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Freedom of the Seas in Oslo, 2006. | |
Class overview | |
---|---|
Builders | Aker Finnyards Turku Shipyard, Finland |
Operators | Royal Caribbean International |
Preceded by | Radiance class |
Succeeded by | Oasis class |
Built | 2004–2008 |
In service | 2006–present |
Planned | 4 |
Completed | 3 |
Cancelled | 1[ citation needed ] |
Active | 3 |
General characteristics | |
Type | Cruise ship |
Tonnage | 154,407 GT |
Length | 338.8 m (1,111 ft 6 in) |
Beam |
|
Height | 63.7 m (209 ft) above water line |
Draft | 8.5 m (28 ft) |
Decks | 18 total, 15 passenger |
Installed power | 6 × Wärtsilä 12V46 diesels each rated at 12.6 MW (16,900 hp) driving electric generators at 514 rpm |
Propulsion | 3 × ABB Azipod podded electric propulsion units, two of them azimuthing, one fixed. 4 additional bow thrusters. |
Speed | 21.6 knots (40.0 km/h; 24.9 mph) |
Capacity | 4,370 passengers (double occupancy) |
Crew | 1,300 (average) |
Notes | Extended version of second generation Voyager class |
The Freedom class is a group of three cruise ships for Royal Caribbean International. The first ship of the class, Freedom of the Seas, was the largest passenger ship in the world, and the largest ever built in terms of passenger capacity and gross tonnage, when it was built in 2006. These two records were then shared by all three ships until the construction of Oasis of the Seas was completed in November 2009.
Freedom of the Seas left Aker Finnyards Turku Shipyard, Finland on 24 April 2006 and started regular sailings out of Miami the next month. The second ship of the class, Liberty of the Seas, sailed on its maiden voyage on 19 May 2007. The third ship of the class, Independence of the Seas, was delivered and started work out of Southampton in April 2008.
The Freedom-class ships are similar in design and layout to the earlier second-generation Voyager class, including an ice skating rink and a 136 m (446 ft) central atrium [1] named the Royal Promenade, featuring a pub, shops, arcades, bars, and a 24-hour Cafe Promenade. New features added to the Freedom class include the FlowRider surf park, cantilevered whirlpools, and the H2O Zone waterpark.
The first ship, Freedom of the Seas, is estimated to have cost US$800 million. [1]
In March 2008, Aker Yards and Royal Caribbean announced a memorandum of agreement for a fourth ship in the class, subject to board approval and finalization of terms and conditions, but no actual order for the ship was ever announced. [2] In 2011, Royal Caribbean announced that it had ordered two ships from the similarly sized Quantum class, making an order for a fourth Freedom-class ship unlikely. [3]
Ship | Year built | Entered service with Royal Caribbean | Gross tonnage | Notes | Image |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Freedom of the Seas | 2006 | 4 June 2006 | 156,271 [4] | Largest cruise ship in the world, 2006–2009. Refurbished January 2015. Underwent amplification in early 2020. | |
Liberty of the Seas | 2007 | 19 May 2007 | 155,889 [5] | Originally named Endeavor of the Seas before construction started. [6] | |
Independence of the Seas | 2008 | 2 May 2008 | 155,889 [4] | Refurbished April 2013 and April 2018. |
Adventure of the Seas is a Voyager-class cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean International. The vessel was launched and entered service in 2001. Registered in the Bahamas, Adventure of the Seas has cruised from ports in the United States and Europe to sites in the Caribbean Sea, Baltic Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Canada and Europe. The ship has a 138,193 GT and is 311.1 meters long with capacity for 3,807 guests.
The promenade deck is a deck found on several types of passenger ships and riverboats. It usually extends from bow to stern, on both sides, and includes areas open to the outside, resulting in a continuous outside walkway suitable for promenading, thus the name.
Royal Caribbean International (RCI), previously known as Royal Caribbean Cruise Line (RCCL), is a cruise line brand founded in 1968 in Norway and organized as a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Caribbean Group since 1997. Based in Miami, Florida, it is the largest cruise line by revenue and second largest by passengers counts. In 2018, Royal Caribbean International controlled 19.2% of the worldwide cruise market by passengers and 14.0% by revenue. As of January 2024, the line operates 28 ships and has three additional ships on order.
MS Freedom of the Seas is a cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean International. She is the namesake of Royal Caribbean's Freedom class, and can accommodate 3,634 passengers and 1,300 crew on fifteen passenger decks. The vessel also has 4 crew decks below the waterline. Freedom of the Seas was the largest passenger ship ever built from 2006 until construction of her sister ship, Liberty of the Seas in 2007.
The Oasis class is a class of 7 Royal Caribbean International cruise ships. The first two ships in the class, Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas, were delivered respectively in 2009 and 2010 by STX Europe Turku Shipyard, Finland. A third Oasis-class vessel, Harmony of the Seas, was delivered in 2016 built by STX France. A fourth vessel, Symphony of the Seas, was completed in March 2018. As of March 2022, the fifth Oasis-class ship, Wonder of the Seas, was the largest cruise ship in the world. A sixth ship, Utopia of the Seas, is currently being built for entry into service in July 2024 with a seventh to follow in 2028.
