Royal Caribbean International orders a new
generation cruise vessel from Aker Yards.
The contract price being approximately EUR 900
million, this is the most valuable ship ever
ordered in the history of commercial
shipbuilding.

The 220,000 GRT ship, a prototype developed
under Project Genesis, will be delivered from
Aker Yards, Finland in autumn 2009. The order
means 5,800 man years of work for the yard.
The contract includes an option for a similar
vessel.

`After developing so many generations of cruise
ships together over the 35 years of our
partnership with RCCL we are excited about
jumping so far out in front of cruise-ship
design with this highly innovative and exciting
new ship` says Yrjö Julin, President responsible
for Aker Yards Cruise & Ferries business area.
`Working together we will create an unparalleled
experience for the next generation of cruisers.`

`It is exhilarating to take such a giant step
into the future`, said Royal Caribbean Chairman
and CEO Richard Fain. `Project Genesis truly is
a remarkable ship. Its bold design, daring
innovation and technological advancements will
delight our existing customers and help us draw
in new ones`. He also said Royal Caribbean to be
fortunate to have such gifted collaborators as
Aker Yards.

Taking a huge leap of 43 per cent in size from
the new record breaking `Freedom of the Seas` to
be delivered for Royal Caribbean from Aker Yards
in April, the new giant of the cruise market
will be 360 meters long, 47 meters wide, 65 m
high above waterline and accommodate 5,400
passengers.

The previous deliveries from Aker Yards to Royal
Caribbean include eleven newbuildings, and there
are three more in the present orderbook, the
world´s largest cruise vessels in the Freedom
class, to be delivered in 2006, 2007 and 2008.

Consisting of 18 newbuildings, the total value
of the order book of Aker Yards in Finland is
some 4.3 billion euro after this contract.

The contract is subject to final confirmation of
buyers financing.

A side view of the vessel can be found in our
imagebank www.akerfinnyards.com , Newsroom /
Image bank / Cruise vessels

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Originally posted by RCI 20:
The 220,000 GRT ship ...

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I do hope that this ship will be deployed on one week cruises or longer, as it will take one week to just walk the 360 meters from the bow to the stern.

...and here a link to the Aker press release....

[ 02-06-2006: Message edited by: Ernst ]

quote:

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Originally posted by tazza:
That would be an amazing site!! I would love to have the chance to go on something like that. How big are the Freedom of the Seas sisters??? Bigger than QM2?

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Where is the extra tonnage coming from, more decks with more balconies? Is this not just a pumped up version of the Freedom of the Seas? Physically she is really not that much bigger than Freedom? At 70k tons over QM2 but double her passengers I have questions about her safety in case of an emergency. I am guessing that 5400 is at double capacity only, meaning she could possibly carry over 6000 guests? And will she have enough to do for those guests? I would love to see a deck plan...

[ 02-06-2006: Message edited by: dmwnc1 ]

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I do think that we will be seeing something from Carnival soon as they need a new class of vessel. They continue to try and tweak the Conquest class but that design is so old and outdated.

The problem with the Pinnacle class will be the number of passengers for the size ship.

Gordon

[ 02-06-2006: Message edited by: Atlcruiser ]

I think the rendering is stunning, but I think theres a couple of questions I have.

How do people get into those lifeboats?

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Originally posted by MOORHOUSE:

How do people get into those lifeboats?

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The boats would be boarded right where they are, at Deck 4 level. This would be the open Promenade deck which a previous poster could not see.

People, remember, this is an initial artist's rendering of a projected ship project, not a photograph of the finished product. We all know that many details are tweaked before the final product comes out. It looks to me like there is a definite prom. deck at deck 4 level, just like in the previous vessels. Actually the entire design is like an enlarge Freedom-Class vessel.

quote:

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Originally posted by tazza:
That would be an amazing site!! I would love to have the chance to go on something like that. How big are the Freedom of the Seas sisters??? Bigger than QM2?

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quote:

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Originally posted by recab:
Joe, According to press release she will be 1.180 ft long, 154 ft wide and 240 ft high.

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indeed. From what I've seen the new class of Celebrity ships will also be lacking an exterior promenade below the lifeboats. And actually, there are quite a few exterior similarities between this new class for RCI and the new Celebrity class. The stern section looks particularly similar, as does the "extended" superstructure section just aft of amidships.

Best,

The boats would be boarded right where they are, at Deck 4 level. This would be the open Promenade deck which a previous poster could not see.

Rich, on the Carnival Destiny and Conquest class, the lifeboats are not loaded from the promenade deck. They are loaded from inside of the ship as I suspect this will be done.

quote:

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Originally posted by r.fiebig:
Atlcruiser,

indeed. From what I've seen the new class of Celebrity ships will also be lacking an exterior promenade below the lifeboats. And actually, there are quite a few exterior similarities between this new class for RCI and the new Celebrity class. The stern section looks particularly similar, as does the "extended" superstructure section just aft of amidships.

Best,

Raoul

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Thanks Raoul, I didn't think that I saw an exterior promenade deck on the drawings and I doubt that the shipyard would have excluded one if it was to be part of the design. I do not like that at all as that is one of my favorite places to read and relax.

Also, it looks as if the glass of the balcony cabins is rounded at the top. Interesting looking.