Royal Caribbean's fourth Icon-class ship will be Hero of the Seas

Royal Caribbean's fourth Icon-class ship will be called Hero of the Seas, and it will have some features that are not on its sister vessels.

Home to eight neighborhoods, 28 dining venues and nine pools (the most on any cruise ship, says Royal Caribbean), Hero of the Seas will sail seven-night eastern and western Caribbean cruises from Miami. The maiden cruise is scheduled for Aug. 11, 2027. Bookings open for Crown & Anchor Society loyalty members on April 1 and for the general public on April 2. On Hero of the Seas, Royal Caribbean will debut the Ultimate Family Treehouse, a three-deck space for up to 12 guests. Royal Caribbean calls it "a dream come true for kids and kids at heart" with a rooftop terrace and private whirlpool, a two-deck teen space, and two main bedrooms, each with its own bathroom and balcony. The Hero of the Seas will have two new pools not on the other Icon ships. One of them will be called Coconut Grove and will be steps away from The Lime and Coconut bar. With in-water loungers and poolside drink service, vacationers can relax while taking in views of the Central Park neighborhood's greenery. The other new pool will be in the adults-only Hideaway, which will have two pools on Hero of the Seas -- the other Icon ships have one Hideaway pool. The Hideaway on Hero of the Seas will have what Royal calls the largest swim-up bar at sea and an in-water DJ booth. Also, Royal Caribbean is expanding the Swim & Tonic pool and swim-up bar for adults and adding new water features at Splashaway Bay, the aqua park for young children in the Surfside family neighborhood. The Category 6 waterpark will have two new family raft slides, including the first funnel raft slide at sea, along with new twists on the mat-racing Storm Chasers duo.

New culinary concepts

All of the Icon ships have supper clubs, and the Hero's variant will have a New Orleans theme. The Orleans Parish Supper Club will serve a multicourse dinner featuring Cajun and Creole dishes "inspired by the early 20th century elegance of the French Quarter." Guests will listen to live jazz while they dine. Like on the other Icon-class ships, there will a train dining simulation, Royal Railway -- Hero Station, but Royal Caribbean hasn't released details yet.     The family-focused Surfside neighborhood will host hands-on cooking classes in a new venue to be revealed. The AquaDome Market food hall will return with four new stall concepts, plus desserts at Crème de la Crêpe and freshly squeezed juices at Simply Pressed. In the future, Royal Caribbean will announce the ship's entertainment lineup. New productions are coming to the Royal Theater, AquaTheater and Absolute Zero ice arena. The Icon-class ships are the largest cruise ships in the world at about 250,000 gross tons and a capacity for 5,610 passengers at double occupancy and about 7,600 at full occupancy. The third Icon-class ship, Legend of the Seas, will debut in the Mediterranean in July.