cruise ship under construction

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Newest Cruise Ships

Find here the answer to which is the newest cruise ships currently under construction or on order. You can jump directly to the lists of new vessels on order / under construction (2021-2028) , as well as new riverboats (2021-2026) and new cruiseferries (2021-2027).

Here you'll find them all - from small to big to the ever-largest passenger ships from the fleets of RCG-Royal Caribbean, Carnival Corporation, NCLH-Norwegian and MSC. We list also all the major cruise lines' orders for building new vessels (with GT/volume between ~2000 and ~240000 tons), with information on their design , building cost , passenger capacity , and builders/yards .

Newest cruise vessels on order (2021-2028 deliveries)

NEW companies and brands on the market are Resorts World Cruises (2022/Genting), Virgin Voyages (2017), Ritz-Carlton (2017), Norwegian Yacht Voyages (2017), Adora Cruises/CSSC Carnival China (2018), Alteza Cruises (2017), Anteros Cruises (2017), Zen Cruises (2018/Essel Group India), Abou Merhi Cruises Lebanon (2018), Well Star Travel Cruise China (2018), Blue World Voyages (2019), Mystic Cruises USA (2019), TUI River Cruises (2019), Cruise Retirement (2019), Style Cruise China (2019), Diamond Cruise China (2020), Ocean Residences (2020), Storylines Residences (2020), Arctic Cruise Line (2021), Aroya Cruise Saudi (2021), Selectum Blu Cruises (2021/ANEX Tours Turkey).

The largest "small ship" companies are Viking and Ponant .

The industry's estimated revenue for 2018 was USD 40 billion, with projected growth to USD 59 billion (2027). In terms of source passengers, the largest markets are North America (50+%) and Europe (30+%). The fastest-growing market is luxury cruising, with the largest companies being Viking Ocean, Viking Expeditions, Silversea, MSC Expeditions (separate fleet), Ponant, Hapag-Lloyd, RSSC-Regent.

In 2022, the ship orders with deliveries planned in 2023-2028 were 72 (units) amounting to ~USD/EUR 46 billion.

In 2023, the number of cruise vessels (ordered and scheduled for launches in 2023-2028) was 56 (~USD/EUR 39 billion, average cost per unit ~USD/EUR 680M), including 19 (2023-inaugurated), 10 (2024/30,000+ berths), 19 (2025), and 20 (2026-2028).

By 2028, the new vessels (2023-28) add to the global fleet 129000+ berths.

According to the current (as of 2024) cruise ship orders, by 2036, to the global fleet will be added 62 vessels.

New MSC ships 2017-2027

On March 20, 2014, MSC and STX France signed in Paris a letter of intent for building 2 new mega-liners with scheduled deliveries in 2017 (Meraviglia) and 2019 (Bellissima), each with GT 167,600 tons (slightly smaller than Quantum-class / 167,800 GT), but with bigger passenger capacity - 4500 (vs 4180).

In February 2016, MSC ordered two "Meraviglia Plus" liners with max capacity 6300 passengers (200 more cabins, 16 m longer compared to Meraviglia-Class). The order made MSC France's largest private foreign investor - with USD 8,6+ billion in export contracts over a 5-year period. On April 6, 2016, MSC signed with STX France for the construction of up to four World-Class vessels - LNG-powered , with GT tonnage 250,000 tons and max passenger capacity 6800.

In November 2017 MSC ordered 2x "Seaside EVO" class ships from Fincantieri (contract value EUR 1,8 billion). The new ships are bigger (16 m longer, 17,330 GT tons heavier, with 200 more cabins / 467 more passengers) in comparison to Seaview and Seaside. Newbuilds' deliveries were scheduled for 2021 (Seashore) and 2022 (Seascape). With Seaside EVO, MSC had a total investment of EUR 10,5 billion into 12 new vessels with scheduled deliveries by 2026. The first of four "World Class" vessels will be delivered in 2022.

In October 2018, MSC and Fincantieri signed an MoA for 4x ultra-luxury expedition (total value EUR 2+ billion). The newbuilds (EXPLORA-class/first unit delivery in 2023-Q3) have GT tonnage 64,000 and 500 cabins. The remaining 3 units are due to enter service one per year (2024-2025-2026).

In 2023, MSC's fleet had 21 liners.

New Carnival Corporation ships 2019-2024

In March 2015 Carnival Corporation ordered 9 vessels to be built by two different companies. Fincantieri SpA (Italy) constructs 5 units (at Monfalcone and Marghera yards), while Meyer Werft BmbH constructs the other 4 units in Germany (Papenburg) and Finland (Turku).

All new liners feature next-generation designs and marine architecture and technologies, each designed accordingly to the brand it serves (Costa, AIDA, Princess, Holland America, CCL-Carnival).

In 2019 was established CSSC Carnival China/ADORA CRUISES - a Chinese-American joint venture company with a separate fleet of 2x ex-Costa ships (Atlantica, Mediterranea) plus 2 newbuilds (2023, 2024).

The next video is about Ponant's new Explorer-Class ships.

New cruise ships (2021-2028) under construction and on order

New riverboats 2021-2026, new river cruise ships 2021-2026.

This survey shows the list of the newest river cruise ships and luxury boats. These are all newbuilds, so the list excludes boats that are chartered to other companies (thus only refurbished and renamed).

For all riverboats tracked at CruiseMapper, you can visit our River Cruises hub where are listed all river shipping companies and their fleets.

New cruiseferries (2021-2027)

Here are listed large-sized new cruise ferries built between 2010-2024. RoRo vessels as types can be ferries (car and passenger ships), cruise ferries (with passenger cabins), cargo ships and freight barges.

At the following taglink are listed all CruiseMapper's news related to new ships .

New Cruise Ships on Order

There's nothing we love more than learning about new cruise ships. The process, from design to keel laying to launch, generally takes two to three years. It gets us excited to see what's coming and who's innovating. We keep track of the larger cruise ships under construction in our story below.

If you're curious about expedition, we've got those covered too: New Expedition and Adventure Cruise Ships , as well as the larger ships: New Cruise Ships on Order .

Note: Dates below are subject to change.

On This Page

New cruise ships in 2024, new cruise ships in 2025, new cruise ships in 2026, new cruise ships in 2027.

Launch Date: May 2024

Tonnage: 113,000

Berths: 2,999

Cunard's first new-build ship since the launch of Queen Elizabeth in 2010, the next-generation Queen Anne will become the largest in the fleet (by passenger capacity) when it debuts in 2024.

The ship will have a completely redesigned interior, which draws on the line's 182-year history while giving the brand a modern aesthetic. This includes a gallery of 4,000 contemporary works, many of them by upcoming artists, inspired by the Cunard archive.

New venues on the ship will include the Bright Lights Society live music venue, where the line says no two nights will be the same. There will be 15 dining venues, including returning favorites such as The Golden Lion Pub, as well as four new specialty restaurants - Aji Wa (Japanese), Aranya (Indian), Sir Samuel’s (steakhouse), and Tramonto (Mediterranean). Celebrity Chef Michel Roux will also be designing a menu for the Queen’s Grill restaurant and the Golden Lion pub.

TUI Cruises Mein Schiff 7

Launch Date: June 2024

Tonnage: 111,500

Berths: 2,900

TUI Cruises is a German brand whose vessels are all named Mein Schiff (My Ship in German) and numbered. So you guessed it, Mein Schiff 7 is the seventh ship of the fleet and identical to her two predecessors. At 111,500 tons, it will feature everything you’d find on any big ship – a main dining room, a buffet, a pizzeria, and specialty restaurants such as a steakhouse and Asian cuisine. Standard accommodations include inside, oceanview, balcony, and suites, as well as several inside and oceanview cabins designed for single occupancy. Swimming pools, hot tubs, a fitness center, a spa, a casino, bars and lounges, a kids’ club, a theater, and boutiques complete the picture.

Mein Schiff 7 will also be the first cruise ship to have the ability to take on methanol, a sustainable and clean fuel currently being developed for use onboard cruise ships.

Royal Caribbean Utopia of the Seas

Launch Date: July 19, 2024

Tonnage: 236,860

Berths: 5,668

The sixth ship in Royal Caribbean's Oasis Class, Utopia of the Seas will be the first in the category to be powered by greener LNG fuel.

An evolution of the class of ships that first debuted more than a decade ago, the line says the signature Oasis Class experience will be combined with brand-new thrills for passengers of all ages. Utopia will boast some impressive numbers, including eight neighborhoods, 20 types of accommodations, including the new Solarium Suites, and more than 20 dining venues. New eateries include The Spare Tire, a pool-side food truck serving light bites, but the most anticipated will be the new Royal Railway - Utopia Station, where a destination-focused dinner will be served onboard an authentic train dining car.

Disney Treasure

Launch Date: December 21, 2024

Tonnage: 144,000

Berths: 4,000

Disney Treasure is the second of Disney Cruises' three 4,000-passenger Wish-class vessels, which are the largest in the fleet, and will be a sister ship to Disney Wish launched in 2022. Inspired by Walt Disney's love of exploration, the line says the adventure-themed vessel will immerse passengers in some of the company's "most legendary" stories. Interior designs will draw on real-world influences from Asia and Africa as well as the fantasy land of Agrabah from Walt Disney Animation Studios' "Aladdin".

Other spaces will pay tribute to Moana and Mulan, and a Coco-themed restaurant Plaza de Coco will offer the first theatrical dining experience, where characters from the film will entertain families during dinner. Adult spaces will be modeled after popular Disney Parks rides: the Haunted Mansion Parlor, a jungle cruise-themed lounge Skipper Society, and Periscope Pub, inspired by 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage.

TUI Cruises Mein Schiff Relax

Launch Date: March 2025

Tonnage: 160,000

Berths: 3,984

Mein Schiff Relax will be the first of German line TUI Cruises’ next generation of ships called the InTUItion class, powered by LNG. The new class will be distinctly different from the previous seven vessels in the fleet. 85 percent of the staterooms will have balconies, including (for the first time) some single occupancy cabins. Also new will be the two-story, two-bedroom Freedom Suite that will sleep up to six. Reflecting its name will be a “feel-good” ambiance onboard, with a focus on spa and wellness, and spacious outdoor areas with terraced seating and an infinity pool. A variety of dining experiences will include Asian, steakhouse, Greek, French, and Alpine cuisine.

MSC World America

Launch Date : April 12, 2025

Tonnage: 215,863

Berths: 6,762

The second of MSC Cruises' LNG-powered World-class ships, World America is sister ship to World Europa and will be the first in the class dedicated to the U.S. market. Sailing in the Caribbean, it will become the line's fourth new flagship to be deployed in the region. The design features a Y-shaped aft structure that leads to a nearly 350-foot long promenade, which is half open and half covered.

The line says aspects of the ship's design and onboard experience will be specifically tailored to appeal to passengers from North America, including 13 dining venues (six will be specialty restaurants) and 20 bars and lounges. The family market will continue to be the focus for MSC Cruises, with elaborate waterparks, a SportsPlex and rollerskating arena, and an 11-story drop dry slide. While no further details have been released, the ship will most likely feature similar amenities as her sister MSC World Europa , which include a new microbrewery, gin bar, healthy juice bar, coffee emporium, and teahouse.

Norwegian Aqua

Launch Date: April 26, 2025

Tonnage: 156,300

Berths: 3,571

The fourth of six Prima-class ships from Norwegian Cruise Line, Norwegian Aqua will be the line's first next-generation Prima Plus class vessel. Slated to launch in spring 2025, it will be NCL's 20th ship and unveil new-to-brand features, including the most spacious accommodations in the fleet, the largest Haven complex, the Glow Court sports complex, and the Aqua Slidecoaster, the world's first hybrid waterslide and roller coaster. Favorites from the Prima class such as the Ocean Boulevard and Infinity Beach outdoor spaces will be back, both of which will be expanded for more spacious lounging and relaxing. In addition to the Studio staterooms, solo travelers will also enjoy an additional choice of inside, oceanview, and balcony accommodations specially designed for one.

