Norwegian Bliss Is the World’s Newest Over-the-Top Cruise Ship

http://bountycpa.go2cloud.org/SH7wRMove over Symphony of the Seas , there’s a new giant cruise ship out there. The Norwegian Bliss is the latest mega-ship from Norwegian Cruise Line, with room for 4,004 passengers on 20 decks, multiple pools and waterslides, and 30—30!—bars and restaurants. It is nearly as long as the Chrysler Building is tall, at 994 feet. It may not be quite as big as Symphony , but it still rates as the ninth largest cruise ship in the world—and it’s only one that’ll sail around Alaska with a top-deck, two-level go-kart race track. Hey, why not?

The Bliss was built specifically for the fjords and bays of Alaska’s Inside Passage, which is one of the world’s hottest destinations for cruise ships, according to trade groups , with 1.2 million people expected to visit this year, up seven percent from last year. (While more than a million is a lot, the Caribbean remains the top destination for the 12 million or so Americans who plan to cruise this year.) The newest Norwegian ship is sure to lure even more people to the region this summer before the vessel spends the fall and winter off season sailing the West Coast of Mexico as well as the Caribbean.

"Norwegian Bliss is one of our most highly-anticipated ships to date,” said Norwegian president and CEO Andy Stuart , upon taking delivery of the ship today. Built in Germany, the Bliss will cross the Atlantic before transiting the Panama Canal and continuing on to Seattle, where she’ll begin regular week-long trips to Alaska starting May 30. Save us a spot in the observation lounge—or maybe at that on-board whiskey bar, on the starboard side of deck eight, where the views of craggy shores and cerulean glaciers are sure to be amazing.