Key Aspects:
- Wonder of the Seas has arrived in Miami for the first time and will now sail 3- and 4-night Caribbean cruises from PortMiami.
- The redeployment highlights Royal Caribbean’s strategy of putting its largest ships on short itineraries to attract younger, first-time cruisers.
- The ship was welcomed by PortMiami and operations officials.
Cruise lovers in South Florida welcomed a new skyline today, August 25, 2025, when Royal Caribbean’s Wonder of the Seas pulled into PortMiami for the first time. The Oasis-class ship is now set to call Miami home with year-round getaways to the Caribbean.
The 235,600-gross-ton ship docked at the “Cruise Capital of the World” and was welcomed by PortMiami Deputy Director Fred Wong, who presented Wonder of the Seas Captain Trym Selvag with a commemorative plaque to mark the milestone.
Florida Stevedoring/Farovi Shipping Corporation, which provides port operations and maritime service at PortMiami, also marked the occasion.
“We are proud to welcome Wonder of the Seas – one of the largest and most innovative cruise ships in the world – to her new home at PortMiami,” the company said on a social media post.
Hours after the plaque presentation, the ship that can accommodate 5,734 passengers (double capacity) sounded her horns for a 4:30 p.m. sail away: a 4-night cruise to Nassau, Bahamas, and Royal Caribbean’s Perfect Day at CocoCay destination.
The sailing will be a mainstay of a selection of 3- and 4-night alternating itineraries – the longer of which will also include a sea day – and is part of Royal Caribbean’s wider rollout of short Caribbean getaway from multiple US homeports.
Wonder of the Seas’ redeployment follows the grand debut of the cruise line’s newest and largest ship, Star of the Seas, which arrived in Port Canaveral earlier this month and joins sister Oasis-class ship Utopia of the Seas in providing sailings from Port Canaveral, Florida.
Before arriving in Miami, Wonder of the Seas, which debuted in 2022, spent her first voyages from Port Canaveral. From there, the vessel offered week-long Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries that called at destinations including St. Maarten, the US Virgin Islands, Honduras, and Mexico.
The ship now joins a collection of Royal Caribbean vessels that will offer itineraries that can be done over a long weekend. Alongside Wonder of the Seas in Miami, Utopia of the Seas will do the same from Port Canaveral, while many stars of the fleet do the same from Los Angeles, Galveston, Fort Lauderdale, and Tampa.
Short Cruises, Big Business
Royal Caribbean’s decision to send Wonder of the Seas to Miami for short sailings is part of a broader business model shift. The cruise line is leaning heavily into quick Caribbean getaways, with Oasis-class ships like Wonder and Utopia of the Seas anchoring the strategy.
By positioning its largest vessels on 3- and 4-night itineraries, the company is betting that guests want access to the same big-ship experiences without committing to a full week at sea.
The move is designed to capture new, younger and first-time passengers with less expensive cruises that require fewer vacation days to enjoy.
However, the strategy has sparked debate among the line’s loyalists who argue the mega ships were designed for longer vacations to allow passengers time to fully explore their amenities and size.
Some have criticized the itineraries for having higher per-night costs and fewer port calls, but with Wonder of the Seas’ arrival in Miami, Royal Caribbean is confident new cruisers are going to clamor aboard.
