07/07/2023
CONSTRUCTION OF THE ICON OF THE SEA TAKING SHAPE.
Construction of the Icon of the Seas, the largest cruise ship in history, by the Royal Caribbean International, is over and the ship is set to make its maiden voyage in early 2024.
Here are the details of the ship that pushed the boundaries of shipbuilding concepts beyond imagination and produced an engineering masterpiece.
But wait. I see you checking your mpesa and bank account balances. You want to book a ticket? Drop that thought. Stop it! It's already fully booked. Junet would say "hii imeenda".
That's disappointing piece of revelation, right! Well, Calm down. Notwithstanding the fact that you may never voyage in this mind-boggling sea vehicle, here are the details of the vessel that has taken the world by storm.
1. The vessel is built by Meyer Turku shipyard, one of Europe’s leading shipbuilders, in Turku, Finland, for the Royal Caribbean International.
2. It is a mammoth 365 meters long (nearly 1,200 feet), will weigh a projected 250,800 tonnes.
3. It will carry 5,610 passengers and 2,350 crew. More than Noah's Ark's capacity.
4. The boat's waterpark features six record-breaking water slides, seven pools and nine whirlpools.
5. The current world’s largest cruise ship is another vessel in the Royal Caribbean fleet, Wonder of the Seas.
6. Wonder of the Seas made its inaugural voyage just last year and is 1,188 feet in length, with 18 decks, The Icon has 20 decks.
7. The Icon completed its first set of sea trials on June 22, according to a Royal Caribbean statement.
8. Icon of the Seas is Royal Caribbean's first ship powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) and fuel cell technology, a clean energy
9. The ship was built by some 2,600 workers who were grafting on it each day.
10. Icon of the Seas will sail seven-night Eastern and Western Caribbean vacations from Miami all year round
11. Every sailing will include a visit to Perfect Day at CocoCay, Royal Caribbean’s award-winning private island desti