Icon of the Seas Blocks Are In The House!

[Biker19]

"

Icon of the Seas' 'AquaAction' AquaTheater show hinges on extreme sports such as a skateboarder catching air, while the main stage Broadway production, 'The Wizard of Oz,' will have its own flying moment.

 

For that, similar to how the Royal Caribbean show 'Flight' has a plane flying over the audience, 'Imagine how you're going to feel when Dorothy in her four-poster bed flies out over the audience with the Wicked Witch hot on her tail,' said Nick Weir, SVP entertainment.

Weir said he's been working on 'AquaAction' since 2017.

 

'Normally creative people are handed a theater and we find a way to put the show in the theater,' he elaborated. That's not the case with AquaTheater: 'We came up with an idea for a show and built a whole theater around it.'

 

'Coffee Talk' recaps shipyard trip

Weir shared these tidbits during Vicki Freed's 'Coffee Talk' Wednesday, where she showed the latest photos of Icon of the Seas from her trip to Meyer Turku last week. Freed, SVP sales, trade support & service, and Joanne Schimelman, VP sales & national accounts, took 29 top travel partners to the yard.

There were a lot of superlatives.

For the AquaTheater, housed inside the AquaDome high atop Icon, Weir promised 'the biggest wow anyone's ever seen in any theater anywhere in the world.'

And Freed and Schimelman said Icon will offer 'the world's best family vacation.'

 

Thrill Island mimics CocoCay's Thrill Water Park

Thrill Island mimics Thrill Water Park in Perfect Day at CocoCay. It's an 'adrenaline-pumping' place with mat racer slides and two family raft slides including one with a clear tube that arcs out over the ship's edge.

 

Success measured in screams

'We'll measure our success by the screams,' Schimelman said. For the new Crown's Edge, each harnessed daredevil will walk along the giant Crown and Anchor high above the sea with the bottom dropping out at random times.

 

For the returning favorite, FlowRider, the surf park's orientation on Icon was flipped so the epic photo opp of riders will have ocean in the background.

 

With F&B options, neighborhoods can be all-day hangouts

Icon's neighborhoods were created to be places people can hang out all day, with entertainment, food and beverages, so Thrill Island is served by Base Camp, with its included and extra-charge food and drink options such as a milkshake bar.

Balancing Thrill Island is Chill Island, with its four pools — including Royal Bay, touted as the biggest at sea — and six whirlpools. Schimelman said people always ask for more pools, and Icon delivers — Royal Bay's 'massive.' Cloud 17, an adults-only pool, has its own Lime and Coconut Bar.  

There are pools in Surfside, too, the neighborhood created for young families. And Freed said that with three grandchildren under 2.5 years old, she imagines herself spending time there at the Water's Edge, a pool where adults can keep an eye on the kids in Splashaway Bay. Surfside also has a carousel and several food and beverage options.

 

Beefed-up Royal Promenade 

Icon's two-story Royal Promenade is 'really now the heart of the ship,' not just a pass-through space, according to Schimelman. Travelers embark on Deck 5 via two entrances flanking a floor-to-ceiling window. The Pearl, a 'majestic, incredible structure' houses a staircase leading up to Central Park.

Royal Promenade holds Latin bar Bolero's, Giovanni's Italian Kitchen and Wine Bar, the 1400 Bar (named after the ship's project number at Meyer Turku), Starbucks, the Absolute Zero ice rink and the entrance to Adventure Ocean.

 

Central Park evolves as a place to stroll, hang out, hear music

Icon's Central Park, with more than 13,000 live plants and trees, is more developed as a place to sit, stroll and hang out with additional seating and walk-up windows for take-away such as bento boxes from Izumi in the Park. There will be music from Lou's Jazz Club, and Bubbles Champagne Bar will open early, serving a selection that includes mimosas and bellinis.

 

Empire Supper Club may carry a $200 charge

Besides Chops Grille, the new Empire Supper Club is found in Central Park. With an eight-course menu and cocktail pairings, a three-piece band 'like a throwback to old school New York' and a single seating (for 38 diners), 'It's an evening, not just dinner,' Schimelman said. The price is TBA — approximately $200 per person.

