The 5,400-passenger Allure of the Seas arrived at its homeport of Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale Thursday, following a 13-day transatlantic journey from Turku, Finland.
Royal Caribbean International said that its second and final Oasis-class ship was greeted by thousands of onlookers, including Royal Caribbean executives and employees as well as local organizations and residents, and a flotilla of maritime escorts made up of fireboats and private watercraft.
Over the next week, the Allure will have hundreds of landscapers come onboard to add more than 12,000 live plants to the ship's Central Park neighborhood.
The following events are on tap for the Allure through Dec. 5, when the Allure departs on a seven-day, Western Caribbean cruise:
• The Allure and the Oasis, the world's two largest ships, will meet up for the first time on Saturday, Nov. 13 at 5:30 p.m. off the Florida coast.
• NBC's "Today" show will broadcast the fourth hour of its show live from Allure on Friday, Nov. 19, from 10:00 to 11 a.m. Eastern.
• The official naming ceremony for the Allure will take place on Nov. 28 during a one-night inaugural celebration fundraiser to benefit the United Way chapters of Miami-Dade and Broward counties and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines Haiti Fund, among other charities.
The Allure's godmother will be unveiled during the ceremony, which will be streamed live at 4:30 p.m. on www.allureoftheseas.com. Tickets for the event begin at $750 per person and are available at www.unitedwaycharitycruise.org.
All inaugural activities and events can be followed on webisodes at www.allureoftheseas.com.