While the construction and float out of Icon of the Seas has been sending shockwaves through the cruise world, behind the scenes, Royal Caribbean’s next Icon Class ship is being prepared.

The first cut of steel for the new ship was celebrated at the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland, with the ship set to debut in 2025.

The new ship is currently unnamed but is expect to receive its name soon.

The steel-cutting ceremony marks the official start of production, beginning the long motion of design and construction, with thousands of designers, naval engineers, architects and more, officially being put to work.

Icon of the Seas is set to start sailing in January 2024 and then a further third ship in the Icon class is also slated to begin construction over the coming years.

These ships are aiming to begin a new era of vacations for Royal Caribbean, operating under the philosophy of taking the best elements of different kinds of holidays such as beach escapes, resort getaways and theme park adventures, and putting them into the same place.

Icon of the Seas has made an immediate impact, with the announcement of the ship gathering so much hype that Royal Caribbean International had its single largest booking day across its more than 50 year history.

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