A first look has been revealed at what will be the biggest cruise ship in the world when she debuts in 2024.
Royal Caribbean’s mega-ship Icon of the Seas will be 1,198 feet long and weigh 250,800 gross tons, statistics that nudge her ahead of the current biggest cruise ship – Royal Caribbean’s Wonder of the Seas, which is 1,187ft long and weighs 236,857 gross tonnes. What’s more, Icon of the Seas will have features as eye-opening as her size, from the first suspended infinity pool at sea to a three-storey family suite. This room comes complete with its own white picket fence and mailbox.
Video: Royal Caribbean has revealed first look at Icon of the Seas Ship
Icon will have capacity for 7,600 guests, with other room options for them including the ‘Surfside Family Suite’, with alcoves for kids ‘tucked away from the adults’, ‘Sunset Corner Suites’ and ‘Panoramic Ocean View’ quarters. Once they’re out of bed, guests will find so many water features they may have trouble distinguishing the boat from the ocean.
For starters, Icon will feature the largest waterpark at sea – called ‘Category 6’ – containing six ‘record-breaking’ slides: ‘Pressure Drop’ and its 66-degree incline – ‘the industry’s first open free-fall slide’; the 46ft-tall ‘Frightening Bolt’, the tallest drop slide at sea; ‘Storm Surge’ and ‘Hurricane Hunter’, the first family raft slides at sea – and ‘Storm Chasers’, which Royal Caribbean claims is ‘cruising’s first mat-racing duo’.
The waterpark will be on Thrill Island, which Royal Caribbean trumpets as a ‘lost island adventure where vacationers can test their limits and scale new heights’. Icon will also debut the line’s first swim-up bar at sea – called ‘Swim & Tonic’ – and ‘Royal Bay Pool’, the ‘largest pool at sea’. Both of these features will be on ‘Chill Island’.
The suspended infinity pool, meanwhile, will be in an area called The Hideaway and surrounded by a multilevel sun terrace with whirlpools. Once guests have dried off they’re sure to be lured to ‘AquaDome’, a ‘transformational place unlike any other’ that’s perched at the top of the ship.
Video: Building Royal Caribbean’s biggest ship ever: Icon of the Seas
Royal Caribbean describes it as a ‘tranquil oasis by day’, where guests can enjoy a bite or drink while soaking up wraparound ocean views and gazing at an ‘awe-inspiring waterfall’. By night, we’re told, the venue becomes ‘a vibrant place that’s great for a night out, complete with restaurants, bars and aqua shows’.
Icon will be Royal Caribbean’s first ship with fuel cell technology and powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), the cleanest-burning marine fuel. And thanks also to ‘other proven applications’ such as shore power connection and waste heat recovery systems, Icon, it’s touted, will be Royal Caribbean’s most sustainable ship to date.
‘With each new ship, we raise the bar in the travel industry while enhancing what our guests know and love,’ said Jason Liberty, president and CEO, Royal Caribbean Group. From the moment they step on board, every experience is specifically designed to give them the best vacation anywhere on land and at sea. With Icon of the Seas, we’ve taken this to a new level and made the ultimate family vacation.’
Icon will sail year-round, seven-night eastern and western Caribbean vacations from Miami. Every cruise will visit Royal Caribbean’s top-rated private island destination, Perfect Day at CocoCay, The Bahamas.
Vacationers can book their ‘iconic’ adventure on Royal Caribbean’s website on Tuesday, October 25. Crown & Anchor’ loyalty members can look out for special access on Monday, October 24.
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