Jalal

Royal Caribbean's Icon of the Seas, the world's largest cruise ship, is nearing completion at the Turku shipyard in Finland. The vessel, five times larger than the Titanic, is expected to attract a resurgence in cruise bookings after the COVID pandemic. The ship, which has a gross tonnage of 250,800 tonnes, offers more options for spending money on board, reducing the cost of individual passengers. However, the financial equation behind the increase in ship size is not engineering, but rather the financial equation. The larger ships require higher investment costs and required technology know-how, which does not come cheap. Additionally, larger vessels come with unique challenges, such as port overcrowding and reduced crew-to-passengers ratios, which can pose challenges in the event of unexpected events. The cruise industry is now seeing customers return, with the Cruise Lines International Association predicting that passenger volume will surpass pre-pandemic levels in 2023.