The Allure of the Seas is the world’s largest cruise ship, something which would normally be seen as a good thing. Unfortunately, when it comes to squeezing yourself under a bridge, it quickly becomes a bad thing. Thankfully, due to some clever design tricks, the mammoth ship was able to negotiate its way under the Storebaelt Bridge in Denmark on Friday
In order to pass under the bridge, Royal Caribbean‘s Allure of the Seas had to lower its funnels which significantly reduces the overall height of the ship. The funnels were designed with this very situation in mind and those clever architects who designed the ship, made the funnels retractable. With the funnels retracted, the height of the ship decreases by one metre – it might not seem a lot but I bet the Captain was thanking his lucky stars for the option when he was passing under the bridge!
The Storebaelt Bridge connects the islands of Flynn and Zealand. It is a very impressive 254 metres high and carries a road at 65 metres. Probably a route to avoid if you suffer with vertigo!
At it’s highest point, the Allure of the Seas ALSO stands at 65 metres and you don’t need to be a mathematician to work out that that could cause problems! Thankfully, with the funnels retracted, the ship is “only” 64 metres high. Still, it’s not a huge margin for error – let’s hope those architects were good with a tape measure.
Allure of the Seas will embark on its very first commercial sailing at the beginning of December. Initially it will serve the Caribbean, offering weekly sailings for great prices. Check out the Cruise 1st homepage for Allure of the Seas cruise deals! Alternatively, give our friendly sales team a call on 0808 2746 777.
