5th Oasis Class Ship – As Construction Begins!

So it has just been announced that construction on the fifth Oasis-class ship has just begun. The first piece of steel has been cut by French shipbuilder Chantiers de L’Atlantique at the shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France which Royal Caribbean has had a longstanding partnership with. The ship which is yet to be named will be the largest yet and is planned to debut in Spring 2021 and will be identical to Oasis of the Seas, Allure of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas and the current world’s largest cruise ship Symphony of the Seas. Also on order would you believe is a sixth Oasis-class ship which is planned for late 2023.

So as it stands at the moment Royal Caribbean already have 4 of the largest cruise ships in the world with each ship of a gross tonnage exceeding over 225,000 tonnes with a maximum capacity at over 6,700 passengers each. The next closest is the AidaNova by Aida Cruises with a gross tonnage of 183,200 and a maximum capacity of 6,600 passengers. This is followed by MSC Meraviglia and MSC Bellissima with a gross tonnage of 171,598 and a maximum capacity of around 5,600 passengers each. Then it’s is Royal Caribbean again with 4 Quantum class ships of Quantum, Anthem, Ovation and Spectrum of the Seas which all have a gross tonnage exceeding 168,500 and can hold a maximum of 4,905 passengers per ship.

It’s amazing to think that the Oasis Class Ships are in fact five times the size of probably the most famous ship ever built – RMS ‘Titanic’. What is more amazing it was only a little over 15 years ago that Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 launched and held the distinction of being the longest and largest cruise ship at 148,528 gross tonnage.

In my experience and speaking to many customers, these Mega-Ships are floating resorts and they seem to do the same ports of call due to the sheer size of these vessels. Cruising to me is not just about the amenities and facilities on-board a ship but the ports of calls you are visiting.

So what’s next, will cruise ships continue to grow in size?

What are you views, does size really matter?