I had reached the end of a plank suspended 154 feet above the deep, blue Caribbean Sea. I'd already looked down once, admiring the texture of the waves I've often seen from my cabin balcony or the deck. But this was different: I was looking straight down at the water directly below me. I was in a full-body harness, attached to ropes that connected to a short zipline above me, but it didn't keep my heart from racing as I waited for the plank to disappear below me, as I knew it would. It's supposed to.
That's the experience known as Crown's Edge -- part high-flying obstacle course, part free fall -- in the new Thrill Island neighborhood on the first-of-its-class Icon of the Seas from Royal Caribbean International. The area was created to deliver exhilarating experiences like this one.
"We kind of have what we call a thrill-o-meter, and on the thrill-o-meter, we wanted to make sure we maintained a proper balance, but we also wanted to make sure we took it all the way," said Jennifer Goswami, director of product development at Royal, who called the new neighborhood a "maxed-out version" of what they could do from a thrills perspective on the ship.
Not only did the brand want to create what it bills as the first waterpark at sea, but its creators said making it "the craziest, fun waterpark at sea is actually more important," said Jay Schneider, chief product innovation officer at Royal.
The neighborhood includes six waterslides that intertwine on the top deck. There's a four-person family raft slide, which Royal says is the first of its kind at sea, as well as a pair of racing slides, an open free-fall slide and a drop waterslide. The slides begin from two towers on the open deck, which enabled the designers to make them longer and faster, Goswani said. The Technicolor tangle of slides create a candy-colored jungle above the deck.
Travel Weekly cruise editor Andrea Zelinski navigates Crown's Edge, which she describes as part obstacle course, part free fall. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Andrea Zelinski
I tried the drop slide called the Frightening Bolt. I entered a vertical tube and was instructed to cross my arms and legs and wait for the operator to press a button to drop the floor out from under me. Seconds passed, amping up the anticipation.
Then whoosh! I yelled out of surprise as I shot into the slide, water shooting up my nose, and sped down the curving tunnel. All at once there was a flash of light where the tube is clear, letting my friends and other onlookers see me speed by.
A mere 15.2 seconds later, I splashed down at the bottom of the slide. I knew exactly how long it took thanks to a digital sign showing my time, along with the speed I hit: 11.1 mph.
The record is around 9 seconds, which nearly coaxed me to try again and improve my time.
Read Andrea Zelinski's dispatch from Hideaway Beach.
Thrill Island has a deserted island vibe. Photo Credit: Andrea Zelinski
Calmer pursuits on Thrill Island
The park is designed to resemble a deserted island. The beams that support the slides are made to look like tropical trees, distressed wood covers the stairs to the slides and occasional mists of water that resemble rain are accompanied by the sounds of thunder and flashes like lightning.
The neighborhood is split: The starboard side is for the waterslides, while the port side has softer features, including a Lost Dunes miniature golf course, a food venue called Basecamp and a rock climbing wall.
But the newest invention is Crown's Edge. The skywalk obstacle course enabling guests, connected to the ride with a safety harness, to walk on various platforms until they reach the end of a plank. Then, without warning, the floor drops out over the ocean, sending guests soaring past a large Royal Caribbean logo off the side of the ship and around a curve while a camera is trained on them.
It's the one activity (other than some select items at the nearby Basecamp food venue) that comes with a cost on Thrill Island: $89.99 per person.
"I'd like it to be a little bit further off the ship and a little bit longer," Schneider said about the attraction, perhaps hinting at what might appear on the Star of the Seas, the second ship in the Icon class, due out in the summer of 2025.
The woman who went ahead of me may object to that idea. She froze on the obstacle course, requiring a crew member to usher her back to the beginning of the course and onto solid ground. Clearly, it's an experience that's not for everybody.
In my case, as I stood at the end of the plank, soaking in the view of the horizon and the yellowy sunset, I almost forgot the impending sense of peril that was about to overcome me.
Suddenly, the floor dropped out from under me, my yelp turning into laughter as I swung around the Royal crown and back to solid ground.
The anticipation was the best part.
A preview of Icon of the Seas