Royal Caribbean Star of the Seas

Launch Date: August 31, 2025

Tonnage: 250,800

Berths: 5,610

After the wildly successful launch of Icon of the Seas in 2024, the second ship in Royal Caribbean's Icon Class, Star of the Seas will no doubt be just as highly anticipated. Currently being built for $1.1 billion, the ship will be powered by LNG and use fuel cell technology to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

No specific details have been announced, but the ship is expected to offer the same amenities as its sister ship, which features a neighborhood designed especially for families, the largest waterpark at sea, more than 40 eateries, and the AquaTheater high diving show inside the innovative glass AquaDome. There will be nearly 30 categories of staterooms and suites, including those designed for families, with most allowing triple and quad occupancy, and some will even sleep up to 8.

Virgin Voyages Brilliant Lady

Launch Date: September 5, 2025

Tonnage: 110,000

Berths: 2,770

Richard Branson’s adults-only (18+) cruise line will launch its fourth “Lady Ship” in September 2025 in New York.

Brilliant Lady will be identical to her three sister ships -- Scarlet Lady , Valiant Lady and Resilient Lady - offering 86 percent balcony cabins and 78 suites called Rockstar Quarters. There will be more than 20 eateries onboard, ranging from steaks and seafood to vegetarian, a test kitchen, Mexican, and a Korean Barbeque, all of which are complimentary. A big focus of the Virgin cruise experience is on wellness. Along with a spa and salon, Brilliant Lady will also have an expansive fitness center with a variety of complimentary fitness classes, workout spaces, and a boxing ring. Stylish lounges throughout the ship and pools with DJs make for great spots to chill, and at night, the ship shines with Virgin’s innovative outside-the-box theatrical shows, lively nightclubs, and themed parties.

Star Princess

Launch Date: September 26, 2025

Tonnage: 175,500

Berths: 4,300

The second in a new class of ship for Princess Cruises that will be powered, in part, by LNG fuel. Star Princess will have many of the same features as the first ship in the class, Sun Princess.

There’ll be over 29 bars and restaurants, 1,500 balcony cabins, and sun-lit terraces on the bow and stern of the ship overlooking the ocean, with an infinity pool and lots of places to relax. But the line always likes to add a few surprises, so stay tuned.

Disney Adventure

Launch Date: 2025

Tonnage: 208,000

Berths: 6,000

The largest ship in the Disney fleet is a result of the line buying the partly completed cruise vessel Global Dream after the collapse of former owner Asia Cruises. Although itineraries have yet to be announced, Disney says Disney Adventure will sail in "new global destinations" and will be based outside the U.S. and based in Singapore.

Celebrity Xcel

Launch Date: November 18, 2025

Tonnage: 140,600

Berths: 3,260

The fifth Edge-class ship, Celebrity Xcel will feature a new, more eco-friendly flex fuel engine. Confirmed so far is the number of Edge Single Staterooms with Infinite Verandas for solo travelers has been doubled, and The Retreat suite complex will also have expanded and improved spaces. Celebrity has hinted that the Xcel will have all of the amenities of the previous Edge-class ships but also brand new game-changing experiences, yet to be announced.

Royal Caribbean (Unnamed)

Launch Date: Spring 2026

The third Icon-class vessel has been ordered, with a delivery date set for Spring 2026. No further details have been released.

TUI Cruises (Unnamed)

Launch Date: TBA 2026

The yet-to-be-named ship will be TUI’s second ship of the InTUItion class and will be the sister ship to the Mein Schiff Relax that is slated to enter service in March 2025. No further details have been released.

MSC Cruises (Unnamed)

Tonnage: 205,700

Berths: 5,400

MSC has confirmed the order of another World-class vessel, but no other details have been released.

Norwegian Cruise Line (Unnamed)

The second Prima Plus class vessel has been ordered for delivery in 2026, no further details have been released.

Carnival Cruise Line (Unnamed)

Launch Date: TBA 2027

Tonnage: 180,000

Passengers: 6,400

Carnival has placed an order for its fourth Excel-class ship that will join Mardi Gras , Carnival Celebration and Carnival Jubilee within the fleet. The LNG-powered ship is being built at Meyer-Werft in Germany.

Tonnage: 169,000

Berths: 3,650

Besides confirming the order, no further details have been released by NCL.

MSC has confirmed the order of another World-class vessel, but no further details have been released.

© 1995— 2024 , The Independent Traveler, Inc.

What New Disney Cruise Ships Are Being Built?

March 20, 2024: This article has been updated with the newly-announced name of Disney’s 8th ship, the  Disney Destiny .

Sept 9, 2023: This article has been updated with the newly-announced name of Disney’s 7th ship, the Disney Adventure .

Sept 5, 2023: This article has been updated with several new details about the Disney Treasure , which is scheduled to sail on its maiden voyage on December 21, 2024 .

After ten years with no new ships, Disney Cruise Line is in the process of rapidly increasing the size of its fleet. By the end of 2025, Disney will have eight ships, doubling its fleet size since 2012. Here’s a look at the new Disney Cruise Ships that are currently being built, with all the latest information we have.

Before we begin, let’s take a quick look at the fleet as it stands today:

Ships Currently Operating

• Disney Magic — Maiden Voyage July 30, 1998
• Disney Wonder — Maiden Voyage August 15, 1999
• Disney Dream — Maiden Voyage January 26, 2011
• Disney Fantasy — Maiden Voyage March 31, 2012
• Disney Wish — Maiden Voyage July 14, 2022

And here’s a glance at what’s on the horizon:

Ships Under Construction

• Disney Treasure — Maiden Voyage scheduled for late December 2024
• Disney Adventure (Former Global Dream) — Maiden Voyage expected in 2025
• Disney Destiny — Maiden Voyage expected in 2025

Now, let’s learn a bit more about each of the three ships that are still under construction.

Get Answers to All Your Disney Cruise Questions

Disney Treasure — December 2024

Image © Disney

The sixth ship of the Disney Cruise Line fleet — and the next one to begin sailing — will be named the Disney Treasure.

It’s currently under construction at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany. This is the same shipyard which built three prior Disney Cruise Ships , the Disney Dream, Disney Fantasy, and Disney Wish.

The first of the large “building blocks” which will make up the ship began arriving onsite at the shipyard in November 2022. By March of 2023, one of the recognizable “funnels” had arrived.

You can follow along as more parts of the ship arrive at the shipyard over the coming months by checking out all the videos from the excellent Ems-Dollart Media YouTube channel.

Construction continues to move along swiftly; Disney’s own photographic log of the shipbuilding process shows that the bridge (essentially the “cockpit” of the ship) was installed in late June 2023.

And by early December 2023, both of the iconic funnels had been installed on the ship, already showing hints of their signature red color and Mickey Mouse icon.

As of late March 2024, the superstructure of the ship is essentially complete. Photos released by Disney show the ship fully painted, actually afloat in the water versus in drydock, and now moved to a new location for finishing work as construction work shifts toward the new Disney Destiny (detailed later in this article).

The Disney Treasure afloat at its shipyard on March 27, 2024 | Image © Disney

The Disney Treasure is expected to host its first passengers in late December 2024. It will be a sister ship to the current newest ship, the Disney Wish (which began sailing in 2022) — as well as to the Disney Destiny, which joins the fleet in 2025. This means that these three ships should be generally the same in terms of construction, though some themed elements will vary between the three.

Only a few details have been fully confirmed, but here’s what Disney has announced publicly and what we can estimate based on what we know about its sister ship the Disney Wish.

The overall theme of the ship is “adventure,” as announced at the 2022 D23 Expo.

The ship’s bow will feature artwork of Minnie Mouse in “adventure-ready” attire, while the stern will feature 3D sculptures of Peter Pan and Captain Hook.

The grand hall of the ship is “inspired by the grandeur and mystery of a gilded palace,” with both real-world inspiration (Asia and Africa) and fairy-tale inspiration ( Agrabah ).It will be the first Disney Cruise ship to feature three Disney characters in its atrium lobby statue: Aladdin, Jasmine, and their Magic Carpet (along with the fateful lamp).

On September 5, 2023, Disney released a significant amount of information on what will be included onboard the ship. As expected, some of the offerings are generally in line with what’s found on the Disney Wish — but others are unique to the Treasure.

Here’s a quick glance at some of the spaces and offerings that will be on the ship:

• The usual variety of Inside, Oceanview, Verandah, and Concierge Staterooms
• Four Royal Suites , including Bagheera Royal Suites and Rajah Royal Suites with designs inspired by characters from  The Jungle Book and  Aladdin , respectively.
• An astounding  Tomorrow Tower Suite inspired by EPCOT, in one of the ship’s iconic red funnel smokestacks.
• The  Plaza de Coco restaurant, inspired by the film  Coco , offers themed dining with live Mariachi music and a visit from Miguel
• The  Worlds of Marvel and  1923  restaurants, also found on the Disney Wish
• Palo Steakhouse, Enchanté , and The Rose , adult-exclusive specialty dining / lounges, also found on the Disney Wish
• Jumbeaux’s Sweets , inspired by Zootopia , offers tasty snacks for purchase
• Jade Cricket Café and Heihei Café , inspired by Mulan and Moana
• Periscope Pub , inspired by 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
• Skipper Society , a lounge inspired by the Jungle Cruise attraction
• Haunted Mansion Parlor , a lounge themed to the Haunted Mansion attraction
• Marceline Market and Mickey and Friends Festival of Foods casual dining
• The AquaMouse  features a new Curse of the Golden Egg storyline developed for the Disney Treasure.
• Ten pools plus a  Toy Story Splash Zone
• Disney’s Oceaneer Club  featuring  Marvel Super Hero Academy ,  Fairytale Hall ,  Walt Disney Imagineering Lab ,  Star Wars Cargo Bay , and  Mickey and Minnie Captain’s Deck
• Edge , Vibe , and it’s a small world nursery! for tweens, teens, and toddlers, respectively.
• Live Broadway-style shows in the Walt Disney Theatre, including  Beauty and the Beast , Disney Seas the Adventure , and a new show called Disney the Tale of Moana
• Hero Zone , Wonderland Cinema , and Never Land Cinema , also found on Disney Wish
• Character encounters, music, and shows in the Grand Hall (ship atrium / lobby)
• Sarabi , a “central hub” for daytime activities and adult-exclusive evening entertainment
• DCL-favorite  Senses Spa returns to the Disney Treasure, along with a reimagined  Senses Fitness center
• Tangled Salon and  Hook’s Barbery for beauty treatments

Meyer Werft shipyard – Papenburg, Germany

Maiden Voyage

Dec. 21, 2024

Port Canaveral,  FL

Approximately 144,000 gross tons

19.5 knots cruising speed and 23 knots maximum speed

Liquefied Natural Gas

Crew Members

Maximum capacity.

4,000 passengers

Guest Staterooms

1,256 staterooms, about 90% of which are expected to have either a porthole window or verandah balcony

• 123 inside staterooms
• 185 oceanview staterooms
• 948 verandah staterooms

Passenger Decks

14 passenger decks. Technically, the second floor of the Tomorrow Tower Suite would be a 15th deck, but it’s an isolated space inside the ship’s funnel not accessible to most passengers.

Contact the Disney Cruise experts at The Vacationeer today to start planning your cruise on the Disney Treasure or any of the other ships in the fleet! The Vacationeer offers free cruise booking help with no planning fees . They can help you pick the perfect stateroom , find the ideal itinerary , find the best time to cruise , and answer all your questions.

Then they’ll let you know exactly how much your Disney Cruise will cost with a free, no-obligation quote . If you like what you see, you can reserve your room by paying a small deposit now and then paying the balance over time.

