MS Enchantment of the Seas

300px Enchantment of the Seas
Career
Name:	Enchantment of the Seas
Owner:	Royal Caribbean International
Operator:	Royal Caribbean International
Port of registry:	Bahamas
Builder:	Kvaerner Masa Yards Helsinki New Shipyard, Helsinki, Finland
Maiden voyage:	July 13, 1997
In service:	1997-present
Status:	In Active Service as of 2010
Notes:	CDC sanitation score: 96% (10-18-2008)
General characteristics
Class and type:	Vision class cruise ship
Tonnage:	1997—2004: 74,000 GT (gross tonnage) 2005 onwards: 80,700 GT
Length:	1997—2004: 916 ft (279.20 m) 2005 onwards: 990 ft (301.75 m)
Beam:	106 ft (32.31 m)
Draft:	25 ft (7.62 m)
Decks:	11
Speed:	22 kn (40.74 km/h; 25.32 mph)
Capacity:	2,446 Passengers

MS Enchantment of the Seas is a Vision Class cruise ship owned and operated by Royal Caribbean International. Mainly, she cruises in the Caribbean, but will often explore the coast of Alaska and transit the Panama Canal. Starting in 2010 the Enchantment of the Seas will be home ported in Baltimore; becoming Baltimore's second home ported ship.

Propellers

The two propellers are highly skewed fixed pitch types, manufactured in Sweden. Enchantment of the Seas and her sister ship Grandeur of the Seas are the first two major cruise ships to be equipped with a Dynamic Positioning System.

Facilities

The ship's dining facilities include the two-story "My Fair Lady" dining room, the Windjammer cafe buffet, the Chops Grille specialty restaurant, and several themed bars and lounges, including a piano bar. Other features include three pools, a spa, a theater, a solarium, a fitness center, a discothèque, a shopping center and centrum, a teen disco and lounge, Adventure Ocean center, an observation deck, a rock-climbing wall, four bungee trampolines called the "Jump Zone" and the Viking Crown Lounge.

2005 overhaul

In 2005, the Enchantment of the Seas was overhauled. Part of overhaul included stretching the vessel by cutting it in two amidship and adding a 73-foot (22 m) long section. Enchantment entered dry dock at Keppel Verolme shipyards in Rotterdam on 15 May 2005. The mid-body extension section was built at Aker Finnyards ahead of time, allowing the construction to be done in just over a month.

The ship resumed service on 7 July 2005, less than two months after entering dry dock. The new section included 151 new staterooms, outdoor trampoline bungees, suspension bridges, an expanded pool area, a 64-jet interactive fountain area for kids, and floor windows allowing an unobstructed view of the ocean below. During its time out of service, Enchantment also received an overall renovation, which included paintings by Paul Critchley for the Windjammer cafe.

When the extension project was approved, an extension of Enchantment's sister ship, Grandeur of the Seas was also planned, with tentative plans to extend other ships in the Vision class (and possibly throughout the fleet). However, while the Enchantment project was successful, it proved to be prohibitively expensive, and all future extension projects have been cancelled.^{[citation needed]}

Incidents

On September 30, 2009, as Enchantment of the Seas was berthed at Cozumel, high winds pushed the cruise ship Carnival Legend against the side resulting in damage to both ships. A Royal Caribbean spokeswoman commented that the ship had minor damage to the stern of the ship and some railings. Both ships were able to depart to its next port of call after being inspected by port authorities.

Gallery

• Enchantment.JPG

  Docked in Philadelphia, PA

• Sportsandmainpool.jpg

  Sports pool and main pool

• Orpheumtheatre.jpg

  Orpheum Theatre

• DSC02576.JPG

  Centrum, The three-deck atrium of the ship, as seen from mid-deck; it was renovated during the overhaul.

• Enchantement Aruba.jpg

  Docked in Oranjestad, Aruba

External links

• RCI page for Enchantment of the Seas
• RCI "Fast Facts" brochure for Enchantment of the Seas
• RCIfan.com, an RCI Fan site.
• A gallery of commissioned artwork for the ship's Windjammer Buffet-Style Cafe
• A must read about the new features on the Enchantment