 

The Suites Neighborhood offers a double-deck Coastal Kitchen overlooking AquaDome so diners will be able to see the shows. There's also The Grove, a restaurant beside the private suites pool.

 

Accommodations

During her 'Coffee Talk,' Freed also singled out accommodations like the infinite balcony rooms, offering 250 square feet of interior space with a window that drops down to let in fresh air. A curtain separates the 'balcony' area and the main room. And the bathrooms are different: the showers are rectangular, instead of round, with a bench.

Icon has 419 infinite balcony rooms.

On the high end of the housing scale, the Royal Loft Suite rises across two levels with two walls of glass. It contains two bedrooms and 2.5 baths.

In the Surfside neighborhood, the Ultimate Family Townhouse covers three stories with its own patio and white picket fence. It sleeps up to eight, with two bedrooms upstairs, one a quad for kids, each bed with its own television.

 

Ultimate Family Townhouse is going for up to $125K

Measuring 1,722 square feet of interior space with an additional 750 square feet of balconies, the suite's average price is $82,000 for a week, though for some holiday sailings, it's going as high as $125,000.

Icon of the Seas is due to depart Finland on its crossing to the US Dec. 23, and the ship's inaugural cruise from PortMiami is set for Jan. 27."

 

Fresh from Meyer Turku, Vicki Freed shares an Icon update (seatrade-cruise.com)

[BecciBoo]

I'm looking for that Ultimate Family Suite to be empty on our cruise, maybe they'll let us in to look at it.  I don't have one friend or acquaintance that could afford that.  EGAD! 😲

[Eremita85]

Some new photos from yesterday. The name is also painted now on the back of the ship:

https://www.facebook.com/Eremita85/posts/24451290291136370

[Lloyd555]

A good photo (by Joel Maisalmi) of the inside of the Pearl in an article in Kauppalehti. https://www.kauppalehti.fi/uutiset/kl/4f62f5d1-fdc6-4ebd-925c-b86d14f66a26?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR34nBw6ne2ppvr9Q1bjEAtOUkHrTo0Ya_7LXSiOcD74Y75--IFtzjHJUiI#Echobox=1692610192
 

 

Edited August 21, 2023 by Lloyd555

[BecciBoo]

What does it say Lloyd, I'm not gonna pay to read it!

[Oceansaway17]

Given all the excitement on water features and aqua area, to me the most exciting change is inside promenade that now is open to the sea which adults will love.

 

I think having ice show with backstage ice that allows skaters to have a running start will make it easy for those jumps. I was concerned the rink was too small.

The more I hear about this ship the more I am excited.

I do have to chuckle on the artist rendering of Pearl with all those pillows on sofas — like those would really hold up well.

[Lloyd555]

12 hours ago, BecciBoo said:

What does it say Lloyd, I'm not gonna pay to read it!

 

I wish I knew. No access as well.

[BecciBoo]

😆

[Lloyd555]

 

 

[Newcruiser215]

New "Making an Icon" episode has just been posted by RC. 

 

 

 

[Tall-Cruiser]

New (with some old footage added) video courtesy Ship Media. There are now more Lifeboats loaded on. Perhaps getting ready for the next Sea Trial soon.

 

 

[Eremita85]

25 minutes ago, Tall-Cruiser said:

New (with some old footage added) video courtesy Ship Media. There are now more Lifeboats loaded on. Perhaps getting ready for the next Sea Trial soon.

 

 

There is now three lifeboats at the back so one more added at least. Not sure if there is any of the port side yet. Last time when I checked there wasn't any, but I saw two of them at the shipyard.

Sea trials could be start in week 37, but not sure about that.

Edited September 1, 2023 by Eremita85

[erby2283]

246 days till sail away.  Won't be long now. She's looking great.

[Eekaksi7]

National Geographic will air an episode about the constuction of the Icon of the Seas on Monday. They had a crew filming when they lifted and fitted the AquaDome onto the Icon earlier this year.

 

The episode is scheduled to air in Europe on 4th of September, I am not sure if it will be broadcast in North America. 

 

 

[Eekaksi7]

On 8/21/2023 at 5:12 PM, BecciBoo said:

What does it say Lloyd, I'm not gonna pay to read it!