Once you’re booked, your Vacationeer will keep track of all the planning and payment milestones for you — they’ll even watch for new discounts that may be announced after you’ve booked! They’ll even provide a generous onboard credit that can be used toward purchases on the ship.

And because their planning services are free to use, you can rest assured that you’ll get the best price possible without paying any unnecessary fees. So get your free, no-obligation cruise today!

Disney Adventure (former Global Dream ) — 2025

In 2022, it was announced that Disney had purchased a partially-completed cruise ship that was in the process of being built for another cruise line. This announcement was a big shock, as Disney had already surprised fans with an unexpected announcement of Disney Cruise Line’s seventh custom-built cruise ship (see next ship section below) and everyone thought that would be the end of the fleet expansion for the foreseeable future.

This newly-acquired, partially-constructed ship — known at the time as the Global Dream  — was in its fourth year of construction at MV Werften shipyard in Germany as an addition to the fleet of Genting Hong Kong .

But thanks to a series of bankruptcies (involving both the original cruise line and the shipbuilder!), construction was eventually abandoned and the partially-built ship was due to be scrapped.

Disney Cruise Line was long rumored to be interested in acquiring the hull, and the purchase was officially announced in November 2022. Meyer Werft, which has built every Disney Cruise ship since the Disney Dream, will oversee the Global Dream’s completion and its conversion into a Disney Cruise ship.

As you can see in this video originally taken in February 2022 (months before the deal was announced), a significant amount of construction on the ship has already been done. Note that the video pre-dates the Disney purchase but has since been retitled to reflect Disney’s ownership.

Because Disney has come into the project as the ship is already about 75% complete, the former Global Dream is not likely to have a so-called “sister ship” in the Disney fleet; it will be its own vessel without an equivalent.

The ship will not home-port in the United States but rather in Singapore. At the time the purchase was originally announced, Disney indicated that the ship was being purchased specifically to serve “new markets,” and the conventional wisdom of industry observers at the time was that this ship would likely primarily serve Asia — its original target market under the prior cruise line.

On March 29, 2023, Disney and the Singapore Tourism Board announced a five-year exclusive partnership that would base the ship in Singapore once construction is complete in 2025.

Sharp-eyed readers might notice that in the newer concept art, the ship has “lost” one of its three red smokestack funnels and now has only two — mirroring the other ships in the Disney fleet.

Although this is the eighth Disney Cruise Ship to be announced, comments by Disney Parks, Experiences and Products Chairman Josh D’Amaro have repeatedly indicated that it will be the seventh one to enter service.

Disney recently dipped its toes into serving previously-uncharted waters (uncharted by Disney, at least), with its new Australia and New Zealand itineraries. It’s widely believed that the additions of the Disney Wish, Disney Treasure, and the Disney Destiny will give Disney the freedom to reassign some some of its older ships — as well as the former Global Dream ship — to cruise farther-flung itineraries going forward.

The Singapore announcement gives credence to those theories.

Virtually no information about Disney’s new theme for this ship has been released. We did, however, find out its name. On September 9, 2023, Disney announced that it will be known as the Disney Adventure.

Given that it’s a standalone ship with no “sister,” we really don’t have much to compare it to. And given that the ship is expected to target an international audience, it’s unclear if any of the traditional Disney Cruise elements might be adjusted (or completely abandoned) to better match regional travel preferences and customs.

Amusement Park Onboard?

Among the most tantalizing items in the original plans for the Global Dream was mention of an “amusement park” onboard the ship. It’s unknown how extensive that concept was in the first place — much less what (if any) of it will survive now that Disney has taken over. But Disney has been upping its onboard attractions game as of late; the Disney Wish is home to the AquaMouse, which Disney has called its first ever “attraction at sea.” We’ll see if this concept takes forward when the former Global Dream re-launches as a Disney ship.

Casinos Onboard?

The original plans for the ship under its prior ownership also included a casino — Disney doesn’t have casinos on any of its existing ships, so it’s likely that this space will be repurposed for something else on the Disney Adventure. Theoretically, it’s possible Disney could keep the casino given the “new market” targeting, but it’s generally considered unlikely.

One of the two cruise ports in Singapore. Most likely the Marina Bay Cruise Centre , which is better-equipped to handle mega ships such as this one.

The Disney Adventure will be a behemoth! At 208,000 gross tons (based on original Global Dream specs and early indications from Disney), it’s expected to be among the top ten heaviest cruise ships in the world; based on ships currently sailing in 2023, it would rank number 7.

Estimated to be approximately 1,122 feet (based on original Global Dream specs)

Estimated to be approximately 152 feet (based on original Global Dream specs)

Estimated to be approximately 31 feet (based on original Global Dream specs)

Unclear at this time

Green Methanol (based on early indications from Disney)

Estimated to be approximately 2,300 (based on early indications from Disney)

Estimated to be between 6,000 passengers (based on early indications from Disney)

Unclear at this time. Global Dream was originally expected to have about 2,500 staterooms, but it’s likely Disney Adventure could remove some of those to accommodate more common areas. This possibility would be supported by the fact that Global Dream was originally expected to hold about 8,000-9,000 passengers but Disney has indicated it would likely only accommodate somewhere around 6,000 after conversion.

Estimated to have approximately 14 passenger decks, counting both staterooms and common areas such as pools (based on original Global Dream concept art)

Get Answers Without Waiting on Hold

Disney Destiny — 2025

Disney Destiny concept art | Image © Disney

The last ship currently scheduled to be fully built (from start to finish) specifically for Disney’s fleet is due to arrive in 2025.

This ship was somewhat of a surprise in and of itself. Disney originally announced in 2016 that it would be building two new ships. But at the following year’s D23 Expo, the company announced it would actually be building three new ships.

Though the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the expected roll-out of the additions to the fleet, this ship is now expected to hold its maiden voyage sometime in 2025. Although it has long been colloquially known as the “seventh” Disney ship, the addition of the Disney Adventure (previously known as the Global Dream ) to the fleet lineup will likely mean that this ship will actually be the eighth Disney ship to begin sailing with passengers.

Like the Disney Treasure, this ship is expected to be materially similar to the Disney Wish in terms of construction.

On March 20, 2024, we learned that this new ship will be called the  Disney Destiny .

The theme of the Disney Destiny is expected to revolve around the concept of heroes and villains. In announcing the name on March 20, 2024, Disney promised:

… opposing forces of light and dark drive characters to rise to their purpose. Onboard, guests will encounter heroes and villains alike – including those from beloved Walt Disney Animation stories like “The Lion King,” “Hercules” and “One Hundred and One Dalmatians” – within spaces, experiences and entertainment throughout their voyage.

The bow of the ship will feature artwork showing Captain Minnie in her superhero best.

Ship bow artwork | Image © Disney

Disney also released a fun comic book style video to announce the ship’s theme:

Given that it is a sister ship to the Disney Wish, we expect a similar layout in terms of the number of kids’ clubs, restaurants, pools, etc. But we don’t yet know the specific theme of any of them.

Not yet known. Either Port Canaveral or Port Everglades (Fort Lauderdale) are strong possibilities, given that they are the two year-round home ports for Disney Cruise Ships and Disney historically has put its newest ships in Florida — at least to start.

Estimated to be approximately 135,000-144,000 gross tons (based on Disney Wish and Meyer Werft data)

Estimated to be approximately 1,119 feet (based on Disney Wish data)

Estimated to be approximately 128 feet (based on Disney Wish data)

Estimated to be approximately 27.2 feet (based on Disney Wish data)

Estimated to be approximately 221 feet (based on Disney Wish data)

Estimated to be approximately 19.5 knots cruising speed and 23 knots maximum speed (based on Disney Wish data)

Liquefied Natural Gas (based on Disney Wish and Meyer Werft data)

Estimated to be approximately 1,555 (based on Disney Wish data)

Estimated to be approximately 4,000 passengers (based on Disney Wish data)

Estimated to have approximately 1,250 staterooms, about 90% of which are expected to have either a porthole window or verandah balcony (based on Disney Wish and Meyer Werft data)

Estimated to have approximately 14 passenger decks, counting both staterooms and common areas such as pools (based on Disney Wish data)

Can’t Wait for the New Ships? Plan a Disney Cruise Now!

You don’t have to wait for all the new ships to arrive to start planning a Disney Cruise Line vacation. You can book sailings right now on any of the Disney Cruise Ships that are currently in service!

Stick close to Florida with a Caribbean or Bahamian cruise, or take a Disney Cruise to Hawaii onboard the Disney Wonder. Find departure ports closer to home — Port Canaveral , Miami , Fort Lauderdale , San Diego , New Orleans , New York , or Galveston — or make the trip to Vancouver to embark on a wonder-filled Disney Cruise to Alaska ! You can even visit Europe on a Disney Cruise .

The best way to plan your first Disney Cruise is to work with an expert. You can get free help booking your Disney Cruise by contacting The Vacationeer ! As an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner , The Vacationeer books thousands of Disney vacations every year. So you can rest assured that they know what they’re doing!

They’ll get you the right cruise at the right price, right away . And, because you’ll have a one dedicated agent from start to finish , you’ll have a seamless and hassle-free experience . There’s no waiting on hold and no giant call centers or wholesalers — just you and your personal cruise assistant planning the vacation that’s perfect for you.

What’s more, The Vacationeer offers a generous onboard credit of up to $1,000 — that’s free spending money you can use while onboard the ship towards specialty dining, alcohol , spa treatments, excursions , and more.

They don’t charge any planning fees — and your cruise won’t cost a penny more than if you’d booked it yourself. It  might even cost less , thanks to their knowledge of all the latest discounts!

So what’re you waiting for? The sea is calling! (And Vacationeers are standing by!)

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I’m so excited for the Treasure!

Wish the would sail from NY/NJ

Love Disney ships just sad no sailing from New York

Hi Vee — we’re hoping there will be some New York sail dates in the future. They have occasionally skipped a few years but always seem to come back to New York for at least a few sailings. You can keep an eye on our Disney Cruises from New York page to see if anything is announced in the future.

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Goodbye pool deck buffet, hello private 'cabana' decks: This cruise line is getting creative with its newest ship

Princess Cruises isn't a line known for radical change. So, perhaps it should come as no surprise that its next new ship, Sun Princess , won't be wildly different than the 15 vessels already in its fleet.

As I saw this week during a sneak peek at the half-finished ship at the shipyard in Italy where it is under construction, Sun Princess was designed around many of the tried-and-true Princess elements that the line's fans have come to love. It's got a central Piazza lined with cafes, bars, shops and restaurants, for instance, and lots of relatively uncluttered deck-top pool and lounge space.

Still, as a top executive in Princess' shipbuilding program walked me through the vessel's work-in-progress public decks on Wednesday, I began to grasp that, in its hallmark subtle way, Princess had made some significant tweaks to the formula that it has been following for many years.

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For starters, as compared to every other ship in the Princess fleet, Sun Princess just feels bigger — and more spacious. And, indeed, it is.

Under development for more than six years and the first of an all-new series of ships for the line, Sun Princess is about 21% bigger than the biggest ships currently in the Princess fleet. And yet while it's 21% bigger, it's designed to hold just 17% more passengers.

In other words, its space-to-passenger ratio will be greater, making the ship feel roomier — if only modestly.

It's also the first Princess ship with suites that come with exclusive access to a private restaurant, lounge and sun deck — a sign Princess is finally getting serious about pampering its best customers.

In addition, Sun Princess will boast an innovative new type of "cabana cabin" along the ship's extra-wide 10th deck, which will come with access to a private deck area (sort of a riff on the Havana-class cabins found on a handful of Carnival Cruise Line ships). Plus, the top deck of the ship is getting some unusual-for-Princess sizzle with the addition of a glass-dome-topped pool area that will transform into a nightspot after the sun goes down.

With 10 months of construction still to go before Sun Princess is ready to sail, there is much still unfinished on the vessel. I experienced this firsthand as Richard Parker, Princess' director for newbuild guest experience and product development, led me and several other cruise writers on a nearly-three-hour tour of its main public areas.

