Our trip on Royal Caribbean’s new Icon of the Seas, the world’s largest cruise ship
The world’s largest cruise ship, Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas, has officially hit the waters, and we were honored to be among the first guests to climb aboard on a preview sailing.
By Carly Caramanna
With a capacity of 7,600 passengers and 20 decks, it’s quite difficult to grasp just how big this ship is – and just how much it has to offer. There are over 40 restaurant and lounge locations, a record-breaking onboard water park (the largest at sea), and so much more.
If you’re loyal to Royal, you’ll know its newer class ships are divided into self-contained, themed neighborhoods, and the Icon introduces several new neighborhoods, including the first-ever dedicated to families with young children, as well as fan favorites, like Central Park, with refreshing, “plussed” updates.
We spent three days exploring nearly every inch of what the “world’s greatest family vacation” has to offer, from pools to restaurants, and here’s what really impressed us.
New Royal Promenade on Icon of the Seas
The Royal Promenade is the brand’s central hub, and on the Icon of the Seas, they significantly improved on the concept by expanding it to two full decks (and it’s much wider). The result? A better and more efficient flow of guests. While our sailing held about 4,500 guests, it never felt crowded in the Royal Promenade (or really anywhere on the ship).
Passengers will find a mix of new and familiar concepts throughout the promenade, but the brand has built upon it to make it even better. At its center is the Pearl (much hyped by Royal Caribbean ahead of its debut), a multi-sensory structure featuring 3,000 kinetic panels integrated with lights – and it proved to be an extremely popular photo spot.
All the venues throughout the promenade are also more open than in previous versions and, therefore, feel more inviting. Sorrento’s, Royal’s quick-service pizza restaurant, is larger than previous ships and, therefore, better equipped to handle crowds. The 24-hour Pearl Café (replacing the Promenade Café) is a wonderful, upgraded addition with delicious desserts and grab-and-go items, like hummus and sandwiches.
A highlight for me was Dueling Pianos, a brand-new concept for Royal. With its open-air concept, the music flowed into the promenade, drawing people in. It’s important to note this was one of the most popular venues each night of my sailing, and most tables and seats were completely full 30 minutes ahead of showtime.
Thrill Island
As an attraction junkie, I couldn’t wait to visit Thrill Island, home to Category 6, the largest water park at sea (POV videos of all the slides below). Available to all guests at no additional charge, this felt like a true water park, something we had yet to experience on a ship. Several slides are “first evers,” including the first family raft slide at sea, the first suspended family raft slide at sea, and the tallest drop slide at sea. My favorite ended up being the first duo mat-racing slide at sea.
Insider Tip: While the raft attractions were marketed as “family” slides, the weight limit was quite low, and therefore, many families were divided into smaller parties. In our experience, the raft attractions comfortably fit two adults or one adult with one child. Several times, two adults trying to board with one child exceeded the weight limit.
Thrill Island is also home to Crown’s Edge, a unique ropes course-meets-plank attraction. I was able to experience this twice, once at golden hour (which offered a wonderful view) and another time in complete darkness. This activity is not for the faint of heart, as you dangle off the ship’s side over open water. I highly recommend booking during an at-sea time.
The Hideaway
There are more choices than ever for where and how to spend your day on the Icon of the Seas. One of my favorite areas was The Hideaway, an 18+ complex home to the first suspended infinity pool at sea and features plenty of lounge chairs and an expansive bar and lounge. This area feels like a Miami day club or Las Vegas pool, but much more relaxed.
A huge plus is that the views are amazing, and we enjoyed some of the best cocktails we had on board here. Its pool is surrounded by stadium sunchair seating.
Icon of the Seas Guest Rooms
I loved the aesthetic of our staterooms, which felt modern with light tones accented with pops of color and cheery artwork. It was evident the cruise liner learned from its previous ships, and I was impressed with just how much storage space and shelving was integrated into the small cabin.
There were also the most USB and charging outlets I have ever encountered in a cruise stateroom, including bedside options. But the bathroom was a standout, with one of the largest showers I’ve yet to experience at sea in a standard stateroom, plus it has a seated bench inside. (Room tour videos below.)
New Destination Elevators
For the Icon, Royal Caribbean introduced a new intuitively-designed elevator system. These destination elevators – which I first experienced in New York City commercial buildings in the early 2000s – have no buttons inside. Instead, passengers choose the desired deck on a panel outside the elevator and are directed to the elevator that will whisk them there.
