By
Alice Chambers |
Royal Caribbean International has celebrated major milestones for two ships, floating out Icon of the Seas at Meyer Turku’s shipyard in Finland on 9 December and officially naming Wonder of the Seas during a christening ceremony at Port Canaveral, Florida, the following day.
Wonder of the Seas was named by godmother Marie McCrea from Pennsylvania, USA, who was selected via a #SearchforWonderMom contest on TikTok, which garnered 16,000 video entries and 10.6 billion hashtag views.
“Wonder is the adventure of all adventures that combines what families know and love on our revolutionary Oasis-class ships with brand-new experiences, and it’s already delivered memorable vacations to more than 180,500 guests since first setting sail in March,” said Michael Bayley, president of Royal Caribbean International who attended the event, hosted onboard the ship’s AquaTheater, alongside Royal Caribbean Group president and CEO Jason Liberty.
Wonder of the Seas debuted in March 2022, sailing a maiden voyage from Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. It features eight ‘neighbourhoods’ onboard, including the Suite Neighbourhood with a Suite Sun Deck, plunge pool and bar.
“Wonder of the Seas exemplifies Royal Caribbean Group’s focus on unparalleled innovation, sustainable cruise ship design and our commitment to delivering world-class, memorable vacations, responsibly,” said Liberty. “This milestone represents the culmination of millions of hours of work, from the most innovative minds in the industry, to deliver the world’s latest wonder.”
Meanwhile, Finnish shipbuilder Meyer Turku floated out Royal Caribbean’s upcoming vessel Icon of the Seas at its yard in Turku on 9 December. It will be the brand’s first LNG-powered ship and will use fuel cell technology, shore power capability and waste heat recovery systems.
“Icon of the Seas is a state-of-the-art ship that challenges the know-how of our shipyard and raises the entire Finnish shipbuilding industry to a new level,” said Tim Meyer, CEO of Meyer Turku. “We are proud to be responsible for the design and construction of Icon of the Seas in cooperation with the customer and all our partner companies. This is also a significant step for the sustainable development of the shipbuilding industry.”
Icon of the Seas is 365 metres long, almost 50 metres wide and weighs approximately 250,000gt.
“The float out of a new ship is a defining moment, and in the case of Icon of the Seas, it marks the next step in the start of a new era of vacations,” said Bayley. “We set out to create the world’s best family vacation more than five years ago, the culmination of 53 years of Royal Caribbean firsts and favourites that combine the best of every vacation. That is now a reality more than ever as Icon touches water for the first time.”