As is typical at this stage of construction of a new ship, the exterior of Sun Princess and the framing for its interior spaces is mostly complete, but lots of finishing work remains. Many spaces were empty shells with just roughed-in wires and plumbing.

Related: The 9 most exciting new cruise ships of 2023

Still, the outlines of what Princess executives hope will be a transformative vessel for the brand already are starting to take shape.

Here are the most notable new things that I saw in the works after I stepped aboard the 4,300-passenger vessel at the Fincantieri shipyard near Monfalcone, Italy.

Finally, some love for suite guests

Princess is years behind its competitors in offering a top-notch array of suites on ships and all the related amenities that suite-loving cruisers have come to expect — from private restaurants for suite guests to private sun decks. But better late than never, as they say.

Among the most notable new-for-Princess things that are coming together on Sun Princess is a grouping of 50 suite accommodations that Princess is calling the Signature Collection. That's more suites than the line has ever put on a vessel, and they come in a wide range of sizes from a relatively modest 304 square feet (for what's known as a Signature Penthouse Suite) to a sprawling 1,260 square feet (for a Signature Sky Suite).

Even more notably, the suites will come with exclusive access to a private restaurant, a two-deck-high lounge overlooking the ship's wake and an outside sun deck — a first for Princess.

The latter is Princess' first move toward offering the sort of "ship within a ship" upscale suite areas that have been a mainstay on many of the big vessels operated by Norwegian Cruise Line and MSC Cruises for years and that have more recently popped up on Royal Caribbean ships and Celebrity Cruises vessels, too.

"This is really upping the suite game for us," Parker noted during a stop at a yet-to-be-finished space that will be the home of the new restaurant for suite guests.

Unfortunately, Princess didn't cluster all the new suite features in one area, which seems odd given that the line's executives say they started from a blank slate when designing this new class of vessels.

The Signature Restaurant, exclusive to suite guests, is located in a public area off the ship's central Piazza on Deck 7, far from most of the biggest suites. Those accommodations are located at the back of the ship on decks 15, 16 and 17.

And while the Signature Lounge is logically nestled among the biggest suites on Deck 16, it's in an area filled with lowly inside cabins. The suites aren't separated into a private keycard-accessed area like on some ships operated by competing lines.

The Signature Sun Deck, meanwhile, is just above some of the biggest suites. But it's just a breakout section of The Sanctuary, the extra-charge, adults-only lounge area found atop Princess ships. It also seems small given the number of people staying in Signature suites (100, assuming two people for each of the ship's 50 suites).

All in all, I would call it a good start. But Princess still has a ways to go if it wants to offer a truly world-class suite experience.

New Cabana mini-suites

In addition to a broader array of suites, Sun Princess has an unusual new cabin type that has a built-in "cabana" as part of the room configuration. It also comes with a separate private balcony area and special access to a shared private sun deck that is located just in front of the balcony.

If that all seems confusing, it is — until you see it coming together in person. Then it makes sense and seems very cool — even in a very unfinished state.

Picture a balcony cabin that is of normal width but very, very long. Walking into the room from the door, you first pass a bathroom, a bed and a sofa, as you normally would when entering a Princess balcony cabin. But before you reach the balcony, you enter another small room — the cabana. This space is in between the main part of the room and the balcony.

Related: The 5 best places you can visit on a Princess ship

Featuring a daybed and offering the look of a cabana on a cruise line private island, the cabana is like a bonus room that can be opened up from both sides — either extending the size of the interior part of the room or extending the balcony space.

Including the cabana and balcony space, these super-long rooms measure 329 square feet — 40% bigger than a standard Sun Princess balcony cabin.

But the extra lounge space doesn't end there. The new Cabana mini-suites are located on Deck 9, which is wider than most of the other cabin decks on the ship. The extra width has allowed the ship's designers to add private sun decks with hot tubs in front of the cabana mini-suites on each side of the ship.

Each of these private sun decks, called Cabana decks, is a collective space, but one that is only accessible to people staying in Cabana mini-suites.

In addition, each of these cabins is part of what Princess is calling The Reserve Collection, a new category of cabin with upgraded amenities that comes with access to a private restaurant (called, simply, The Reserve Collection Restaurant).

For those of you who have sailed Princess for some time, The Reserve Collection is similar to what Princess used to call Club class.

There are 34 such Cabana mini-suites that open up directly onto the private Cabana deck areas. There also are several dozen more Cabana mini-suites that don't open up onto the private Cabana deck areas but come with access to them.

After seeing the spaces that the Cabana mini-suites that open up onto the Cabana decks will occupy (still heavily under construction), I think they are a great choice for passengers who love spending time on their cabin balconies. You'll have oodles of deck space both within the outline of your room and just outside it for lounging in the sun.

That said, some cruisers who cherish privacy may not like the idea of other passengers being able to walk in front of their balconies — something that will happen as Cabana mini-suite guests access the Cabana decks.

No more buffet on the pool deck

Yes, you read that right. Sun Princess will be the first Princess ship (and one of the few vessels operated by any line) lacking a buffet restaurant on its main pool deck.

Don't worry, buffet lovers: There still will be a buffet-like venue on Sun Princess. It just will be located eight decks below the pool deck, closer to the ship's central Piazza and other interior features.

"There's many reasons why we did it," Parker said of moving the location. "One is the [greater] amount of space [available], but also it gives us instant access to the promenade deck," Parker said.

Called World Fresh Market, the buffet-like eatery will be located on Deck 9, which is where the ship's outside promenade is located. As a result, the food zone can spill out onto the promenade deck.

"Outside, we will have additional food outlets, details to come in the future," Parker said.

Including the outdoor venues, which have yet to be announced, it'll be a giant space with many separate "storefronts" with different food options, Parker suggested.

"One of the feedbacks that we got from our guests is that they want more choice. They want more options. We're going to give them more choice and more options," he said.

While Parker was a bit coy on exactly what World Fresh Market would be like, we got the sense it'll be something like the Indulge Food Hall on Norwegian Cruise Line's new Norwegian Prima , which is our favorite new quick-serve food venue at sea.

As for the lack of a buffet up by the pool, Parker said the line didn't expect that to be a problem for poolgoers. There still will be plenty of places to grab a quick bite up at the top of the ship.

By far the most unusual new feature in the works for Sun Princess is The Dome — a multilevel deck area at the top of the ship that will be covered with what the line says is the first true glass dome ever constructed on a cruise ship.

We didn't get to see The Dome during the tour, as the heavily-under-construction top deck of the ship was off-limits. But Parker showed us drawings of what was planned and offered a detailed explanation.

Located at the front of the ship, The Dome will be an indoor, climate-controlled pool area with tiers of seating facing the bow, such that passengers on multiple levels will have views of where the ship is heading.

But it's at night when the area will really hit its stride — or so Princess is promising. A cover will slide out over the pool, turning it into a stage, and the entire venue will turn into a nightspot that Princess says will have a vibe similar to Florida's South Beach.

Parker said the space would feature state-of-the-art lighting effects and be rigged to allow for aerial performances.

This is a notable development for Princess, which typically doesn't have many over-the-top features on the top decks of its ships.

Compared to many of its big-ship rivals, which have turned the top decks of their ships into floating amusement parks with waterslides, go-kart tracks, roller coasters and more, Princess is known for a more serene, almost "old school" sort of deck-top experience that focuses around relaxing pool and lounge zones.

Note that The Dome planned for Sun Princess seems to be part of a budding cruise trend of sorts, as Royal Caribbean recently unveiled that its next new ship, Icon of the Seas, would have a giant glass dome on its top deck , too. Called the AquaDome, Icon of the Seas' dome will be home to water shows with aerial elements, like the AquaTheaters found on the line's Oasis-class vessels, and — if anything — seems even domier than what Princess is planning.

Other new and revamped venues

Parker hinted that Sun Princess would have a few more new features yet to be announced, including at least one new-for-the-line restaurant. At one point, he pointed to a doorway leading into an off-limits area that he said would house "a new immersive experience, and I'm going to tell you nothing else."

He said the big reveal was yet to come.

Still, for the most part, the key venues under development for the ship will be familiar to Princess fans, if not carbon copies of earlier versions.

During a stop at the ship's main theater, now called the Princess Arena (it's called the Princess Theater on other ships), Parker noted its new-for-Princess in-the-round shape that also can be converted into a more traditional proscenium-type theater and a keyhole-type theater to allow for different types of productions.

"It's a brand-new concept for us," Parker said. "Thinking of shows in the future and things we'd like to do, sometimes the theater as a (traditional) proscenium theater can have limitations. What we've built here is a theater that can reconfigure itself."

The ship's three-deck-high piazza, called the Sun Princess Piazza, also is getting an upgrade that was on display, with a new circular shape, a stage that pops up from the center of the floor for performances and a giant, three-deck-high moveable LED screen that will play a role in evening productions in the space.

Related: The ultimate guide to Princess ships and itineraries

"What you're seeing here is sort of an evolution of the piazza," Parker said, noting that it had been specifically designed as an entertainment venue.

The sides of the Piazza will be glass walls in a sphere shape — constituting the first three levels of what from the outside of the ship will look like giant spheres attached to the sides of the vessel rising nine decks high. Such walls of glass at the sides of the ship are, notably, something that also is in the works for Royal Caribbean's new Icon of the Seas.

"It's actually quite an engineering feat," Parker said as he led us outside onto an open-air promenade area on Deck 7 where we could look up at the rounded structure.

The spheres on the side of the ship, along with The Dome at the top of the vessel, are the origins of the class name for Sun Princess and at least one sister vessel on order for 2025: the Sphere class.

Parker also showed off the ship's main restaurant, which will sprawl over three decks (6, 7 and 8) at the back of the ship. That's a departure for Princess, which typically has split up its main restaurant into two or more spaces in different parts of the ship.

Still, while massive compared to any single restaurant on other Princess ships, it won't have a cavernous feel, as its footprint will be broken up into many smaller nooks, Parker said.

"Even though it's large capacity, you don't get the sense of that capacity because you only see the group around you," he said.

Parker said each of the restaurant's three decks would serve the same menu but at a different level of formality, with the bottom deck reserved for a longer, more formal service and the two decks above getting progressively faster and more casual in their ambiance.

"If you want to just come in and get out, you'll do that on Deck 8, and if you want a more formal dining experience, you'll do that on Deck 6," he said.

Bottom line

Sun Princess won't be a radical departure for Princess, as it'll be built around many of the line's signature features. But in addition to being significantly larger than the typical Princess ship, it'll boast a number of new-for-the-line innovations that could make it a Princess fan favorite.

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Exclusive: Behind the Scenes Construction Photos of Princess’ Groundbreaking New Ship

Doug Parker

• March 11, 2023

I just got back from Fincantieri shipyard in Malfacone, Italy, where Princess Cruises’ latest ship, Sun Princess , is coming together… one weld at a time.

When completed, the 175,500 gross registered ton ship will be the largest vessel in the Princess fleet. And while she still has a long way to go, some of the signature elements one expects from the line can already be spotted in these photos.

Other elements, including many which will be unique to Sun Princess , aren’t yet in evidence.

Years In the Making

Building a cruise ship is a complex and time-consuming process that requires years of planning, designing and, eventually, construction. Just ask Richard Parker, director of newbuilds for Princess Cruises. Parker — no relation, by the way — said he’s been waiting six years to see Sun Princess come together.

While Princess Cruises is a division of Carnival Corporation, and this ship will be powered by LNG, it is not — as some have assumed — an Excel-class ship like those built by Carnival Cruise Line, Costa Cruises, and P&O Cruises. Rather, this Sphere-class ship was designed from the ground up as a collaboration between Princess and Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri.

