Hello from Port Canaveral in Orlando and a sneak peek of a sailing voyage to the Bahamas on an all-new type of ship that offers the ultimate short cruise.
Utopia of the Seas cost more than £1 billion ($1.3 billion) to build and is Royal Caribbean’s 28th ship. It is also the cruise line’s first ship to sail three- and four-night voyages specifically to the Caribbean.
The 18-deck, 5,700-passenger Utopia is designed to provide a festive, energetic vacation. A video I made of the highlights of my time on board starts on the top deck, where there’s plenty of action. There are five pools, a zipline, an aqua park, a surfing simulator and more.
Utopia is the second-largest cruise ship in the world, after Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas. That’s good news for your step count: It takes 3.5 minutes to walk from one end of the ship to the other, and on most days, you’ll log around 20,000 steps just from your stateroom to the pool, dining room, and so on.
I made a few trips up to perhaps the scariest of all on the top deck, the Ultimate Abyss, which at 259 ft (79 m) is the longest dry slide at sea. My hands got clammy and my heart rate raced at the thought of trying it. What was it like? Terrifying—I was so dizzy I had trouble standing up at the end.
Jo Kessel spends the weekend on Utopia of the Seas – the second largest cruise ship in the world – and films the highlights
Jo’s video starts on the top deck, where there’s a lot of action. Here there are five pools, a zipline, an aqua park, a surfing simulator and more
On the left, Jo is trying out the yellow water slide. And on the right, she’s getting ready to experience the Ultimate Abyss, which at 259 ft (79 m) is the longest dry slide at sea.
Every Utopia cruise stops at Coco Cay, Royal Caribbean’s private island in the Bahamas
But if water slides are more your thing, Utopia is the place for you, with three adrenaline-pumping, splash-inducing rides. I’d try the yellow one.
My footage then moves inside, first to the Solarium and then to a completely new style of accommodation named after it, the ‘Solarium Suite’. The panorama from here is exceptional, offering exactly the same 270 degree view that the captain has from the bridge.
Like most other Royal Caribbean ships, the Utopia features a boardwalk with a carousel and “Central Park,” an open-air courtyard with 12,000 plants.
New to Utopia is tiki bar Pesky Parrot, which specializes in fruit-based cocktails and frozen drinks.
The ‘Painchiller’ is a great name for a cocktail and is one of the signature drinks, filled with Bacardi rum, pina colada mix, and blood orange sour.
The 18-deck, 5,700-passenger Utopia is ‘designed to provide a festive, energetic holiday’
The solarium pool aboard the Utopia, which cost more than £1 billion ($1.3 billion) to build and is Royal Caribbean’s 28th ship
Jo in the Solarium Suite, ‘a completely new style of accommodation’ that offers ‘exactly the same 270 degree views that the captain has from the bridge’
How does it taste? Fantastic and the upside is that it cures all ailments and diseases! Also new is the Bell and Barley pub and Spare Tire, a food truck serving pulled pork sandwiches.
Innovation in entertainment is what Royal Caribbean does best. Like most other ships in the fleet, Utopia features an aqua theater that puts on daring dive shows.
But Utopia goes one step further: it is the only cruise ship in the world with a train and a train station on board.
It’s called the Royal Railway and every ride includes a meal. Mine was a Wild West themed dinner trip.
Utopia is the only cruise ship in the world with a train and a train station on board. On the right of the photo is the conductor on Jo’s Wild West themed dining experience on the train
Jo’s starter on the train was a plate of ‘Fart & Dart beans’, ‘which looked funny on the menu but were actually delicious’
A ‘robbery’ takes place during Jo’s Wild West train ride
Utopia has an aqua theatre where daring diving shows are performed
The starter was a plate of ‘Fart & Dart beans’, which looked funny on the menu but were actually delicious. Of course it’s not a real train – that would be wilder than the Wild West – but the virtual reality ride did a great job of feeling authentic, with sound effects, movements and all. There was even a delay in the carriage.
Every Utopia cruise, whether a three- or four-day voyage, stops at Coco Cay, Royal Caribbean’s private island in the Bahamas.
And since all of the cruises are short, starting and ending in Port Canaveral, Florida, it makes sense to spend a few days in nearby Orlando before or after your cruise to extend your stay. That’s what I did, spending time at Universal’s theme parks before heading to Wekiwa Springs State Park, which has hiking trails and natural springs—it’s a beautiful, undiscovered spot that offers a refreshing alternative to Orlando’s roller coasters.
Back on board, Utopia singer Meghan Trainor has been named godmother of the ship. The footage ends with an exclusive, celebratory concert in which she performs the hit ‘All About That Bass’, among other songs.
And so a whole new era of the ultimate weekend cruise was born.
Are three or four nights long enough to experience the entire ship? Absolutely not – you’ll have to come back for more another time.
Utopia offers three- and four-day roundtrip voyages departing Port Canaveral on Fridays and Mondays to the Bahamas. More information: www.royalcaribbean.nl And www.visitorlando.com/gb.
For more videos from Jo visit her YouTube channel – www.youtube.com.