I was curious how guests would react, but I didn’t witness any confusion during our time on the ship (and with many elevator rides).
A Refreshed Central Park
Royal Caribbean first introduced Central Park on its Oasis-class ships, and it instantly became a smash hit with cruisers. The unique feeling of being outdoors in an open-air indoor setting is amplified on the Icon, and this might be the prettiest version ever, with flowing lush greenery throughout, but with a real urban feel thanks to new colorful shutters on the guest rooms above.
This is a place you can spend a while, home to several dining locations, including the sushi hibachi spot Izumi (with a new on-the-go sushi window) and the familiar favorite Chops Grille specialty steakhouse, but with a brand-new menu and look. New additions include Lou’s Jazz Club and Bubbles, a casual champagne bar.
Icon of the Seas features New Food Concepts
Icon of the Seas features Royal favorites in addition to new concepts. This was the highest quality quick service food I’ve enjoyed at sea to date. Still, the absolute highlight for me was AquaDome Market, the first-ever food hall concept for the brand. It features several walk-up kiosks, including a Mediterranean spot, FETA, that I enjoyed several times throughout our sailing, as well as a crepe stand, macaroni and cheese bar, and a station dedicated to different types of toasts and sandwiches.
While we couldn’t try its new specialty dining concept, Empire Supper Club, we enjoyed a fantastic meal at the familiar Royal favorite, Hooked.
New Surfside Family Neighborhood
Royal reimagined the Boardwalk concept with Icon’s new neighborhood, Surfside. The first-ever area dedicated solely to families with young children is colorful and inviting, with lots of nooks to discover, including an side entranceway that is literally a slide.
Here, families will find Splashaway Bay, an aquatic park with slides and classic dunk buckets for the littlest sailors. Adding convenience, it has several of its own eateries, including Surfside Bites (try the pizza toastie!) and Surfside Eatery, a kid-centric buffet open for lunch and dinner dishing dinosaur chicken nuggets.
Surfside also houses The Lemon Post – a “mommy and me bar” steps from the water action with a robust and creative mocktail menu – and a specialty upcharge restaurant, Pier 7, for those looking for a bit more elevated fare.
New Stage Production of ‘The Wizard of Oz‘
I’m a huge fan of theater and am happy to say Royal’s new production of the classic, “The Wizard of Oz” (with the largest orchestra at sea at 16 members) blew me away.
The production is a modern retelling of the iconic story that largely stays true to the script and music, but with some creative updates befitting the time. Costumes were a big component in bringing it into the modern age, and we loved the vibes of the Land of Oz that were reminiscent of the Capitol in the Hunger Games film series. The performers were outstanding and enhanced by a standout set with a high production level that combined cutting-edge technology (including projections and screens) that worked in tandem with physical set pieces to create a multi-dimensional experience.
Live Music
As a live music lover, I was particularly excited about a new entertainment venue on the Icon: a dueling piano bar (Royal’s first ever). But throughout the ship, there were over 50 live musicians – the most for any vacation company – and the diversity and range of material, from jazz to Latin, was impressive and offered a little something for everyone.
Bottom line: It was downright impossible to be bored.
Royal’s First-Ever Swim-Up bar
Located in Chill Island, Royal has introduced its first-ever swim-up bar, Swim & Tonic. This featured in-water seating at the bar as well as high-top tables.
Like many bars onboard, Swim & Tonic has a cocktail menu with inspired and refreshing options. And while many pools are on board, this one proved quite popular throughout our sailing.
Icon of the Seas Manages to Not Overwhelm
Ahead of my cruise, I spent a good amount of time familiarizing myself with the decks and layouts. This proved helpful, but for those going in without brushing up on the layout, plenty of signage made it very clear where your desired destination was located. Surprisingly, given its massive size, the ship didn’t feel too large or overwhelming – and after Day 1, I navigated with ease.
I was also impressed with the number of lounge spaces and seating on almost every deck, seemingly everywhere I looked. When Icon does sail at capacity, I don’t anticipate passengers will have difficulty finding a cozy lounge chair at the pool or a nook to curl up in and read a book.
Is Icon of the Seas the World’s Greatest Family Vacation?
That’s a lofty question, which is difficult to answer – and definitely dependent on your vacation style. Nevertheless, I can say that, after voyaging on over a dozen cruises with most of the major liners, this ranks as one of my favorite ships.
Click here for more information about Icon of the Seas. We recommend MEI Travel for free help throughout the booking process and trip.
Icon of the Seas Photo Gallery
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