The Latest Ships To Join The Luxury Cruise Line Fleets

By David Barclay | December 11, 2024

It’s been a little over a year since I last wrote about the expanding fleets of the luxury cruise lines. The increasing popularity of luxury cruising, driven by the 5-star experiences it provides at a meaningful value to comparable land-based options and the ability to explore while only unpacking once, is driving the expansion of the fleets at a record pace. New ship orders extend out as far as 2032 (Crystal Cruises, resurrected from bankruptcy by Abercrombie & Kent recently announced 5 new ships to be added to its fleet by then). Even with the expanded capacity these new ships bring to the luxury cruise segment, many ships in the luxury cruise line fleets are fully selling out months in advance, especially for popular sailing routes and bucket list trips like the Galapagos Islands and Antarctica.

These latest ships joining the luxury cruise line fleets continue to push the boundaries for luxurious experiences at sea and are gamechangers for luxury cruising. While some of the newest luxury ship designs are increasing the size and guest capacity compared to existing ships in the fleets, the lines aren’t in a race to launch the largest ships they can. Unlike the mainstream lines which try to one-up each other in size and outlandish features & common areas, the luxury lines increase the size of their newest ships only when it allows a new level of luxury for their guests. The slightly larger ships allow for larger suites and new unique common spaces that improve the onboard experience delivered by these 5-star floating resorts.

Every ship improves on the design of the last and strives to provide a better onboard experience for guests. For luxury cruise lines, the evolution has led to ships with all-veranda suites (because who doesn’t like their own private outdoor space), a transition away from a main restaurant towards more variety in dining venues and improved common areas that ensure the ships feel spacious and uncrowded. Below are a few ships that have launched recently or are slated to launch soon, showing how the newest ships are evolving the luxury cruising experience.

---

Explora Journeys (EXPLORA II)

Maiden Voyage: September 16, 2024

Explora Journeys is a new luxury cruise line launched by the MSC Cruise Group. The EXPLORA II joins her sister EXPLORA I (launched in 2023) and is the second of 6 total planned ships for this fleet. The EXPLORA ships are the largest ultra-luxury cruise ships, able to accommodate up to 900 guests. While still small compared to premium and mainstream line ships, the added size allows EXPLORA II to offer an incredible number of restaurants and venues. She has 4 separate pools, including one with a retractable roof allowing guests to lounge by the pool even in inclement weather. Another pool is adults only, and while she won’t host as many families and children as the ships of non-luxury lines, she does have 78 connecting suites designed for families and multi-generational groups. She also offers the most dining venues among the luxury ships (10) and bars/lounges (12).

The creators behind the Explora Journeys brand didn’t want to create just another cruise line and don’t want guests to feel like they are on a cruise ship. Instead, they want guests to feel like they are staying at one of the world’s finest hotels. This carries through the design of the EXPLORA II, with the interior feeling more like a luxury hotel. The main lobby and bar could easily be mistaken for one of the better hotels in any major city. And the ship had a very sophisticated European design throughout. 

---

Silversea (Silver Ray)

Maiden Voyage: June 15, 2024

The Silver Ray is the second Nova-class ship to join the Silversea fleet (the Silver Nova launch in 2023). The largest class ship in the fleet, the Ray can accommodate 728 guests and is 35% larger than the Muse-class ships, the previous flagships of the Silversea fleet.

The Silver Ray brings several revolutionary features to the Silversea fleet and to the luxury cruise segment. First, she has an asymmetrical design, which allowed the builders to incorporate unique deck layouts. This is very noticeable on the Ray’s pool deck, where the pool is shifted to the starboard side. Traditional ship design puts the pool in the center of the ship to balance the weight of the pool water, but that means deck chairs are positioned to face the pool and away from the sea, making the pool deck feel less attached to the world around the ship. With this new design, all pool loungers face the ocean and there are no walls on the ocean side of the pool, providing pool deck guests unobstructed ocean views. The asymmetrical design is also visible in the atrium, which is shifted to the starboard side and has floor to ceiling windows that stretch 2 full decks, letting in an incredible amount of natural light.

The Silver Ray continues the move towards sustainability and carbon neutrality in the cruise industry. She is the second luxury line ship (along with the Nova) to use Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) as the primary fuel and has a fuel cell/battery system to ensure zero emissions while docked in port.

The Ray also incorporates some of the best aspects of the other ships in the fleet, including many of the popular restaurants and the Sea and Land Tastes (S.A.L.T.) program started with the Silver Moon. The Ray adds to this program, changing the S.A.L.T. Lab in the evening into the Chef’s Table, a small group interactive dining experience.

---

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection (ILMA)

Maiden Voyage: September 2, 2024

The ILMA is the second ship in the relatively new Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection (RCYC) fleet, joining her sister EVRIMA. She is larger than EVRIMA, nearly twice the tonnage, and can accommodate up to 448 guests (298 guests for EVIRMA). The increased size allows her to offer the greatest space-to-guest ratio of any luxury ship and many new common areas. While her size is comparable to many mid-sized luxury ships, she is focused on continuing to deliver the luxury yachting experience RCYC brought to the seas with the EVRIMA.

The ILMA offers guests the option to dine in one of five restaurants and offers 6 bars for guests’ enjoyment. Keeping with the yachting life theme on board, her aft marina allows guests the ability to participate in watersports directly from the yacht or in the evening to dine alfresco while admiring the seascapes. She offers a variety of suite options, from the 294 sq ft Terrace Suites up to the 1,033 sq ft Owner’s Suite.

---

Four Seasons Yachts (Four Seasons I)

Maiden Voyage: January 25, 2026

Another luxury hotel chain moving into the cruise world is the Four Seasons. While the Four Seasons I has not launched yet, the new line has opened the initial itineraries in early January 2026 for booking. The ship will initially sail in the Caribbean and will reposition to the Mediterranean for the summer sailing season.

The yacht, while comparable in size to many of the smaller luxury ships that might accommodate 300-450 guests, will only have 95 suites and accommodate a max of 180 guests. The smallest suites measure an expansive 537 sq ft, roughly 40% larger than the smallest suites on other luxury lines. The largest, a 3-story suite enclosed by a single curved pane of glass at the front of the funnel, offers a mind-blowing 9,975 sq ft of interior and exterior space.

The yacht offers eleven restaurants and lounges and the pool was inspired by the classic “Christina O” yacht’s pool. In a break from other luxury cruise lines, the onboard experience will not be all-inclusive and guests will pay for their meals and beverage service just as they would at a shoreside Four Seasons resort.

---

Additional ships either under construction or announced for future launch:

• Oceania Cruises – Allura (2025)
• Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection – LUMINARA (2025)
• Explora Journeys – EXPLORA III (2026)
• Regent Seven Seas – Seven Seas Prestige (2026)

These launches will be covered in a future blog post!!