Liberty of the Seas anchored in Grand Cayman on December 22, 2016. | |
History | |
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Bahamas | |
Name | Liberty of the Seas |
Owner | Royal Caribbean Group |
Operator | Royal Caribbean International |
Port of registry | Nassau, Bahamas |
Route | Caribbean Homeport: Fort Lauderdale, Florida |
Builder | Aker Yards Turku Shipyard, Finland |
Cost | US$800 million |
Christened | May 18, 2007 by Donnalea Madeley [1] |
Maiden voyage | May 19, 2007 [1] |
In service | 2007–present |
Identification |
|
Status | In active service |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Freedom-class cruise ship |
Tonnage | 155,889 GT [2] |
Length | 338.92 m (1,111.94 ft) [2] |
Beam | |
Draught | 9.026 m (29.61 ft) [2] |
Decks | 18 total decks, 15 passenger decks |
Installed power | |
Propulsion | |
Speed | 21.6 knots (40.0 km/h; 24.9 mph) |
Capacity | |
Crew | 1,300 (average) |
Notes | [1] [2] |
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. [4] 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).
Liberty of the Seas is the second of the Freedom-class vessels. A third ship, Independence of the Seas , was delivered in April 2008. In 2009, the first in a new Oasis class of ships measuring 220,000 gross tons displaced the Freedom class as the world's largest passenger ships.
On April 19, 2007, Liberty of the Seas was delivered to parent company Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. [5] On April 22, 2007 she made her first port of call Southampton, on a promotional visit. [6] She arrived at Cape Liberty Cruise Port on May 3, 2007.
On May 18, 2007, the ship was christened by Toronto-based travel agent Donnalea Madeley, who, along with her husband, is also the founder of the charity Hands Across the Nations. [7]
In January 2011, Liberty of the Seas underwent renovations which included an outdoor video screen in the main pool area. [8]
Later in 2011, Liberty of the Seas completed her first transatlantic repositioning cruise, moving from Miami, Florida to being home-ported in Barcelona, Spain. She stayed in Europe for the summer and part of fall, and then returned to Miami. Until 2015, Liberty of the Seas spent summers in Europe and winters in either Port of Miami or Port Everglades in Florida. In 2015, Liberty of the Seas repositioned to Cape Liberty Cruise Port in Bayonne, New Jersey from May to November, [9] after which she repositioned to Galveston, Texas. [10]
In February 2016, Liberty of the Seas again underwent renovations, adding additional cabins atop the front of the ship, introducing new restaurants, and making enhancements to the pool deck. After the enhancements, Liberty of the Seas was 155,889 gross tonnage (GT), making her larger than the other two Freedom-class ships, and the eleventh largest cruise ship in the world, beating Norwegian Epic by 16 GT. [11] [12]
On April 2, 2020, it was reported that two crew members had tested positive for coronavirus. [13] One was asymptomatic, and remained in quarantine on board the ship, while the other, who showed visible symptoms, disembarked and was sent to a hospital in Galveston. [13] On April 15, 2020, after the ship was anchored on the coast of Texas, it returned and docked in Galveston. [14]
Liberty of the Seas has extensive sports facilities including the FlowRider onboard wave generator for surfing, an interactive water play area for children, a full-sized volleyball / basketball court, an ice skating rink, and a large fitness center. There are also two whirlpools that are cantilevered and project out from the sides of the ship to provide unimpeded views of the sea below and a modular conference center for business meetings. Among other dining facilities there is a three level formal dining room. [15]
A refurbishment in 2016 added a water slide complex, featuring two racing slides and a boomerang-style slide, and a children only water play area, featuring smaller water slides.
Many of the ship's interiors were extensively decorated by muralist Clarissa Parish. [16]
Royal Caribbean International (RCI), also formerly known as Royal Caribbean Cruise Line (RCCL), is a cruise line brand founded in 1968 in Norway and organised 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. It operates the five largest passenger ships in the world. As of January 2022, the line operates twenty-six ships and has four additional ships on order.
Explorer of the Seas is a Voyager-class cruise ship owned and operated by Royal Caribbean International, completed in 2000. She can accommodate over 3,000 guests, including scientists making use of a built-in atmospheric and oceanographic laboratory operated by the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. The lab, with its attendant educational and outreach programs for passengers, was discontinued in 2007.
Navigator of the Seas is a cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean International.
MS Monarch was the second of three Sovereign-class cruise ships owned by Royal Caribbean International. Beginning on April 1, 2013, Monarch was operated by RCCL's Pullmantur Cruises, before being sold for scrap in 2020 following Pullmantur's closure. The ship was built in 1991 at the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyards in Saint-Nazaire, France.
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.
Voyager of the Seas is the lead ship of the Voyager class of cruise ships operated by Royal Caribbean International (RCI). Constructed by Kværner Masa-Yards at its Turku New Shipyard in Turku, Finland, she was launched on November 27, 1998, and formally named by Olympic figure skater Katarina Witt on November 20, 1999.
The Oasis class is a class of 5 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, and 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, is currently in service. A sixth ship, to be named Utopia of the Seas has also been ordered by the company.
Rhapsody of the Seas is a Vision-class cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean International.
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 then built. She is 1,112 feet (339 m) long, and typically cruises at 21.6 knots.
Oasis of the Seas is a cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean International. She is the first of her class, whose ships are the largest passenger ships in the world. 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. 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 third largest class of cruise ships behind MSC Cruises's Meraviglia class and Royal Caribbean International's 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 third 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. In length, however, Harmony of the Seas is the longest cruise ship in the world.
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.
Spectrum of the Seas is a Quantum-Ultra-class cruise ship currently operated by Royal Caribbean International and the first ship of the Quantum Ultra class, a modification from the company's Quantum class of ships. The ship was constructed at Meyer Werft in Papenburg, Germany and was delivered in April 2019. At 169,379 GT, she became the fifth largest ship in the fleet by gross tonnage upon delivery. She currently operates primarily in East Asia.
Wonder of the Seas is the flagship of Royal Caribbean International. She was completed in 2022 in the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France, the fifth in Royal Caribbean's Oasis class of cruise ships. At 236,857 GT, she is the largest cruise ship in the world by gross tonnage, surpassing her sister ship Symphony of the Seas, also owned by Royal Caribbean International.
Icon of the Seas is a cruise ship under construction for Royal Caribbean International and will be the lead ship of the Icon class. It is scheduled to enter service in early 2024 out of PortMiami, and will have a gross tonnage of 250,800, making her the largest cruise ship in the world by gross tonnage.