- Joe Kessel captures highlights from a weekend aboard Utopia of the Seas
- She gives guests a sneak peek at a new style of cabin that offers 270-degree views.
- Her videos feature swimming pools, waterslides, tiki bars, trains and more.
- Joe also photographed an exclusive concert by pop star Meghan Trainor
- Read more: Qatar Airways unveils new version of Qsuite business class
Greetings from Port Canaveral in Orlando as we preview our upcoming sailing to the Bahamas on an entirely new kind of ship offering the ultimate cruise getaway.
Utopia of the Seas is Royal Caribbean’s 28th ship, built at a cost of more than £1 billion ($1.3 billion), and is the cruise line’s first ship dedicated to three- and four-night voyages to the Caribbean.
With 18 decks and a capacity of 5,700 passengers, Utopia is designed to deliver an exciting, party-style getaway. This video highlights my time on board and starts on the top deck, where there are plenty of activities to enjoy, including five pools, a zip line, an aqua park and a surfing simulator.
Utopia is the second-largest cruise ship in the world after Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas, which makes it a great place to count your steps: It takes 3.5 minutes to walk from one end of the ship to the other, and on most days you’ll log roughly 20,000 steps just going from your cabin to the pool to the dining room, etc.
A few hours passed before we walked up to perhaps the scariest thing on the top deck: the Ultimate Abyss. At 259 feet (79 meters), it’s the longest dry slide at sea. Just the thought of attempting it made my hands sweat and my heart rate increase. How was it? It was terrifying. By the end, I was so dizzy I had trouble getting up.
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But if waterslides are more your style, Utopia has three adrenaline-pumping, splash-splashing rides. I’ll be trying the yellow one.
My shoot then moves indoors, first to the Solarium and then to a brand new style of accommodation aptly named the Solarium Suite, which offers exceptional panoramas and a 270-degree view, exactly the same as the Captain sees from the bridge.
Like most other Royal Caribbean ships, Utopia has a promenade with a merry-go-round and “Central Park,” an outdoor courtyard with 12,000 plants.
But new to Utopia is a tiki bar called Pesky Parrot, which specializes in fruit-based cocktails and frozen drinks.
The “Pine Chiller” is a fitting name for a cocktail, packed with Bacardi rum, pina colada mix and blood orange sour, and is one of the establishment’s signature drinks.
How does it taste? It’s amazing. With the added bonus of curing all your aches and pains! Also newly opened are the Bell and Barley Pub and Spare Tire, a food truck serving pulled pork sandwiches.
Innovation in entertainment is what Royal Caribbean does best, and like most of their ships, Utopia has an Aqua Theater that stages daredevil diving shows.
But Utopia goes a step further and is the only cruise ship in the world with an onboard train and station.
It’s called the Royal Railroad and every ride comes with a meal – my ride was a Wild West trip with a themed dinner.
The appetizer was a plate of “Fart & Dart beans” which looked funny on the menu but were actually delicious. Of course it wasn’t a real train – it would be wilder than the Wild West – but the virtual reality ride was very well done with the sound effects, movements etc. It even had a mugging on board.
All Utopia cruises, whether three-day or four-day, call at Royal Caribbean’s private island, Coco Cay, in the Bahamas.
And because all cruises begin and end in a short trip in Port Canaveral, Florida, it makes sense to extend your stay with a few days in nearby Orlando before or after your cruise. That’s what I did. After spending some time at the Universal theme parks, I headed to Wekiwa Springs State Park, which has hiking trails and natural cold springs. It’s a lovely, lesser known spot that offers a refreshing alternative to Orlando’s roller coasters.
Returning to the ship, Utopia singer Meghan Trainor is appointed godmother of the ship, and the footage ends with her performing a special celebratory concert including her hit song “All About That Bass.”
Thus, a whole new era of the ultimate weekend cruise was born.
Is 3 or 4 nights enough to experience the whole ship? Definitely not, you will have to come back another time to experience more.
Utopia offers three- and four-night roundtrip voyages departing Friday and Monday from Port Canaveral to the Bahamas. More information: Royal Caribbean and www.visitorlando.com/gb.
To see more of Jo’s videos, check out her YouTube channel. Click here for details.