Travel
Cruise-Line Size Race Is Over; Now It’s a Battle Over Amenities
- With ships built for 7,000, cruise lines look to personalize
- A mobile piano player takes song requests in the elevator
When the $1.35 billion Symphony of the Seas steamed out of Barcelona on its maiden voyage in April, it instantly claimed the title of world’s largest cruise ship.
At 228,000 gross tonnes, Symphony is a tad larger than the previous titleholder, its two-year-old sister, the Harmony of the Seas. But dive deeper into the stats and the victory looks iffy. It’s actually the same length and carries fewer passengers, a maximum of 6,680.