Royal Caribbean announced plans for Hero of the Seas to launch in 2027, but I found a few tidbits about this ship that will make it different from other cruise ships.
Every new ship is always a bit different from the previous ones. Even when they're the same class, Royal Caribbean takes every opportunity to refine and improve a ship. They capture so much guest feedback that their product development team seeks to improve ships going forward.
The cruise line has already marketed the major changes coming to Hero: an expanded adults-only area, two new family raft slides, and a New Orleans-themed supper club. Plus, it will introduce an immersive train car dining experience and a two-deck Ultimate Family Treehouse suite.
However, if you didn't dig through every piece of news released, there are a couple of tidbits I discovered about Hero of the Seas worth sharing too.
According to Jennifer Goswami, Senior Director of Product Development, Hero of the Seas, "marks the beginning of the next phase of the Icon Class". With that in mind, changes are abound.
Swim & Tonic will be larger
Since the launch of Icon of the Seas, these ships have been focused on providing a connection to the water. This includes pool access.
The Swim & Tonic pool has easily been one of the most popular ideas, and it will be bigger on Hero of the Seas.
Royal Caribbean says they will expand its footprint to be "refreshed and 30% larger". That means more space to be in the water and enjoying the bar experience.
As one of the adults-only areas on the ship, the Swim & Tonic is far less loud than The Hideaway. On Hero, that area will also get an upgrade with a second pool that will have a DJ booth.
It's clear with both changes, Royal Caribbean wants more guests to be able to enjoy either venue by expanding the pool space.
Longer length water slides
Another example of listening to guest feedback is in the water slides.
Category 6 waterpark on Hero of the Seas will add the first-ever funnel raft slide at sea. But the other slides are getting changes too.
"Our guests are so happy with this water park," Ms. Goswami explained "The only thing they told us is they wish they were there longer."
"So, we've switched out some of our raft slides to make sure that the time that guests are on the ride is now longer and is even more thrilling."
Not only do we get a new slide, but we're also getting more time on the slides.
Food hall will no longer be cuisine specific
Aquadome Market quickly became my favorite included restaurant, and it's going to change for the better on Hero.
Royal Caribbean's Senior Vice President of Food & Beverage, Linken D'Souza revealed that while the Aquadome Market will have new food cuisine choices on Hero, they'll periodically change.
"We will always debut with five really well- tested concepts, but we're also going to design the stalls to no longer be so specific to a cuisine so that we can start to bring in different ideas and test it with guests as time goes on," he said.
This means when Hero of the Seas starts sailing, it will start with four new stall concepts, plus desserts at Crème de la Crêpe and freshly squeezed juices at Simply Pressed.
Later, we could see the stalls swap out cuisines for something new.
Personally, I'd love to see a food and wine, or rotating showcase of food from various countries.
A better outdoor Chops Grille experience
Restaurants in Central Park offer indoor and outdoor seating, but if it's humid or rainy, then sitting outside isn't so great.
That's why Royal Caribbean will introduce new climatized outdoor seating at Chops Grille.
We don't have specifics yet, but it's likely this means enclosing the outdoor seating to offer not only protection from rain, but potentially also air conditioning. That would be a helpful change for a ship that will be sailing around the Caribbean.
Ultimate Family Treehouse will replace a different suite?
Deck plans aren't available yet as of the publishing of this article, but it looks like the new Ultimate Family Treehouse will replace the Royal Loft Suite.
Initially, I assumed it would replace the Ultimate Family Townhouse. However, the renderings we've seen clearly show the Treehouse in the location that the Royal Loft Suite is located on other Icon Class ships.
This new type of stateroom is three decks high, and has a rooftop terrace, private whirlpool and dedicated teen space spanning two decks.
It sleeps up to 12 people.
Royal Caribbean Chief Product Innovation Officer Jay Schneider thinks it will be "designed for families with younger children, but really meant to be the ultimate family hangout."
