FIREWORKS, fizz and a fanfare saw Southampton's latest superliner, the 83,000-ton Arcadia, off on her maiden voyage yesterday.

In the late afternoon sunshine Arcadia slipped her mooring lines and at exactly 5pm the luxury cruise ship eased herself away from the Mayflower Terminal in the city's Western Docks and set a course for the open sea.

Passengers crowded the open decks, throwing streamers over the ship's rails, fireworks soared into the air and a blizzard of confetti cascaded over Arcadia.

On board, champagne glasses were raised in a toast to P&O Cruises' £200m vessel as a military band from the Adjutant General's Corps in Worthy Down, near Winchester, played a musical "bon voyage'' and Arcadia's whistle sounded three booming blasts.

Relatives and friends of the passengers packed the terminal's viewing balcony, while on the dockside P&O Cruises' staff danced to the band music and waved the ship away.

High up on the vessel's bridge, the superliner's master Captain Steve Burgoine, together with Ray Smart, the port of Southampton's senior pilot, moved Arcadia out into the main channel to pass another P&O Cruises' vessel, the 77,499-ton Oceana, berthed in the Eastern Docks.

The maiden voyage, a Mediterranean cruise, was completely sold out with some passengers paying more than £6,700 each for a top-of-the-range suite with butler.