Allure of the Seas Delivered
On October 28, 2010, Turku Shipyard delivered the Allure of the Seas to Royal Caribbean International. The Allure of the Seas and its sistership Oasis of the Seas are the culmination of more than 40 years of product development cooperation between the cruise line, the shipyard and the maritime cluster. The 225,000-ton Oasis class vessels are 361m in length. The Allure of the Seas can accommodate 6,360 passengers at maximum. In comparison, the Song of Norway delivered to the same customer in 1970 was 168m long with a gross tonnage of 18,400; in other words, the Allure of the Seas is some 12 times as large.
The building contract was signed in April 2007, and production was launched on February 4, 2008. The keel laying of the Allure of the Seas started on 2 December 2008, and the vessel was launched for the first time on 20 November 2009.
The gigantic size of the Allure of the Seas gives scope for a great variety of functions. Cruise guests expect new and unique experiences every time, which is why the cruise line and the shipyard are continuously coming up with new innovations in order to satisfy the customers' hunger for excitement. The Allure of the Seas has a number of new restaurants and shops, including the first onboard interactive gallery and sales outlet of the pop artist Romero Britto. The works of this internationally renowned artist are famous for their bright colours and joyful themes.
Onboard the Allure of the Seas, experiences are offered in seven theme areas aimed to provide something for every member of the family. The open-air central plaza, Central Park, features more than 12,000 living plants, 60 vines and 56 trees and bamboos. The Boardwalk environment with its water theatre and carousel also focus on having a good time with your family and friends. The Promenade shopping street with its numerous restaurants and boutiques provides an attractive setting for holiday-makers. The ship's offer is so versatile that one cruise is not enough to experience it all.
The Pool & Sports Zone on the pool deck provides opportunities for sport and entertainment. In addition to a surf simulator and a beach-type pool, the Allure of the Seas boasts the longest onboard running track extending to 0.7 km. The young at heart can try out the zip wire track nine decks above the Broadwalk at a height of 25 m. In Vitality at Sea Spa and Fitness centre, the passengers can enjoy a massage or pampering treatments, try out Pilates, yoga or spinning and use the gym equipment.
The novelty of the Allure of the Seas is a 3D movie theatre. The Amber theatre in the Entertainment Place opens up a new dimension with 3D movies. The Entertainment Place also organises musical evenings, dancing classes and competitions. In the Youth Zone, younger passengers will discover a great variety of gaming and play areas and a children's theatre, and a fully staffed nursery caters for the smallest guests.
In addition, the Allure of the Seas houses dozens of restaurants, cafés and bars. The new Rita's Cantina tempts adults and children alike with Mexican delicacies. While savouring their food and drink, the customers of Rita's Cantina can also enjoy live guitar music. Dog House serving hot dogs with various fillings and sausages is also located in the Broadwalk area of the Allure of the Seas. The speciality of the Oasis class is the Rising Tide Bar, a moving restaurant platform between the Central Park and Promenade.
Guess, one of the most famous fashion brands in the world, is opening their first onboard boutique in the Allure of the Seas. The Guess outlet will also be one of the largest accessory boutiques on the ship selling hand bags, watches and jewellery.
Safety first
A large passenger ship facilitates attaining a high overall safety level. One requirement is that evacuation of the ship must be as easy as that of smaller vessels. The Allure of the Seas was built to conform with the latest international safety rules. Following the ”Safe return to port” principle, evacuation of the vessel can in most cases be avoided. In other words, the ship will remain functional even in case of an accident, and it will be able to return to port under its own power.
In Oasis class ships feature a, the Safety Center which is built as a separate space on the bridge. This will further enhance the efficiency of emergency response. The center will be manned 24/7. In addition, more efficient technological solutions will be used in case of emergencies. All assembly areas are equipped with an electronic identification system, which speeds up the head count in emergency situations before boarding lifeboats.
The Allure of the Seas also has 18 lifeboats. On the largest cruise ship in the world, the lifeboats are 17 metres long and can accommodate 370 people each, providing space for every passenger onboard. Two independent engines and rudders are used to power and steer the lifeboats, which also have features such as a GPS system and toilets. In addition to 18 lifeboats, the ship has two fast rescue boats and four MES evacuation chute points, each one offering 450 places.
