours and food trucks. There’s also the

PLYMOUTH 400 COMMEMORATION OPENING

CEREMONY (24 April) at the city’s Memorial

Hall, with a programme of speakers, visual

and performing arts, and the OFFICIAL

MARITIME SALUTE (27-28 June) — a huge

regatta of wooden ships, yachts and pleasure

crat in the harbour. massholiday.co.uk

mayflower400.org.uk HELEN WARWICK

MAKING WAVES

Mayflower

This year, both sides of the Atlantic are gearing up

for major celebrations to mark the 400th anniversary

of one momentous maiden voyage to the New World

Home shores
As the city where it all began, Plymouth is
readying itself for a year’s worth of events
to mark the 400th anniversary. There’s the
MAYFLOWER CEREMONY, held exactly 400
years to the day since the ship set sail for
the New World (16 September) — which
will bring together a 1,000-strong choir
to perform a specially composed piece of
music telling the ship’s story and legacy. A
few days later, the MAYFLOWER MUSTER will
signal a one-time-only gathering of military
ships in Plymouth Sound. Central to the
port’s celebrations this year is the opening
of the hotly anticipated cultural centre, THE
BOX. Occupying the site of the former city
museum and art gallery, the centre’s grand
opening will be marked with Maylower 400:
Legend and Legacy, the largest Mayflower
exhibition in history and a look at the
journey, those who took it and the settlement
itself. visitplymouth.co.uk plymhearts.org IMAGE: GETTY

IN NUMBERS

THE MAYFLOWER

20 nationalgeographic.co.uk/travel

SMART TRAVELLER

20 nationalgeographic.co.uk/travel