Two Giant Royal Caribbean Updates: Oasis of the Seas & A New Icon Ship!

Can you believe it has been 15 years since Oasis of the Seas smashed the size record when it entered service in 2009? Oasis was the first ship to exceed 200,000 gross tons, and the giant cruise ship pushed the boundaries of what was possible with cruise ship design like no other had before her – achieving a size and scale that experts in the 1980s and 1990s thought was the stuff of fantasy!

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Clocking in at an impressive 226,800 gross tons, Oasis of the Seas is 73,000 gross tons bigger than the previous holder of the records, the Freedom class Liberty of the Seas… now with gross tonnage being a volume measurement, in other words she’s more than a QE2’s size bigger in terms of internal volume! That’s big!

To mark the 15th anniversary of Oasis of the Seas, Royal Caribbean are treating the giant ship to a refurbishment, currently being undertaken at Cadiz, Spain. Much of this work involves maintenance, inspections and an overhaul of technical equipment that can only be completed when the ship is at a drydock facility.

At the same time, Royal Caribbean will spruce up the ship’s already impressive interior – which was treated to a much more significant overhaul back in 2019 when the ship was given a major overhaul at the same shipyard, which boosted her size with the addition of extra cabins and suites.

At the same time as Oasis of the Seas is in drydock, Royal Caribbean is also well underway with plans for their next biggest ship in the world – the third Icon class ship. Over 20,000 gross tons bigger than the Oasis Class, the yet to be named ship just completed its keel-laying celebration at the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland – the yard where these mega cruise ships are being built.

The Icon class is even bigger than the Oasis class, and the upcoming Icon ship is set to make its cruising debut in 2026.
The keel laying saw the yard lay the first building block for the ship, with the keel commonly referred to as the backbone of a ship. This structure is what lies at the bottom of the hull, basically supporting the construction of the rest of the ship.

In all, RCI currently has 7 of their giant 200,000+ ton vessels in service – 6 in the Oasis class and one in the Icon class. In addition, a 2nd Icon class ship – star of the seas – has just been floated out, and I made a video about that last week which you can check out in the info card or description. Would you ever sail on one of these massive cruise ships? Let me know in the comments below.

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Tags: #RoyalCaribbean #RCI #Iconoftheseas #Oasisoftheseas #cruisenews

[marychen]

Just did our first huge mega ship Icon of the Seas. I must admit the size was a little daunting at first but I was able to figure it out. Royal has a map feature on your cell phone that helps. The amount of guests on board was a little too much. My family all agrees (kids included) we just did not like waiting waiting waiting everywhere we went. Such long lines at the water slides and pools at capacity. Never found a free chair at the pools. The amenities were nice but just such a long wait for everything. Forget trying the flow rider or zip lining we never got a chance. The food on Icon felt like they cooked it quickly and did not have good flavor. Not bad food just nothing to write home about. We did the Carnival Celebration which was a different huge ship and it seems like that cruise company has it figured out. Much shorter lines on that Celebration ship but still felt crowded. Icon was too expensive also, we were left wanting more for the money we spend. Probably no more of this cruise line for us we were not satisfied.

[kylel]

Another Great Video Chris. Keep em coming. My family did a group cruise on the mega ship Harmony of the Seas by Royal Caribbean a few months ago. We all agreed the ship was just too crowded. It was not too big but just too many people for us. We had 7 cabins and all agree the last ship we cruised on, the Carnival Legend, was better suited for us. This was mainly due to the crowds and lengthy lines everywhere. I understand some people would like to have a lot to do rather than be board but the lines for everything were just so long. Our toilet actually flooded our cabin and Royal guest services was helpful and nice but provided very little compensation for a broken toilet that caused issues most of our cruise.

[MichaelAnderson-sw]

Used to be Royal Caribbean cruise line lovers. Did Symphony and Allure of the seas then they were nearly new and loved the ships but hated the crowds. Just did Odyssey of the Seas and really enjoyed that size better and the smaller crowds. Unfortunately had some major cabin issues and Royal's guest care team just did not seem to take anything seriously or care about us. We felt like just a number. Such a shame we used to love Royal. If you can find a time when the mega ships are not full, I think they would be fun otherwise get used to waiting in lines for everything. For us, due to the poor customer service we will be cruising on other lines.

[Lyle-tmtm]

Sailed on Icon and Harmony of the Seas. My family decided they are too big and just way too crowded. Long lines everywhere, pools at capacity, lines for the food. Just was not a relaxing vacation for us. Plus, our hot water went out and toilet would not flush and Royal Caribbean acted like it was no big deal and didn't care. Will probably stick to smaller ships from now on while cruising on other cruise lines.

[gaynor]

Yet another interesting video. Is there any chance you could do one about the SS United States. I was gutted to read they are scuppering her to create an artificial reef 😢

[tracys]

Sailed on Icon of The Sea when one of the engines went out. It was smooth sailing just slower. I will cruise on Icon and Icon class ship again for sure! The elevator system needs to be on every cruise ship sailing!

[tripperdan]

Fun video, thanks Chris! BTW, I have absolutely zero interest in sailing with 10, 000+ of my other friends on a cruise. I have decided to try the Princes Sun (next year) but other than that, that's about as big as I will dare go.

[Pengun]

Booked on Star Of The Seas for her maiden voyages in 2025, can’t wait!!!

[bigguy]

Great video. We sail on Oasis in 10 days on a transatlantic from Barcelona to Florida. Hope she looks better then before.

[dwuk]

Very Interesting - I didn't realise there was a different between Icon and Oasis Class until looking at your video. I am not keen on the Shape of the glass area above the bridge on Icon of the Seas - and didn't realise that feature was Icon Class specific until looking at your video today. Do you think the Star of the Seas (which according to Wikipedia is the next Icon Class ship) is likely to have that feature too? - as I would like to book a cruise next year (and do a 3d model) of one of the really big RCL ships - but maybe an Oasis class would be a better bet.

[TheTravelingHatter]

I have no plans to ever sail on an Oasis or Icon-class cruise ship as they seem to be too crowded

[lborg]

We sailed on the Symphony of the Seas, 10-17 Sept 2022 and on Icon of the Seas, 14-21 Sept 2024. We will be sailing on Star of the Seas, 7-14 Sept 2025. We will also be sailing on MSC World America, 12-19 Apr 2025 on its inaugural sailing.

[sanikdhimal]

How can we apply for job can i get hr email

[barneybodger]

No we would never sail on one they are too big too many passengers. If I want a bustling noisy crowded holiday I could go to Disneyland or a big theme park. Cruising should be relaxing like the Cunard way

[ksessa]

Nope, Royal is way out of my price range. Still a fan of Carnivals older ships with a center atruim.