Every cruise traveler seeks to get that perfect photo of their vacation, whether it’s a selfie, a family portrait, that stunning ocean sunset, or a fun shore tour. But what happens when your perfect photo is of a whole ship – or even better, three ships at once?
Royal Caribbean Group has now released stunning and unique footage of its own attempt to get that perfect shot. The gorgeous lineup was of the company’s three newest vessels: Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas, Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Ascent, and Silversea’s Silver Nova.
What’s so hard about getting three cruise ships together? After all, it happens all the time as multiple ships are visiting the same port of call.
The difference for this photo shoot, however, was the plan for all three vessels to be evenly spaced and smoothly sailing, offering an impressive and unforgettable lineup for photos from and video footage from a helicopter, capturing stunning visuals.
The logistics to do this, however, required more than simply having the three ships on similar itineraries – which happened to be near St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands on March 15, 2024.
While Celebrity Ascent and Icon of the Seas were both planned to visit St. Thomas, Silver Nova was only sailing nearby at the time and adjusted her route to be able to join the historic photoshoot.
Once the meetup was planned, however, more logistics were essential to ensure the safety of all the vessels. The ships’ captains, the photographer, the cruise line’s Chief Meteorologist Craig Setzer, and other key personnel all met virtually to arrange the details of the event 10 days ahead of the scheduled photo shoot.
“I know that it’s very difficult to get close, how close do you think they can sail next to each other?” asked photographer Michel Verdure during the planning meeting.
The three ships’ captains agreed that at least a ship’s length would be necessary between each vessel for safety purposes. Each ship, however, is a different length.
Silver Nova is the smallest at 801 feet, while Celebrity Ascent is 1,071 feet. Icon of the Seas – the world’s largest cruise ship – is longer still at 1,197 feet.
To position the ships properly, Icon of the Seas served as the visual “anchor” for the shoot, aiming toward the sun for the best lighting at 6:30 a.m. and cruising forward at 4-5 knots (5-7 miles per hour).
All three ships had to be in the right position, at the right angle, at the right time. Meanwhile, the helicopter to shoot the footage was nearby to direct the lineup, instead of using typical film drones, which would not likely have had the best resolution for the historic shoot.
Even once the ships were in place, more maneuvering was necessary to provide the proper perspective for even spacing. The ships picked up speed slightly to create the best “cruising” visuals.
Silver Nova, however, was not positioned well for the desired camera angles.
“Because of the perspective angle, it looks like Silver Nova is a little bit further from Ascent, than Ascent is from Icon,” said Verdure while directing the shoot. “Is there any way you can get a little closer to Ascent?”
The behind-the-scenes video footage now released by Royal Caribbean Group shows the ships maneuvering, as well as how the shoot was angled for that perfect view of all three ships in a beautiful and dramatic way.
“Now that’s the money shot, absolutely,” said Verdure as the helicopter moved across the ships. “I think it worked perfectly.”
While this historic photoshoot may seem like just a publicity opportunity, it actually represents much more.
“The iconic gathering represents more than just stunning visuals, it symbolizes the unity, innovation and shared vision that drives our company to create unforgettable moments for our guests,” Royal Caribbean Group said. “Every detail was meticulously planned by our teams across all three brands, showcasing our commitment to excellence and the future of vacations.”
“This moment is a testament to our unwavering dedication to delivering unparalleled experiences for our guests. With our three leading brands, we aim to transform the vacation of a lifetime into a lifetime of vacations.”
Undoubtedly the spectacular photos, as well as the now-released video footage, will become familiar to guests with all three cruise lines, perhaps inspiring travelers to consider new vacations on sister lines to make even more oceangoing memories.
How Were the Ships Impacted?
Following the successful shoot, both Silver Nova and Icon of the Seas peeled away from the lineup and all three vessels continued on their respective journeys.
At the time of the lineup, both Icon of the Seas and Celebrity Ascent were sailing 7-night Eastern Caribbean itineraries. The ships departed from Miami and Fort Lauderdale, respectively.
Silver Nova was on a 10-night itinerary between Bridgetown, Barbados and Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Because of the photoshoot, Silver Nova‘s arrival in Fort Lauderdale was delayed four hours, from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m., which impacted some travelers’ onward plans after their cruise.
Likewise, some of Celebrity Ascent‘s port of call visits were slightly tweaked, with an extra hour in San Juan but an hour less and different port times in Tortola in the British Virgin Islands.
Icon of the Seas‘ itinerary was not impacted by the dramatic morning photoshoot.
Guests aboard all three ships were notified of the historic event so they could enjoy the best vantage points on the open decks if they wished.
