First impressions of Royal Caribbean’s Utopia of the Seas cruise ship

Ladies and gentlemen, has Royal Caribbean done it again? Has the line’s sixth Oasis Class ship, Utopia of the Seas, somehow managed to be even more innovative than its five predecessors? It didn’t seem possible to me, given that I have a soft spot for the original two ships in the class, so I went into a recent Utopia sailing a bit skeptical. I emerged a convert.

The ship debuted as the second-largest cruise ship in the world (a tad bigger than its Oasis Class siblings but smaller than its gigantic sister ship, Icon of the Seas). Royal Caribbean has also dubbed it the “world’s biggest weekend,” thanks to its short itineraries — three- and four-night Bahamas and Caribbean voyages. This is the first time the cruise line has dedicated a brand-new ship solely to short sailings, which means Royal Caribbean has found plenty of ways for cruisers to soak up as much fun as they can in what little time they have on board.

But what’s really underneath all of those superlatives? Here, I’ll break down why I think Utopia of the Seas is Royal Caribbean‘s best Oasis Class ship yet and what you can expect if you decide to sail.

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Understanding the Oasis Class

The lead-up to Utopia of the Seas’ debut was somewhat overshadowed by the rollout of fleetmate Icon of the Seas in early 2024, but the Oasis Class ships were the original trendsetters.

When the first one, Oasis of the Seas, set sail 15 years ago, it was the largest cruise ship in the world. It was nearly 45% bigger than the next-largest ship in the fleet, Freedom of the Seas, in terms of tonnage and 46% larger in terms of maximum passenger capacity. It also introduced the cruise industry to a groundbreaking neighborhood concept, which grouped popular themed offerings together in different areas and helped to control passenger flow. (Since then, other lines — including Carnival Cruise Line and MSC Cruises — have developed their own versions.)

Within those neighborhoods, the class also delivered other industry firsts, including the first carousel, AquaTheater (a performance space featuring a pool for high-diving) and zip line at sea in and above the open-air Boardwalk neighborhood, as well as thousands of live plants tended by a resident gardener in the Central Park neighborhood. Both of these neighborhoods incorporate a central area of activity surrounded above by interior-facing ocean-view and balcony cabins — an idea pioneered on Voyager of the Seas in 1999 on the Royal Promenade, a mall-like indoor thoroughfare that has carried through to the line’s newest vessels.

“This class of ship for Royal Caribbean has been a true game changer,” said Michael Bayley, president and CEO of Royal Caribbean, during a media briefing on Utopia when asked about the evolution of the Oasis Class and why it remains so popular.

“It just consistently delivers every single time, and it ages so well,” Bayley said. “We’ve invested in these ships, and we continue to invest …. just before the pandemic, we put almost a quarter of a billion dollars into one of the Oasis Class ships just to bring it up to speed. The reason why it works so well is size and neighborhoods. … It’s the space and the fact that the neighborhoods have been able to pull people together into spaces that they really enjoy.”

In other words, Royal Caribbean struck gold with this type of ship.

Why is Utopia of the Seas the best Oasis Class ship yet?

Fun new twists

Although the Oasis Class is still evolving after 15 years, Utopia of the Seas remains largely unchanged from the original Oasis of the Seas prototype. Royal Caribbean has taken passenger favorites from the first few Oasis Class vessels and carried them through, or removed concepts that have run their course and added some fun new ones in their place, on Utopia of the Seas.

The highlight of the new additions is a meal at the Royal Railway — Utopia Station. It’s an immersive train-themed dinner theater restaurant that makes you feel like you’re actually in a dining car with scenery passing by via LED “windows.” Live actors carry out their antics around you, complete with sound effects and “butt-kickers,” which jolt your seat to make it feel like you’re really on a train. The experience has a capacity of just 96 passengers per night with a price — $75 per person — that’s just as expensive as the venue is exclusive. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to snag a reservation during my sailing, but I was able to tour one of the train cars, and it does truly suspend reality.

The next major addition is the Pesky Parrot, a tiki bar along the Royal Promenade. It’s home to Brian, a drunk animatronic parrot who hadn’t yet arrived at his perch on my voyage. (I’m told he’s already made his debut, though.) Don’t know which of the tropically themed drinks to order? Roll the bar’s cylindrical accordion-style menu to help you figure it out.

Pesky Parrot replaces the Bionic Bar, a gimmicky bar found on other Royal Caribbean vessels, featuring robotic arms messily mixing up cocktails that passengers order via tablets. Trust me: The results at Pesky Parrot are much tastier, immensely more personable and far less sticky than their robot-crafted counterparts.

Spare Tire is a food truck-style concept on the pool deck that offers a walk-up counter with reheated frozen items like cheese and pepperoni tortilla roll-ups, ranchero beef and cheese tortilla roll-ups, chipotle chicken sandwiches, Mediterranean veggie wraps and fried raspberry cheesecake pockets. Although the food is tasty (and free), I was disappointed that the truck’s items were probably some of the least homemade on the ship.

Other new additions to Utopia of the Seas include an extra-fee shave ice stand at the back of the ship near the FlowRider surf simulator; a two-deck Giovanni’s Italian specialty restaurant, which replaces molecular gastronomy restaurant Wonderland and offers great views over the Boardwalk neighborhood; bright, airy and spacious Solarium Suites located above the ship’s adults-only Solarium area; and Omakase, an exclusive six-seat, eight-course Asian dining experience that costs $129 per person.

