Royal Caribbean sending Ovation of the Seas to China

Royal Caribbean International is upping the ante in China again.

The Miami-based cruise line announced Wednesday that upcoming ship Ovation of the Seas, launching in April of 2016, will be based in Tianjin, China.

That will be the second Quantum-class vessel based in China; Quantum of the Seas, the first in the class, heads to its new home port of Shanghai in May. In all, Royal Caribbean will base five ships in China starting next spring.

“Cruising has become very popular for Chinese consumers and Royal Caribbean is already capturing their imaginations with our industry-leading cruise ships,” Royal Caribbean International president and CEO Michael Bayley said in a statement. “We are furthering our commitment by bringing two of the world’s newest and most advanced Quantum-class cruise ships to the region.”

Bayley announced the deployment at a press conference in Beijing.

In addition to the Quantum-class ships, the company will also base Mariner of the Seas, Voyager of the Seas and Legend of the Seas in China. The vessels will sail mostly three-night to 12-night itineraries to ports in Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam.

The 4,180-passenger Ovation of the Seas isn’t the only ship launching next year: Harmony of the Seas, a sister ship to Oasis and Allure of the Seas with room for 5,479 passengers, will set sail in May in Europe. The vessel will reposition to Port Everglades in winter of 2016.

This story was originally published March 25, 2015 at 11:05 AM with the headline "Royal Caribbean sending Ovation of the Seas to China."