The world’s biggest cruise ship: ‘Hellish’ or ‘mind-blowing?’

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The Love Boat this ain’t.

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Icon of The Seas from Royal Caribbean International is being billed as the world’s largest cruise ship but it’s already being slagged on Twitter before its maiden voyage in January, the New York Post reports.

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Some are comparing it unfavourably to the Titanic before its first tragic sailing, but this ship is five times larger with an internal volume of 250,800 gigatonnes (GT) compared to the Titanic’s 46,328 GT.

“As visions of hell go, that’s pretty much the most hellish,” one person tweeted in response to a photo of the new cruise ship, while another said, “I’m sorry but this is a nightmare.”

“Every time I see a picture of the Icon of the Seas cruise ship I am filled with an intense dread,” another wrote.

Needless to say, Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley believes Icon of the Seas takes ocean cruising to a new level.

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“We are positioning it as the ultimate family vacation and when you step back and look at all the energy and time that has gone into creating this ship it is mind-blowing,” Bayley said in a statement.

The ship has seven pools, nine whirlpools and the largest water park at sea named Category 6, after its record-breaking six slides.

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Currently, the cheapest ticket is priced at US$1,851 for an interior room on a seven-night cruise from Miami to the western Caribbean in September 2024.

The most expensive is $10,864 for a suite on the same cruise in March.

Icon of The Seas, which hold up to 5,610 passengers and 2,350 crew on 19 floors, completed its first set of tests on June 22, according to a company statement.

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“During her first set of sea trials, Icon of the Seas traveled hundreds of miles, during which the main engines, hull, brake systems, steering, noise, and vibration levels were all tested,” the statement said.

“Everything was done on time as outlined in the schedule, despite her departure being delayed due to wind conditions.”

Royal Caribbean says a second set trials at sea is scheduled for later this year and despite the naysayers, eager cruisers have come on board and it’s already sold out in January.

Bayley said during the company’s quarterly financial results that Icon of the Seas is “literally the best-performing new product launch we’ve ever had.”

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