Meyer Turku celebrated the keel laying of the fourth cruise ship in Royal Caribbean International’s Icon class.

According to a press release, a traditional keel laying ceremony was held on September 8, 2025, marking the beginning of the construction of the vessel.

Following the Legend of the Seas, which is set to debut in 2026, the LNG-powered ship is set to be delivered in 2027.

“Icon 4 is a very significant ship for both the shipyard and the entire partner network. With this ship, Meyer Turku is further strengthening its position as one of the world’s leading cruise ship builders,” said Meyer Turku’s CEO Casimir Lindholm.

“Each luxury cruise ship of this size creates 13,000 person-years of employment and we are constantly looking for new shipbuilders to join our team at various stages from design to implementation,” he added.

According to Meyer Turku, the keel laying was held at the bottom of the building dock and included a symbolic ceremony in which representatives of the customer, the classification society, and the shipyard placed coins under the first steel block to bring good luck and protection to the ship.

In their speeches, the ship project managers of Meyer Turku and Royal Caribbean noted that the cooperation is progressing well and that the lessons learned from previous sister ships are further streamlining the process.

Meyer Turku delivered the first ship in the series, the Icon of the Seas, in November 2023 and its sister ship, Star of the Seas, in July 2025.

The third Icon class vessel, the Legend of the Seas, has recently been moved to the outfitting dock and will be completed in the summer of 2026.

Royal Caribbean has also announced an option for fifth and sixth Icon class vessels, Meyer Turku noted.