Building a Cruise Ship

From the initial concept to the final launch, every aspect of a cruise ship’s construction must be carefully considered and executed. It’s also something of a balancing act, as form and function need to co-exist. Safety is obviously the top priority, but other factors such as how each element fits both literally (in a construction sense) and figuratively (in the overall vision of the designers) must be taken into consideration.

Once the design is finalized, the actual construction of the ship gets underway, beginning with the laying of the keel — aka the bottom of the ship— in place. Once the most basic of steps have been completed, assembling the various components and systems of the vessel — including the hull, engines, propulsion system, electrical wiring, and pipes — can begin.

To visit a shipyard during the process is to witness the very definition of “organized chaos.” To the casual observer, it seems impossible to believe that the pile of pipes to your left and wiring to your right will become essential to the operation of the vessel.

Yet nothing is left to chance as each individual element eventually becomes part of the larger whole that is taking shape.

After the ship’s structural components and systems are in place, the interior fitting and outfitting phase begins. This is when the ship begins looking more like what passengers expect to see. Furniture is brought in, and previously empty spaces morph into dining rooms and theaters and staterooms.

In early March, Sun Princess was floated out from the dry dock (where it was built) and taken to the wet dock (where it’ll be finished).

What Makes This Ship Different?

Given the massive amount of money a line invests into each new ship, it won’t surprise you to learn that they do a great deal of marketing in order to determine what guests want. And while that’s a never-ending process that helps them decide everything from itineraries to carpet designs, it starts long before a ship is even designed.

Based on feedback from guests, here are some of the ways in which Sun Princess will differ from the line’s previous offerings.

1. The World Marketplace Buffet — which on other Princess ships is located on the upper pool deck — will here be moved down to deck nine, which will allow guests to enter from one of the open promenade areas.

2. The Princess Arena has the ability to be configured in three different ways: What’s known as the “end-stage” (as in traditional theaters); in-the-round (with the stage in the center and guests surrounding on all sides); and the proscenium setup (which is more in line with a classic opera house).

3. Sun Princess will have one of the first casino spaces at sea to feature an air purification system pumping 100 percent clean air onto the gaming floor. It’ll also feel very roomy with high ceilings.

4. The main dining room will span decks six, seven, and eight. And in another first, each level will offer a slightly different dining experience as well as level of formality. The space will also have floor-to-ceiling windows offering wake views and lots of natural light.

5. The Dome — a literal glass dome perched atop the ship — will feature indoor/outdoor pools and, at night, transform into a South Beach-inspired entertainment venue.

6. The Wake View Terrace — sitting at the back of the ship, as one might expect — will be a resort-like patio that extends over the aft end of the ship with an infinity pool, bar, and entertainment offerings.

7. There will be new categories of staterooms and 100 adjoining cabins. The cabana staterooms come with access to a private patio, along with cove balconies on deck six.

8. Every stateroom will now have a sitting couch, multiple USB outlets, and showers with glass doors as well as a shaving bar for the ladies. Also announced was eliminating the walk-in closet and using closet storage like most cruise ships have when you walk in. “By eliminating the walk-in closet, we were able to add more usable square footage to the stateroom,” Parker said.

9. A move towards a ship-within-a-ship concept of sorts. Guests in the Signature Collection staterooms will have a dedicated restaurant, lounge, and amenities. These features will not, however, be in a separate space with keycard-access (as with NCL’s The Haven or MSC’s Yacht Club).

For instance, the Signature Collection dedicated dining room will be located off one of the promenades. Guests will also have access to their own sun deck, which is an extension of the pay-for-use sanctuary space.

Looking Ahead to 2024

Although a great deal of information was shared with us during the tour, some details were not revealed… including venues that have not yet been announced.

For example, there’s a mysterious black door found on deck eight, behind which a unique experience supposedly will be found. (Perhaps an old-time “speakeasy” at sea? Only time will tell… )

When Sun Princess debuts next February, she’ll spend her inaugural season in the Mediterranean before repositioning to Port Everglades (Fort Lauderdale) in the fall.

As the ship enters her final stages of construction, more photos and details will no doubt be forthcoming.

Until then, all we can do is wait to see what else Princess Cruises has in store for us aboard this innovative, groundbreaking ship.

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Royal Caribbean Now Has 3 Cruise Ships Under Construction

Royal Caribbean has four more cruise ships entering service over the next several years and three of those vessels are currently under construction at shipyards in Turku, Finland and Saint-Nazaire, France.

Last month, Royal Caribbean cut the first piece of steel on their second Icon class ship. The vessel is currently unnamed and scheduled to enter service in 2025. If keeping with the cruise line’s tradition of making sister ships slightly larger than previous ones, it will be the largest cruise ship ever built when she makes her debut.

The vessel is under construction at Meyer Turku shipyard in Turku, Finland.  The ship’s name, homeport, and itineraries have yet to be announced.

Also under construction at the same shipyard is Icon of the Seas. Icon of the Seas is the first of a new generation of cruise ships from Royal Caribbean and it is promising to be the ultimate family vacation. The cruise line stated that the ship will redefine cruise vacations for years to come.

Icon of the Seas will debut as the largest cruise ship in the world when she sets sail for the first time in early 2024.

The cruise ship will have over 40 food and beverage options with more than half of them being new concepts from Royal Caribbean.

It will be the first mainstream cruise ship to have escalators to move guests from one area of the ship to another with greater efficiency.

Icon of the Seas will have the largest swimming pool on any cruise ship and will also have the world’s first suspended pool at sea.

The cruise ship will have a new neighborhood just for families where they will be able to spend the entire day and will have a little of something for everyone.

A waterpark will be on the top deck that will have six waterslides including the tallest drop slide at sea.

Royal Caribbean is also adding more deck chairs and shade than ever before.

Icon of the Seas will have Royal Caribbean’s first infinite balcony staterooms. The ship will have a combination of traditional balcony and infinite balcony so guests can choose the perfect type of cabin for their needs.

Icon of the Seas will homeport at PortMiami.  The ship will offer seven night cruises to the Eastern and Western Caribbean leaving every Saturday starting on January 27, 2024. View Itineraries on Icon of the Seas

The third cruise ship that Royal Caribbean currently has under construction is Utopia of the Seas, the 6th and likely final Oasis class vessel.

The Oasis class from Royal Caribbean ushered in a new era of cruise vacations when they first debuted over a decade ago.

Utopia of the Seas is being built at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France. It will be the first Oasis class ship powered by LNG and it will be the most environmentally friendly of the class.

Utopia of the Seas is scheduled to enter service in the spring of 2024.  The cruise line has yet to give many details on this new ship. We do know that it will be slighter larger than Wonder of the Seas, the largest Oasis class ship.

However, we should know soon where the ship will homeport and itineraries that will be offered on the vessel.

Royal Caribbean also has one more ship on order, a third Icon class vessel. It will likely be another year before construction starts on the ship since it is not scheduled to debut until 2026.

Learn the cruise secrets most people don't know and cruise like a boss. Check out Intelligent Cruiser here for a better cruise vacation. (Sponsored)

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The Ten Stages of Building Cruise Ships

From steel-cutting to maritime traditions

It feels like a new ship is being launched every other month currently, and to be honest, you would be right.

The cruise industry is undergoing explosive growth right now and the thirst for bigger, better and more exciting ships has never been so great!

The Initial Order

Everything starts with an order. Although shipyards around the world are pretty busy, we’re not quite at a stage yet where rival cruise lines are buying construction slots “just in case” then selling them as airlines do with planes.

Generally, a shipyard will have several ships being built at the same time, all in various different stages and many ships placed in their order books as either confirmed or as ‘an option’ – which allows the cruise line to cancel or postpone the build if necessary.

It is at this stage that the cruise line will announce they’ve placed an order for a new ship and it is usually around 3-4 years away. No name or any details is given at this stage, just the tonnage, possible class of ship (for example a sister ship or a brand new design) and usually the passenger capacity.

The Steel-Cutting Ceremony

By the time we get to the steel-cutting ceremony, the cruise line is starting to generate some press about their new ship. At this point, the ship is usually given a name publicly, although in some instances she may still only have a build number which is referenced on her hull. The first steel is cut in front of senior management from the cruise line, the shipyard and the press. What you’ll actually see doesn’t really resemble anything but laser-cut steel at this point!

This process continues for months as the shipyard creates lots of pieces of steel all cut into different shapes and sizes which are then welded together to make sections or ‘blocks’.

The Keel-Laying Ceremony

The next important part of building a ship is the laying of the keel. The keel is the lowest (or bottom) of any ship and will be part of the first block that is lowered by massive cranes into the dry dock or basin as it is sometimes called.

At this point, there is usually a coin laying ceremony . Specially commissioned gold coins are laid in the keel block to symbolise good luck. Sometimes they are welded in and at other times, they are just placed in and then retrieved later on and then used in a mast stepping ceremony, where the coins are welded under the bottom of the main ship’s mast. These days cruise ships don’t have a mast like sailing ships and therefore they are placed under or attached to the very bottom of the radar mast and left on display.

The coin ceremony is carried out by the Godmother ( Madrina ) of the ship. The Godmother at this point isn’t the same as the official Godmother that will name the ship when she is finished, instead, it may be someone important from the cruise line or occasionally two people, one from the shipyard and another from the cruise line.

The keel is then laid with exact precision, usually using GPS coordinates which are accurate to the centimetre. We now have (part) of the bottom of the new cruise ship!

As modern ships are now built by block (like Lego!), there is an ongoing process in the shipyard. Engineers will construct new blocks in one area of the shipyard whilst in another area large cranes will lower completed blocks into the dry dock and more engineers will weld together the large sections. These sections can commonly weigh in at 150 tonnes or more with ease.

Eventually, you end up with something on the outside looking like a cruise ship. Although the inside is generally bare at this point apart from structural things like decks and staircases. Temporary lifts will be fitted at the side of the ship and large equipment and more steel will be either lifted or craned onto the ship.   From the outside, your ship will look a familiar shape, but her paintwork will be patchy in places and she may not have any glass or outdoor facilities fitted yet.

As the months progress the ship has her azipods fitted (propellers fitted to large shafts which can rotate 360 degrees allowing the ship to move in any direction) and she is now pretty much waterproof, at least from below.

The Float Out

The Float Out is a large milestone in any ship’s build. At this point, there are 100s of workers working on every area of the ship, sometimes in rolling 24/7 shifts depending on how quick the cruise line wants their ship and how many ships the shipyard has on their order books!

By now, cabins – which are usually made in a factory nearby and prefabricated are literally craned or lifted onto the ship and then slotted in next to each other like jigsaw pieces. The plumbing and wiring are connected to each cabin or “pod” and it is ready to go – just needing bedding and other small furniture items adding!

The ship gets to a point where it is ready to be moved out of the dry dock for the first time. Press are gathered, cruise line management, workers who have helped build the ship and even some local dignitaries may also attend. There is a speech, generally by the Chief Engineer and he gives thanks to the builders and talks about the milestones they completed and then the shipyard and cruise line representatives also give speeches.

Then, the Godmother (still not the official one that will name it!) will smash a bottle of champagne over the bow of the ship and everyone will gather at the rear of the ship as the dry dock is flooded for the first time.

Depending where the ship is being built, other maritime traditions may also take place – commonly a sample of the first water to touch the ship’s hull is collected and kept in a sealed bottle (called an ampoule) . It is then presented to the Captain of the ship who will have it on display in his office near the Bridge.

Now the ship is floated out it will be moved to another part of the shipyard for the rest of the fit-out.

The fit-out can usually take months and the ship is usually alongside in the shipyard whilst the next ship to be built is being put together in the drydock. The shipyard operates like a game of chess as ships move in and out of the drydock area and alongside to maximise productivity.

The Sea Trials

The ship still isn’t complete, glass and various other parts might be visibly missing from the ship. But it is now time to test the ship at sea. Commonly sea trials last from a day to several depending on how complex the ship is, especially if it is a new class. The ship will be loaded with the crew, shipyard officials and also representatives from the insurance companies and also people like the British MCA (Maritime & Coast Agency) who will certify the ship as seaworthy.

