LESS than half an hour was all it took for the maiden voyage of the Queen Elizabeth, to sell out.

In just 29 minutes and 14 seconds passengers to snapped up all the tickets for the maiden voyage of the newest Cunard liner that will sail from Southampton in October 2010.

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The cruise company said the frenzy for the first voyage of the 2,092-passenger ship set a new record as never before had a maiden voyage in its 170-year history sold out so fast.

The sell out was even sold faster than last year's final voyage of the QE2 which sold out in 36 minutes.

Carol Marlow, Cunard President and Managing Director, said: "This is an impressive record set by what will be an impressive ship and speaks volumes for the Cunard brand as well as for the resilience of the cruise sector as a whole in these challenging times.

"It has also been very encouraging to see the level of interest in Queen Elizabeth coming from all our international markets with bookings from the UK, US and Germany particularly strong."

Fares for the maiden voyage, a 13-night cruise to the Canary Islands, range from £1,489 to £15,799 per person.

The Queen Elizabeth, that replaces the retired Queen Elizabeth 2,is currently under construction in Italy.

More than half of Queen Elizabeth’s remaining sailings, comprising six voyages from October to December 2010, was sold within the first two hours.