Royal Caribbean International’s newest ship, Utopia of the Seas, welcomed some very special guests with a unique boarding procedure.
Rather than an arrival appointment, cruise terminal check-in, and trek up the gantry, these guests arrived via parachute to the ship’s helipad. The arrivals? None other than the Red Bull Air Force, joining the ship as part of the vessel’s inaugural celebrations.
The expert aerial jump team is the best in the world and they performed a precision jump onto Utopia of the Seas, the first skydiving event ever coordinated onto a cruise ship.
At the time, the new ship was positioned off Perfect Day at CocoCay, Royal Caribbean International’s private island destination in the Bahamas.
Two divers, Miles Daisher and Luke Aikins, completed the stunt with great fanfare and enthusiasm. During the dive, they trailed red smoke for extra visual effects, and celebrated their landing on the ship’s helipad with none other than cans of Red Bull.
The ship’s bow helipad is just 60 feet across, making the precision dive a challenge. Even more challenging is that the ship was using thrusters at the time of the jump, and while the vessel was not moving at great speed, the motion does add an extra degree of difficulty to the maneuver.
After boarding the ship – albeit in a way not available to typical guests! – Daisher and Aikins, along with their families (who boarded the ship more conventionally) were able to join in the rest of the inaugural festivities, including enjoying the Perfect Day at CocoCay and the ship’s official naming ceremony.
“Thanks to Royal Caribbean and Red Bull for a great few days on Utopia of the Sea. Miles and Luke did a first ever skydive onto a cruise ship, we danced to DJ Ruckus and Rev Run (from Run DMC) I sung along with Meaghan Trainor, caught up with friends and danced the night away!” said Nikki Daisher.
Utopia of the Seas hosted amazing parties for her inaugural events just days ago, including the naming ceremony headlined by Meghan Trainor, the ship’s official godmother, on Monday, July 15. More than 4,000 guests were onboard the ship, including cruise line executives, VIPs, and members of the media.
The 236,680-gross-ton ship then enjoyed a huge “wave out” celebration from Port Canaveral as she departed on her first revenue sailing on July 19, 2024. Hundreds of well-wishers were on hand to send the ship on her way to a vibrant and productive service life.
Sailing on Utopia of the Seas
Utopia of the Seas is the first of Royal Caribbean International’s Oasis-class ships to debut with short, 3- and 4-night sailings. Typically, new ships are introduced with longer voyages, which has been the tradition with the previous five Oasis-class ships.
Utopia of the Seas, however, was deliberately designed to offer the “ultimate weekend getaway” with shorter offerings, giving travelers a new type of opportunity to enjoy the innovative ship with a week-long cruise may not be an option.
All of the ship’s itineraries will visit both Nassau as well as Perfect Day at CocoCay, and the 4-night sailings include an extra day at sea. Utopia of the Seas is homeported year-round from Port Canaveral at least through April 2026.
She can welcome 5,668 guests aboard at double occupancy, with plenty onboard for everyone to enjoy every moment of their amazing oceangoing getaway.