The Voyager class refers to a design of post-Panamax cruise ships owned and operated by Royal Caribbean International. The Voyager-class ships were built at Kværner Masa-Yards Turku New Shipyard, Finland.
Liberty of the Seas is a Royal Caribbean International Freedom-class cruise ship which entered regular service in May 2007. It was initially announced that she would be called Endeavour of the Seas, however this name was later changed. The 15-deck ship accommodates 3,634 passengers served by 1,360 crew. She was built in 18 months at the Aker Finnyards Turku Shipyard, Finland, where her sister ship, Freedom of the Seas, was also built. Initially built at 154,407 gross tonnage (GT), she joined her sister ship, Freedom of the Seas, as the largest cruise ships and passenger vessels then ever built. She is 1,111.9 ft (338.91 m) long, 184 ft (56.08 m) wide, and cruises at 21.6 knots (40 km/h).
Independence of the Seas is a Freedom-class cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean International. The 15-deck ship was built in the Aker Finnyards Turku Shipyard, Finland. At 154,407 GT, she joined Freedom of the Seas and Liberty of the Seas as the largest cruise ships and passenger vessels when built. She is 1,112 feet (339 m) long, and typically cruises at 21.6 knots.
Norwegian Epic is a cruise ship of the Norwegian Cruise Line built under NCL's F3 Project by the STX Europe Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France. When built she was the third largest cruise ship in the world.
Oasis of the Seas is a cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean International. She is the first of her class, the Oasis class, whose ships were the largest passenger ships in the world, until surpassed in 2023 by the Icon class. Her hull was laid down in November 2007 and she was completed and delivered to Royal Caribbean in October 2009. At the time of construction, Oasis of the Seas set a new capacity record of carrying over 6,000 passengers. The first of her class, she was joined by sister ships Allure of the Seas in December 2010, Harmony of the Seas in May 2016, Symphony of the Seas in April 2018, and Wonder of the Seas in March 2022, as well as Utopia of the Seas in July 2024. Oasis of the Seas conducts cruises of the Caribbean from her home port of PortMiami in Miami, Florida.
Allure of the Seas is an Oasis-class cruise ship owned and operated by Royal Caribbean International. As of 2018, the Oasis class ships were the largest passenger vessels ever in service, and Allure is 50 millimetres (2.0 in) longer than her sister ship Oasis of the Seas, though both were built to the same specifications. Designed under the name "Project Genesis", she was ordered from Aker Finnyards in February 2006 and her construction began at the Perno shipyard, Turku, Finland, in February 2008. She was named in May 2008 after a contest was held to name her and her sister. The keel of Allure of the Seas was laid on 2 December 2008, shortly after the shipyard had been acquired by STX Europe.
The Quantum class is a class of cruise ships from Royal Caribbean International, previously known by the code name Project Sunshine.
Quantum of the Seas is a Quantum-class cruise ship currently operated by Royal Caribbean International and is the lead ship of her class. At her time of delivery in 2014, Quantum of the Seas was the third largest cruise ship in the world by gross tonnage. She is currently deployed to serve the Alaskan and Australian cruise markets.
Anthem of the Seas is a Quantum-class cruise ship owned by Royal Caribbean International (RCI) and the second ship of her class. The Quantum class is the fourth largest class of cruise ships behind MSC Cruises's Meraviglia class and Royal Caribbean International's Icon class and Oasis class by gross tonnage.
Harmony of the Seas is an Oasis-class cruise ship built by STX France at the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France, for Royal Caribbean International. With a gross tonnage of 226,963 GT, she is the fourth largest passenger ship in the world, larger than her older sisters Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas, but surpassed by her newer sisters Symphony of the Seas and Wonder of the Seas. Harmony of the Seas is also the second longest cruise ship in the world, being surpassed by Icon of the Seas.
The Icon class is a class of cruise ships ordered by Royal Caribbean International to be built by Meyer Turku in Turku, Finland. As of 2024 this class is the largest cruise ship class ever constructed. Royal Caribbean plans to have three Icon-class ships by 2026.
Symphony of the Seas is an Oasis-class cruise ship owned and operated by Royal Caribbean International. She was built in 2018 in the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France, the fourth in Royal Caribbean's Oasis class of cruise ships. At 228,081 GT, she was the largest cruise ship in the world by gross tonnage when built, surpassing her sister ship Harmony of the Seas, also owned by Royal Caribbean International, and surpassed by her sister ship Wonder of the Seas in 2022.
Enchantment of the Seas is a Vision-class cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean International.
Icon of the Seas is a cruise ship built for Royal Caribbean International and is the lead ship of the Icon class. She entered service on 27 January 2024 out of the Port of Miami in the US. At 248,663 gross tonnage (GT), Icon of the Seas is the largest cruise ship in the world.