Construction began in February on what will become the largest cruise ship to be owned by an Asian cruise line. Star Cruises will debut their new 151,000gt Genting World (Yard No. S711) towards the end of 2016.

The steel-cutting was announced on 11th February having taken place at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg. The new Genting World, and an upcoming sister vessel due to launch in 2017, will have a similar design to Norwegian Cruise Line’s Breakaway-class ships as Genting Hong Kong, the owners of Star Cruises, have a 28% stake in Norwegian Cruise Line.

The 21-deck ship will carry 4,500 guests, sailing on a wide array of itineraries, featuring multiple leisure and entertainment options, over 30 food and beverage outlets, as well as 1,000sqm of retail spaces.

In the past, the two cruise lines have transferred some of their ships to one another. Norwegian Spirit, Dawn and Star, were originally operated by Star Cruises under the names SuperStar Leo, Scorpio and Libra. The SuperStar Aquarius, Libra and Gemini previously operated as Norwegian Wind, Sea and Dream.