New Disney Cruise Line ship gets 1st taste of water
Disney Cruise Line’s new ship Disney Destiny hit a construction milestone floating for the first time ahead of delivery this year.
The third Wish-class vessel is a sister ship to both Disney Wish and Disney Treasure, which both sail out of Port Canaveral. Disney Destiny, though, will make its home farther south at DCL’s second Florida home of Port Everglades.
The ship under construction at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany underwent a “float up” last week, according to an update from the Disney Parks Blog.
The dry dock where the ship had been getting assembled was filled with water from the Ems River.
“The ship was then guided to another position in the hall, where the team will begin testing different systems onboard, including the main engines,” the post reads.
While floating, work will continue on the ship’s interior spaces, which include a dinner theater space themed to “The Lion King,” an atrium with a statue from “Black Panther,” a sweets shop themed to “The Incredibles” and an adults-only lounge that pays homage to “101 Dalmatians” villain Cruella de Vil.”
Once complete, the ship will leave the shipyard to take a 20-mile river trip to Eemshaven, Netherlands, before it heads out for sea trials in the North Sea this fall.
The 144,000-gross-ton, 4,000-passenger vessel will begin sailing with its maiden voyage in November 2025 from Port Everglades followed by an inaugural season of four- and five-night voyages to the Bahamas and western Caribbean.
It will be the seventh ship in the DCL fleet that is also set to welcome the Singapore-bound Disney Adventure by the end of the year.
The fleet is set to grow to as many as 13 ships including a new class of vessels by 2031.