First Giant Section of Disney’s Newest Cruise Ship Floated Out

You’d better believe it, the upcoming Disney Believe is already taking shape as the first of her three gigablocks has been finished and floated out at the Meyer Werft shipyard, where the Wish-class vessel is under construction in Papenburg, Germany.

Cruise Hive previously reported on the ship’s steel cutting in August 2025, which is when the materials for the gigablocks first began to be prepped and assembled.

Now, the first gigablock is complete. This forms the midship of Disney Believe, including the Grand Hall and adjacent spaces.

Disney Cruise Line announced in August 2026 that the ship’s bronze Grand Hall statue would be the adventurous heroine-princess Moana, striking a confident pose and with her sidekicks Pua and Heihei at her side.

Renderings of the Grand Hall also show extensive Polynesian influences in the architecture and decor, as well as a water pattern in the carpeting and wave details on the walls.

Each individual gigablock can weigh over 31,000 tons and is complete with walls, plumbing, and wiring. Other details, such as finishing touches like painting, carpeting, and artwork, are not installed at this stage.

Photos shared by Disney Cruise Line on Facebook clearly show that the ship’s lifeboat davits are already in place, but no lifeboats are present yet. An interior photo of the Grand Hall space shows the rough structure of where the different decks are, including what will become the balcony of the space where princesses often greet guests, especially at embarkation.

Once all three are ready, the next step will be for the gigablocks to be welded together, a precise operation to ensure all joints and connections are properly aligned and secure.

The next gigablock for Disney Believe will be the ship’s forward section. That space includes the main show theater and various lounges. The aft gigablock will be the last assembled, including two of the main themed restaurants for the ship’s rotational dining.

Disney Cruise Line has not yet announced what the dining restaurants will be onboard Disney Believe. All three of her sister Wish-class ships include Worlds of Marvel and 1923.

The third rotational restaurant on each ship offers a unique themed experience associated with some of the most popular Disney movies: Arendelle (“Frozen” – Disney Wish), Plaza de Coco (“Coco” – Disney Treasure), and Pride Lands (“Lion King” – Disney Destiny).

Block Cruise Ship Assembly

Modern mega-ship construction is a puzzle-like process. Individual blocks are built as sections, and those sections are brought together to assemble the vessel.

Read Also: How Long Does It Take to Build a Cruise Ship?

This permits different crews to be working independently on different sections of the ship simultaneously, coordinating effort and expertise for the most efficient construction process.

As blocks are finished, they are connected in sections and the ship takes physical shape. While individual ships have unique construction plans, block sizes, shapes, and the order of assembly can vary.

Now that Disney Believe‘s first gigablock is floating, excitement will continue to grow for the fourth Wish-class ship. Delivery of the vessel is expected in 2027, at which time Disney Cruise Line will take possession of the ship.

No official debut date has been announced for the ship but Disney Cruise Line updated its fleet expansion timeline in August 2026, which now shows Disney Believe‘s launch to be “late calendar 2027.” No homeport or itineraries have been confirmed, but those details should be released in the months to come as the ship continues to come together.