What’s longer than the Eiffel Tower, is many times heavier yet stays afloat in water? It is nothing less than the largest cruise liner, belonging to Royal Caribbean Cruises. The 120,000-ton Harmony of the Seas, capable of accommodating more than 8,000 passengers and crew in the most luxurious conditions, was revealed Thursday at a French boatyard. At 66 meters (217 feet), it is the widest cruise ship ever built, while its 362-meter length makes it 50 meters longer than the height of the Eiffel Tower. The immense floating town, which cost close to one billion euros, has 16 decks and will be able to carry 6,360 passengers and 2,100 crew members. The ship was built for the US-based Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (RCCL) by the STX France boatyard in Saint-Nazaire on the Atlantic coast. Harmony of the Seas will leave the port on Sunday, weather permitting, for Southampton in southern England. From there, it will embark on for its official maiden voyage on May 22 to Barcelona. RCCL already operates two giant sister liners to the Harmony of the Seas called Allure of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas, marginally smaller than the new ship. Among the onboard attractions is “The Ultimate Abyss”, a 10-storey slide from the top deck to the boardwalk which RRCL bills as the world’s biggest ship-mounted slide. A giant climbing wall, a rope slide, mini-golf, surf simulator, floating jacuzzis, casino and 1,400-seat theatre playing Broadway musicals are among the other attractions. Two robot barmen will serve passengers in the “Bionic Bar”. The ship even has its own high street, and a “Central Park” deck featuring 12,000 plant species. After its maiden voyage, it will dock in its new home port of Barcelona a week later, after which it will begin regular cruises through to late October. It took 2,500 workers at STX France a total of some 10 million work-hours to complete the enormous vessel after work began in September 2013. RCCL has already ordered another sister ship of the Harmony to join its fleet in 2018.
(Source: www.luxuo.com)
