Helping you find cruise ships you'll love
The Royal Caribbean Wonder of the Seas is a fairly new ship, being built in 2022. The Wonder of the Seas has quite a few upgrades from its Oasis-class siblings such as a new suite neighborhood, a fully enclosed Solarium, an outdoor bar called The Vue, and an outdoor kid's play area. It's 2 years older than the Icon of the Seas, which was built in 2024. Icon of the Seas is the first in a whole new class of ships by Royal Caribbean that's designed to provide the "ultimate family vacation." It is currently the largest cruise ship in the world.
The Wonder of the Seas is considered an extra large size ship. Coming in at 1,188 feet long and 210 feet wide, it's roughly the length of 3.3 football fields, as wide as 4 tractor-trailers and the same height as a 16-story building. Compared to the Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas, the Wonder of the Seas is 6% smaller in terms of overall tons.
Royal Caribbean Wonder of the Seas holds about the same number of passengers as the Icon of the Seas based on double occupancy (two people per room). When you look at the "Space Ratio," or the total tonnage of a ship compared to the number of passengers, the Wonder of the Seas has less space per person compared to the Icon of the Seas.
Both the Wonder of the Seas and Icon of the Seas use a neighborhood layout to break up large crowds across the ship, often making it feel less crowded.
Royal Caribbean Wonder of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas | |
---|---|---|
Class | Oasis | Icon |
Gross Tonnage | 236,857 | 250,800 |
Length | 1,188 | 1,198 |
Beam/Width | 210 | 216 |
Passenger Decks | 16 | 18 |
Passengers (double occupancy) | 5,734 | 5,610 |
Crew | 2,300 | 2,350 |
Passenger to Crew Ratio | 2.5 | 2.4 |
Space Ratio (tons of ship per passenger) | 39 | 45 |
Food is a big part of any cruise, and the ship you choose can make a huge difference in your food experience.
The Wonder of the Seas has 28 different dining options like El Loco Fresh, Johnny Rockets, and Dog House. Of those options, 14 are complementary, or included with your cruise fare. The other 14 options have an additional fee.
The Icon of the Seas has 1 more dining venues. Some of its popular venues are Surfside Eatery, Celebration Table, and Pier 7. 14 of these restaurants are complementary and the other 15 have an additional fee.
The Royal Caribbean Wonder of the Seas has about the same number of dining options as the Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas.
Both ships have a similar number of paid versus included dining options.
Royal Caribbean Wonder of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas | ||
---|---|---|---|
150 Central Park | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
AquaDome Market | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
Basecamp | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
Cafe Promenade | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
Celebration Table | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
Chef's Table | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
Chops Grille | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
Coastal Kitchen | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
Dog House | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
El Loco Fresh | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
Empire Supper Club | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
Giovanni's Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
Hooked Seafood | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
Izumi | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
Izumi Hibachi & Sushi | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
Izumi in the Park | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
Johnny Rockets | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
Main Dining Room | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
Park Cafe | ✓ | ✓ | |
Pearl Cafe | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
Pier 7 | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
Playmakers | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
Solarium Bistro | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
Sorrento's Pizza | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
Starbucks | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
Sugar Beach | ✓ | ✓ | |
Surfside Bites | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
Surfside Eatery | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
The Grove | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
The Mason Jar | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
Vitality Cafe | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
Windjammer | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
Wonderland | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
The Royal Caribbean Wonder of the Seas has 6 fewer bars than the Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas.
Royal Caribbean Wonder of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas | |
---|---|---|
1400 Lobby Bar | ✗ | ✓ |
Basecamp Bar | ✗ | ✓ |
Bionic Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
Boleros | ✓ | ✓ |
Bubbles | ✗ | ✓ |
Cantina Fresca | ✓ | ✓ |
Casino Bar | ✓ | ✓ |
Desserted Milkshake Bar | ✗ | ✓ |
Dueling Pianos | ✗ | ✓ |
English Pub | ✓ | ✓ |
Giovanni's Wine Bar | ✓ | ✓ |
Lou's Jazz 'N Blues | ✗ | ✓ |
Music Hall | ✓ | ✓ |
Playmakers | ✓ | ✓ |
Rising Tide Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
Rye & Bean | ✗ | ✓ |
Schooner Bar | ✓ | ✓ |
Solarium Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
Spotlight Karaoke | ✓ | ✓ |
Suite Lounge* | ✓ | ✗ |
Swim & Tonic | ✗ | ✓ |
The Attic | ✓ | ✓ |
The Grove Bar* | ✗ | ✓ |
The Hideaway Bar | ✗ | ✓ |
The Lemon Post | ✗ | ✓ |
The Lime & Coconut | ✓ | ✓ |
The Lime & Coconut: Frozen | ✗ | ✓ |
The Mason Jar | ✓ | ✗ |
The Overlook | ✗ | ✓ |
The Vue Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
Trellis Bar | ✓ | ✓ |
Windjammer Bar | ✗ | ✓ |
Wipeout Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
Wonderland | ✓ | ✗ |
In terms of drinks and cocktails, you have a variety of choices. Both ships serve the Coca-cola family of products. That means Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite and Barqs Root Beer, although the selection can vary by ship. Most Royal Caribbean ships also have Coke Freestyle machines where you can make 100 different flavor combinations.
