Hundreds of passengers have helped retrace the ill-fated odyssey of the Titanic on the 100th anniversary of the her doomed voyage.

And the commemorative journey, aboard the equally majestic MS Balmoral, has been skilfully overseen by Ipswich’s own Rachael Jackson, public relations manager for Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, which owns and operates the ship.

The liner ran into problems of its own after setting off from Southampton last Sunday, encountering choppy waters and arriving late for festivities off the Irish coast due to a medical emergency on board.

But the ship and its 1,309 passengers, including historians and relatives of survivors and those who lost their lives, made it to international waters in the North Atlantic in time to pay tribute at the very spot where the RMS Titanic hit an iceberg and sank on April 15, 1912, killing more than 1,500 people.

Rachael, who lives in Ipswich and works at Fred. Olsen House, in Whitehouse Road, said: “It has been a unique experience and a real honour to be on board.

“We’ve had a great deal of Titanic-themed activity with a lot of very detailed period costume. We’ve also been giving away commemorative boarding passes and hearing from relatives of survivors from the Titanic.

“A very respectful memorial marked the 100-year anniversary and it was an honour to commemorate those who lost their lives on board.

“We did have a few problems off the Irish coast but high winds and rough seas are not unheard of at this time of year and we had an amazing welcome in Cobh from thousands of people.”

The journey, chartered by Miles Morgan Travel, has also called at the cemetery where 150 victims of the Titanic are buried and included lectures about life on board.

Balmoral’s next stop is in Nova Scotia before it reaches its final destination of New York tomorrow.