A Norwegian cruise liner featuring the largest waterpark at sea is on its maiden voyage.

The 4,200-passenger Norwegian Escape – which is 1,098ft long (334m) and weighs 164,600 tons – is one of the five largest in the world and features a distinctive marine-inspired mural across its hull created by Jamaican marine wildlife artist and conservationist Guy Harvey. It was built in just 17 months by German luxury shipbuilders Meyer Werft for the Norwegian Cruise Line.

Upscale interiors by British firm SMC Design and Swedish studio Tillberg Design utilise contemporary design features and curated artworks to create an upscale feel.

Speaking exclusively to CLAD, SMC Design director Andrew Yuill said: “We were inspired by contemporary worldwide international design. It was important to ensure the overall design is current and offers the guests an exciting variety in the leisure facilities onboard. The challenges were to bring good considered design to the project so it can compete with similar leisure developments around the world.”

Norwegian Escape’s facilities include a large-scale Aqua Park, which contains a tandem slide called Aqua Racer and Free Fall; a side-by-side slide where passengers freefall into a loop as the floor drops away beneath them.

Other leisure facilities include a large rope course and zip track spanning three-storeys, a nine-hole miniature golf course themed on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, two huge LED display screens and two swimming pools and four spa pools.

In addition, a private enclave on the the top of the vessel contains an exclusive ship–within-a-ship suite complex called The Haven, which features a three-storey covered courtyard, a cantilevered whirlpool and a private restaurant.

"One important concept in the design is the variety in dining options,” said Yuill. “We looked carefully at all the different ways one can dine.”

The ship has 11 restaurants onboard, including a food hall developed by Miami-based The Pubbelly Restaurant Group and an outlet of singer Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville restaurant chain. Bars include an urban craft beer hall called The District Brew House, wine-tasting venue The Cellars and an outlet of Miami’s oldest drinking establishment Tobacco Road.

The Norwegian Escape is Norwegian Cruise Line’s fourteenth vessel, and its fifth in the Caribbean.