Disney Cruise Line has released the first look at what its three new cruise ships will look like. The ships which have not been named are slated to debut in 2021, 2022 and 2023. All three ships are on order with Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany.
“In keeping with the distinct Disney Cruise Line style, the new ships will embody the elegance and romance of the golden age of ocean cruising with unique touches all their own,” reads a press release from the cruise line. “The new vessels will offer more innovation, new technologies, spectacular entertainment and more Disney stories and characters than ever before.”
Scott Sanders who runs DisneyCruiseLineBlog.com, a fan site not affiliated with the line stated “All in all, the exterior rendering fits well with the iconic ocean liner look that was selected back in the mid-90s. This new design offers a bit of a distinction from the Dream class while still fitting within the overall look of the fleet.”
The new ship features a curvier approach to the verandah cabins midship, which Sanders suggests might be a design choice to combat an hourglass look that’s seen on Dream and Fantasy, or allow for larger staging areas around the elevators within the ship or to just to provide larger balcony staterooms.
“The area above behind the aft stack on the topmost deck is the most intriguing aspect of this rendering,” Sanders said. “I’ve already thought of a few different options beginning at an expanded version of Remy, Palo, and Meridian from the Dream class to something completely new to this ship class.”
Disney Cruise Line currently sails four ships: the smaller 2,713-passenger sister ships Disney Magic and Disney Wonder, which debuted in 1998 and 1999, and the larger 4,000-passenger vessels Dream and Fantasy, which began sailing in 2011 and 2012.
Dream and Fantasy sail year-round from Port Canaveral while Magic and Wonder hop around among ports including Port Canaveral, PortMiami, Galveston as well as Alaska and Europe.
Where the line plans to deploy its new ships has not been revealed.
While not much detail has been revealed about any of the three new ships, the line says that they will be 140,000 gross tons (which is larger than the 135,000 gross tons originally announced). That is slightly larger than the 130,000 gross tons of Dream and Fantasy, but will have the same number of staterooms: 1,250.
The new ships will also be powered by liquefied natural gas, which is the cleanest fuel the cruise industry has begun to embrace as more stringent maritime emission laws begin to take effect.