Technical Detail
STX Europe has made green values its priority and continuously develops environmentally friendly solutions, which are showcased in the Allure of the Seas. An important role is played by correct decisions related to hull shape, selection of machinery, or the fuel, electric, heating and ventilation systems made from the design stages on. Special attention was paid to energy efficiency, minimisation of emissions, water purification, waste management and lifecycle approach alike. Despite its large size, the fuel economy of the ship is top class.
The Allure of the Seas has four bow propellers with a diameter of four metres each. The output of each propeller is 5.5 MW, generating as much power as the Finnish icebreaker Urho in total. The main thrust is provided by three electric Azipod propulsion systems, which guarantee top class manoeuvrability and fuel economy despite the large size of the ship.
The combined output of the ship's powerplant is approx. 100 MW, which equals the electricity needs of a city the size of Turku. The six engines supplied by Wärtsilä feature a so-called Common Rail direct fuel injection system developed by the company, which reduces exhaust gases generated by the engines and minimises visible black smoke from the engines under any loading conditions. This technology facilitates adjustment of the combustion process and significantly reduces the environmental load caused by exhaust gases.
Allure of the Seas
- Built by STX, Turku Shipyard
- Operated by Royal Caribbean International
- Registered in the Bahamas
- Home port Fort Lauderdale, Florida
- Building of the ship took 12,000 man-years
- 900 suppliers involved in the project besides STX Europe
- A high domestic content, revenue for 81% of the work ordered went to Finnish companies.
- Representatives of 45 nationalities involved in the building project
- Length 361 m (23 m longer than the Freedom of the Seas)
- Breadth at waterline 47 m, 66 m extreme
- GT 225,000
- 2,100 crew members from 65 countries
- 5,400 passengers, 2 per stateroom, maximum number 6,360.
- In volume, the Allure of the Seas is equivalent to 6.5 Amorella class ships cruising on the Baltic Sea
- Height from sea level 65 / 72 m
- Draft (maximum) 9.3 m
- Total power 97,000 kW (130,000 hp)
- Propeller power output: 3 x 20,000 kW (3x 34 460 hp)
- Propeller diameter 6.1 m
- 4 bow thrusters with 5.5 MW ( 7,500 hp) each
- Bow propeller diameter 4.1 m
- Cruise speed 22 knots
Passenger Areas
- 2,704 staterooms
- 1,956 balconies, of which 1,481 in open air
- 475 balconies in the Central Park /Boardwalk areas
- 676 staterooms with an extra bed, 46 with wheelchair access
- 22 stateroom categories, suite 156 m2, standard stateroom 18 m
- seating for 26,000 passengers
- 16 passenger decks
- 24 passenger elevators
- 18 lifeboats, 370 persons / lifeboat
- In Central Park, 12,175 plants, 62 vines, 56 trees (the tallest over 7.3m)
- Aqua Theater pool 5.4 m in depth, seating for 580
- Two sittings in the main dining room, seating for 3,100
- Promenade 19 x 135 m
- Theatre with seating for 1,358
- Studio B with seating for 789
Structural Information
- 181 grand blocks, maximum weight up to 600 t
- A total of 500,000 hull components
- Deck area of 25 ha, or 250,000 m
- 90 000 m of fitted carpeting
- 250 km of pipes with a diameter exceeding 25 mm
- 2,400km of welded seams
- 16,000 sprinkler nozzles and 100 km of pipes
- 5,310 km of electric cabling
- 600,000 l of paint
- 7,000 works of art
- 4,100 m of drinking water produced in 24 hrs
- 50 tons of ice cubes produced daily
- 21 pools and Jacuzzis with 2,300 m of water
Major Project Suppliers
- Alandia Engineering Marine Ab
- Almaco Group Oy
- APX-Metalli Oy
- Europe Working EW Oy
- Europlan Engineering Oy
- Huuhka Oy
- JaPe-Asennus Oy
- Jukova Oy
- Laivasähkötyö Oy
- Loipart Oy
- Merima Oy
- Mobimar Oy
- Optimakers Oy Ltd
- Orsap Oy Ltd
- Oy NIT Naval Interior Team Ltd
- Oy Shippax Ltd
- Paattimaakarit Oy
- Riverco Oy
- S.A.Svendsen Oy
- STX Finland Cabins Oy
- Telakka- ja Rakennustyöt Tejara Oy
- Tino Sana S.r.l.
- Wartsila