The ship will perform various manoeuvres including seeing how quick she can stop, a compass swing (to calibrate the ship’s compasses) and the crew will also get used to how she handles at different speeds. No two cruise ships are generally the same, especially when technology changes at such a fast pace, a ship built just a year later may benefit from better hull design or more efficient engines.

After the sea trials, the ship is brought back alongside or even into a drydock again whilst her internal fit out is completed and her hull and the rest of her external paintwork is completed.

The Handover Ceremony

At the handover ceremony, senior representatives from the shipyard, the cruise line and the press are in attendance. At this point, the ship looks like a ship you could board tomorrow – however, it is probably empty of supplies and the majority of the crew will be flying in from all around the world to join the ship for the very first time.

The ship will load some basic supplies and may set sail to its homeport or wherever the naming ceremony is taking place.

The Shakedown Voyage

This voyage is nothing like a cruise you would want to experience! During this voyage, which may last anywhere from 1-7 days the ship will relocate from the shipyard to its new homeport for the season or where it will be named.

The shakedown voyage will possibly include a full ship. Certainly, all crew will be on board, learning everything about their new workplaces. The passenger cabins may also be occupied with workmen from the shipyard installing and carrying out finishing touches around the ship. Additionally, marketing staff will join the ship at this point and take all those lovely photos and videos of the ship whilst everything is looking brand new and is free of passengers!

The Inaugural Voyage

Not all cruise lines do this, but some do sell a pre-maiden voyage if the ship is looking like it will be completed earlier than expected.

The inaugural voyage is sometimes for members of the media and travel agents only. It can last anything from 1-3 nights and sometimes it might not even be a full voyage but could just be alongside in the homeport whilst invited guests come to visit and tour the ship.

The Christening Ceremony

This ceremony is the final milestone in the ship going to sea and starting its life with paying passengers. A large naming ceremony is very popular, with representatives from the cruise line, shipyard, cruise industry and the media all in attendance. Depending on the cruise line the Godmother might be someone who is famous, Royalty or tradition. It might even be someone who won a competition!

The Godmother blesses the ship and smashes a bottle of champagne across her bow. The tradition goes if the bottle doesn’t break on the first time, it is bad luck!

The Maiden Voyage

This is what you all have been waiting for, right? The ship is now ready for paying passengers to enjoy the very first voyage on the ship – in restaurants that haven’t been eaten in and beds that haven’t been slept in! The Maiden Voyage is usually quite special and may actually be a repositioning voyage rather than a normal itinerary. The cruise line may choose to give everyone who travels special commemorative gifts to mark the maiden voyage. This can sometimes be drawn out to a Maiden Season as the ship visits new ports for the very first time on each cruise.

After this, the ship will keep on performing cruises day-in-day-out, without stopping until her next dry dock. Legally the ship must undergo a dry dock for a full hull inspection every five years, at that point cruise lines usually refurbish carpets, cabin materials and sometimes reconfigure bars or restaurants depending on the current trends. Sometimes some ships may perform a dry dock period sooner if the cruise line wants to increase the number of cabins or facilities onboard.

We hope you enjoyed this article about building cruise ships – if you want to see more of what we do, then Like our Facebook page , Follow us on Twitter or Instagram and come and join our Cruise Fans group !

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Cargo ship hit by missile in Gulf of Aden in suspected attack by Yemen Houthi rebels

Missile attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels have struck two ships in the Gulf of Aden, the latest assaults on shipping in the region

MANAMA, Bahrain -- Missile attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels struck two ships in the Gulf of Aden, authorities said Sunday, the latest assaults on shipping in the region.

One anti-ship ballistic cruise missile hit the Antigua- and Barbuda-flagged cargo ship Norderney forward station late Saturday, starting a fire that those on board put out, the U.S. military's Central Command said. It added that a second anti-ship cruise missile also hit the Norderney.

The British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center similarly reported the attack and fire in the same area off Aden, saying “damage control is underway."

Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree claimed the attack in a prerecorded video message Sunday, saying the vessel had been targeted with both missiles and drones. Tracking data analyzed by The Associated Press showed the Norderney was still in the Gulf of Aden on Sunday afternoon.

In a second attack, a Houthi ballistic missile hit the Tavvishi, a Liberian-flagged, Swiss-owned-and-operated container ship in the Gulf of Aden, Central Command. Saree claimed the attack happened in the Arabian Sea, but provided no evidence. Tracking data suggested the Tavvishi was in the Gulf of Aden at the time of the attack.

The “Tavvishi reported damage but has continued underway,” Central Command said. A second ballistic missile fired by the Houthis at the ship was intercepted by a coalition warship, it added.

Saree also claimed an unreported attack on a warship, without providing any evidence to support his claim. The Houthis have exaggerated some of their attacks since launching their campaign.

The Houthis, who seized Yemen’s capital nearly a decade ago and have been fighting a Saudi-led coalition since shortly after, have been targeting shipping throughout the Red Sea corridor over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. They say the attacks are aimed at stopping the war and supporting the Palestinians, though the attacks often target vessels that have nothing to do with the conflict .

The war in Gaza has killed more than 36,000 Palestinians there, while hundreds of others have been killed in Israeli operations in the West Bank. It began after Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing about 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostage.

The Houthis have launched more than 50 attacks on shipping, killed three sailors, seized one vessel and sunk another since November, according to the U.S. Maritime Administration. A U.S.-led airstrike campaign has targeted the Houthis since January, with a series of strikes May 30 killing at least 16 people and wounding 42 others, the rebels say.

But while gaining more attention internationally, the secretive group has cracked down at dissent at home. Eleven Yemeni employees of United Nations agencies and others working for aid groups have been detained by the Houthis under unclear circumstances, as the rebels face increasing financial pressure and airstrikes from the U.S.-led coalition. The rebels also recently sentenced 44 people to death .

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Inside My Week-Long Bar Crawl Aboard the World’s Biggest Cruise Ship

All said, i had at least one drink from 16 of the 18 bars across icon of the seas. and lived to tell the tale..

When I think about cruises, I think about booze.

To me, cruise ships are about abundance: a grand, floating lesson in what it means to try to meet the demands, desires, and needs of every passenger on board. As someone who has been following the years-long story of Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas, the world’s biggest cruise ship, I knew that this ship was the most extreme attempt at this yet. I was acutely aware of how all eight “neighborhoods,” or themed areas of the ship, were engineered to offer something for every kind of traveler and cater to just about everyone’s idea of the perfect vacation. And cocktails, which appear in just about every corner of a cruise ship, are a stirrable representation of that nearly-impossible promise.

The FOMO began to hit me as I approached the ship on a shuttle bus from the airport. Every gap between the buildings and parking garages of PortMiami revealed a new sliver of the ship—a tangle of waterslides on the top deck, a gleaming wall of glass balconies, the infamous “ human lasagna ” cross-section view of the aft. It was like a skyscraper, laid down sideways to float on the water. If you stood her up, she’d come in just a little more than 50 feet shy of the Empire State Building.

Was I ready to go down all six waterslides, soak in all seven pools, and tackle the many other shows, attractions, and forms of entertainment on offer? Absolutely not. At most, I was about 50% prepared to take on the world’s largest floating family vacation machine.

I was, however, very confident in my ability to sip my way through Icon’s dizzying array of drinking establishments, including 10 entirely new bar concepts exclusive to the ship. And when all was said and done, I’d had at least one beverage from a whopping 16 of the 18 bars across the ship.

Sure, the ship may be billed as the “ultimate vacation,” but for me, it was the ultimate bar crawl. Then again, maybe those are one in the same.

DAY ONE: slowing to a crawl

Despite finding myself in the open-air, tropical-themed parade of the Chill Island neighborhood on Deck 15 of the ship, my chill had yet to reappear. I couldn’t shake the feeling that’d been growing since the bus ride to the ship. It felt like standing atop an anthill, with thousands of people—enough to fill a small town—pouring through the highly engineered maze of corridors and spaces of the decks above and below me. The race was on to figure out where to go and what to do for the rest of the evening, but for the sake of my sanity, I decided all of that could wait. It was time to get a drink in my hand.

Thus, my bar crawl began.

To be clear: Bar crawl, not booze cruise. The term “booze cruise” feels redundant to me, as someone whose entire sailing experience usually revolves around when and where to drink. It also turns out that the term’s original meaning doesn’t quite make sense here. While I’d always assumed it had some sort of connection with drinking (booze) and maritime adventures (cruising), it’s actually a bit of British slang. The Brits would flock to nearby countries to take advantage of lower prices and taxes for alcohol and other vices, hauling bulk wine home via booze cruises.

Yeah, it’s fun to say, but “bar crawl” is more fitting.

Speaking of which, when you inevitably end up on the upper decks after setting out to explore Icon of the Seas for the first time, The Lime and the Coconut bar is there waiting for you. It’s the ultimate island bar with its Caribbean-themed decor, large menu of tropical-themed cocktails displayed on driftwood planks arranged on the wall, and proximity to the biggest pools and hottest whirlpools. Moreover, the bar’s highlighter-orange high-top chairs are a great vantage point for afternoon people-watching, just as daytime transitions to nightlife.

After taking my seat, I ordered a Watermelon ‘Rita of astonishing sweetness. I associate margaritas with a high ABV, so it felt like a safe bet to get the cruise bar-crawl party started compared to other tropical-style drinks on the menu like the Planter’s Punch (rum, pineapple juice, orange juice, lime juice, grenadine) or the Lime & Coconut (Malibu, coconut milk, coconut syrup, guava syrup, lime juice). While it only got me about halfway to the let-loose buzz I was looking for, it was pleasant to sip as a steel drum band played a beach-themed soundtrack, and as I watched people already simmering in a nearby hot tub as if the Steamfresh bag of Miami air wasn’t enough for them.

Boom: I officially shifted into cruise mode. At last.

There’s a time and place for astonishingly sweet drinks and, naturally, that time is pretty much any moment you find yourself poolside on a cruise ship. There are a few reasons for this. First, the types of beverages people gravitate toward on vacation—like piña coladas, strawberry daiquiris, and frozen margaritas—are all sugary by design. They’ve also got to be visually pleasing enough to warrant a photo, so additional fruit juices and syrups are brought in for aesthetics. I suspect that there’s a cost-savings element as well since it’s probably cheaper when bartenders use more flavored syrups and less liquor.

“Most people, when they go on a cruise, they’re looking for some sort of escapism,” explains Naren Young, a mixologist and creative director at Sweet Liberty in Miami Beach who was recently aboard a Virgin Voyages cruise for an event at sea and did some guest shifts behind the bar. “Often that escapism means tropical drinks, whether it’s piña coladas, sex on the beaches—things that feel like they’re party drinks and they’re fun and they’re pretty with an umbrella in them. With that inherently comes a lot of sugar.”

The margarita went down fast, mostly because it wasn’t all that strong, and that meant plotting my next destination—namely, a bar at the very back of the ship in the adults-only neighborhood known as The Hideaway. The Hideaway’s got it all. Two ultra-wide whirlpools. A ton of seating scattered across multiple terrace-like levels. A shallow infinity pool that’s suspended high above the kid’s waterpark neighborhood, Surfside, seven decks down. Incredible views of much smaller cruise ships docked at the port with downtown Miami not too far off in the distance.

The best part, though, are the vibrant tropical drinks paired with bumping Miami Beach-like DJ vibes. Case in point: the bright-orange, mai tai-inspired Oh Mai Gawd, you know, because you have to order the drink that sounds like a Long Island accent. It comes with a pretty little orchid on top, which also makes you want to say “gawd” like you’re from Massapequa. In fact, almost every drink comes with some sort of floral or herbal garnish. The slightly sweet Bloom & Botanical that I ordered next arrived with a sprig of fresh mint that played nice with its mix of gin, elderflower liqueur, and blueberry.

