World’s largest cruise ship sets sail in Miami
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The world’s largest cruise ship, Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas, set sail from Miami on its maiden voyage, carrying what amounted to the population of a small city.
The ship, built over 900 days at a shipyard in Turku, Finland, is a monument to enormity, longer than the Eiffel Tower is tall, with 20 decks and room for more than 5,600 passengers (7,600 at maximum capacity) and a crew of 2,350.
There has been some criticism though as the Icon is powered by what its owners say is eco-friendly Liquefied Natural Gas but uses LNG systems that some experts say can leak damaging amounts of methane gas into the atmosphere
The Icon also features a system of microwave-assisted pyrolysis, for converting waste to energy-producing gas, and a reverse osmosis system to provide nearly all the fresh water the ship needs, the company says.
The monster ship has seven swimming pools including a 40,000-gallon “lake,” six water slides, a carousel, what Royal Caribbean says is the largest ice arena at sea, and more than 40 dining venues and bars.
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The $2 billion Icon, the first in Royal Caribbean’s new Quantum Class of ships, is stuffed with the latest technology and, despite its mammoth size, claims to be more eco-friendly than some smaller cruise ships.
The Icon was christened in style on Tuesday, when global soccer star Lionel Messi, now with the Inter Miami side, pushed a button to send a bottle of Champagne crashing against the ship’s bow.
After leaving its Miami home base on its sold-out inaugural cruise, the company says ticket demand was “unprecedented”, the Icon will spend a week in the Caribbean before returning to Miami.
At 2,000 feet long (365 meters), the Icon will be taking the title of world’s largest from a Royal Caribbean stable-mate, the slightly smaller Wonder of the Seas.