July 16, 2024. Oriental Land Company (OLC), a Japanese leisure and tourism company, has commissioned German shipbuilder Meyer Werft to build a Disney Wish-class cruise ship fueled by liquefied natural gas (LNG) for the Japanese market.
“I am very happy to sign this contract today and win OLC as a new customer from Japan. This order contributes to the long term development of shipbuilding in Papenburg,” Bernard Meyer, CEO of Meyer Werft, commented.
The newbuild is scheduled to be delivered to its owner in 2028. OLC, which operates the Disney theme parks in Japan, is expected to commence operation of the ship by early 2029.
The Oriental Land Company decided to enter the cruise business in Japan and agreed with Disney ‘to bring the magic of Disney cruise’ to the Japanese market for the first time.
“We have long-term relationships with both Meyer Werft and the Oriental Land Company. We are delighted to be working with both of them to create a Disney cruise experience for the Japanese market,” Thomas Mazloum, president, Disney Signature Experiences, said.
The German shipbuilder already delivered the Disney Wish, the first ship in the Wish class, to Disney Cruise Line in 2022.
The two sister cruise vessels — the 144,000 GT Disney Treasure and Disney Destiny — are currently under construction in Papenburg and are planned for delivery in 2024 and 2025, respectively.
