The Adora Flora City, China's second domestically built large cruise ship, is undocked from the construction dock by powerful tugboats at Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding Co in Shanghai on March 20, 2026. Photo: Xinhua

China's second domestically built large cruise ship, the Adora Flora City, was undocked on Friday afternoon in Shanghai, marking a key milestone as the vessel's hull structure is now complete and it transitions to dockside commissioning. The ship is about 94 percent complete. It is set for delivery in late 2026 and will begin operating international routes from homeport Guangzhou in 2027.

The launch highlighted broader progress in China's cruise shipbuilding industry. From single-vessel construction to industrial ecosystem development, the experience of building the two ships - Adora Magic City, the first domestically made cruise, and Adora Flora City - has strengthened domestic core capabilities and generated significant cluster effects across related sectors, analysts said.

The float-off from its dry dock is a key milestone in shipbuilding, signaling that the ship's structure is complete and it is now seaworthy, moving into the wharf commissioning stage - preparing for sea trials scheduled for the end of May, CCTV News reported.

The ship has reached more than 94 percent overall progress. Interior outfitting stands at 81.9 percent, system commissioning at 68.3 percent, and public areas, cabin pre-inspections, and critical system external inspections have all exceeded planned targets ahead of schedule, according to China News Service.

Compared with China's first homegrown large cruise ship the Adora Magic City, the new vessel shows significantly improved construction efficiency - up about 20 percent overall, media reported.

"The dock period for the Adora Flora City was reduced by almost eight months compared to the first one, allowing us to accomplish more work in less time and greatly improving production efficiency," said Wei Shengsheng, head of the cruise ship project department at Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding Co, the shipbuilder, as was quoted by media.

The Adora Flora City measures 341 meters in length, an increase of 17.4 meters over Adora Magic City, and 37.2 meters in beam. It weighs 141,900 tons, up 6,400 tons from the first domestically made cruise. The vessel features 2,130 cabins and can accommodate more than 5,200 passengers, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

The vessel contains over 4,700 kilometers of cabling, nearly 40,000 square meters of public space, and integrates thousands of systems, more than 20,000 critical pieces of equipment, and over 25 million components.

Safety equipment includes 18 lifeboats and two rescue boats, ensuring full passenger evacuation capacity.

At present, major bulk materials of the vessel have achieved 100 percent domestic sourcing, according to Xinhua.

Industry insiders pointed out that from the groundbreaking Adora Magic City to the more efficient Adora Flora City, China's large cruise ship sector has fostered a robust domestic supply chain capable of meeting global standards. 

This has significantly strengthened the competitiveness of the country's shipbuilding industry while injecting fresh momentum into high-end equipment manufacturing and the cultural tourism sector, Song Ding, a research fellow at the China Development Institute, told the Global Times.

Global Times