Star of the Seas is sitting in water for the first time.
Royal Caribbean's new cruise ship is being built at the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland, and has reached an important construction milestone. It's taken 19 months to reach this milestone, and represents thousands people's collective effort to reach it.
Star of the Seas is the second Icon Class ship, following up the wildly successful Icon of the Seas.
The new ship has been floated out, which means the ship has its dry dock is filled with water and it becomes a wet dock.
A ceremony was held to commemorate the occasion because this means Star of the Seas is well on her way to enter service.
During the ceremony, there was a shot from a canon that took place in the Meyer Turku shipyard.
At that point, 92 million gallons of water was added to the dry dock, which took overnight to complete. After nine hours, Star of the Seas was successfully floated out and the next phase of work can commence.
Delivery of Star of the Seas should take place in 2025, with her first cruise scheduled for August 31, 2025.
What's different about Star of the Seas?
While Star of the Seas may be the second Icon Class ship, she is not a direct copy of Icon of the Seas.
Royal Caribbean has revealed only a few details so far, but we know a few key areas will be updated.
The Surfside family neighborhood will expand its scope to offer more for slightly older kids too. Instead of catering to young children, Surfside will offer more for elementary school aged kids too. That's because Royal Caribbean noticed older kids were hanging out there.
While unconfirmed, it appears Star of the Seas will have a Broadway musical onboard.
Back to the Future The Musical appears to be headed to Star, based on a post on Royal Caribbean's website seeking auditions.
It is adapted from the 1985 film Back to the Future by Robert Zemeckis and Gale. The show features original music, as well as songs featured in the film.
The supper club venue will have a Chicago theme to it on Star of the Seas, which incorporates music, food, and a Chicagoland motif.
Two other restaurants will get updates: Aquadome Market and Pier 7.
Aquadome Market will get updated in some capacity, while retaining its core approach. Pier 7 will be completely overhauled with a new concept that the cruise line is still working through.
Adventure Ocean will get some updates to be less tech focused, and embrace play more.
The cruise line is also experimenting with facial recognition by offering a handful of cabins that have the ability to open the cabin door with your face.
One other stateroom change is an update to the epic family suite on Star of the Seas, known as the Ultimate Family Townhouse.
This is the most expensive suite ever that covers three floors and has an in-suite slide, movie-viewing room, karaoke machine and a "backyard" with a ping pong table, outdoor seating and a white picket fence leading directly to the Surfside area.
Sailing from the Orlando area
Star of the Seas will sail year-round from Port Canaveral, Florida. That's a short drive from the Orlando area.
The new ship will offer seven-night cruises to the Eastern and Western Caribbean, starting in August 2025.
