Disney Cruise Line Buys Unfinished Ship
Disney Cruise Line has acquired what is expected to be the world’s largest cruise ship when it is finished. The ship, Global Dream, has been sitting partially finished in Germany since the shipbuilder went bankrupt earlier this year because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The ship was originally targeted to serve the Chinese market. Disney now says it will work with Meyer Werft, another German shipbuilder, to finish the yet-to-be-renamed ship. That same company has worked on the Disney Wish, Disney Fantasy and Disney Dream. It’s also set to complete Wish’s sister ship Disney Treasure in 2024 as well as a third yet-to-be-named ship in what is known as the Trident class of vessels in 2025.
The newly acquired vessel is expected to set sail sometime in 2025 with a capacity of around 6,000 passengers and 2,300 crew members. That’s down from the 9,000 passenger capacity that was initially planned.
The new Disney Wish, which debuted at Port Canaveral this summer, comes in at 144,000 gross tons with 1,254 staterooms for a 2,508-passenger capacity based on double occupancy, but really aims for 4,000 passengers with the number of children on board, as well as another 1,555 crew.
Global Dream, or whatever Disney decides to name it, will become the company’s eighth (and largest) cruise ship. Disney Magic and Disney Wonder debuted in the late 1990s.
Construction of the Global Dream began in 2018 and original plans called for it to have the longest roller coaster at sea, but what exactly will be on board for Disney Cruise Line has yet to be determined.
“Our cruise ships give us the unique opportunity to bring Disney magic to fans no matter where they are, and the addition of this ship will make a Disney Cruise Line vacation accessible to more families than ever before,” said Josh D’Amaro, chairman, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, in a press release.
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This new ship is 208,000 gt and 1,122 feet for comparison purposes. I don’t know how they can say it will be the largest since it’s smaller than several RCCL ships. The Oasis of the Seas is 236,000 gt and 1,186 feet for example. It will be interesting to see if they continue the plan to power it with MAN diesel engines or if it will be outfitted with natural gas instead.