She is so big, brash and boldly colourful that from some angles she could be mistaken for a cartoon spaceship.
But already Icon Of The Seas, the world’s biggest cruise ship which took to the open ocean for the first time last week, has reportedly racked up an all-too-real £5 million in advance sales before her maiden voyage in January.
With the world’s largest onboard waterpark – including the first free-fall slide at sea with a 66-degree incline drop – plus 40 bars and restaurants, a 55 ft indoor waterfall, mini-golf course and ice rink, the £1.5 billion Royal Caribbean vessel is 10 ft longer than the current record-holder, Wonder Of The Seas.
‘Can this even be real?’ one stunned observer wrote on social media, as pictures emerged for the first time of the pink and green spaghetti-like slides on the Thrill Island upper deck.
Designed to appeal to a younger crowd, there is also a zip-line 154 ft above the ocean, a rock-climbing wall, obstacle course, arcade and a karaoke bar.
The Icon Of The Seas is the world’s biggest cruise ship which took to the open ocean for the first time last week
It has reportedly racked up an all-too-real £5 million in advance sales before her maiden voyage in January
The £1.5 billion Royal Caribbean vessel is 10 ft longer than the current record-holder, Wonder Of The Seas
Designed to appeal to a younger crowd, there is also a zip-line 154 ft above the ocean, a rock-climbing wall, obstacle course, arcade and a karaoke bar
It has the world’s largest onboard waterpark – including the first free-fall slide at sea with a 66-degree incline drop
The cruise ship offers the Crown’s Edge walkway , part skywalk, part ropes, part thrill ride
The Icon’s Royal Bay Pool is not only the largest pool at sea, at 40,000 gallons, but features water lounge seating, elevated whirl pools and palm trees
Guests can enjoy the cruise line’s first ever swim-up bar and suspended infinity pool at sea, along with a frozen cocktail bar and live DJs
The ship features a dome made up of 673 glass panels and 712 aluminium panels sit on top of the ship featuring panoramic ocean views
The cruise ship also has 40 bars and restaurants, a 55 ft indoor waterfall, mini-golf course and ice rink
The cruise ship boasts the largest cabin at sea, a three-storey ‘townhouse’ that sleeps eight and has a 35 ft red slide running from top to bottom
For guests seeking peace, the Icon has an adults only retreat, Cloud 17, and restaurant offering a fine dining experience with seats for just 38 guests
The ship can carry up to 7,600 passengers and 2,350 crew and boasts the largest cabin at sea, a three-storey ‘townhouse’ that sleeps eight and has a 35 ft red slide running from top to bottom.
‘If you leave your shoes in the kitchen and you are in the bedroom, it’s a pretty fun way to retrieve them,’ one source said.
A private lift then returns you to the third-floor master bedroom.
Twenty decks high, Icon Of The Seas is 1,198 ft long with a gross tonnage of 250,800 – five times the size of the Titanic.
Critics have described it as ‘a garish monstrosity’ but a spokesman for the cruise liner said it has smashed sales records and is almost fully booked for January, when it will embark from Miami on four cruises around the Caribbean.
An insider said: ‘This is the future. People can sneer but the sales figures show this is precisely what tourists want. Our lines have been ringing non-stop since she went on sea trials last week.
‘People have been saving hard for the holiday of a lifetime – and this is it.’
It also promises to be one of the most eco-friendly vessels ever built.
It is powered by liquified natural gas which runs six engines, generating 67,500 kW (90,520 hp) of power.
Royal Caribbean chief executive Michael Bayley said: ‘Looking at the energy and time that has gone into this ship, it’s mind-blowing.’
