The Walt Disney Company on Tuesday announced plans to launch a new cruise ship to operate in Japan under a new partnership with Oriental Land Co.
The new ship, a sister ship to the Disney Wish, will be operated by OLC and offer year-round sailings starting in early 2029.
Construction on the ship will begin in 2025 at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Germany. With an expected weight of 140,000 gross tons, the ship will have about 1,2500 staterooms and accommodate about 4,000 guests.
The deal is an expansion of a 40-year partnership between Disney and OLC, which also operates Tokyo Disney Resort.
“Disney Cruise Line has ambitious plans to bring family vacations and Disney storytelling to more guests around the world than ever before,” said Josh D’Amaro, Disney Experiences chairman, in a statement. “We are thrilled to continue the success of this expansion as we collaborate with Oriental Land Co. to introduce another distinctly Disney vacation experience to families and fans in Japan.”
The ship will feature designs created by Walt Disney Imagineering as well as venues and experiences that can be found on Disney Wish but with “select modifications specially designed with Japanese guests in mind.”
“I am sincerely proud that Disney and Oriental Land will be able to work together to Crete a world-class cruise business in Japan,” said Yumiko Takano, representative director, chairperson and CEO, Oriental Land, in a statement. “Oriental Land will use their knowhow from the theme park business to continue pushing boundaries and provide family entertainment cruise experiences filled with inspiration and surprise.”
The yet-to-be-named ship will be the ninth ship in the growing Disney Cruise Line fleet. It will also be the fourth Wish-class ship.
Disney currently operates five ships—Magic, Wonder, Dream, Fantasy and Wish. The next ship to debut will be the Disney Treasure later this year followed by the Disney Destiny in 2025. The company will also debut the Disney Adventure in 2025 for sailings from Singapore. The ship began as the Global Dream before Disney purchased the unfinished ship in 2022.