What all of this means is that passengers are able to experience the best of what other Oasis Class ships have to offer, as well as some new additions that make Utopia of the Seas feel even more fresh and exclusive.

Short itineraries on a brand-new ship

Utopia of the Seas sails only short itineraries, so it offers a low-commitment entry point for people who want to try cruising but worry they might not like it. Because it’s a new ship, it also gives those people a chance to try something modern and splashy, rather than settling for older hardware.

“The percentage of new-to-cruise that will sail on Utopia is fantastic,” Bayley said. “It’s a short product, so people don’t have to commit so much time and money to a longer experience. It’s a much easier weekend break. It’s no big deal to really hop on Utopia on a Friday and be in the office Monday morning.”

For me, a three-night sailing was just long enough to whet my appetite for more. Utopia of the Seas is crammed with so many activities, amenities and places to chill that you’d be hard-pressed to see and do everything during a voyage twice as long as the ones the ship offers. If other passengers are anything like me, they’ll be back, which is exactly Royal Caribbean’s goal.

Utopia is also currently the only Oasis Class vessel that sails short cruises out of Port Canaveral in Cape Canaveral, Florida — about an hour from Orlando. Voyages on Utopia of the Seas allow travelers to better utilize their limited vacation time by combining a cruise with visits to Florida beaches, the Kennedy Space Center, Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, SeaWorld and other nearby attractions.

“One of the reasons we put this brand-new Oasis Class [ship] into this market is that we really expect to see a certain amount of demand coming from tourists who are going in [to Orlando], either for … Disney or Universal,” Bayley said. “They can also package themselves a vacation, which includes a three-night, four-night [cruise] to Perfect Day.”

More parties and live music than ever before

With Utopia of the Seas sailing short cruises, Royal Caribbean’s entertainment team has had to reconfigure some of its offerings. The ship combines three new shows with energetic live music and more parties than any of the line’s other vessels to date. The changes speak to what passengers want on shorter voyages — more partying and less sitting in one spot for large chunks of time. It all ties back into the long-weekend theme and the line’s goal of helping passengers maximize their vacation time.

“Utopia is a taste of what, possibly, you could experience on maybe a longer itinerary,” said Allison Rider-Davidoiu, Royal Caribbean’s director of headliner entertainment, live music and enrichment, during an interview on board. “It was really important to … go in a little bit of a different direction and have one party after the other to where you don’t ever stop.”

In fact, parties are so important on board that the ship employs a dedicated party squad, a new addition to Royal Caribbean’s entertainment team. The goal of the squad members is to keep passengers engaged. There’s also an entire team of hired “party influencers” who are simply meant to “keep the vibe going and look cool,” according to Rider-Davidoiu.

In addition to the usual outdoor sailaway soiree, red-themed nightclub party and music-forward “street parties” along the Royal Promenade, some of the key celebrations on Utopia of the Seas include Senses, a pool deck party where cruisers will find house music and sunset scenes on the big screen; ReZolution, where passengers wear white and become living art through a series of high-tech projections; and Plunge, a daytime pool party with surprise giveaways, music and water guns that shoot Champagne.

Catering to adults who want to cut loose and relive their college days, Silent Toga is a silent disco where crew members hand out togas and show passengers how to wear them, and the Royal Kappa Chi afterparty is the place to find games of beer pong, Flip Cup and Quarters backed by the skills of one of three resident DJs. On my sailing, the latter shindig didn’t end until 4 a.m.

Music is also a big focus on Utopia, with many passengers choosing their favorite live performers and returning to the same venues night after night to enjoy their performances.

“We’ve noticed guests on three- and four-day cruises, many times — as incredible as our shows are — they’d much rather gravitate toward live music,” Rider-Davidoiu said. “So we put a lot of focus on getting the best bands and the best talent.”

But that doesn’t mean the ship’s shows aren’t phenomenal. In fact, that’s far from the case.

Bridging the gap between party and production show is “The Effectors Homecoming Parade,” a hybrid that takes place along the Royal Promenade. The large cast features six main characters: superheroes Pixel, Reverb, Lume and Captain Viz, as well as villains Crash and Burn. This latest installment of “The Effectors” trilogy of original shows — with the first two appearing on a small number of other vessels in the fleet — is a street party-style celebration of Crash’s defeat.

“All In” is the main production show in the theater on each sailing. Royal Caribbean has pulled out the stops with high-tech lighting and sound, interesting props, jaw-dropping acrobatics and creatively timed LED screen animations. It also leans heavily on the massively talented cast of singers and dancers who perform hits from Bruno Mars, Camila Cabello, Gloria Estefan, the White Stripes, the Eurythmics and more.

Most impressive, though, are Utopia’s high-dive and acrobatics show “Aqua80Too,” held at the ship’s aft-facing AquaTheater, and the “Youtopia Ice Spectacular,” held in the ship’s ice rink where professional figure skaters perform to well-known tunes in colorful costumes amid a series of fun projections. If you have to choose, these two are the ones to see during your sailing.

Bottom line

There often isn’t much that differentiates new ships in a particular class from their predecessors, but that’s not the case with Utopia of the Seas.

Its short itineraries make the ship a superb pick for weekend warriors or travelers with little vacation time, as well as anyone who’s curious about cruising but who isn’t ready to commit to an entire week on board. The vessel is also a great option for active travelers who enjoy live music and parties, and for fans of large ships who want a mix of tried-and-true favorites and the latest bells and whistles.

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