File this story in the "Hard to be believe it's true" category.  Finland's National Board of Customs is reporting that the delivery of Allure of the Seas from STX's Turku Shipyard to Royal Caribbean helped contribute to Finland's trade balance ending up about a billion euros in the black.

STX claims that Allure of the Seas is the most valuable individual export product ever delivered from Finland.  The improvement in the trade balance is the first time Finland's trade balance has been in the black for the first 10 months of this year.

At the end of the third quarter, the trade balance was still 225 million euros in the red but the delivery of Allure helped fix that imbalance.

Allure of the Seas, Royal Caribbean's newest ship, utilizes an extensive network of security networks for both public areas and even some not-so-public regions.  Allure and its sister ship Oasis of the Seas, use more than 300 Oncam IP 360° 5-megapixel cameras. Many of these cameras are positioned in public areas of the ship that have multiple entrances, enabling simultaneous monitoring of all those entrances.

"A well-designed video surveillance system is an important tool for the safety and protection of everyone," said James Ionson, CEO, Oncam Global Inc. "It provides invaluable assistance to security personnel in resolving incidents, such as helping to identify a noise in the engine room, responding to passenger medical emergencies and determining liability issues, for just a few examples. With the right information, they can appropriately react."

The benefit of these cameras is it can do what traditional security cameras could not.  One camera in the ceiling in a hallway with elevators on both sides can be monitored at the same time along with the traffic in the hallway.  One of these Oncam IP 360° cameras replaces four traditional CCTV cameras.

In addition to Oasis and Allure, Royal Caribbean has been retrofitting these new security cameras into the security system of older cruise ships since 2006.

The Palm Beach Post posted an overview of the newly launched Allure of the Seas and here are some highlights.

Overall, the ship exudes an air of elegance, without being stuffy.

While the suites are lavish as you might expect, the rooms for the mere mortals among us are pretty good, too. Tastefully appointed, they feature the latest technology, including flat-screen TVs and iPod docking stations. They do a remarkable job of maximizing the space with shelves, cabinets and cubbyholes for all your belongings.

Imagine exiting an elevator in the middle of a cruise ship and walking out into the bright sunshine amid thousands of trees and plants, complete with chirping birds and upscale restaurants. It's called Central Park, and, like its New York namesake, it's the perfect place to rest and unwind amid walls of plants five decks high.

During Allure of the Seas' naming ceremony on Sunday, none other than Dreamworks' famed character Princess Fiona (from the Shrek films) was named the godmother.

“It’s never easy choosing the right godmother, but we realized we had the perfect candidate right in front of us. Princess Fiona is not only a Royal, but we felt such a unique ship deserved a unique godmother and Princess Fiona symbolizes the fun and entertainment that is so extraordinary on Allure of the Seas,” said Richard Fain, Chairman and CEO.

The decision to have Fiona be the godmother is another part of the tightly knit deal between Royal Caribbean and Dreamworks to integrate the characters into the ships of the Royal Caribbean fleet.

The naming ceremony also included a bagpipe-and-drums procession, the U.S. national anthem performed by Broadway star MiG Ayesa and a scene from Allure's Blue Planet aerial show. The event culminated with the traditional breaking of a Champagne bottle featuring a label created by pop artist Romero Britto, who has a gallery on the ship. The bottle breaking was activated by a karate chop by Princess Fiona.

Allure of the Seas' Central Park 150 restaurant's top chef, Maureen Brandt, has the task of running a high end restaurant on Royal Caribbean's newest ship and she'll be the first to admit it isn't easy.

"It's very different than at a restaurant on land," says Brandt, who won her position during an eight-week contest held this summer at the Culinary Institute of America. "Obviously if you run out of something (at sea) you can't just jump in the car and run to the grocery store."

Central Park 150 will officially debut in December 2010 during Allure of the Seas' maiden voyage.  The restaurant has been service meals in preview mode, but when the restaurant does open officially, everyone will be served the same six-course tasting menu. There are no a la carte choices.

Guests sailing aboard Royal Caribbean's brand new Allure of the Seas are coming from the United Kingdom and in many cases, they aren't going for the cheapest cabins either.  Royal Caribbean announced that most British passengers booking voyages on Allure of the Seas are opting for the most expensive accommodation.

About 66% of Brits that booked one of Allure's sailings thus far have gone with a balcony, deluxe or suite accommodation according to Royal Caribbean.  In addition, the Crown Loft Suites (glass-fronted loft apartment style rooms) are already sold out for the sailing that will celebrate New Years Eve at sea.

Royal Caribbean  vice president and managing director for the United Kingdom and Ireland was happy with the statistics, “We are really pleased by the continued growth of the UK and Irish cruise market, and even during these tough economic times, we see our guests return time and again. We are confident that the launch of Allure of the Seas will continue to stimulate and drive further interest in the cruise holiday proposition, simply because we offer great ships with an incredible experience on-board”.

The two biggest cruise ships in the world, Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas have come stern to stern and met for the first time.  Royal Caribbean's newest ship, Allure of the Seas, received a warm welcome from more than 8,000 guests and crew members aboard sister-ship Oasis of the Seas on Saturday, November 13.

Allure of the Seas' captain, Hernan Zini, confirms that his ship is five centimeters longer than Oasis of the Seas.

Royal Caribbean CEO Adam Goldstein said in a recent interview that Royal Caribbean's newest megaships, Allure and Oasis of the Seas, are drawing a much younger age group than traditionally seen. 

On an overall basis the average age of an RCI cruiser is 44. ... But on Oasis and Allure, the average age of people booking and taking trips is 39 or 40. We're seeing a much heavier family involvement on these ships. I believe the family vacation experience on these ships is competitive with anything that exists on land.

In addition to younger people going on a cruise, Goldstein was convinced that overseas cruising (outside the United States) is a place of tremendous growth for the company.  In fact, next summer, Royal Caribbean will have 11 of their 22 ships in Europe.

The biggest trend in the cruise industry right now is globalization. That is what's happening. For the first 30 years of the cruise industry as we know it, the American market was very dominant, and although marketing took place in other countries, particularly the U.K., it was limited. For the most part, people had to travel long distances to get on cruise ships and they were mostly occupied by U.S. customers. In the last 10 years, that has started to change in a meaningful way.

Allure of the Seas is almost ready to arrive in the United States at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Fla and you can catch a glimpse of her as she comes into port.  Allure will be welcomed by a flotilla of fireboats, private watercraft and other maritime escorts.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

• 8:00 am – Allure is visible from the shore line
• 8:30 am – Allure arrives at mouth of inlet (photo opportunity)
• 9:00 am – Berthing at Terminal 18, Port Everglades

WHERE: * John U. Lloyd Beach State Park, 6503 N. Ocean Dr., Dania Beach, FL 33004

If you're in the area, this is a free public welcome event. Jetty Pavilion opens at 7:00 am; Roadside parking for broadcast vehicles.

An even cooler photo opportunity will happen on Saturday, Nov. 13 at 5:30 pm whenAllure of the Seas will be joined by her sister ship Oasis of the Seas for a one-of-a-kind visual of the world's largest ships together for the first time.

Ambius, the world's leading provider of plants for the workplace, is bringing the Central Park neighborhood to life aboard Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas, which shares the title of the world's largest and most revolutionary cruise ship with sister-ship Oasis of the Seas. Central Park is an open-air atrium as long as a football field, offering guests an idyllic environment filled with live plants and trees and flanked by upscale shopping and dining venues. Ambius's award-winning team of landscaping designers, led by Denise Eichmann, were awarded the contract as landscape specialists responsible for organizing and implementing all of the landscaping aboard Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas.