- The 20-deck ship, five times larger than the ill-fated Titanic, is as long as three football fields
The world's largest cruise ship has made its way to Puerto Rico and is preparing to take on its first paying passengers.
Locals and tourists in Ponce, Puerto Rico got their first look at the 1,198-foot-long, 250,800-ton pleasure cruiser named “Icon Of The Seas” as it took a necessary break in port as part of its sea trial to obtain its certification.
The 20-deck ship, five times larger than the ill-fated Titanic, loomed over the city on the Caribbean island's southern coast.
The massive ship, which cost cruise line Royal Caribbean $2 billion (£1.58 billion), features a dining room, six swimming pools and the largest at-sea water park of any cruise ship in the world.
The first paying customer cruise departs Miami, Florida on January 27 for a seven-day Caribbean cruise, including a stop at Perfect Day at CocoCay, Royal Caribbean's private island in the Bahamas.
Our graphic tells you everything you need to know about Icon Of The Seas as she undergoes her final tests before her maiden voyage.
Prices for this year's seven-night Caribbean cruise start at around £1,200, but so far almost all 'cabins' have been reserved and paid for, with those yet to be snapped up costing between £4,000 and £6,000.
Some rooms are even more expensive. The Ultimate Family Townhouse Suite spans three decks. While customers can take the stairs to traverse the massive suite, when descending they also have the option of using a slide that leads to the living room floor.
The Ultimate Family Townhouse sleeps eight people and has its own sun terrace and various balconies. Seven nights cost families a staggering $85,000 (£70,000).
The cruise took years to put together. Prototypes of “neighborhoods” – as the ship’s eight main areas are called – were built to scale in Miami before being installed on the actual ship at the Meyer Turku shipyard on Finland’s Baltic coast.
Most of the “cabins” are modular buildings that were built elsewhere in Finland and then moved into place.
The most daring lift occurred when the Aquadome – the largest free-standing dome at sea with nearly 700 glass panels and weighing 365 tons – was lifted from the dock and plopped onto the ship like a flying saucer, its weight evenly distributed using numbers Computers connected to each cable.
This particular maneuver took 24 hours and the dome now features a 55-foot waterfall and seating for 1,300 people.
Jay Schneider, Royal Caribbean's chief product innovation officer, previously told the Mail: “We didn't set out to build the largest ship in the world.”