Inside the world’s largest cruise ship: Our image tells you everything you need to know about the incredible 300m Icon Of The Seas as she undergoes final testing ahead of her maiden voyage

The world’s largest cruise ship is heading to Puerto Rico and preparing to take on its first paying passengers.

Locals and tourists in Ponce, Puerto Rico got their first look at the 1,200-foot-long, 250,800-ton pleasure vessel named “Icon Of The Seas” as it sailed as part of its sea trials required to complete its certification. for sale.

The 20-deck ship, five times larger than the ill-fated Titanic, towered over the city on the southern coast of the Caribbean island.

The massive ship, which cost the Royal Caribbean cruise line $2 billion, features a dining room, six swimming pools and the largest on-sea water park of any cruise ship in the world.

The first paying customer cruise departs Miami, Florida on January 27 for a seven-day Caribbean cruise, including a stop at Perfect Day at CocoCay, Royal Caribbean’s private island in the Bahamas.

Our image tells you everything you need to know about the Icon Of The Seas as she undergoes her final tests before her maiden voyage.

The Princes’ schedule for a seven-day Caribbean cruise this year starts at around £1,200, but so far almost all the “staterooms” have been booked and paid for, with costs still between £4,000 and £6,000.

Some rooms are even more expensive. The Ultimate Family Townhouse Suite spans three decks. While customers can take the stairs to get through the massive suite, they can also opt for a slide as they descend, leading to the lounge floor.

The Ultimate Family Townhouse sleeps eight people and features a private sun deck and several balconies. Seven nights cost families a staggering $85,000 (£70,000).

The cruise took years to assemble. Prototypes of “quarters” – as the ship’s eight main sections are called – were built to scale in Miami before being installed on the actual ship at the Meyer Turku shipyard on Finland’s Baltic coast.

Most “huts” are modular, built elsewhere in Finland and then moved into place.

The most daring lift took place when the Aquadome – the largest free-standing dome at sea with almost 700 glass panels and weighing 365 tonnes – was lifted from the dock and lowered onto the ship like a flying saucer with weight evenly distributed by the number of cables use. connected to each connected computer.

This particular maneuver took 24 hours and the dome now has a 55 foot waterfall and can accommodate 1,300 people.

Jay Schneider, Royal Caribbean’s chief product innovation officer, previously told the Mail: “We didn’t set out to build the biggest ship in the world.”