The Port of Galveston has been vying to turn out to be the following homeport for Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas – and has simply dropped one other trace that the world’s present largest cruise ship could also be Texas-bound.
The Galveston Wharves, that are positioned close to the Gulf Coast of Texas and roughly 50 miles east of downtown Houston, has three cruise terminals (and a fourth below development) – one in every of which was a $125 million endeavor that was constructed by Royal Caribbean and opened in 2022.
However regardless of already welcoming a considerable one to 2 million cruisers per yr, the busy port has set its sights on additional development by way of a partnership with Icon of the Seas – which may carry as much as 7,600 friends at most occupancy per crusing.
In early September, some cruisers seen that Icon of the Seas was added to the drop down menu the place friends pre-reserve parking on the Port of Galveston. Nonetheless, the choice has since been eliminated.
However when Port Director and CEO Rodger Rees was requested about bringing the Icon-class flagship to Texas, he didn’t shut down the likelihood.
“Because the fourth hottest cruise port within the U.S.—and one of many quickest rising—Galveston could be honored to welcome the Icon of the Seas to our state-of-the-art Royal Caribbean Cruise Terminal,” Rees stated in a press release shared by CHRON on Thursday, September 5, 2024.
“We’re one of many few cruise ports within the nation that may accommodate this class of ship,” continued Rees.
Royal Caribbean has not made any official statements about Icon’s future, however Rees has been vocal about his hopes in latest months. In April, the port director made related feedback about how the port can “deal with it” when discussing the huge vessel.
May Icon of the Seas Actually Wind up in Texas?
The mega-ship is at present homeporting in Miami, Florida – the place she has been since she entered service earlier this yr on January 27, 2024.
From Port Miami, the 1,196.7-foot lengthy ship has been alternating between week-long Western Caribbean and Japanese Caribbean sailings – which she is scheduled to proceed to do by way of April 25, 2026.
Royal Caribbean has not but launched itineraries past this date, in accordance with cruise monitoring information, so it’s unclear what the cruise line has in thoughts for its largest ship in the long term at the moment.
It’s doable that she is going to proceed to service the Caribbean, or that she will probably be re-deployed elsewhere as new ships be a part of the fleet. For instance, the second Icon-class ship, Star of the Seas, will probably be coming into service within the second half of 2025 – with extra Icon-class vessels already ordered.
Plus, it’s pretty frequent for the cruise strains to shuffle round their fleet over time as a consequence of scheduling, upkeep wants (typically ships will quickly exit service to return to drydock for routine inspections and repairs), and demand modifications at locations all over the world.
Learn Additionally: Galveston Cruise Port: Important Information for Your Cruise
Galveston has proved previously that it could actually accommodate bigger ships, that means it might be a possible new dwelling for Icon of the Seas.
The family-friendly ship at present has Concord of the Seas, one other mega-ship, stationed in Texas – in addition to the extra modestly sized Mariner of the Seas and Jewel of the Seas.
Carnival Jubilee, the most important ship in Carnival’s fleet with a most capability of 6,630 friends, can also be at present homeporting in Galveston.
In the end, solely time will inform what the long run holds for Galveston and Icon of the Seas – nevertheless it wouldn’t be stunning if a partnership was of their future in the future.
