The world’s largest cruise ship has completed construction at a Finnish shipyard and made its first journey into open water for sea trials ahead of its expected delivery in October this year.
Royal Caribbean International’s Icon of the Seas will be 365 meters (almost 1,200 feet) long and weigh a whopping 250,800 tonnes. To put it another way, that’s like attempting to keep two CN Towers floating.
When it takes sail in the Caribbean in January 2024, it will comfortably accommodate 5,610 guests and 2,350 crew members. The ship’s showpiece will be the world’s largest at-sea watermark icon of the Seas. The Category 6 ship will have six record-breaking water slides, while visitors looking for a more leisurely experience can relax in the ship’s seven pools and nine whirlpools.
It is being built in Turku, Finland, by Meyer Turku, one of Europe’s finest shipbuilders. During an on-site press conference earlier this year, Royal Caribbean International president and CEO Michael Bayley told reporters that the ship would join the Royal Caribbean fleet on October 26, ahead of its 2024 launch.
The current world’s largest cruise ship is Wonder of the Seas, a vessel in the Royal Caribbean fleet that took its debut voyage just last year and is a somewhat shorter 1,188 feet in length, with only 18 decks to explore.
Royal Caribbean International is positioning Icon of the Seas as the cruise line’s evolutionary pinnacle, employing cutting-edge technology and drawing on 50 years of experience.
“We are positioning it as the ultimate family vacation and when you step back and look at all the energy and time that has gone into creating this ship it is mind-blowing,” Bayley said.
The Icon completed its first set of sea trials on June 22, according to a Royal Caribbean statement.
“During her first set of sea trials, Icon of the Seas traveled hundreds of miles, during which the main engines, hull, brake systems, steering, noise, and vibration levels were all tested,” the statement said. “Everything was done on time as outlined in the schedule, despite her departure being delayed due to wind conditions.”
