​P&O Cruises Cuts Steel For Its Largest Cruise Ship Yet

On 25 April 2018, the very first piece of steel was cut for newest and largest cruise ship yet at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany.  

The new 180,000 gross tonne ship will accommodate 5,200 passengers and be the most environmentally friendly in the fleet, powered by LNG. The important milestone in the construction of the exciting new ship was observed by Paul Ludlow, Senior Vice President, P&O Cruises, Josh Weinstein, President, Carnival UK and Tim Meyer, Managing Director, Meyer Werft.

The new ship will feature over 15 places to eat, including 8 speciality restaurants, more than 10 places to enjoy a drink and take in sea views, 18 whirlpools, 4 swimming pools (three outside and one inside) and plenty of entertainment venues from the theatre to venues for adults only.

Josh Weinstein, President, Carnival UK, said: “This is the first time in 20 years that P&O Cruises has had a ship built by Meyer Werft and I’d like to thank everyone who has worked so hard to get us to the first stage in the life of this ground-breaking vessel. Meyer Werft has an enviable track record of producing genuinely innovative ships which also deliver tremendous levels of operational efficiency and we look forward to continuing our successful partnership over the next couple of years to this ship’s completion in 2020 and beyond.”

Paul Ludlow, Senior Vice President, P&O Cruises, said: “This is a very exciting and momentous day. Our new ship will be the largest ship ever operated by the brand and the largest ever to be dedicated exclusively to the UK cruise industry. It will also be the first ship in our market to be powered by LNG, the most environmentally-friendly power source yet for large-scale cruise ships. With UK passenger numbers set to top two million for the first time this year, we are confident in cruising’s future and believe that there will be an exceptionally positive UK response to this ship and the innovations it will bring. We also expect this ship to persuade many UK consumers to take that all important first cruise.”

On 24 May 2018 at 4pm P&O Cruises will announce live to the world the name of its new ship. This highly anticipated announcement comes as a result of a competition ran last year, when the cruise line invited members of the public to suggest a suitable name for the ship. Over 30,000 submissions were received with a panel of experts making the final decision.

P&O Cruises has already ordered a second 5,200-capacity sister ship, which is set to be delivered in 2022.