Asia's largest cruise ship, Quantum of the Seas, arrives in Taiwan; locals exclaim: "It's basically like a Mega City Mall!"

▲ Asia's largest cruise ship, Quantum of the Seas, entering Taichung Port. (Photo / fan pageBird’s-eye view by BirdGraphyAuthorized for use. The same applies below. Please do not take unauthorized photos to avoid copyright infringement.)

Reported by Chen Rui-zhong / Taipei

The world’s fourth-largest and Asia’s biggest cruise ship, Quantum of the Seas, officially arrived at Taichung Port this morning (September 2) and is scheduled to set sail for Keelung Port this evening. With a displacement of 167,800 tons, a length of 348 meters, a width of 41 meters, and a passenger capacity of approximately 4,180, the mighty presence of the Asian king of cruise ships has sparked heated discussions among onlookers on shore.

To capture the image of Quantum of the Seas, the aerial photography team from Feng Chia University specially deployed drones to shoot a series of photos and videos. Speaking about photographing the ship for the first time, the photographer also said, “It’s super huge—basically like a Mega City Mall!”

Both Quantum of the Seas and the previously visiting Explorer of the Seas are under the Royal Caribbean International cruise line. However, compared to the 140,000-ton Explorer of the Seas, the 167,000-ton Quantum of the Seas not only surpasses it in size but also features many new technological amenities, including the North Star glass capsule that lifts passengers out over the edge of the ship, a skydiving simulator, and sea-going bumper cars, making the sea voyage even more enriching.

▲ The Quantum of the Seas cruise ship, which measures a full 348 meters in length.

This voyage of Quantum of the Seas is fully loaded with Chinese tourists visiting Taiwan. After departing today, the ship is expected to arrive at Keelung Port on September 3. Keelung Port has also stated that it will arrange the container yard’s gantry cranes to be moved aside that day, so that even photographers shooting from the hills on the west bank won’t have their views blocked. Quantum of the Seas is then scheduled to depart for Shanghai on the evening of the 3rd. Royal Caribbean International stated that since this voyage is a chartered trip by a Chinese enterprise, it is not open to the public for tourism.

%The ship is currently docked at Taichung Port. (Photo / Reporter Chen Rui-zhong, strong>