A Comparison of Vessels and Journey Times to Australia Between 1788 and 1900
This guide shows the duration of passage voyages to Australia according to the era. We've selected a 'typical' vessel from each period and provided the following details for each:
- Speed (knots)
- Voyage (days)
- Length (feet)
- Displacement (tons)
- Number of Passengers
- 1788: First Fleet ship
- 1852: Early Steamship
- 1862: The Gold Rushes
- 1883: Clipper ships
- 1888: Age of Steam
- Passenger Liners 1909
- Passenger Liners 1931
- Passenger Liners 1960
1788 First Fleet ship
BorrowdaleRoute: Portsmouth Teneriffe, Rio de Janiero, Cape Verde Islands, Cape of Good Hope, Botany Bay
Speed: 6 knots |
Voyage: 109 days |
Length: 113 feet (34.4m) |
Passengers: 216 |
Tons: 492 |
1852 Early Steamship
ChusanRoute: Southampton Saint Vincent, The Cape, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney
Speed: 8 knots |
Voyage: 80 days |
Length: 190 feet (57.9 m) |
Passengers: 40 |
Tons: 690 |
1862 The Gold Rushes
George MarshallRoute: London to Sydney direct (NB vessel wrecked on Flinders Island, Bass Strait en route to Sydney)
Speed: 10 knots |
Voyage: 92 days |
Length: 179 feet (54.5m) |
Passengers: 300 |
Tons: 1206 |
1883 Clipper ships
Samuel PlimsollRoute: London to Sydney direct
Speed: 15 knots |
Voyage: 72 days |
Length: 241 feet |
Passengers: 427 |
Tons: 1459 |
1888 Age of Steam
SS AustralasianSpeed: 17 knots |
Voyage: 50 days |
Length: 360 feet (109.7m) |
Passengers: 640 |
Tons: 3662 |
1909 (Passenger liner)
SS OsterleyRoute: London to Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane via Suez
Speed: 18 knots |
Voyage: 45 days |
Length: 553 feet (168.5m) |
Passengers: 270 first class, 120 second, 700 third |
Tons: 12,129 |
1931 (Passenger liner)
SS StrathnaverRoute: London, Bombay, Colombo, Melbourne, Sydney
Speed: 20 knots |
Voyage: 42 days |
Length: 664 feet (202.4m) |
Passengers: 500 first class, 608 tourist |
Tons: 22,547 |
1960 (Passenger liner)
SS OrianaRoute: Southampton, Fremantle, Melbourne, Sydney via Suez
Speed: 27.5 knots |
Voyage: 28 days |
Length: 804 feet (245.1m) |
Passengers: 638 first class, 1496 tourist |
Tons: 41,915 |
To find out more information about the history and construction of types of vessels or particular ships, browse through the other topics in our research guides.