My third destination, Rye & Bean, took me to the opposite end of the ship—all the way to the AquaDome, the Beluga melon-like glass structure that sits atop the ship’s bridge like a reflective helmet. Looking back, this was accidentally strategic for a couple of reasons: The long walk took me through additional areas of the ship and I found some much-needed snacks along the way, including grab-and-go chicken quesadillas from El Loco Fresh that reminded me of Taco Bell.

At the Rye & Bean, which offers both regular coffee drinks like lattes as well as coffee-based cocktails (hence, the name), the espresso martinis are on tap. Each is poured from a Ketel One-branded machine that unbeknownst to me has been around for a long time now. They hold about 30 espresso martinis and dispense each in about 20 seconds. If you’ve ever made this drink from scratch or watched a bartender do the same, you’ll very much appreciate this countertop engineering marvel. The speed was great, yes, but I particularly enjoyed the consistency from round to round, which frankly isn’t something you experience much on a cruise ship with hundreds of bartenders.

While outdoor bars like The Hideaway wow you with their views, Rye & Bean puts on a different kind of show. The sleek bar, with its earth tones and mid-century modern finishes, is just feet away from the AquaTheater, the high-tech performance venue that combines high diving, robotic arms, trapeze-like rope lifts, and a dizzying array of lights for the ship’s marquee aquatic shows.

In the short time I spent there, sipping one espresso martini after another, several members of the cast rehearsed a series of stunts scored by a jarring medley of snippets from major film soundtracks, including “The Imperial March” from Star Wars , the main theme from the Star Trek movies, the main theme from Pirates of the Caribbean , a cover of Elvis’ “Can’t Help Falling in Love” from Blue Hawaii , and “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” by Aerosmith and from Armageddon . The floor of the stage folds away to reveal a half moon-shaped diving pool. A woman in a red dress glided over the water via the lift ropes, dancing in the air.

The show definitely supercharged my buzz. I was finally feeling alive and ready for more. Then again, it could have just been the caffeine from the espresso martinis talking.

DAY TWO: Embracing cheesy cruise culture

After a thrilling morning at the waterpark, it only made sense to keep my bathing suit on and take a beverage break at Swim & Tonic, Royal Caribbean’s first-ever swim-up bar on a ship and winner of the award for cheesiest name of all time.

I first heard about Royal Caribbean’s plans for Swim & Tonic in October 2022, when I visited the company’s Miami headquarters for a virtual reality-powered preview of Icon. Myself, along with a few other reporters, donned 3D glasses and clunky padded footwear before stepping in a closet-sized “cave” of a room covered with displays from floor to ceiling, which together with highly detailed renderings, simulated a walking tour of the ship. When we arrived at Swim & Tonic, and the name sunk in, the whole thing was briefly derailed by a chorus of groans. The Royal Caribbean reps looked so pleased with themselves. It was exactly the reaction they were looking for.

After all, cruise culture is built on cheesy names. Look no further than what these companies decide to name their ships. The Carnival Glory? The Disney Wish? Ovation of the Seas? They’re silly, but memorable. And the further you submerge yourself in the cruise Kool-Aid while sailing, the more you begrudgingly enjoy them. You begin to speak the language of puns, sometimes out of pure necessity while navigating the ship.

And particularly in the case of Swim & Tonic, I’ll let it slide. I love gin and tonics, and the whole menu is a long list of fun takes on the drink. I opted for the bar’s signature spin on the classic, dubbed the Iconic G&T. On a scale of noticeably sweet to Astonishingly Sweet™, it was somewhere in the middle and perfectly refreshing while sitting half-submerged at a narrow table mid-pool, soaking up as much of the warm sunlight as I could between dark gray clouds.

The antidote to cruise cheese

The 1400 Lobby Bar has a magical draw to it. It’s hard not to wander into the crowd there while walking along the Royal Promenade. It’s the first place you see upon boarding the ship and the last thing you see before stepping onto the gangway to exit into the terminal, so it was clearly designed with powerful first impressions in mind.

The glassy emerald ceramic bar wall, the slick white stone bar top with built-in lamps every couple of feet, the tree of wooden slats that connects the bar to the ceiling, the bartenders dressed in white collar shirts under forest green aprons with leather accents and flat caps, the volume of the crowded room—they all come together for immaculate vintage vibes.

The 1400 Lobby Bar has a magical draw to it. It’s hard not to wander into the crowd there while walking along the Royal Promenade.

This is where Royal Caribbean PR and execs hosted a press conference and demo immersion—for me and the many other members of the media aboard this sailing—all about the beverage concepts created for Icon of the Seas. Ed Eiswirth, director of beverage operations at Royal Caribbean, led the talk and detailed some of the reasoning behind the elaborate bar concepts onboard and the beverages they serve. He was joined by noted mixologist Tony Abou Ganim, who was among the three experts they brought on to develop the more than 100 new cocktails—a third of which are non-alcoholic—for the ship as well as Alex Palmeri, the company’s manager of beverage operations.

“We will make the most kickass piña colada you’ve ever tasted, if that’s what the guest comes on wanting, but we wanted to change the way the world pictures drinking on cruise ships,” Eiswirth said. “We really wanted to take a lot of care into comparing the experiences on board with the same experiences guests have at home. If they want to go to a craft cocktail bar, they’ve got a craft cocktail bar. If they want to go relax and have light, refreshing drinks at a place they feel good bringing their kids to, we have Lemon Post. If they want to enjoy jazz with some classic New York and New Orleans cocktails—granted, with our spin on it—we have Lou’s.”

All that said, it’s actually a challenge to get people to step out of their sweet, tropical drink comfort zone to try new things when at sea, according to Eiswirth. This is especially true if they don’t buy the beverage package, which can cost up to $105 per person per day, and have to pay $10-$14 per drink, plus gratuity.

1400 has a flagship cocktail that’s basically made to get you Instagram likes called The Fourteen Hundred. While not a card-holding member of the Astonishingly Sweet™ drink club, it’s a sweet and citrusy tequila concoction that the bartenders pour into martini glasses and—for extra wow-factor and Instagram worthiness—use a temperamental bubble blaster gun to top it with a jiggly, shimmering bubble. As such, everyone calls it “the bubble drink.”

Whenever one is ordered, the tricky bubble-making process draws the attention of everyone nearby. At one point, there were 10 lined up on the bar in front of me, awaiting their bubble crowns, which was no easy feat for the bartender because, per my unscientific observations, the bubble guns produce sturdy, lasting bubbles only about two-thirds of the time. So several misfires in a row quickly left a haze in the air in their aftermath.

Are these drinks worth all the trouble? I wasn’t quite sure after having one myself. For one, it was too sweet for me (I blame the glittery “shimmer syrup” they add to it), and two, the bubbles popped before or during my attempt to clink in a cheers. If the bubble doesn’t pop on its own first, you have to burst it with your tongue, nose, or finger (there’s no good way), and a cloud of enchanting aromatized smoke engulfs your face. The whole spectacle lasts for only a few seconds, and when the smoke clears, you’re left with a basic tequila cocktail.

The process is fun to watch, though, especially when a crowd forms around the bar just to see the bubblepalooza unfold. Bottom line: It’s a helluva way to convert piña colada drinkers to craft-cocktail connoisseurs.

DAY THREE: A perfect day for… a piña colada

Perfect Day at Coco Cay. That’s the name of Royal Caribbean’s private island and the sole destination of this preview cruise (Icon now does seven-night, multi-stop tours of the eastern and western Caribbean). The tiny spec of land in The Bahamas is little more than a series of beaches surrounding a cluster of restaurants, bars, and an extensive waterpark that’s crowned with the tallest waterslide in North America.

A perfect day at Perfect Day at Coco Cay starts with Royal Caribbean’s infamous remake of “Lovely Day” by Bill Withers in which they replaced the word “lovely” with “perfect.” The cruise director blasts it over the tinny ship intercom after the morning’s general announcements:

Then I look at you And the world’s alright with me Just one look at you And I know it’s gonna be A perfect day (Perfect day, perfect day, perfect day, perfect day) (Perfect day, perfect day, perfect day, perfect day) A lovely day (Perfect day, perfect day, perfect day, perfect day) (Perfect day, perfect day, perfect day, perfect day)

New to the island as of this year is The Hideaway, an adults-only spot with exclusive amenities—much like the ship neighborhood of the same name. It features an acre-long stretch of private beach, a heated pool with an infinity edge and swim-up bar, several places to get food, and private cabanas with add-ons like private pools with in-water loungers and dedicated attendants, among other not-so-affordable amenities. (On top of the $39-$89 day pass to The Hideaway, the cabanas will set you back an extra $1,300 or more.)

You can walk up to the main bar of The Hideaway on one side, or swim up to it in the stunning, heated infinity pool on the other side. The menu has an island theme similar to that of The Lime and Coconut, with many rum drinks to choose from, but I was inspired by the change of scenery and ordered off-menu: a mojito, easy on the simple syrup.

It was strong (asking for less simple syrup really made it), ridiculously refreshing, and perfectly on-theme for a day on an island. It tasted even better in the pool. After all, there’s no better spot to drink than leaning against an infinity edge, shoulders-deep in the water, overlooking the stretch of beach between you and the ocean.

But after a couple rounds, I got the feeling that the bartender at the swim-up bar was getting tired of muddling so many mint leaves for me. So I did the unthinkable: I ordered a piña colada. The bartender poured the smooth, frozen concoction, then topped it with a rum floater for good measure. I’m not sure if that was because he pegged me as someone who would appreciate the extra booze or what, but I very much appreciated it.

And as if there wasn’t enough slopped liquor in the pool for one day, at one point Royal Caribbean execs showed up armed with champagne guns. Among them was Royal Caribbean International’s CEO, Michael Bayley, who I have to say, is a great champagne-gun shot. However, it was Linken D’Souza, the company’s Senior Vice President of Global Food & Beverage, who managed to get me with the bubbly stuff.

Afterward, I walked back to the ship humming that damn Bill Withers song. It just couldn’t be helped.

My search for a great Manhattan

Schooner Bar, the maritime-themed cocktail bar on Deck 6, filled up not too long after I arrived, freshly showered and dressed after Perfect Day, just as people returned to the ship ahead of our 5 pm departure. I had to squeeze up to the bar to put my order in, so I made it count: a double Manhattan with extra bitters. Then I watched as the bartender proceeded to mix the drink in a shaker, pour it into a martini glass, and top it with a dash of angostura bitters.

At home, I make my Manhattans big and strong (usually for two), with four ounces of rye, one ounce of sweet vermouth, one ounce of extra dry vermouth, and eight dashes of bitters. I stir it all together with ice in a chilled mixing glass, which I thought was pretty standard (I’d never heard of anyone making this drink in a shaker), and pour it into a chilled glass.

This Manhattan was indeed strong, but because the flavor was so off without the bitters, I found myself facing a fresh quest to complete before sailing home: find a truly good Manhattan. I mean, how hard could it be with a clearly formulated drink order and a bit of patience?

I took my second stab at it later that night at Trellis, an outdoor bar in Central Park. Its swanky nightlife feel gave me confidence in its Manhattan-making abilities, so I repeated the order I had placed earlier at Schooner. It didn’t work. The same thing happened—not enough bitters, and this time, the shaken Manhattan got a spritz from the soda gun before it was served.

I went to bed thinking about something the beverage operations manager, Alex Palmeri, said at the press conference earlier: “We worked so hard on getting all of these menus together and tasting all of these recipes and putting all of these beautiful menus together, but then it comes time for the training. How are we going to teach all of these new cocktails, all of these new recipes—a hundred-plus—on top of the existing cocktails that we have on our fleet right now to all of these lovely bartenders who work so hard on a daily basis? While we were in Cádiz, Spain, we did the equivalent of a two-week bar bootcamp. We did two three-hour sessions a day and went through all of these recipes. We made them for our team and the team made them back for us, and it kind of revalidated what we trained. We went through all of our cocktails so that we could really teach them and focus on consistency and practice.”

