Anthem of the Seas

Key Particulars

Gross Tonnage: 168666

Net Tonnage: 154078

Displacement: 78130 design

Deadweight: 11113 design

Designer: Meyer Werft (overall); Jaime Lemus (newbuild program manager); Uwe Wulff (project manager); Henning Luhmann (technical design manager); Wilson Butler Architects (general planning and interiors); CallisonRTKL (Izumi, spa, and fitness center)

Classification: DNV-GL + 1A1

Length: 347.10m / 1138.78ft oa; 320.20m / 1050.52ft pp

Breadth: 48.90m / 160.43ft max; 41.40m / 135.83ft mld

Draught: 8.80m / 28.87ft max; 8.50m / 27.89ft design; 8.10m / 26.57ft min

Air draught: 62.90m / 206.36ft flues extended; 58.20m / 190.94ft flues retracted

Depth: 11.55m / 37.89ft mld

Decks: 20 (14 passenger)

Complement: 5680 (4180 pax dbl occ, 1500 crew); 6470 (4919 pax max occ, 1551 crew)

Cabins: 2090

Yard Data

Meyer Werft GmbH S.698

Timeline

2009

Development work begins on Project Sunshine, a new class of ships for Royal Caribbean International.

early 2010

At this stage of the design process, Project Sunshine resembles a smaller version of Oasis of the Seas.

summer 2010

The design team had shifted the project's focus, now using Celebrity Solstice, from sister company Celebrity Cruises, as the source vessel from which the new ship would be derived.  In the end, Project Sunshine would be a fairly similar vessel in terms of general layout, structural components, and architectural features.

11 February 2011

Letter of Intent signed between Meyer Werft GmbH and Anthem of the Seas Inc., on behalf of Royal Caribbean International, for the construction of yard number S.698.

8 June 2011

A group of banks signed an agreement with Royal Caribbean International to provide 80% of the contract value for the first two ships of Project Sunshine.

29 February 2012

Contract signed between Meyer Werft GmbH and Anthem of the Seas Inc. for the construction of yard number S.698 at a cost of €725,000,000.

spring 2012

Draft designs for Project Sunshine show forward-facing balconies and a ropes course, and the North Star observation arm and skydiving simulator had yet to be incorporated into the design.

19 November 2013

The first block of S.698 is lowered into place in Hall 2 at Meyer Werft, officially signaling the start of the block assembly process.

November 2013-August 2014

To accommodate the tight six month window between the contract delivery dates for Quantum of the Seas and Anthem of the Seas, a new strategy was utilized by Meyer Werft.  Quantum was assembled in the back of Hall 5, the larger of the two covered drydocks at Meyer, while Anthem was built in sections.  Two 78.00m / 255.91ft gigablocks for Anthem were assembled and floated out, while Quantum remained in the dock.  Once Quantum was floated out on 9 August 2014, the two gigablocks were floated back into the hall, attached, and had bow and stern sections added.

21 February 2015

Anthem of the Seas is floated out of Hall 2 at Meyer Werft, bow first.

19 March 2015

Anthem of the Seas conducts sea trials in the Skagerrak Strait, between Norway and Denmark.  She was helped to attain her maximum speed as she was the second cruise ship fitted with an air lubrication system.  This pumps microscopic bubbles under her hull to reduce the water friction against the underside of the ship.  This system alone is credited with reducing the ship's fuel consumption by 4%.

10 April 2015

Anthem of the Seas is completed by Meyer Werft, and Royal Caribbean International, through their subsidiary Anthem of the Seas Inc., takes delivery of the ship.  The ship was valued at $940,000,000 at the time of her delivery.

20 April 2015

Anthem of the Seas is christened by Emma Wilby, a British travel agent.

22 April 2015

Anthem of the Seas sets sail on her maiden voyage.

7-8 February 2016

Anthem of the Seas encounters extremely heavy weather while sailing south from Bayonne, New Jersey, to Port Canaveral, Florida.  She suffered damage on her open decks from winds up to 146 knots and swells of up to about 15m / 50ft.  Her port azipod failed completely, and the starboard azipod sustained significant damage, forcing her to turn around and return to Bayonne.