Nothing says LUXURY like spending a week (or more) in the World's Largest Cruise!
This past Thursday, The Icon of the Seas set sail from Miami! The 365m-long ship, owned by Royal Caribbean Group, can house up to 7,600 passengers and has 20 decks. Built in Turku, Finland, it features seven swimming pools and six water slides.
Although LNG burns more cleanly than traditional marine fuels such as fuel oil, there is a risk that some gas escapes, causing methane to leak into the atmosphere. Methane is a much more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. "It's a step in the wrong direction," Bryan Comer, director of the Marine Programme at the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), was quoted as saying by Reuters news agency. "We would estimate that using LNG as a marine fuel emits over 120% more life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions than marine gas oil," he said. Earlier this week, the ICCT released a report arguing that methane emissions from LNG-fuelled ships were higher than current regulations assumed.
Royal Caribbean plans to introduce a net-zero ship by 2035, aiming to reduce methane emissions, which trap 80 times more heat than carbon dioxide over 20 years. The cruise industry, which contributed $75bn to the global economy in 2021, is one of the fastest-growing sectors of tourism, particularly attracting young people, according to the Cruise Lines International Association.
Who knows, maybe it's time the Penthouse Queen takes a dive in The Icon of The Seas and really sees what's so great and big about this. Stay tuned.