It reminded me that like with other aspects of this brand-new ship with dozens of brand-new food and drink concepts, they were still working out some of the kinks—even on seemingly the most routine things.

DAY FOUR: Adrenaline over alcohol

At some point in the middle of any proper bar crawl, you have to acknowledge the obvious: If you’re going to survive it, you’re going to have to lurch to a stop and spend some time putting adrenaline over alcohol. For me, Day Four of the cruise was the perfect moment for such an interlude.

At first, I thought about facing my fear of performing in front of others by tackling the FlowRider, the surf simulator on Deck 17, but I chickened out and opted for a more palatable fear: heights. I can deal with vertigo just fine. On the other hand, the idea of flopping around shirtless, like a salmon, in an attempt to surf while others watch crossed a line. So, I headed to a new attraction called Crown’s Edge.

The ride involves walking a plank-like series of small platforms until you’re off the side of the ship, dropping suddenly, then gliding 150 feet over the water below. But first, you have to climb into a neon jumpsuit and put on a helmet, sit through a long briefing session with a crew member, and get strapped into the harness that’s connected to the track above. That whole experience lasts for roughly 15 minutes, while the ride itself is only about 90 seconds.

In any event, off the plank I went. Every careful step I took moved me farther off the side of the ship until I was standing on a narrow platform directly over the murky waters of PortMiami. I don’t mind heights, so of course I looked down and all around me, taking in the pleasant city views—when the platform suddenly dropped from under my feet, lurching me down and along the zip-line track. The fall caught me by surprise and I remember making a gasp-like sound. You only have about a second to recover before you’re gliding over the water back to the starting position on the ship, and preparing to land on my feet there—as if I had parachuted down—gave me a rush.

Like a shot, the ride is over before you know it, but you climb back down to the deck and step out of the jumpsuit with a buzz. Especially if you ride it twice in a row (I did).

DAY FIVE: Finally, the perfect Manhattan

Going to a concert at the Music Hall venue on Decks 3 and 4 wasn’t on my bingo card, but it’s where I ended up reuniting with a friend who also happened to be aboard.

We chose this spot for two reasons: to see PHOENIX—not to be confused with the French indie rock band Phoenix—perform their stellar set of classic rock covers; and to see if I could, at last, get my hands on a solid Manhattan at the relatively less busy bar here.

It ended up being music to my mouth. Not only did the Music Hall bartender stir my Manhattan in a mixing glass instead of shaking it, he also nailed the rye-to-sweet vermouth ratio and added an appropriate amount of bitters. He didn’t add soda to the top, either. It tasted like victory. I walked away from the bar holding the glass in my hand like a trophy, irrationally happy about it.

Maybe I did a little too much singing.

I’m a sucker for the classics. The flashy and gimmicky drinks are fun—*cough* bubble drink *cough*—but the classics are timeless for a reason, so it’s important to get them right. It boils down to this: When you’re on a ship that can capably pull off both kinds of drinks—the classics and the imaginative new concepts—you’re going to have a better time, a better drinking experience, and a better days-long bar crawl.

Meanwhile, PHOENIX performed hit after hit (“Rock’n Me,” “Your Love,” and “More Than a Feeling” to name a few) with shocking, borderline bizarre fidelity. I sang along at times, between sips of my perfect Manhattan, and then my second perfect Manhattan. Maybe I did a little too much singing.

It was at the Dueling Pianos bar, which overlooks the Royal Promenade, where I had my third perfect Manhattan. Beyond that and a rendition of “The Thunder Rolls” by Garth Brooks that gave me chills, I don’t recall much about the rest of the night. I do know, though, that there are photos and videos from the Dueling Pianos bar with timestamps reading 1:59 am.

DAY SIX: Food is your friend

You shouldn’t ever feel anything more than tipsy when there are so many places to grab a bite to eat on this ship, Smorgasbord of the Seas. (Icon boasts more than 20 places to eat that are new or unique to the ship, plus several other concepts that repeat Royal Caribbean cruisers will recognize from its other vessels.)

The “ floating Olive Garden ” criticism of cruise ships is unfair when applied here. The world’s biggest cruise ship isn’t just a floating Olive Garden; with the sheer number of places to eat, it’s also a floating Applebee’s, Red Lobster, Benihana, Cheesecake Factory, Ruth’s Chris, etc. etc. With the exception of the stateroom hallways, it’s hard to find a spot on the ship where you can stand and not locate somewhere to get something to eat.

That’s all by design, of course.

During a press conference intended to shed light on how the company pulls off feeding tens of thousands of passengers across dozens of ships all over the world every day, Linken D’Souza, who had recently sprayed champagne in my mouth, explained some of the thinking behind the strategic distribution of food and drink venues across the various areas of the ship.

“If you think about each of the neighborhoods, it’s really about complementary and convenient food,” he said. “You can walk into AquaDome, grab a bite, step into the amazing space that is AquaDome, enjoy that experience. Or if you want to go to a speciality experience while the show is on and get a little bit of that show while you’re having dinner, you can sit at Hooked and enjoy that experience. We’ve tried to create experiences for everyone within each of the neighborhoods so that you can truly enjoy the neighborhood as it relates to food and beverage, your way.”

The “floating Olive Garden” criticism of cruise ships is unfair when applied here.

He also spent a good amount of time talking up Icon’s toughest dinner reservation, Empire Supper Club. The intimate space fits just 38 people, and there’s only one dinner service per night. Royal Caribbean describes the restaurant as a place where “cuisine is an occasion, cocktails are celebrations and sultry live jazz is your host.” For an additional $200 per person (or $130 if you purchased the Unlimited Dining Package), you get an eight-course meal where every dish is paired with a cocktail. No, not wine. Cocktails.

I couldn’t get into the Empire Supper Club, but I tried two other specialty restaurants: the aforementioned Hooked, a seafood restaurant, and Coastal Kitchen, a Mediterranean and Californian fusion located in the swanky and exclusive Suites Neighborhood, where I had lobster mac ‘n cheese and a sirloin steak with herb butter, followed by a dense chocolate cake. Was the food noticeably better? Was the service a notch more refined? I really don’t think so. The key differentiator with these upgrades is the ambiance of the restaurant spaces, which are more interesting than the extravagant ballroom slash bustling banquet of the main dining room.

To be honest, when it came to dining on the ship, I kinda preferred Basecamp, a new-to-Icon restaurant concept sandwiched between Deck 16’s mini-golf course and rock-climbing wall where they serve complimentary eats like hot dogs, warm pretzels, and tater tots to keep you alive between the many drinks and thrills. It’s the fast food you need for your booze-filled adventure. It isn’t fancy at all, but that’s the whole point.

DAY SEVEN: One last sip

On the final night of the cruise, I snagged a good seat at Rye & Bean, took a good look around to appreciate the scene one more time, and chatted with the bartenders there who I’d come to know over the course of the week. A few minutes later, my beverage arrived in a steaming-hot teapot with an empty teacup and a miniature hourglass on the side. After all I’d put my body through, I owed it a soothing nightcap that I could sip and savor.

When the hourglass emptied, I poured half of the contents of the teapot into the teacup and breathed in the fragrant steam before taking a careful sip. It was a Guava Hot Toddy—rum, guava syrup, and Earl Grey tea—and it was fantastic. It lulled me into a blissful calm and a delicious peace.

So much so that when I woke up the next day, I didn’t feel like I had failed to squeeze all the juice out of my time on the world’s biggest cruise ship. Or that I’d wasted all my time drinking as opposed to experiencing the Icon’s many, many, many amenities. Instead, I stepped off the ship feeling totally content.

My only real regret was not asking for one last espresso martini to go.

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New ships and submarines for the Russian Navy

In keeping with tradition, dating back to soviet times, new ships and submarines were commissioned in the russian navy with the end of the year. it must be admitted that this reinfocement in the past 2023 was impressive..

Tomasz Grotnik 05 Jan 2024

Like a year ago , the end of the year was a good time for the Russian Navy (if we ignore the losses inflicted by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, of course). The first event related to the strengthening of the Russian Navy, specifically the Pacific Fleet, took place on 11 December. On that day, the flags on two nuclear submarines were raised at the Sevmash Shipyard in Severodvinsk. The ceremony was attended by President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin.

The first of these was the strategic submarine ”Imperator Aleksandr III” of Project 955A Borey-A. It is the fourth SSBN of this class, and the third in the Pacific Fleet (The first three Project 955 SSBNs were different, and used hull sections from the unfinished Project 971 Shchuka-B SSNs). The vessel was built by Sevmash under a May 2012 contract. The keel was laid on 18 December 2015 and the roll-out from the shipyard hall took place on 29 December 2022. ”Imperator Aleksandr III” underwent a series of sea trials last summer and fall.

At Sevmash, the construction of three more Borey-A SSBNs is underway, including ”Knyaz’ Pozharskiy”, which was due to be launched by the end of the year for the Russian Navy, but failed to meet this deadline.

The second vessel to raise the flag on 11 December was the nuclear powered attack submarine K-571 ”Krasnoyarsk” of Project 885M (08851) Yasen’-M. It is the third unit of this project, and the second of its class intended for the Pacific Fleet. The SSNs of project 885M are a modification of the prototype K-560 “Severodvinsk“ of hte Project 885. These submarines will be, for the time being, the main underwater carriers of the hypersonic missile 3M22 Tsircon. In addition to these, SSNs of the 885/885M project can carry missiles of the Kalibr-PL system (incl. 3M14 cruise missiles) and supersonic antiship missiles 3M55 Onyx.

The following ships raised their Russian flags on 25 December. Again with the participation of President Putin, as well as Defence Minister Sergei Shoygu, the frigate “Admiral Golovko“ of the Project 22350 was commissioned. This is the third vessel of this class, which, like “Admiral Gorshkov“ and “Admiral Kasatonov“, has been assigned to the Northern Fleet. These frigates are, for the time being, the only type of surface ship armed with Tsircon missiles. The “Admiral Golovko“ is the first frigate to be equipped with a fully Russian propulsion, the previous two having installed propulsion systems with Ukrainian-made components. We wrote about the Gorshkov-class frigates recently.

On 25 December, the Baltic Fleet also received a new ship. It is a fast attack craft “Naro-Fominsk“ of the Project 21361 Buyan-M. It is already the eleventh of its class contracted by the Russian Ministry of Defence. It is also the fourth Buyan-M in the Baltic. The ships are armed with, among other things, the Kalibr-NK system with 3M14 cruise missiles. The last one – future “Stavropol“ – is under construction.

The “Naro-Fominsk“ was built by the Zelenodolsk Shipyard , based in Zelenodolsk, Tatarstan. The keel of this small vessel was laid on 23 February 2018, and it only went out for sea trials last summer, after being towed by rivers and channels to the Baltic Sea. This was due to the fact that the construction of the Buyan-Ms of last series was experiencing long delays, which was mainly due to the international sanctions introduced after the annexation of Crimea. Originally, the ships of this type were equipped with four German MTU diesel engines, the deliveries of which were stopped after the sanctions came into force. The Russians then bought a batch of engines from the Chinese company Henan Diesel Engine Industry, but these proved unreliable and unsustainable. In the end, two engines manufactured by the Russian company Kolomenskiy Plant were adopted.

The last new vessel to raise the flag in Baltiysk on 25 December was the minehunter “Lev Chernavin“ of the Project 12700 Alexandrit. The new MCM vessel has reinforced the Baltic Fleet, as well. The ship was built by the Sredne Nevskiy shipyard in Pontonnyy near St. Petersburg. The keel was laid on 24 July 2020 and the launch took place on 14 April 2023.

To date, eight Alexandrites have entered service. Two are in the Baltic, three in the Black Sea and three in the Pacific. Three more are under construction and a fourth has been contracted.

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