Royal Caribbean’s new Icon of the Seas heads into the home stretch before the cruise line takes delivery. That includes a second and final round of sea trials that began this week.
The ship under construction at the Meyer Turku shipyard in Turku, Finland performed its first round of sea trials in June, and Royal Caribbean will get its hands on it for a trip across the Atlantic on Dec. 23 for arrival to its year-round homeport in Miami where it will begin sailing with passengers in January 2024.
This final set of sea trials will take place over several days in the open ocean to test out all the parts in place including pushing through extremes the engines of what will officially become the world’s largest cruise ship. Other on-board features will get the run-through as well including the waterpark with its six waterslides, all seven pools and the waste-to-energy plant, according to the cruise line.
The new class will take the size title from the line’s Oasis-class, coming in at 20 decks, 250,800 gross tons and 1,198 feet long. It’s the first of three announced ships in the Icon class with the next two set to be delivered in 2025 and 2026.
It has been under construction in Finland for more than two years. Similar to the five existing Oasis-class ships and next year’s Port Canaveral-bound Utopia of the Seas, Icon of the Seas is carved up into neighborhoods. The most visible of those is the new AquaDome, a massive 363-ton engineering feat that sits at the top and front of the ship.
Icon of the Seas is about 15,000 gross tons larger than the current world’s largest cruise ship Wonder of the Seas, but actually has less passenger capacity based on double occupancy — 5,610 compared with Wonder’s 5,734. The size of the cabins and suites, though, among 28 categories gives Icon a maximum capacity of 7,600, which exceeds Wonder’s 7,084.
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That includes the largest exclusive area for suite guests to date for the line covering three decks. It’s one of eight neighborhoods that also includes familiar spaces like the Royal Promenade and the open-air Central Park.
AquaDome is one of the new spaces and will be home to the popular diving and aerialist shows put on in the AquaTheater, but now within a controlled atmosphere. During the day, it will be home to a 55-foot-tall waterfall in an inviting space with bars and restaurants.
The Boardwalk space on Oasis ships gives way to a family-friendly Surfside neighborhood at the aft of the ship. The top deck is home to Thrill Island including the largest water park at sea called Category 6 and a feature called the Crown’s Edge that is part ropes course and part thrill ride.
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On the more relaxing side is Chill Island also on the top decks with the line’s first swim-up bar at sea with in-water loungers and tables, among four pools within the neighborhood.
Another new neighborhood is called The Hideaway, which is home to a suspended infinity pool 135 feet above the ocean along with a multi-level sun terrace, more whirlpools and bar.
Icon of the Seas will sail year-round alternating seven-night Eastern and Western Caribbean voyages from PortMiami. The cruise line will send the ship out on a series of preview sailings leading up to its first revenue cruise on Jan. 28.
