New giant cruise liner will initially operate in European waters

A week would not be enough to explore all the vessel's services

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The 160,000 GRT Independence of the Seas, the third vessel in a series of giant cruise ships built in Turku, will be completed and will sail from the Aker Yards shipyard next Thursday.
      Unilke its earlier sister ships, the vessel will not be turning its bow toward the Caribbean, but will initially be plying European waters.
      The 339-metre leviathan, which cost roughly EUR 600 million, will carry 4,375 passengers and a crew of around 1,400, and contains so many services that a one-week cruise will barely scratch the surface.
     
"The fact that the vessel will first be stationed in Europe is a reflection of the sharp growth in cruise travel in these parts", says Juha Heikinheimo, President of Aker Yards' Cruise & Ferries business sector.
      The new cruise liner will be at first engaged on cruises to the Mediterranean from Southampton. Then when the weather starts to get colder toward the end of the year, she will head for the Caribbean in November.
      Right now around 500 shipyard workers are putting the finishing touches to the vessel for handover. The crew are also in place and in readiness for the off.
     
Like the two previous ships in this "world's largest" class, the Freedom of the Seas (2006) and Liberty of the Seas (2007), the interior décor of the new vessel adheres primarily to American tastes, with a good deal of glass, brass, and marble on show.
      Nevertheless, the furnishings and fittings on Royal Caribbean's Independence of the Seas are a touch more subdued in tone than on the two earlier deliveries.
      The vessel contains the same trademark 150-metre promenade, complete with restaurants and boutiques, running through the centre of the ship.
     
It is a matter of some pride at Aker Yards that this new project - spanning two years - was completed in a six-week shorter time than its immediate predecessor.
      The shipyard has a provisional agreement with the cruise line for a fourth "Freedom"-class vessel for completion in the fall of 2011.
     
On the subject of weeks, the ship's project manager
Sisko Hellgren points out that the Independence of the Seas is so crammed with facilities and services that a passenger on a one-week cruise will be very hard put to try everything out.
      There are theatres, an indoor rollerblade track and ice rink, a golf simulator, an aquapark, a surfing simulator with wave machine, a climbing wall, and even a boxing ring.
      The three-storey main restaurant seats 2,200 diners, and there are no fewer than 36 different kinds of cabin to choose from. The list goes on.
      The ship's first master will be Croatian-born Teo Strazicic, who has been with Royal Caribbean for 12 years.
      The crew itself has representatives of around 60 nationalities.
     
Even with all these superlatives, the Independence of the Seas and her sisters will only hold the "world's biggest" title for a relatively short time: Royal Caribbean have again turned to Aker Yards for a new generation of even larger cruise liners - the "Genesis" class.
      The first of these vessels, as yet unnamed, was ordered in 2006 and should be completed in time for the winter cruising season in 2009.
      It will be 360 metres stem to stern, with a gross tonnage of 220,000, and it will be able to carry 5,400 passengers.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Aker Yards wins EUR 900 million order for another giant cruise liner (3.4.2007)
  World´s largest and most expensive passenger vessel to be built in Turku (7.2.2006)

Links:
  Aker Yards
  Independence of the Seas (Wikipedia)
  Royal Caribbean Cruises

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