The World's Largest Cruise Ship

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.'s (RCL) newest vessel, Oasis of the Seas, is to make her debut arrival in Port Everglades, Fla. She is on her way to the US over from a shipyard in Finland. It has 16 decks.

The $1.4 billion megaship--the largest passenger ship ever made, with room for 6,296 guests--is nearly half again as big as the last biggest cruise ship, RCL's Freedom of the Seas.

She's as big as a supertanker or a container ship. Flatten the deck and you could launch F-18s off it. If you were sitting on the 20th floor of a high-rise next to the ship, you'd be able to talk to the sunbathers beside one of the pools.

To build the world's biggest cruise ship RCL also had to build the world's widest one, at 208 ft.

Oasis is a giant leisure machine, with more spas, pools, bars and activities than you could probably hit in a week. Royal Caribbean calls itself the Nation of Why Not--"as in, Why not try rock climbing?"

You don't have to try surfing on the Flowrider, but it's there. You can get certified for scuba diving, take an ice-skating lesson, ride a zip line, play basketball, spar in a boxing ring, have a massage or see a version of the Broadway show Hairspray

The upper decks have been split open in the middle of the ship to create a light-filled atrium with 12,000 plants tended by a full-time horticulturist.

To secure a berth, you'll need to shell out a minimum of $1,529 for a seven-night cruise, which breaks down to $218 a day. Not terrible for food, lodging and a Broadway show, not to mention the jazz revues, pools and aqua theater at your disposal. A luxury suite can put you out $7,609 a week, or $1,087 per day.

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