You can check out recent the bar menus for the Wonder of the Seas and the Icon of the Seas below.
Nothing beats relaxing by a pool with a nice drink in hand as you feel the fresh sea breeze pass by you. The problem is that with thousands of people on a ship, there's not always room. If you want to spend all day for 7 days in a pool, a cruise isn't for you. You would have a much better bet choosing a resort with a huge pool complex. That being said, a quick dip in the pool can be nice on a hot day.
The Royal Caribbean Wonder of the Seas has a total of 5 pools and 4 hot tubs. Tired of loud kids and splashing? 1 of the pools and 1 of the hot tubs are adults only. 1 of the pools and 1 of the hot tubs are exclusive access, which means there's either an extra charge to access them or you need to book a certain class of cabin to have access to them.
Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas has more pools than the Wonder of the Seas and more hot tubs.
Royal Caribbean Wonder of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas | |
---|---|---|
Total Pools | 5 | 7 |
Pools - General Access | 3 | 5 |
Pools - Adults Only | 1 | 1 |
Pools - Exclusive | 1 | 1 |
Total Hot Tubs | 4 | 9 |
Hot Tubs - General Access | 2 | 7 |
Hot Tubs - Adults Only | 1 | 1 |
Hot Tubs - Exclusive | 1 | 1 |
Cruise Coloring and Activity Books for Kids
Get your kids ready for their cruise or keep them entertained while on board with our custom made coloring and activity books. These are the Royal Caribbean editions with places like Studio B and Sorrento's featured.
Cruise Ship Coloring Book for Kids 3-5 - Royal Caribbean Edition
Let's Get Cruising Activity Book for Kids 6-8 - Royal Caribbean Edition
Both ships have lots of activities to keep you busy throughout your cruise. Below you'll see a list of some of the major features on these ships. You might up paying more while on board the Wonder of the Seas. Only 79% of the activities below are included in your cruise fare. On the Icon of the Seas, 80% of the activities are included at no additional cost.
Royal Caribbean Wonder of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas | |
---|---|---|
Adult Only Relaxation Area | ✓ | ✓ |
Aquatheater | ✓ | ✓ |
Arcade | ✓ | ✓ |
Basketball | ✓ | ✓ |
Bionic Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
Carousel | ✓ | ✓ |
Casino | ✓ | ✓ |
Climbing Wall | ✓ | ✓ |
Comedy Club | ✓ | ✓ |
Escape Room | ✓ | ✓ |
Fitness Center | ✓ | ✓ |
FlowRider | ✓ | ✓ |
Ice Skating | ✓ | ✓ |
Laser Tag | ✓ | ✓ |
Mini golf | ✓ | ✓ |
Pool-side Movies | ✓ | ✗ |
Ropes course | ✗ | ✓ |
Shows - Broadway play | ✓ | ✓ |
Shows - musical review | ✓ | ✓ |
Spa | ✓ | ✓ |
Splash park | ✓ | ✓ |
Thrill Slide | ✓ | ✗ |
Water slides | ✓ | ✗ |
Waterpark | ✗ | ✓ |
Zip Line | ✓ | ✗ |
Learn more | Learn more |
Royal Caribbean is a mainstream cruise line. Mainstream cruise lines cater to a variety of guests, hoping to provide something for everyone. These typically cost about $100 - $350 per person per day.
Cruise pricing is dynamic and varies for each specific sailing based on factors such as departure point, ports of call, and time of year. To get a good idea of how the pricing compares, visit Royal Caribbean's website to price out the separate cruises or consult a travel professional.
Another way to gauge the cost of a cruise is to consider how much you'll spend on board. Even though a lot is included in the base cruise fare, you may still spend money on things like spa treatments, specialty dining, drinks, and excursions. In addition, guests can also have to pay for things like gratuities and tips.
Typically guests can expect to spend about 25 - 40% of the cost of the cruise on onboard expenses. In other words, if the cruise fare is $1,000 per person, you might spend between $250 and $400 on extra expenses.
The table below will help you understand what you might spend onboard a Royal Caribbean ship.
Royal Caribbean | |
---|---|
Base Daily Gratuities* (Per Person Per Day) | $18.00 |
Tip added to drinks & services | 18% |
Soda Price | $3.50 |
Domestic Beer Price | $8.25 See drink menus |
Drink Package Price | $70 - $125 Learn more |
Internet Plan | $17 to $30 per device per day |
*Daily gratuities for a standard cabin. Suites or specialty rooms may have higher rates. |
Royal Caribbean uses dynamic pricing, which means the pricing for many things will vary per sailing. The daily gratuities and tip are consistent across the fleet, but the pricing for the drink package, internet, and excursions will change. The only way to know your price is to consult the Royal Caribbean cruise planner once you're booked.
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, or subscribe to our monthly newsletter.
About Cruise Spotlight
Founded in 2020, Cruise Spotlight's goal is to help people understand every aspect of cruising. Plenty of sites focus on the perfect Instagram pictures and marketing fluff. We focus on what really matters: onboard expenses, tips for cruise ships, detailed cruise reviews, and more. Our goal is to provide helpful, unbiased information to new and established cruisers. Over the years, we've helped millions of people get the most from their cruise vacation.
Learn more about Cruise Spotlight.