Why Everyone’s Talking About Royal Caribbean’s Icon Class

Think you’ve seen it all when it comes to cruise ships? Think again. Royal Caribbean’s Icon Class has flipped the script – bigger, bolder, and bursting with firsts you won’t find anywhere else at sea. It started with Icon of the Seas, a ship that’s less “floating hotel” and more “floating city of thrills”.

Not sure what makes Icon Class so different? You’re about to find out. From jaw-dropping features to upcoming ships and how they stack up against the rest of the fleet—here’s everything you need to know.

It All Started With Icon of the Seas

Icon of the Seas is the first of the new Icon Class of ships sailing for Royal Caribbean.

Originally announced in 2016, the ship and class debuted in 2024 as the largest in the world. Since this time, more Icon Class ships have been announced. Star of the Seas – which debuted in August 2025; Legend of the Seas – debuting in 2026 and Hero of the Seas, due to launch in August 2027. More are on the way as well!

There are a lot of firsts debuting on Icon of the Seas, but it also takes a lot of what makes the Oasis Class ships amazing and enhances them. The result is a class of ship that isn’t just big, but that offers an incredible experience on board for the whole family.

Icon Class Is 5% Bigger Than Oasis Class

Icon of the Seas became the biggest cruise ship in the world when she launched in 2024, taking the title from Wonder of the Seas.

You can read more about how the two classes of ship differ in this post: Icon Class Vs Oasis Class.

Icon’s sister ship, Star of the Seas, joined her at the top when she debuted in 2025, with the two ships now sharing the title as the biggest cruise ships in the world.

Ever since the Freedom of the Seas first debuted as the first Freedom-class ship for Royal Caribbean, the cruise line has held the title of the biggest cruise ship in the world. The title has simply passed from ship to ship within the Royal Caribbean fleet since then.

Oasis of the Seas became the biggest ship in the world when she launched in 2009, but she was surpassed by her sister ships Harmony of the Seas (2016), Symphony of the Seas (2018) and then Wonder of the Seas (2022), with marginal size increases every time.

Icon of the Seas is significantly larger again, around 5% bigger in terms of gross tonnage compared to Wonder of the Seas. It can host 600 more passengers, and it has an additional 2 decks.

When the Icon-class ships were first announced in 2016, it wasn’t expected that they would be bigger than the Oasis-class ships – the forecast was for the ships to be around 200,000 GT, so around 10% smaller than the Oasis Class.

But that later changed, and in 2022 it was confirmed that each Icon Class cruise ship would be the biggest in the world, starting with Icon of the Seas in 2024 and followed by more ships – Star of the Seas in 2025, Legend of the Seas in 2026, Hero of the Seas in 2027, a fifth Icon-class ship in 2028, and two additional vessels, currently known as Icon 6 and Icon 7, scheduled for 2029 and 2030.

Royal Caribbean Says The Icon Class Is The Best

The Icon Class ships are being defined by Royal Caribbean as ‘the best of every vacation’. The ship is seen as combining everything you love about a beach retreat, a feature-packed resort hotel and a full-on theme park.

The Oasis Class was always seen as being defined as the “biggest and best”, while the Quantum Class was launched with a focus on innovation and technology.

With Icon, the size is important, but it’s not the defining factor – it’s how it brings together the best of everything and debuts some exciting new features, in one epic ship.

History Of The Royal Caribbean Icon Class

The Icon Class was announced in October 2016, when it was initially given the name ‘Project Icon’. Around the same time, the name ‘Icon of the Seas’ was trademarked by the cruise line, showing that the name has never been in doubt.

Originally, two ships were ordered, but an order for a third was announced in July 2019 and a fourth in August 2024.

Ships In The Icon Class

There are currently seven ships planned for the Icon Class. The first Icon-class cruise ship, Icon of the Seas, debuted in early 2024, while Star of the Seas set sail in summer 2025. The third ship, Legend of the Seas, is expected for Summer 2026, and Hero of the Seas will arrive in 2027.

