The third largest cruise ship in world, Quantum of the Seas emerged from the shipyard in Germany this week.

Quantum of the Seas is the first in a new class of ship for Royal Caribbean featuring a range of at-sea firsts including the North Star – an observation capsule that extends over the ship and water to offer 360-degree views and a sky-diving simulator.

Spanning 18 decks, the ship has the largest cabins in the Royal Caribbean fleet and the first Jamie’s Italian – Jamie Oliver’s Italian specialty restaurant – at sea.

The ship is also fitted with the line’s signature activities like the rock climbing wall and the FlowRider surf simulators.

During the float out crowds were able to see a 30-foot tall magenta polar bear, which sat on the exterior top deck of Quantum.

The eight tonne bear sculpture, is the first glimpse of the 2,980 piece, multi-million dollar art collection themed “What Makes Life Worth Living” that has been curated for the ship.

Created by Australian, Lawrence Argent, the bear titled “From Afar” is comprised of 1,340 stainless steel triangles, weighs approximately eight tonnes and is intended to incite wonder among guests, encouraging them to admire the bear from afar, as well as interact with it on a more intimate, yet whimsical level.

“It is quite exciting to be collaborating with Royal Caribbean on a very visible and significant piece of art that will allow my work to be exposed to thousands of people each week,” said Argent.

“The thing about cruise holidays is that they transport individuals from the normality of their everyday lives and leave them open to new experiences.  The bear engages those that have a fear of thinking they don’t know what art is and turns it into an approachable entity.”

Quantum of the Seas will commence sea trials in September before she launches in November.

Click on the thumbnails below to see what will be available onboard.