There’s Big And Then There’s Gigantic

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There’s Big And Then There’s Gigantic

Posted on June 15th, 2009 by Phil Davies

There is a real sense of anticipation building over the launch of the world’s largest cruise ship – even though the event is still six months away.

Royal Caribbean International’s revolutionary Oasis of the Seas has just started its first sea trials while still taking shape in a Finnish shipyard.

The buzz of excitement over this ground breaking $1.4 billion new vessel, which is to sail in the Caribbean from Florida in December, is now really mounting.

Interest in the ship does not appear to have been swept off course by an alteration in some summer 2010 itineraries away from Jamaica to Mexico as the port on the island will not be ready in time to accommodate such a mega liner.

So what’s all the fuss about? Here are a few jaw-dropping statistics.

Oasis of the Seas will be 1,187 feet long, making it 75 feet longer than the company’s Freedom-class ships such as Independence of the Seas which is now sailing year-round from Southampton.

At 208 feet wide and 240 feet high, Oasis of the Seas will be capable of carrying more than 5,400 passengers (6,296 maximum capacity) in 2,706 cabins and suites – almost 2,000 of which will have balconies.

Those sailing on Oasis of the Seas will be catered for by 2,165 staff.

There will be 16 decks, 24 passenger elevators and the ship will feature 7,000 works of art.

Construction of the vessel will take the equivalent of 5,800 man-years to complete, with Oasis of the Seas expected to float on water for the first time in the autumn as it nears the finishing stages.

At a cost of US$230,000 per berth, Oasis of the Seas is the most expensive cruise ship ever to be ordered.

Standing upright bow-to-stern, Oasis of the Seas would dwarf the One Canada Square building at Canary Wharf and New York’s Chrysler Building.

The ship is one and a half times taller than the O2 Arena in London and is longer than four football pitches. It is almost one-and-a-half times the length of Tower Bridge, which spans 800 feet and stands taller than Nelson’s Column (165 feet) at 240 feet high.

Oasis of the Seas can accommodate more guests per sailing than the capacity of the Royal Albert Hall (5,544 seats).

Not only that, but the vessel will be broken down into a series of areas, or neighbourhoods as the cruise line likes to describe them.

With the scale of such a ship, one can imagine how easy it would be to get lost and actually not get around everything available on one of its seven-night cruises in the Caribbean.

And that’s where the ‘neighbourhood’ concept has come from, enabling passengers to move smoothly around different themed areas.

These include what Royal Caribbean described as Central Park, what sounds like a mini-Kew Gardens at sea, complete with English design architects and a range of restaurants and bars.

English seaside piers have helped inspire the ship’s Broadwalk, a family area featuring the first carousel on a cruise ship and an AquaTheatre as the central part of an amphitheatre-style space. For the fearless, there will be an 82-foot zip-wire suspended nine decks high.

Royal Caribbean’s Royal Promenade has been redesigned from the Voyager and Freedom-class ships with shops, cafes and bars, including Karaoke.

The vast pool and sports zone will stretch the length of the ship, with private cabanas, four types of pool, and two FlowRider surf simulators – each larger than the single FlowRider found on the line’s Freedom-class ships

The Vitality at Sea Spa will include a Thermal Suite, featuring heated tile loungers, saunas and steam rooms; three couples massage suites and seven individual treatment rooms.

Night club neighbourhood, Entertainment Place, encompasses a comedy club, jazz and blues venue, and nightclub.

For children, the Youth Zone will cover more than 28,700 sq. ft. with a nursery, play areas, and dedicated spaces for youngsters aged from three to 11.

An area for teenagers is to include a disco, chill out room and outdoor deck.

It sounds like virtually every taste has been catered for and I, for one, can’t wait to see the completed ship when it arrives in the US at the end of the year.

The only problem, it seems to me, will be finding time to get off.

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