Due to the devastation of the coronavirus pandemic, the global cruise industry has almost come to a standstill. Despite that, some cruise industry players are seeing growing market momentum in the coming years. Royal Caribbean International, a luxury cruise operator, has recently announced that Shanghai will be the home to a new luxury cruise liner with a weight of almost 237,000 tons, which makes it the world’s largest cruise ship when it gets completed in Saint-Nazaire, France.

The new cruise liner, named Wonder of the Seas, a next-generation Oasis Class cruise ship, will sail from Shanghai starting from March 2022. The Wonder of the Seas is scheduled to arrive in Shanghai in March 2020, and will depart from Shanghai and Hong Kong for four- to eight-day journeys to several Asian destinations including Japanese cities like Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka and Kobe while Christmas routes will include such destinations as Chan May port (in Vietnam) and Taipei, according to Royal Caribbean.

It will feature some of the popular hallmark facilities like Central Park with tropical plants, the open-air AquaTheater for top-of-the-class shows, the 10-deck Ultimate Abyss that offers the highest slide at sea and a 25-meter Zipline.

Oasis Class has kept the record as the world’s largest luxury cruise ship for 12 years. The first four Oasis Class cruise ships are deployed in North America and Europe, and this new cruise liner will be the first for the Asian market and the youngest member of the Oasis Class ships.