The world’s largest cruise ship, Harmony of the Seas, has officially joined Royal Caribbean’s fleet in a delivery and flag changing ceremony held Thursday in Saint Nazaire, France.
The ship is the first in a new generation of ships where architectural innovations of the Oasis class are combined with technologies of the Quantum class. Harmony is bigger than Royal Caribbean’s two other ships from the Oasis class, Oasis and Allure of the Seas, what makes it the largest cruise ship in the world.
Costing more than USD 1 billion, Harmony of the Seas will be the 25th ship in the Royal Caribbean fleet.
The cruise ship, towering 16 decks above the ocean, has a capacity of a record 5,479 passengers. With its gross tonnage of 226,000 tons and a length of 1,187 feet, the ship has maximum cruising speed of 23 knots.
“Harmony of the Seas is the product of our zealous spirit of continuous improvement, where we have combined revolutionary ship design with the technological strides that have defined the Royal Caribbean brand,” said Richard D. Fain, Chairman and CEO of Royal Caribbean Cruises.
“Thank you to STX France for their ongoing partnership in building our ships, which continue to introduce unexpected industry innovations,” he said.
Following 32 months of construction at the STX France shipyard, the vessel passed its sea trials commencing in March 2016.
Starting in June, Harmony of the Seas will sail the Western Mediterranean from Barcelona, Spain, during its inaugural season before arriving at its homeport of Port Everglades, Fort Lauderdale, Florida in November 2016 from where it will sail the Caribbean.
STX France is still working on Harmony of the Seas’ sister ship, a yet-to-be-named Oasis class ship, which will join Royal Caribbean’s fleet in March 2018.
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