By
Elly Yates-Roberts |
Disney Cruise Line has revealed the name of its fifth ship – Disney Wish – which will enter service in 2022. The line is also developing a new cruise destination in The Bahamas that will begin welcoming guests in 2023.
Disney Wish and her yet-to-be-named sister ships, which are expected to be delivered in 2022 and 2023, will be powered by LNG. At around 144,000gt and with 1,250 staterooms, they will be slightly larger than Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy.
At the D23 Expo on 25 August, Bob Chapek, chairman of Disney parks, experiences and products, gave attendees a first look at Disney Wish’s three-storey atrium and the Disney character that will adorn her stern – Rapunzel.
“There couldn’t be a better name for our incredible new ship because making wishes come true is part of the Disney DNA and is at the heart of so many of our cherished stories,” said Chapek. “Each Disney Cruise Line ship is unique, with a name that embodies the excitement of sailing with Disney and the power of our stories. The new ships will have the experiences our guests love, as well as all-new magic.”
Disney Cruise Line also officially purchased a new private destination at Lighthouse Point on the island of Eleuthera in The Bahamas earlier this year.
“With three new ships joining our fleet, we thought this would be an incredible opportunity to add another unique destination to our ports of call,” said Chapek. “We looked all over The Bahamas and Caribbean for an ideal location that would enable us to create new experiences, while celebrating the culture of this amazing region.”
The company has signed an agreement with the Government of The Bahamas for the responsible and sustainable development of the site. As part of that, the line has committed to develop less than 20% of the property, employ sustainable building practices and establish environmental monitoring programmes during construction and operation.
“The Lighthouse Point site is so beautiful and so full of nature that we want to preserve this and use our designs to call attention to the extraordinary quality of the place itself – a place of natural beauty with a rich and fascinating cultural tradition,” said Joe Rohde, ‘imagineer’ at Disney Cruise Line. “We will be directly involved in conservation efforts to preserve and protect the environment that creates this beauty, and we will be working with artists of every kind, much like we did with Aulani in Hawaii, to create a unique destination that is rooted in Bahamian culture and imbued with Disney magic.”
Construction is expected to begin in 2020 with completion in late 2022 or 2023.