The largest cruise ship ever made has set sail. The ship is 362 metres long, has 18 decks, and has room for 6,988 guests. Its name is Wonder of the Seas. It is the newest addition to the ships owned by the company Royal Caribbean. It set off on its maiden voyage last week from Fort Lauderdale in Florida, USA. The lucky passengers will enjoy a cruise of the Caribbean islands. A company official spoke about his excitement to CNN Travel. He said: "We're excited to introduce guests across the world to Wonder of the Seas and its world-class features after a six-year-long process." He said the company's expertise and feedback from guests meant the company could "create something truly awe-inspiring".

It took a shipyard in France three years to build the enormous ship. It is an impressive vessel. It weighs 237,000 tons, and is as long as the Empire State Building is high. It is 30 metres longer than the longest aircraft carrier ever built and 306 meters longer than the Titanic. Surprisingly, the Titanic was 1.8kph faster. The new cruise ship has eight different "neighbourhoods". These are areas of the ship that will give guests different experiences. One is called Central Park, which is filled with over 10,000 real plants. Facilities include 20 restaurants, four swimming pools, a children's water park, a full-size basketball court, an ice-skating rink, a surf simulator, a 1400-seat theatre, and two 13-metre rock-climbing walls.