Royal Caribbean has celebrated a major construction milestone with the float-out of its newest Icon Class ship, Legend of the Seas, at Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland.
The ceremony took place on Friday 29th August 2025, marking the moment the 248,000-tonne vessel touched water for the first time.
The float-out signifies that the exterior is largely complete and attention now turns to the interiors, technical systems and final outfitting.
Work will soon focus on the ship’s 2,805 staterooms, as well as its wide array of restaurants, entertainment venues and guest amenities.
Sea trials will follow once the fitting-out process is complete, before the ship is formally handed over to Royal Caribbean in 2026.
Next Steps in Construction
At the same time as Legend of the Seas moves into her outfitting phase, Meyer Turku is laying the keel for the fourth Icon Class ship, which is expected to enter service in 2027.
Legend of the Seas is the third ship in the record-breaking Icon Class.
Sister ship Icon of the Seas made history in 2024 as the world’s largest cruise ship, a title shared with Star of the Seas, which entered service earlier in 2025.
The float-out of Legend of the Seas follows the installation of her AquaDome in July, a striking glass-topped structure that is one of the Icon Class’ signature features.
Inaugural Itineraries
Legend of the Seas is scheduled to debut on 2nd August 2026 with a 7-night Western Mediterranean cruise from Barcelona.
The roundtrip sailing will visit Palma de Mallorca, La Spezia, Civitavecchia and Naples before returning to Spain.
The ship will continue to operate Mediterranean voyages until late October. This is particularly exciting for Brits and European cruise guests who wish to experience the Icon Class for themselves, but are unwilling or unable to fly to the US to sail on the other ships in the class.
Following her European late summer season, Legend of the Seas will reposition to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for her first US season.
Winter itineraries will include a mix of Caribbean and Bahamas sailings, with highlights such as a short preview cruise to Royal Caribbean’s private island, Perfect Day at CocoCay.
Sister’s Launch Troubles
Royal Caribbean will be hoping that, when August 2026 rolls around, the Legend of the Seas debut goes smoother than that of sister ship Star of the Seas.
Star of the Seas suffered an eventful first couple of weeks, with planned godmother Diana Ross pulling out just a few days before the naming ceremony, followed by a man overboard alert on one of the trial sailings before the official inaugural.
Thankfully that incident ended well, as a guest had fallen from the pier next to the ship while photographing it on their phone, and they were able to be rescued.
Star of the Seas did have one water slide closed for her debut, though, as the Frightening Bolt slide on sister ship Icon of the Seas had broken and injured a guest, again just a couple of weeks before Star of the Seas’ launch.
The cruise line will be hoping that the debut of Legend of the Seas is eventful, but for better reasons than that of Star.
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