The Enchantment is a Vision-class cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean. If the MV Explorer seemed a step up in modernity and amenities compared to the SS Universe Explorer, this ship was another three steps up the ladder in scale and luxury. Admittedly this was a commercial cruise and not an academic organization, so the difference was fully expected.

At 1.6 times the length of the MV explorer and 3.4 times the tonnage, the Enchantment is quite literally a lot more ship. She also carried three times the passengers and had twice as many decks. Keep in mind that, even in 2011, the Enchantment was considered a small cruise ship; a mere speck compared to the new Oasis-class dreadnoughts being christened.

One interesting note about the Enchantment is that it is the largest Vision-class ship, and not because it was built that way. In 2005 it was put up in drydock and literally split in half to add a new 73 foot section to the midships. You can identify this section by the rounded “sail” superstructure that rises on either side of the pool deck. This was an impressive endeavor which turned out to be prohibitively expensive and was not undertaken on any others. The upshot for us though is that there was an extra pool on the pool deck, Boleros lounge, and a longer running track.