A fifth, as yet unnamed, Icon-class ship is scheduled to arrive in 2028, and in April 2026 Royal Caribbean announced that two additional vessels, currently known as Icon 6 and Icon 7, are scheduled for 2029 and 2030.

Features Of The Icon Class

There are several features that help to define Icon Class as the best of every vacation.

Accommodation

Several new accommodation types debuted on Icon of the Seas, including the first three-storey suite for the fleet – the Ultimate Family Townhouse. Other new suites include the Surfside Family Suite, with alcoves that younger kids can enjoy and great access to the waterparks.

It’s not just Icon’s suites that have been revamped – there’s a new Inside Plus category, which adds a large dividing wall between the room and the bathroom. And even crew cabins have been redesigned with crew input, so guests and crew can sleep more easily.

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Adults-Only Features

Icon of the Seas may be a colourful ship packed with family-friendly attractions, but there’s plenty for adults to enjoy too, including various bars and lounges – including the first frozen cocktail bar at sea, and the first swim-up bar on a cruise ship.

The Hideaway is a relaxing area designed for adults, with the first suspended infinity pool at sea and a multilevel sea terrace with whirlpools. There are a lot of firsts on this ship, and not all are just for the kids.

Attractions

Various attractions are either being introduced or improved for the Icon Class, including the water slides – there are now 6, and each one of them breaks new ground in some way, including the first open free-fall slide, the tallest drop slide, and the first mat-racing duo slides.

There’s an improved AquaTheater too, along with the largest ice skating rink on a Royal Caribbean ship. Plus, the brand new Crown’s Edge combines a skywalk, a ropes course and a thrill ride and sees guests swing out over the ocean from 154 feet above the sea.

Fuel

The Icon Class is the first for Royal Caribbean to be powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG). Other cruise lines have got there first, but Royal Caribbean is now building ships designed to use this fuel, which burns much cleaner than traditional diesel.

Coupled with Royal Caribbean’s existing technologies, this makes the Icon Class the most sustainable of the Royal Caribbean fleet.

Icon Class vs Other Royal Caribbean Classes

Here’s how the Icon Class shapes up when compared to other classes in the Royal Caribbean fleet.

Class	Number of ships	Average gross tonnage	Average guest capacity	Launch dates
Discovery Class	2	TBC	TBC	2029 to 2032
Icon Class	7	250,800	7,600	2024 to 2030
Quantum Ultra Class	2	169,000	5,566	2019 to 2021
Quantum Class	3	169,000	4,905	2014 to 2016
Oasis	7	228,000	6,820	2008 to 2028
Freedom	3	154,000	4,616	2006 to 2008
Radiance	4	90,000	2,496	2001 to 2004
Voyager	5	138,000	3,858	1999 to 2003
Vision	4	78,000	2,525	1996 to 1998

Read more: Royal Caribbean Ship Classes

Everything about the Icon Class ships is designed to be better than the ships before it.

The Icon Class really is the next big leap from Royal Caribbean – one we haven’t really seen since the introduction of some of the Quantum Class’ innovative features in 2014.

To Conclude

Whether you’re already a Royal Caribbean fan and member of the Crown and Anchor loyalty programme, thinking about switching cruise lines after seeing what the Icon Class has to offer, or planning your very first cruise, this new generation of ships is something to get excited about.

The Icon Class is packed with cutting-edge technology, spacious and modern accommodation, and a huge range of entertainment and attractions. There’s so much to see and do that it’s almost impossible to experience everything in a single sailing, which might just give you an excuse to keep coming back.

And the class is only just getting started. Icon of the Seas launched in 2024, followed by Star of the Seas in 2025, with Legend of the Seas arriving in 2026 and Hero of the Seas in 2027. A fifth Icon-class ship is planned for 2028, and Royal Caribbean confirmed in April 2026 that two additional ships, currently known as Icon 6 and Icon 7, will debut in 2029 and 2030.

With seven ships planned in total, the Icon Class is set to remain at the centre of Royal Caribbean’s fleet for years to come, continuing to push the limits of what a cruise ship can offer.