Star of the Seas, Royal Caribbean’s second Icon-class ship, is the Most Anticipated New Cruise Ship of 2025 in the Cruise Hive Awards, garnering nearly 30% of reader votes.
The outcome is not surprising, considering that the line’s first Icon-class vessel, Icon of the Seas, which debuted in January 2024, was the most anticipated new cruise ship of that year. Indeed, Icon of the Seas was voted the Best Cruise Ship of 2024.
Star of the Seas is under construction at the Meyer Turku shipyard in Turku, Finland, and due to enter service in late August 2025. Like Icon of the Seas, now the largest cruise ship sailing, Star of the Seas will be 248,663 gross tons with a guest capacity of 5,610 at double occupancy.
When she debuts, Royal Caribbean will have the distinction of operating the world’s two largest cruise ships.
Star of the Seas will offer eight neighborhoods, each offering distinctive amenities, venues, and services, such as the exciting AquaDome entertainment and dining area; Chill Island, for those seeking a laid-back vibe; Thrill Island, where adventure rides await; the family-friendly Surfside; and longtime Royal Caribbean favorites like Royal Promenade and Central Park.
The new ship will homeport at Port Canaveral, Florida, and offer 7-night Eastern and Western Caribbean cruises. Undoubtedly, most itineraries will include a call at Royal Caribbean’s popular Perfect Day at CocoCay private destination.
In fact, Perfect Day at CocoCay was named Best Cruise Line Private Island in the 2024 Cruise Hive Awards.
Cruises aboard Star of the Seas opened for sale in December 2023, with a launch date of August 24, 2025. However, two months later the line announced a delay in construction would push the ship’s launch back to August 31, 2025.
No specific reason for the delay was offered, but the line was forced to cancel the ship’s inaugural 7-night Eastern Caribbean & Perfect Day cruise scheduled to depart Port Canaveral on August 17, 2025.
The Cruise Hive Awards were launched in 2014. Voting for this year’s winners opened in mid-October 2024, with seven award categories. All voting is by Cruise Hive readers, who had a choice of 13 ships in the Most Anticipated New Cruise Ship category.
Here Are Runners-Up in ‘Most Anticipated’ Category
While Star of the Seas was the runaway winner in the Most Anticipated New Cruise Ship ranking, with 29.7% of the total vote count, a dozen other ships also were recognized by Cruise Hive readers.
Read Also: What Are the Different Royal Caribbean Ship Classes?
In second place, with 14.7% of the vote, is Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Aqua, a 3,500-guest ship slated to enter service in April 2025. A Prima-class ship, the 156,300-gross ton vessel is being built at the Fincantieri shipyard in Marghera, Italy, and will be based at Port Canaveral.
Princess Cruises’ Star Princess came in at the No. 3 spot, with 12.8% of the vote. Under construction at Fincantieri’s Monfalcone, Italy, shipyard, Star Princess will accommodate 4,300 guests and is scheduled to launch from Barcelona on October 4, 2025.
Two ships were close on the heels of Star Princess: Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Xcel garnered 11.6% of the vote and MSC Cruises’ MSC World America received 10%.
After that, the percentage of total votes drops considerably, with the next-closest ship, Disney Cruise Line’s Disney Adventure receiving 5%; Disney Destiny 4.2%; and Virgin Voyages’ Brilliant Lady 3.6%.
Garnering less than 3% of Cruise Hive readers’ votes were Oceania Cruises’ Allura, with 2.7%; Viking Cruises’ Viking Vesta, 1.1%; Ritz-Carlton Collection’s Luminara, 0.97%, and TUI Cruises’ Mein Schiff Relax, 0.58%.