A little late but here it is. I ran it through Google Translate and fixed some errors manually, it's a little janky read but should be understandable. 😄

 

Meyer's Turku shipyard performs almost miracles - These solutions distinguish the world's largest cruise ship from its competitors

 

Biggest that, longest that. Almost three Giza pyramids stacked on top of each other, meters more than the Eiffel Tower in Paris and only a few meters less than the Empire State Building in New York. The sight is shocking. In front is the 365 meter long and 70 meter high floating hotel and water park, Icon of the Seas.

Impressive. One of the talking points of Icon of the Seas is the glass dome on the bow deck, which is 55 meters in diameter. It is bigger than St. Peter's Church. PHOTO: DIRK SCHWARZ / ROYAL CARIBBEAN

 

In the middle of August, the first test runs are successfully over and they will be followed by a tight finishing phase of a couple of months at Meyer's Turku shipyard. There is little time and a lot to do, but so are the makers, several thousand. The guide is not there for nothing. The crowd flows back and forth between the twenty floors, and in the background there is a jumble of languages. The whirring and banging is accompanied by easy-going reggae as if to remind you where the compass is about to point: to the Caribbean, of course.

 

At the Turku shipyard, Icon of the Seas has changed things in many ways. Radical cruise ships flash in the speeches - and for good reason. "Even if the customer asks for almost anything, we can do it. It's pretty amazing," admits sales and design director Marjo Keiramo herself. And so that the skills are passed on to future creators, he also teaches the radical creativity of ship design at Aalto University.

 

There is a shortage of skilled workers. In the next few years, hundreds of new workers will be needed for planning alone.

Giant. Icon of the Seas is the world's largest cruise ship. PHOTO: JOEL MAISALMI

 

Keiramo sells the field with many advantages: "There is hardly any day like the other, and you can certainly fulfill yourself. There are jobs at the shipyard, the shipping company, the classification society, subcontractors and other partners."

 

A relationship of more than 50 years

 

The partnership with Royal Caribbean has been built over 53 years.

Advantage. Thanks to the new high-strength steel, the suites have spectacular windows. PHOTO: JOEL MAISALMI

 

When the Song of Norway was completed in Helsinki in 1970, there were about a thousand passengers and, in addition to the cabins, a few passenger quarters and three restaurants.

 

When Icon of the Seas departs from the Miami pier next January, it will carry more than 7,600 passengers and 2,350 employees. Also on board are Royal Caribbean's largest ice arena, a shape-shifting waterfall, the largest water park in the oceans, seven swimming pools, the longest water slide in the oceans, the cruise world's first open free fall water slide, a surfing simulator, a mini golf course and 49 restaurants and bars.

 

The shipyard has contracts for Icon class ships until the end of 2026. By then, the Icon of the Seas' two sister ships will also be completed. The price has also increased: while the Song of Norway cost about 13.5 million dollars, according to online information, the price tag of the Icon of the Seas ship is already 1.43 billion dollars. At the center of everything is free hands to implement ideas.

 

Ideas, on the other hand, can come in the form of conversations or the customer can draw one on a napkin. This is how the idea of a glass dome was born, and the Aqua Dome will be the hallmark of Icon ships in the future.

 

The first of them has a diameter of 55 meters and is larger than the dome of St. Peter's Church in the Vatican. The Dome, which weighs more than 500 tons, was built on the ground and lifted into place.

 

Size. The ship's water park is the largest in the seas. PHOTO: JOEL MAISALMI

 

The wishes also included "some ball". The Pearl staircase was born from that, which welcomes visitors with a wow effect immediately upon boarding and at the same time serves as the ship's load-bearing frame structure.

 

Own steel

 

The central radical solution is also high-strength steel, which the shipyard developed together with SSAB. Its merits include, among other things, new cabin solutions, and therefore Icon of the Seas is also significantly lighter, which saves fuel. The steel also takes on storms: in the worst weather, the hull can bend up to a meter between bow and stern.

