Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas will get the title of world’s largest cruise ship when it debuts sailing out of Miami in 2024, but that’s beside the point.
“It’s purposeful. It’s not like we start with each ship and we say, ‘OK, this one’s going to be the biggest in the world.’ That actually isn’t the purpose,” said Jay Schneider, chief product innovation officer for Royal Caribbean. “It really comes down to going through the creative process and the customer insight process to say what are we really seeking out to achieve?”
“Every stateroom except interiors is bigger than any other stateroom that we’ve had before,” he said. “They are bigger but are laid out in a unique and creative way that we’ve never done before.”“So you’ll find facades that are open for the first time in a grand way,” he said. “You’ll find connectivity between decks that we’ve never done before, and a lot of that design and ingenuity came from this notion of giving people more space.
There’s also still a carousel, but instead of classic amusement park horses, people will get to ride on a narwhal, an octopus, a giraffe or in a VW bus among other choices. Surfside is also still home to the Sugar Beach ice cream and candy venue — perfect for the target demographic of 6 and under — but it’s also designed to keep mom and dad happy so they can relax in a pool, lounge and bar while the kids run around Splashaway Bay.
It’s the prime offering of a neighborhood called Thrill Island that includes the free-fall slides Pressure Drop and Frightening Bolt; Storm Surge and Hurricane Hunter, which is the first family raft slide for the line that can sport four riders per raft; and a pair of mat racer slides called Storm Chasers.
It’s adjacent to the largest pool on a cruise ship, the Royal Bay Pool, and a margarita glass hot tub, one of nine whirlpools on board, among the Caribbean-themed pool deck with a variety of lounging options that’s been rolled out to other ships in the fleet. It will also be home to some of the Lime & Coconut bars, of which there are four shipwide.