World's Biggest Cruise Liner Set To Sail To U.S.

The world's biggest cruise liner, the 311-m (1,035-foot) Voyager of the Seas, will set sail this week from Finland to the United States. The $500 million vessel is the first of three sister ships ordered by cruise operator Royal Caribbean from Masa-Yards in the western Finland city of Turku. The ship will leave Turku on Saturday for a three-week passage across the Atlantic to Miami, from where it will sail on its maiden commercial cruise on November 21. "We are eager to get this baby to Miami and get as many passengers on board as possible," Royal Caribbean representative Magnus Granholm told reporters on a tour of the luxurious ship. The 137,000-ton floating hotel will be able to carry around 3,000 passengers and 1,800 crew in over 2,000 cabins spread over 15 decks. It features a 100-m long "high street" promenade, hosting cafes, restaurants, shops and a casino with 400 slot machines. Special attractions include a three-story theatre with 1,350 seats, which imitates Milan's renowned La Scala, an ice-skating rink and a 10-m climbing wall situated on the back of the ship's funnel. Royal Caribbean hopes that the Voyager of the Seas will help it boost its share of the booming cruise market, worth an estimated $10 billion last year. It will be followed by two sister vessels, Explorer of the Seas and Adventure of the Seas, that are due for delivery in autumn 2000 and spring 2002. Masa Yards finished the ship on schedule despite a fire that ravaged the shipyard this summer and uncertainty over its future. The shipyard has been for sale since earlier this year, when parent Kvaerner made the strategic decision to exit shipbuilding. Chief executive Martin Saarikangas, who heads a Finnish consortium seeking to take the shipyard over, expects a deal on a change of ownership to take place soon.