A closer look: The ‘new’ Majesty of the Seas

By Dan Askin

updated 1:47 p.m. ET Jan. 31, 2007

Twenty-eight days is all they have. At Grand Bahama Shipyard in Freeport, nearly 1,000 contractors and 947 crewmembers (the actual ones who'll be serving passengers on the ship when it resumes service) will gut a vast vessel the length of three football fields, 106 ft. across at its widest and spanning 14 decks in height. The contractors are in charge of the technical stuff — the wiring, tiling, welding, windows. The ship crew serve as construction cleanup helpers in addition to providing their typical onboard service duties (dining, laundry, bartending). All reside on the ship, now a construction zone, as they complete the refurbishment.

From top to bottom, Majesty of the Seas is becoming the beneficiary of all new paneling, updated lighting, stainless steel trim, carpeting throughout, new glasswork, furniture, casino gaming equipment, galleys, etc. In short, the aim is to make this a new ship.

The difference, of course, between this and a new-build is that this entire transformation — with the help of some 2,000 workers — will start and finish within a month (a typical ship can take up to two years to build). The schedule is tight, and penalties for missing the deadline are severe: For the 73,941-ton, 2,744-passenger Majesty of the Seas' $36-million refurbishment, each day over schedule can result in almost $1 million in additional expenses.

Launched in 1992 as part of the then state-of-the-art Sovereign-class of vessels, some of the first mega-ships in the industry, Majesty of the Seas is now the fourth oldest ship in the RCI fleet. And it shows — this ship is one that doesn't have many of the now-popular fleet features, like Bolero's Latin lounge with its signature mojitos, Sorrento's all-night pizzeria, Johnny Rockets or upgraded bedding in the cabins. At least until recently.

The middle-aged Majesty of the Seas is the fifth "mature" Royal Caribbean vessel to get a major refurbishment, following in the footsteps of Empress of the Seas, Enchantment of the Seas, Monarch of the Seas and Sovereign of the Seas.

What's it like to watch a 15-year-old ship become transformed into something more contemporary? Cruise Critic's Dan Askin traveled to Freeport — a place well known for its rapid overhauls of ships — in late January to report on the process.

Come aboard
It's the evening of Wednesday, January 24 and as we board Majesty, it becomes quite clear that we've stepped into a massive construction project. The refurbishment schedule has reached the midway point: Exposed wires dangle from the open ceiling; carpets have been peeled back revealing spotted, sticky flooring; and stacked rows of PVC piping lay strewn about idly. Everything is covered with a layer of itchy, gray dust. Numerous pungent odors, each with its own unique chemical personality — wood shavings soaked in paint thinner, the faintly sweet stench of burning metal — greet you as you enter each new space. It's hard to believe that in just 14 days, the ship will be sailing out of Miami.

Dan Askin The only real chance to get a glimpse of a cruise vessel's massive propeller is when the ship is in dry-dock, an undertaking that involves parking the ship in a boat slip, water sealing the slip, balancing the ship on wood blocks, then slowly draining the water from the slip.

The dimly lit scene is a bit like an unsettling dream: there's the obstacle courses of trip wires, refuse, supplies and crew darting about; the showers of sparks that fly as craftsmen shape chunks of metal; and the dusky light that renders the worker's greasy, glowing faces vaguely psychotic. It's easy to become completely lost in the process, and I stare unselfconsciously at the laborers until they finally return my gaze and break the spell. And for the international group of contractors brought here who stare back — Poles, Estonians, Norwegians, Brits, Finns — the daily 12- to 15-hour shifts are clearly exhausting. Royal Caribbean's Kevin Douglas, director of new-buildings and fleet design, describes the complexity of the project as a beast. They have an immense task before them, but despite the appearance of total chaos, they're still right on schedule.

The phrase that Douglas uses to embody the overall project is "complication." Royal Caribbean chose the Grand Bahamas Shipyard for its proximity to Miami (about 52 miles) — but with the choice of convenient location came compromises. In Europe, with its proliferation of shipyards — and industrialized centers that support ship building clustered nearby — a refurbishment is not such a logistical issue. Here, it is.

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