How are Cruise Ships Built? Discover the Construction & Engineering Behind these Treasures of the Sea

where are cruise ships built

A watertight hull is the main building block upon which all other pieces rely. The following are the world’s most prominent shipyards specializing in cruise ship construction, along with which of your favorite floating resorts they have built. If you’ve ever been curious about these massive feats of engineering, we shed some light on where (and how) cruise ships are built. It is at this stage that the cruise line will announce they’ve placed an order for a new ship and it is usually around 3-4 years away. No name or any details is given at this stage, just the tonnage, possible class of ship (for example a sister ship or a brand new design) and usually the passenger capacity. Although cruise ships are not built in The United States of America, there are many shipyards along our beautiful coasts that do allow tours of their facilities.

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The television show The Love Boat, which took place aboard a ship called the MS Pacific Princess, is generally credited for the explosion of the cruising industry in the 1980s. In 1987 Royal Caribbean launched the world’s first megaship, MS Sovereign of the Seas. It could hold almost 3,000 passengers and became the model for all modern cruise ships as floating resorts.

Carnival Spirit

The components are as well beneficial in securing vessels at the docks. The weight of the ships is without any doubt very heavy and one of the tools that can position them securely without floating off is the rope. The part that requires more strength, usually very complicated and developed first is the hull.

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One installed in the ship, each cabin is furnished with decor and amenities in as few as 20 minutes, as staffers pass through installing facilities and cross-check one another's work. In fact, more than 3,000 miles of electrical wires come affixed to the cabin; some suites have even more due to their more spacious quarters. Everything must arrive to the ship at the right time and at the right place. This may influence which products we review and write about (and where those products appear on the site), but it in no way affects our recommendations or advice, which are grounded in thousands of hours of research.

The Sovereign had five restaurants, nine bars, a spa, four pools, and a casino. The mid-century rise of cheap commercial flights across the Atlantic forced many naval companies to reorient toward cruising. Ocean liners, once essential to mass transportation, were largely repurposed as cruise ships. As older companies turned to cruising, many new companies exclusively focused on cruises were founded in the 1960s and ’70s. These included Princess Cruises in 1965, Norwegian Cruise Line in 1966, Royal Caribbean Cruises in 1968, MSC in 1970, and Carnival Cruise Lines in 1972. These companies offered prices that were increasingly affordable for middle-class consumers, driving the industry to expand and more purpose-built cruise ships to be commissioned.

It was owned by the London-based ship brokerage Culliford & Clarke, which hoped to make cruising the centre of its business. The Ceylon was a single-screw, iron-hulled auxiliary steamer—meaning that it had both a steam engine and sails—and could hold up to 100 passengers. Its renovation had removed several dozen passenger cabins and replaced them with public spaces, including a dining room, a boudoir, a smoking room, and a steam-powered fairground organ. After its refit, the Ceylon offered the first around-the-world cruise in history. However, it had difficulty attracting a full complement of guests, and the company failed to recover from the expense. The cruise ship continues with the same stats as her sister ships at 110,000 gross tons, a guest capacity of 2,974, and 1,160 international crew members.

All of Royal Caribbean's ships have been built in one shipyard or another in Europe over the years. You might think the first official sailing is the ship's maiden voyage. Before that, however, there needs to be a shakedown voyage, so crew members have the opportunity to undergo various different trainings and get acclimated to the ship. The handover ceremony, however, does mark an important milestone, as this is when the shipyard officially hands ownership of the vessel to the cruise line.

STX-Europe has constructed a variety of luxury cruise ships, including Royal Caribbean International’s Harmony and Oasis class ships, as well as vessels for AIDA Cruises, Princess Cruises, and Norwegian Cruise Line. Every ship they build is designed with customer comfort and safety while keeping up with modern technological advances. Measuring 184,011 gross tons, MSC Euribia is one of the biggest cruise ships in the world — only 10 cruise vessels are bigger. That's the almost-as-new MSC World Europa, which debuted in December 2022. At 215,863 gross tons, MSC World Europa is the sixth-largest cruise ship in the world.

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Carnival Sunshine which also dons the red, white and blue livery is 102,853 gross tons, slightly larger than her sister ships Carnival Radiance and Carnival Sunrise. The ship, which was constructed by Fincantieri is 133,500 gross tons with a passenger capacity of 3,934 at double occupancy and 1,450 international crew members. Carnival Firenze is 135,156 gross tons and has a passenger capacity of 4,126 at double occupancy, along with 1,424 crew members.

where are cruise ships built

Besides the issues outlined earlier in this article, the costs for a ship registry in the U.S. is much higher than other countries. "Even with that tariff, I was told that the cost of the work at Hyundai was half what the cheapest bid from a U.S. shipyard." "Before the work was done overseas, the company that owned the vessel put the work up for bids, both in the U.S. and overseas." "Some are very good and some are not so carful about adherence to the international requirements.  OSHA rules, designed to keep shipyard workers safe, are expensive."

The fit-out can usually take months and the ship is usually alongside in the shipyard whilst the next ship to be built is being put together in the drydock. The shipyard operates like a game of chess as ships move in and out of the drydock area and alongside to maximise productivity. Eventually, you end up with something on the outside looking like a cruise ship.

Cabins are actually constructed individually and then slid into the greater structure. A Spa Thermal Suite adds eight different therapeutic experiences like a salt room, massaging Rainfall Water Therapy room, Iyashi Dome sauna (said to cleanse and detoxify the body), and new treatment tables. It also features the first F45 fitness classes at sea as well as a Kerastase Institute beauty salon. Heavier materials are less efficient at the top of the ship; no one wants a top-heavy ocean liner. Thus, the Celebrity Apex uses a more eco-friendly material that looks just like glass for the transparent atrium in the Solarium — though it weighs only 1% of what glass would weigh.

If you crave a lot of activities in an MSC Cruises cruise vacation, you'll want to stick to vessels built in the last decade or so. When Carnival Ecstasy departed the fleet in October 2022, Carnival Elation became the oldest ship in the fleet. She is 71,909 gross tons and has a passenger capacity of 2,190 at double occupancy. The ship is 110,000 gross tons with a passenger capacity of 2,980, along with 1,180 international crew members. The Carnival cruise ship has a gross tonnage of 110,000, a passenger capacity of 2,980 at double occupancy, and 1,150 international crew members.

The vessel is the third Dream-class cruise ship that entered service in 2012. Tracy Wilson Mourning, founder of the Honey Shine Mentoring Program became the ship’s godmother after construction was completed by Fincantieri in Italy. Carnival Sunrise is a completely new cruise ship and departed on her inaugural voyage in April 2019.

Icon of the Seas is the belle of the ball at Royal Caribbean — the line's newest and most state-of-the-art ship. It's also the biggest ship in the Royal Caribbean fleet and, indeed, the biggest ship ever built by any line. Other relatively new Royal Caribbean ships include Wonder of the Seas, Odyssey of the Seas, Spectrum of the Seas and Symphony of the Seas.

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While more details of Adora Cruises’ new-build are yet to be announced, it’s highly likely that it will offer many of the same amenities as Adora Magic City, or will build upon them to further enhance the onboard experience. We develop new generations of ships to respond to and anticipate demand from the world’s fleet owners. By going that route, it brings into play a lot of regulatory protocols, such as using U.S. materials and equipment, U.S. shipyards which are subject to U.S. labor laws, OSHA requirements, and USCG inspection. Just like so many other aspects of manufacturing, labor is cheaper overseas than it is in the United States. The automotive industry is a prime example of why companies choose to build their products outside of the United States. At this point, the exterior of the ship may look finished; however, there is still more work to be done.

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