Norwegian Aqua: Behind the scenes on building the most spacious new cruise ship in the world

Norwegian Aqua is being built by Italian shipbuilding company Fincantieri in Venice and is set to launch in April 2025. Photo / NCL

OPINION

Varsha Anjali heads to Fincanteri’s Marghera shipyard in Venice to see first-hand what goes into building a colossal cruise ship ahead of its 2025 debut: the Norwegian Aqua.

Inside the vast, partially exposed skeleton was a metallic landscape of steel beams, sawdust and scaffolds. Spilling from each ceiling were orange, green and blue wires upon wires, coiled and uncoiled, which looked even brighter against the tin-foil-wrapped walls. Men in hard hats went on sawing, hammering, sketching, organising. Sometimes, the men in hard hats wore white suits and reminded me of astronauts – or laboratories. Sometimes, I saw the ocean vista. Sometimes, it was dark.

It looked like something out of a sci-fi movie, but this was the belly of the Norwegian Aqua, the latest cruise ship in Prima Class from Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL).

Ahead of its debut in April 2025, the colossal 321.8m-long ship is under construction by one of the largest shipbuilding companies in the world, Italian company Fincantieri, at its Marghera shipyard in Venice.

Large cruise ships are able to safely dock at Marghera, an industrial port in Venice. Photo / NCL

The location is ironic. Venice is known to lock horns with the industry – in 2021, the “Floating City” passed legislation to ban large cruise ships from docking close to its tourist attractions to protect its historic architecture. Now, some cruise lines like US-based NCL opt to operate their Venetian excursions from farther ports in cities like Ravenna or Trieste, some two-hour drive from Venice. While Marghera is much closer, about 9km southeast of the mainland, it is a Government-approved industrial port for large cruise ships.

NCL’s billion-dollar (yes, billion) work-in-progress looked manic and magnificent. With up to 2000 employees working on it, the Norwegian Aqua boasts 10% more capacity than the other vessels of the same class, the Norwegian Prima and Norwegian Viva. It has a whopping gross tonnage of 156,300t, a passenger capacity of more than 3500 and 432 frames – making it the most spacious new ship at sea, according to the cruise line.

For a fine dining experience, head to Le Bistro. Photo / NCL

Inside, I tried to focus on its many moving parts, not the sad and soppy slideshow from Titanic rotating in my brain. But I didn’t have to suppress my urge to compare. Nelson Martins, NCL’s regional vice-president of fleet hotel operations & strategic initiatives led our tour and explained early on how this ship won’t sink – unlike the most famous ship in history that did just that.

The watertight doors “will always be closed” while passengers are onboard at sea, reassured Martins.

NCL's Nelson Martins (in front) explaining how a mega-ship is built. Photo / Varsha Anjali

“One of the mistakes [Titanic] had was that they had the watertight doors open, so then the water would go from compartment to compartment and compromise the safety of the ship.

“We will be able to isolate that.”

Martins later added: “A ship of this size ... we will be able to evacuate [everyone on board] below 45 minutes.”

Aside from its excellent safety measures and monumental size, there were more compelling reasons the vessel got your attention. There are ample things to do onboard.

As Bryan White, vice-president of entertainment production told me in a later interview, “We nailed big, we nailed bold”. I might agree. There is something quite mad about pulling off a luxurious floating city with 26 restaurants, elite suites, infinity pools, a nightclub, a theatre, a Broadway show, and a hybrid roller coaster and waterslide – while moving through the ocean.

That last one is a world-first – the Aqua Slidecoaster. Once complete, the two-person rider will launch participants up to 49km/h. It will also have clear tubing allowing thrill-seekers the ability to see out and see in.

Commenting on the innovative blend of rollercoaster and waterslide tech, senior director of guest experiences and innovation Alex Tavernini said: “This is what is going to allow us to launch guests over 30 miles per hour (48km/h) – but also had to be variable because we want this to be as inclusive as possible ... we want guests of all sizes and different [thrill levels]”.

The partially built Aqua Slidecoaster. Photo / Varsha Anjali

It’s expected to be popular onboard. “200 guests per hour is our conservative estimate,” Tavernini said.

In a separate interview, White also felt the Aqua Slidecoaster would be a hit with the bold and adventurous. “For those that enjoy that high-action, high-adventure, they’re going to get high-action high-adventure on the Slidecoaster,” he said.

The cruise industry is gaining speed – and an unlikely audience may be driving it. After being badly hit during the Covid pandemic, the industry has made an astonishing comeback, with numbers even higher than before the world locked down. While it has been traditionally popular with the 50+ market, younger audiences are now waddling in. According to The Conversation, about 25% of the clientele are baby boomers, and more millennials and Gen Z are more eager than ever to cruise.

White offered some clues on the appeal for younger generations, explaining that there were “three big things” NCL has discovered.

A rendered image of the Aqua Slidecoaster. Photo / NCL

On musical entertainment, White said that audiences wanted to hear recognisable music “whether they know the artist or not”.

“We’ve also found that guests are really looking for simple narratives.

“They don’t want a lot of story in the shows and experiences that they’re having, they’re on vacation.”

He added: “People want visual spectacle regardless of generation.”

The former performer went on to explain how part of NCL’s success was driven by the changes they made from those insights.

“We’re taking that model and applying it across the board when it comes to younger generations. Specifically, one of the things that we’re very carefully looking at is the length of time for our offerings onboard.

“Folks want to see a lot and we have a lot for them to experience,” White said.

NCL is optimistic about its future. Chief executive and president of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Harry Sommer shared his plan to take advantage of this momentum.

“As an industry, cruising represents 2% of vacations worldwide,” Sommer said.

“We think the potential for growth is unlimited. We can triple the size of the company and get to a whopping 4% of the market – because obviously, we’re not the whole market – and still have so many future years ahead of us.”

Cruise escapism is here to stay. And the younger generations are here for it.

DETAILS

For more information visit ncl.com

Varsha Anjali is a multimedia journalist at the Herald. Based in Auckland, she covers travel news, trends and more.