Icon of the Seas – the brand new cruise ship for Royal Caribbean – has been officially named in a ceremony at the Port of Miami.
The epic event culminated with global soccer superstar Lionel Messi – the ‘Icon’ of Icon of the Seas – placing a football on a pedestal which launched the magnum of Champagne into the ship.
Good news – the Champagne bottle smashed, which is a sign of good luck for the ship as she prepares for her official maiden voyage on 27th January.
You can watch the naming ceremony in full here. If you just want to see Messi officially christening the ship, skip to 1hr 24 into the video:
For the past couple of weeks, the ship has been preparing for the ceremony and undergoing final trials, with special guests from the press and cruise industry invited onboard to explore everything that the ship has to offer.
Now she is ready to begin her regular cruise schedule, with 7-night cruises from Miami around either the eastern or western Caribbean.
Cruises are already on sale for 2026, with much of the 2024 season sold out and 2025 proving to be extremely popular as well – so anyone with their eyes on a particular date or stateroom should book as early as they can to avoid disappointment.
With Icon of the Seas, we’re into a new era of cruise ships that exceed 250,000 gross tonnes – and we know that there are at least two more of these ships on the way.
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Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.
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