On April 8, a Titanic Memorial Cruise left Southampton, England, embarking on the same route as the ill-fated ship. Passangers boarded the the MS Balmoral in period clothingas they waved goodbye to friends and family on the shore.

A British travel, Miles Morgan Travel, selected selected the Balmoral to design and create a fitting memorial for the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic.

The ship is carrying the he exact number of passangers that was on the Titanic in 1912, 1,309. For 12 nights, passangers will follow the same route as, however, the ship reportedly left two days earlier because it is a smaller and slower.

I have been a fan of the Titanic since I was nine years old and this cruise is the closest you are going to get to it, said 37-year-old Graham Free, according to the Atlantic-Journal Constitution. The trip has cost a considerable amount, but I wanted to do it.

Over the course of the voyage, passangers will attend lectures and information sessions by Titanic experts, such as Phillip Littlejohn, who is the grandson of a Titanic survivor.

It will be an emotional moment when we are over the wreck site, where I dived in 2001 and where my grandfather left Titanic rowing Lifeboat 13, he said, according to the Atlantic-Journal Constitution.

Cruise organizers have also set up a memorial event on April 14, beginning at approximately 11:40 p.m., when the Titanic struck an iceberg.

Click through the slideshow to view photos of the Titanic Memorial Cruise.

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Maritime artist Flood of Del Ray Beach, Florida poses with his painting of the doomed Titanic liner on board the Titanic Memorial Cruise off Cobh
Maritime artist James Allen Flood of Del Ray Beach, Florida poses with his painting of the doomed Titanic liner as it would have appeared arriving in New York, on board the Titanic Memorial Cruise off Cobh, Ireland April 9, 2012. The cruise is retracing the voyage of the ill-fated Titanic liner, which hit an iceberg and sank 100 years ago on April 15, 1912. Reuters
Norwegians sit in a hot tub on the Titanic Memorial Cruise as it moves through high winds off Cobh
Tormod Gaasbakk (L) and Anne Isabel Udbye of Trondheim, Norway sit in a hot tub on the Titanic Memorial Cruise as it moves through high winds off Cobh, Ireland April 9, 2012. Force eight winds have delayed the arrival in Cobh by several hours, the captain of the MS Balmoral cruise ship said on Monday. The cruise is retracing the voyage of the ill-fated Titanic liner, which hit an iceberg and sank 100 years ago on April 15, 1912. Reuters
Titanic Memorial Cruise leaves port in Southampton
Titanic Memorial Cruise leaves port in Southampton, England April 8, 2012. The cruise retraces the voyage of the ill-fated Titanic liner, which hit an iceberg and sank 100 years ago on April 15, 1912. Reuters
Members of the crew are seen at the deck below partying guests as the Titanic Memorial Cruise leaves port in Southampton
Members of the crew are seen at the deck below partying guests as the Titanic Memorial Cruise leaves port in Southampton, England April 8, 2012. The cruise is to retrace the voyage of the ill-fated Titanic liner, which hit an iceberg and sank 100 years ago on April 15, 1912. Reuters
John Philip adjusts his period bowler hat while donning a life jacket, during a drill on board the Titanic Memorial Cruise in Southampton
John Philip (C) of South Coast, New South Wales, Australia adjusts his period bowler hat while donning a life jacket, during a drill on board the Titanic Memorial Cruise in Southampton, England April 8, 2012. The cruise is to retrace the voyage of the ill-fated Titanic liner, which hit an iceberg and sank 100 years ago on April 15, 1912. Reuters
Sharon Sutton of Dublin waves as the Titanic Memorial Cruise leaves port in Southampton
Sharon Sutton of Dublin (C) waves an Irish flag as the Titanic Memorial Cruise leaves port in Southampton, England April 8, 2012. The cruise is to retrace the voyage of the ill-fated Titanic liner, which hit an iceberg and sank 100 years ago on April 15, 1912. Reuters
Titanic relative poses before boarding the Titanic Memorial Cruise in Southampton, England
Robert Burr of Southampton, whose grandfather Ewart Burr was a 1st class saloon steward who perished on the Titanic, poses on the bed of a replica Titanic cabin before boarding the Titanic Memorial Cruise in Southampton, England April 8, 2012. The cruise is to retrace the voyage of the ill-fated Titanic liner, which hit an iceberg and sank 100 years ago on April 15, 1912. Reuters
Newlyweds pose while wearing period costume before boarding the Titanic Memorial Cruise in Southampton, England
Newlyweds pose while wearing period costume before boarding the Titanic Memorial Cruise in Southampton, England Reuters
Washington State women pose before boarding the Titanic Memorial Cruise in Southampton, England
Washington State women pose before boarding the Titanic Memorial Cruise in Southampton, England Reuters
Three generations of the Free family wear period costumes as they queue to board the Titanic Memorial Cruise in Southampton
Three generations of the Free family wear period costumes as they queue to board the Titanic Memorial Cruise in Southampton Reuters