 

Icon of the Seas

 

What: The world's largest cruise ship ordered by Royal Caribbean Cruises and built by Meyer Turku, scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2023

 

Dimensions: Length 365 m, width 48.5 m, height 70 m. Depth about 10 m. The ship has 20 decks. There are 2,805 cabins and 155,000 m2 of passenger space.

 

Fuel: Lng gas, fuel cells

 

Engine power: 90 MW

 

Number of people: A total of 9,950 passengers and crew members

 

Special features: 55 meter diameter roof dome, 17 meter high waterfall, bottom of the water pool consisting of several moving levels. Bottom of the Aqua Dome pool

 

Price: About $1.43 billion

 

"The frame is like a Christmas tree, which has to withstand all the decorations," describes Ari Niemelä, head of Meyer's structural design department. The sizes of cruisers have grown by leaps and bounds every ten years or so. According to Niemelä, Icon of the Seas is starting to hit the upper limit. "The length of the piers, the draft and the size of the harbor basin come into play, because the ship must also be able to turn."

 

On the Miami route, in addition to standard ports, Royal has its own islands, such as Coco Cay in the Bahamas and Labadee in Haiti. Important destinations in Europe include Barcelona, Civitavecchia, Malta, Marseille and Naples.

 

There are also so many passengers that it limits destinations. Around 6,000 passengers fill the city's terminal and attractions at any one time. Not everyone even gets off the ship, and they don't have to. There is so much to see and do that you won't have time to experience everything during a week's trip. Niemelä guesses so. The sizes also require new solutions for emissions. Icon of the Seas is Royal Caribbean's first LNG-powered ship, and in addition to gas, the energy source is hydrogen. In the future, even small nuclear power plants may loom after 2050. Some of the icebreakers are already powered by nuclear power.

 

Showy. The bow glass dome was lifted into place already assembled. PHOTO: JOEL MAISALMI

 

Emissions out

 

Last December, Royal Caribbean, the Finnish government and Meyer's shipyard agreed that from 2035 all ships designed and manufactured in Turku will be emission-free. That's why Net Zero ships are lurking in the binoculars. "Climate-neutral ships are a tough goal," admits Keiramo, who is also responsible for the green transition.

 

Entertainment. There is also a large theater under the bow glass dome. PHOTO: JOEL MAISALMI

 

Net Zero means that there are no emissions either from the shipyard, construction, technologies, products or even from the makers. There are other good things that can be done: while moving, the ships could clean sea water and, if necessary, deliver aid to crisis areas. In the Caribbean, for example, cruise ships have already transported residents to safety from hurricanes and delivered aid, food, medicine and other supplies to the devastated areas.

 

In Turku, the shipyard's own energy already comes from renewable sources, and in the Icon class ships, for example, the treatment of waste with microwave pyrolysis helps the goal. At the same time, it produces eight percent of the energy needed by the ship. "No untreated waste water ends up in the sea, and 90 percent of fresh water is produced by reverse osmosis from seawater," says Keiramo

 

Artificial intelligence has also been harnessed in the design, with the help of which, for example, the movement of passengers has been studied. The goal is that cruise ships of the future could have half as many elevators as now.

 

Business is booming

 

During the corona years, the cruise business hit a wall and the shipping companies got heavily in debt when they had to keep the ships running and manned. Now the pressure is released and, in addition to Royal Caribbean, Carnival, MSC, Norwegian Cruise Line and Costa Cruises are competing for the turning market. There are an estimated 31.5 million cruise passengers worldwide this year and 39.5 million by 2027. Customers are mainly families, and more and more often grandparents also travel with them. Entertainment and facilities on cruise ships are designed accordingly, which is also reflected in the solutions of the Icon of the Seas ship.

 

Makers. Ari Niemelä (left), Katja Lankinen (behind), Marjo Keiramo and Mikko Ilus and their teams fulfill the customers' wishes. PHOTO: JOEL MAISALMI

 

"Millennials are a large group, but there are also singles and couples. And there must be something for everyone. Chilling, pools, the world of spas and fitness are emphasized," says Keiramo. In the initial phase, Icon of the Seas will cruise in the Western and Eastern Caribbean, and according to the shipping company, the demand for tickets has broken all previous records.

