By
Michele Witthaus |
The naming ceremony for Royal Caribbean’s latest newbuild – Anthem of the Seas – took place on 20 April while the ship was docked in Southampton, UK, where she will be based for six months prior to moving to New York.
Godmother Emma Wilby of Thomson Travel in Sunderland, who was chosen from a large number of travel agent hopefuls, brought a new twist to the christening by singing for the onboard audience, with backing from Welsh male voice choir Only Boys Aloud. A video of the ceremony can be seen here.
On 21 April, senior executives of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd answered questions from global media against a real-time backdrop of social media comments from participants.
Royal Caribbean International president and CEO Michael Bayley said of the inspiration behind the billion-dollar newbuild: “We spend a huge amount of time dreaming about what could be. The integration of technology with innovation on Anthem allows guests to engage with the ship.”
He added that the bandwidth available to guests onboard the Quantum- and Oasis-class ships was enabling the company to attract a younger demographic to grow the brand.
Royal Caribbean's EVP Maritime and Newbuilding, Harri Kulovaara, said the ship benefited from a new safety system on the bridge that was introduced with the Quantum class. “We have taken the layout of the entire bridge to a new level,” he said, explaining that the new Safety Command Centre allowed for separate areas to address communications, technical and management functions during a crisis. “We have also built a prototype of an advisory and decision support system.”