Royal Caribbean has big plans for new ships and destinations you can book between now and 2028.
One thing that sets Royal Caribbean apart from other cruise lines is their consistent push forward with new ships, private beach expansions, and exciting itineraries.
In fact, there's so much going on with announcements, expansions, and reveals that it's difficult sometimes to know what is opening and when.
To make things easier, here's a concise look at all the big projects Royal Caribbean has up its sleeve in the coming years.
Star of the Seas
Opening: August 31, 2025
The second Icon Class cruise ship is nearly complete, and ready for launch in summer 2025.
Star of the Seas will have her inaugural sailing August 31, 2025 from Port Canaveral, Florida, and it's the cruise ship meant to follow-up the tremendous success of Icon of the Seas.
Just like Icon, Star will offer 7-night cruises to the eastern and western Caribbean. In fact, there will be a lot of similarities to Icon.
Royal Caribbean has not revealed every single detail about Star yet, but you should expect a ship that looks very similar to Icon.
Some quick differences about Star of the Seas compared to Icon:
- The ships will be exactly the same size, meaning Star will not be bigger
- Back to the Future The Musical will be the featured show onboard
- There will be a few facial recognition cabins
- There will be a family dog on Star
- Surfside will be enhanced to appeal to slightly older kids
- The Supper Club will have a Chicago theme
- There will be one additional hot tub
- The Pearl is being enhanced
- A new restaurant in Surfside to replace Pier 7
You can expect Star of the Seas to build on what made Icon good, and add a few tweaks of its own.
Royal Beach Club Paradise Island
Opening: December 2025
Royal Caribbean is working on its first ever private beach club experience, available exclusively to its passengers.
Royal Beach Club Paradise Island is a shore excursion beach day owned and operated by Royal Caribbean, and it's located in Nassau, Bahamas across from where the cruise ships dock.
Unlike Perfect Day at CocoCay or Labadee, entry costs extra and it's all-inclusive.
If you buy a pass, you'll be able to enjoy the pools, beaches, live music, island-style barbecues and more. The plan is to create, "the ultimate beach day," for anyone that goes there.
Think of all the best features and ideas from CocoCay, tweak them to be better, and combine it all in one place.
No word yet on pricing, but passes will go on sale beginning in the spring of 2025. The club itself will open sometime in December 2025.
Icon 3
Opening: 2026
The unnamed third Icon Class ship will enter service in 2026, and we know very little about what will be different about it.
One thing that's clear is Icon 3 will be the first opportunity for holistic changes compared to Icon. Icon and Star both began construction around the same time, so the basic plans for both had to be the same. With Icon 3, there was more time since the launch of Icon to include fundamental changes.
Royal Caribbean's Product Development team has hinted at changes that might be coming to Icon 3, but we will have to wait and see what they are.
There's no information yet on where this ship will sail from, its name, or any distinguishing factors.
Royal Beach Club Cozumel
Opening: 2026
Royal Caribbean announced plans to build its second beach club, with it being located in Cozumel, Mexico.
Just like the one in Nassau, Royal Beach Club Cozumel will be available exclusively for cruise ship passengers and no one else. It will open sometime in 2026.
We don't know where Royal Beach Club Cozumel will be located, as the cruise line has not revealed where the site of it is located.
I've heard rumors of a potential takeover of an existing shore excursion beach, but nothing firm.
The driving plan behind this beach club is to offer great beach, pool, food, and service.
Admission into the beach club will include access to swim-up bars, pools cabanas to rent, snorkeling, kayaking, restaurants, and street markets.
Royal Beach Club in South Pacific
Opening: 2026 or 2027
Royal Caribbean has pivoted from building a Perfect Day experience in Vanuatu to a beach club idea instead.
Details have been limited, but the line has confirmed a shift in plans to go with a new, unannounced beach club project.
Instead of Perfect Day Lelepa, there should be something more akin to Royal Beach Club Cozumel or Royal Beach Club Paradise Island.
In 2024, Mr. Bayley said he expected this beach club to open in 2026 or 2027.
Icon 4
Opening: 2027
In 2024, Royal Caribbean announced it ordered a fourth Icon Class ship, with options to build a fifth and sixth Icon Class ship.
Just like Icon 3, we know no details about it at all.
Perfect Day Mexico
Opening: 2027
One of Royal Caribbean's most ambitious plans is to open a third private destination for its passengers, and this one is in Mexico.
Perfect Day Mexico will be double the size of Perfect Day at CocoCay, and it's going to be big. They've acquired about 220 acres of land.
It will transform Costa Maya, and encompass everything we love at CocoCay, but more of it.
It will have "an all-new, thrilling waterpark; jaw-dropping pools and beaches; restaurants, bars and more spots for all tastebuds; music; and more."
More details will be revealed in Spring 2025.
Oasis 7
Opening: 2028
There's still at least one more Oasis Class ship to be constructed.
Royal Caribbean placed an order for Oasis 7, with delivery sometime in 2028.
Oasis 7 will enter service about 4 years after Utopia of the Seas did, and that gives the cruise line all sorts of time to implement every tweak, enhancement, and new idea they can come up with from all of the Oasis and Icon ships combined.
Discovery Class ships
Opening: Unknown
Plans for a smaller cruise ship class are still in the rumor phase, but there's been a few hints over the last year.
Royal Caribbean International CEO Michael Bayley has alluded and even mentioned the Discovery Class ships as an idea the cruise line has to build a new generation of smaller ships to replace the fleet's aging Vision Class.
Nothing official has been announced, and there have been no orders placed with any shipyards yet.
It's been primarily something mentioned with a wink or a nudge, but there's been enough talk among Royal Caribbean's top executives that it sounds like it could be a reality.
