Legend of the Seas has officially become part of the Royal Caribbean fleet following a delivery ceremony at the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland today.
The third in the line's Icon-class of ships, Legend of the Seas joins sisters Icon of the Seas and Star of the Seas and becomes the line's 30th ship in the fleet – and it's biggest – by one foot.
Executives from Royal Caribbean, the Meyer-Turku shipyard and the ship's Captain, Sindre Borsheim, took delivery of the 5,610-passenger ship, watched by many of the 2,350 crew.
"There has been a lot of innovation and a lot of hard work which has gone into this," said Jason Liberty, Royal Caribbean Group's Chairman and CEO.
"We have been building ships here at Meyer-Turku for many decades and we intend on building ships here for many decades to come," he added.
Michael Bayley, Royal Caribbean's President and CEO, praised the crew for their hard work, thanking 40 crew who had helped deliver the original Legend of the Seas back in 1995.
Bayley singled out Mario "Bingo" Brooks Pecou in particular, Housekeeping Manager, who has delivered 27 ships in his time at Royal – including the original Legend – and presented him with a gift.
"We're incredibly proud to introduce Legend of the Seas to vacationers and continue the legacy of the revolutionary Icon Class," he said.
"This wouldn't be possible without the many talented individuals that came together to deliver what is truly the ultimate family vacation."
