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CRUISE SHIP

World’s biggest cruise ship takes to the water

The hulking shell of the world's largest cruise ship slid into the waters off western France on Friday, and thankfully it floated. Take a look at the first mini voyage of "Harmony of the Seas".

Published: 19 June 2015 15:47 CEST

World's biggest cruise ship takes to the water

"Harmony of the Seas" takes to the water for the first time. Photo: AFP

The huge vessel, named “Harmony of the Seas”, has been under construction since September 2013 in the shipyards in Saint-Nazaire.

When finished it will weigh some 227,000 tonnes and measure 362 metres (1,187 feet) in length, 50 metres longer than the height of the Eiffel Tower.

Harmony is also a metre wider than the current twin ocean-going monsters of the pleasure cruise world, which are also 362 metres long.

“Allure of the Seas” and “Oasis of the Seas”, the world's biggest cruise ships in current service, are 65 metres wide and come in at 225,000 tonnes a piece. All three belong to Royal Caribbean International cruise lines.

(All photos AFP)

Some 2,500 people are at work building Harmony, which will require 90,000 square metres (968,700 square feet) of carpet and 500,000 litres (132,000 gallons) of paint.

The test runs of the boat are presently set for mid-February 2016 and its first voyage is planned for May next year, a trip from Southampton in Britain to the Spanish city of Barcelona.

The ship will have room for some 6,360 passengers and 2,100 staff members.

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World's biggest cruise ship to finally bid farewell to France

Photo: AFP

The world's biggest-ever cruise ship, the 120,000-tonne Harmony of the Seas, capable of accommodating more
than 8,000 passengers and crew in the most luxurious conditions, was set for delivery on Thursday from a French boatyard.

At 66 metres (217 feet), it is the widest cruise ship ever built, while its 362-metre length makes it 50 metres longer than the height of the Eiffel Tower.

The immense floating town, which cost close to one billion euros (dollars), has 16 decks and will be able to carry 6,360 passengers and 2,100 crew members.

The ship was built for the US-based Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (RCCL) by the STX France boatyard in Saint-Nazaire on the Atlantic coast. A ceremony was to mark the official handover on Thursday.

Harmony of the Seas will leave the port on Sunday, weather permitting, for Southampton in southern England. From there, it will embark on for its official maiden voyage on May 22 to Barcelona.

RCCL already operates two giant sister liners to the Harmony of the Seas called Allure of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas. They are only marginally smaller than the new ship.

Among the onboard attractions are “The Ultimate Abyss”, a 10-storey slide from the top deck to the boardwalk which RRCL bills as the world's biggest ship-mounted slide. The purple slide can be clearly seen at the rear of the ship.

A giant climbing wall, a rope slide, mini-golf, surf simulator, floating jacuzzis, casino and 1,400-seat theatre playing Broadway musicals are among the other attractions.

Two robot barmen will serve passengers in the “Bionic Bar”.

The ship even has its own high street, and a “Central Park” deck featuring 12,000 plant species.

After its maiden voyage, it will dock in its new home port of Barcelona a week later, after which it will begin regular cruises through to late October.

It took 2,500 workers at STX France a total of some 10 million work-hours to complete the enormous vessel after work began in September 2013.

The contract marked a major boost for the boatyard after several lean years.

STX has built 120 cruise ships over its 150 years, and has another 11 lined up for the next decade.

RCCL has already ordered another sister ship of the Harmony to join its fleet in 2018.

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