118 CRUISE ORDER BOOK One of the newbuilds set to transform the cruise industry in 2025 is Royal Caribbean International’s second Icon-class ship, Star of the Seas, which entered service in August. Built at Finland’s Meyer Turku shipyard, the vessel has capacity for 5,600 passengers across 2,805 staterooms, as well as 2,350 crew members. At close to 250gt, the 364-metre ship, which features eight distinct ‘neighbourhoods’ for guests, set sail from Port Canaveral, Florida, for its first cruise. Princess Cruises has had to wait longer than expected to debut its new ship, Star Princess, due to a two-month delay to the original delivery date from Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri, with its arrival now set for 26 September 2025. Star Princess is the second LNG-powered Sphere-class ship in the Princess fleet and features the same design as sister Sun Princess, with attractions including a geodesic dome and the glass-enclosed Sphere Piazza. Other features will include a new SkyDeck Sports Court & Track for While two of this season’s big new ocean cruise ships are channelling a celestial theme with star-related names, new iterations of vessels abound as companies extend popular ship classes and series. Michele Witthaus reports New ships and an innovative first Royal Caribbean’s Star of the Seas underwent sea trials in May 2025 before being delivered on 10 July
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