Voyager of the Seas. (All photos courtesy of RoyalCaribbean International)

The Adventure, Explorer and Voyager of the Seas - the three largest passenger ships ever built - put yet another nail in the coffin of cruising's increasingly defunct Old-Folks-Home-At-Sea image. Here on the so-called Voyager-class ships, CruiseMon predicts you won't be grappling alongside your grandmother on the world's first rock-climbing wall at sea, nor bumping into the septuagenarian set on the rollerblading track. The point is: The Voyager class has been designed to give younger cruisers, whether they're 10 or 20 or 30, an unprecedented range of activities they've never been offered before - for that matter, this ship has something for all ages. It's not like there isn't enough room.

With the Voyager class of ships, Royal Caribbean seems to have asked itself: "What's the last thing you'd find on a cruise ship?" . . . and then gone out and built it. Case in point: This ship actually has an ice-skating rink. Another first: A horizontal interior atrium, the Royal Promenade, a winding "street" inside the ship, complete with shops, bars, restaurants, even parades and mood lighting which changes from day to night. And if you decide against a cabin which looks out to the sea, choose one which oversees the Royal Promenade instead (you also reportedly have a fine, unobstructed view directly into the cabin across the way).

And new in 2001 and 2002, Royal Caribbean introduced the Radiance of the Seas and the Brilliance of the Seas, the first two ships in the so-called Vantage class, smaller and sleeker than their predecessors.