 

The prices are also in a class of their own. Based on an online comparison, the cheapest week-long cruises cost well over a thousand dollars in an inside cabin. In March, for example, you can get a cabin with a balcony for a good $5,000, a Sunset suite for $10,000, and a three-story super suite for $75,000. At the same time, Caribbean cruises on other ships of the shipping company cost less than a thousand dollars.

 

Recently, Royal Caribbean Group warned that its results will improve more than expected. According to Factset, the group recorded a turnover of 5.8 billion euros and an operating profit of 954 million euros from January to June, while the operating loss for the whole of last year was 714 million euros.

 

The company's net debt of around 20 billion euros is slowly decreasing, by one billion a year. Corona debt is and will remain on the balance sheet for a long time to come. According to the forecasts, this year's operating result will already exceed the equivalent of 2019, but the interest expense of 1.2 billion euros will weigh down the last line's result compared to 2019. According to forecasts, interest expenses will remain at the level of one billion for the next few years as well.

 

According to Keiramo, what is decisive is what the market will be like for the next ten years.

 

 

[Tall-Cruiser]

8 hours ago, Eekaksi7 said:

A little late but here it is. I ran it through Google Translate and fixed some errors manually, it's a little janky read but should be understandable. 😄

Very good article and thanks for translating and sharing.

[Eremita85]

Some photos from last morning and tonight, Icon got lights on her anchor and crown logo! 

https://www.facebook.com/Eremita85/posts/24558917213707010

https://www.facebook.com/Eremita85/posts/24563650416567023

Edited September 5, 2023 by Eremita85

[Tall-Cruiser]

1 hour ago, Eremita85 said:

Some photos from last morning and tonight, Icon got lights on her anchor and crown logo! 

So looks like they have done some more painting around the water slide area. Lots of vibrant colors. 
Thanks for sharing your photos. 

[topanga49er]

I'm so excited and I'm not even going until 2025!

 

[Tall-Cruiser]

On 9/7/2023 at 4:33 PM, topanga49er said:

I'm so excited and I'm not even going until 2025!

 

There is still availability in 2024 plus lucky for you it’s a relatively short drive to Port Miami 😀

[FamilyCruiserUK]

Cant wait to go on her or her sister ships. Just need the prices to come down by quiet a bit. 🤣

[Tall-Cruiser]

13 minutes ago, FamilyCruiserUK said:

Cant wait to go on her or her sister ships. Just need the prices to come down by quiet a bit. 🤣

Hope the pricing on Icon 2 comes down to back to something “reasonable”. The current pricing for Icon is just insanely expensive compared to when booking first opened. 

[Ourusualbeach]

11 minutes ago, Tall-Cruiser said:

Hope the pricing on Icon 2 comes down to back to something “reasonable”. The current pricing for Icon is just insanely expensive compared to when booking first opened. 

Demand for cruising in general has skyrocketed since the Icon opened for booking in January of 2022 and that is reflected in nearly all (there are still a few bargains out there but not many) pricing across the fleet.  Don't expect that just because of new itineraries and a second ship being launched for prices to fall.  

 

Take a look at the difference in pricing when they released Utopia, The 4 day inaugural cruise on her was more than a 7 day Inaugural on Icon.

 

 

If you want a glimpse of what the new itineraries will be priced at take a look at the April sailings and use that as a guide with prices increasing from there for summer of 2025.  You may find some lower pricing for the fall of 205 and early 2026 but they will most definitely be at a significant premium to what the initial launch prices were for the Icon 9 months ago.

 

[gmerick]

Balcony cabin, Anthem, 17 Jan 2024.  I repriced 17 Mar @ $217/day.  Now it is $851/day.  

Edited September 10, 2023 by gmerick

[Tall-Cruiser]

35 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

You may find some lower pricing for the fall of 205 and early 2026 but they will most definitely be at a significant premium to what the initial launch prices were for the Icon 9 months ago.

This^ and the reference to “significant premium”. You are right, the current pricing trend points to that. Also, good point on Utopia opening pricing. 
In my head I am hoping Icon 2 sails from PC. However, looking at the current pricing on Wonder and especially suites, I imagine it will be crazy high.