MS Explorer of the Seas in 2015
|
|
History | |
---|---|
Name: | Explorer of the Seas |
Owner: |
|
Operator: | Royal Caribbean International |
Port of registry: | |
Route: | Bahamas, Bermuda, Eastern Caribbean, and New England itineraries (Australia)itineraries of Bayonne, New Jersey |
Builder: | Kværner Masa-Yards Turku New Shipyard, Finland |
Yard number: | 1345 |
Laid down: | 01 August 1999 |
Completed: | 28 September 2000 |
Maiden voyage: | 28 October 2000 |
Identification: |
|
Status: | In service |
Notes: | |
General characteristics | |
Class and type: | Voyager-class cruise ship |
Tonnage: | |
Length: | 311 m (1,020 ft) |
Beam: |
|
Draught: | 8.3 m (27 ft) |
Depth: | 11.7 m (38 ft) |
Decks: | 15 |
Deck clearance: | 3,400 m (11,200 ft) |
Installed power: | 6 × Wärtsilä 12V46 (6 × 12,600 kW) |
Propulsion: |
|
Speed: | 23.7 knots (43.9 km/h; 27.3 mph) |
Capacity: | 4,029 passengers |
Crew: | 1,180 |
Notes: |
MS Explorer of the Seas is a Voyager-class cruise ship owned and operated by Royal Caribbean International, completed in 2000. She can accommodate over 3,000 guests, including scientists making use of a built-in atmospheric and oceanographic laboratory operated by the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. (The manned lab with its attendant educational and outreach programs for passengers was discontinued in 2007. An automated system for gathering data was installed in 2008.) At launch, Explorer of the Seas had a tonnage of 137,308 GT, beating out her sister ship Voyager of the Seas by 32 GT and making her the world's largest passenger ship. She held that record until being overtaken by Navigator of the Seas in 2002. In early 2015, Explorer of the Seas received major upgrades, including the replacement of the inline skating rink with a Flowrider surfing simulator and increasing her tonnage to 138,194 GT. The ship's godmother is American athlete Jackie Joyner-Kersee.
In fall 2014, she sailed 5 to 9 day Caribbean cruises out of Port Canaveral, Florida. After dry-dock refurbishment in the spring of 2015, Explorer began to sail Northern Europe, Mediterranean, and Madeira, Azores and Canary Islands itineraries out of Southampton, Hampshire, United Kingdom.