Tonnes of fun in the sun Voyager of the Sea docked in Sydney's Circular Quay. Picture: Bill Hearne Source: The Australian The DreamWorks Boardwalk Parade. Swimming pools on the top deck. THE biggest ship to be home-ported in Australia for an extended season, Royal Caribbean's 138,000gt Voyager of the Seas arrived in Sydney on November 22 after making maiden calls at Port Hedland, Fremantle, Adelaide, Melbourne and Hobart and a side trip to New Zealand. The hype has been as great as the 310m ship itself -- Voyager of the Seas is bigger than the US Navy's largest aircraft carrier; standing upright on its bow, it is taller than the Eiffel Tower; and it weighs, apparently, more than 30,000 elephants. It has Royal Caribbean's signature rock-climbing wall and an ice-skating rink. I am more accustomed to rocks of ice in glasses. Most ships I've sailed on in the past 50 years have carried about 1000 passengers, or sometimes fewer. Voyager of the Seas carries 3114 at double-cabin capacity and can take up to 3800 (5078, including crew). When it was launched in 1999, this was the biggest cruise ship in the world and the shipyard presented the captain with a scooter to get around the bridge. Since then the company has introduced two 225,282gt Oasis-class ships -- Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas -- which each carry 5400 passengers at double-cabin capacity. The sheer size of the ship and -- according to the charming Norwegian captain, Charles Teige -- the construction of the hull makes it incredibly stable. We sail across the Great Australian Bight and Bass Strait, both notoriously rough stretches of water, and feel as if we haven't even upped anchor. A video in our cabin about the construction of the 15-deck Voyager of the Seas, which houses more people than many country towns across the nation, tells how Royal Caribbean was competing with resorts and wanted a cross between Las Vegas, Disneyland and Hawaii. It has certainly achieved its ambition to create a floating Las Vegas, with its resident singers and dancers, spectacular Ice Odyssey skating shows and the vast Casino Royale, where the air is filled with the cha-ching, cha-ching of slot machines. Daniel Craig would surely feel at home in a James Bond dinner suit playing blackjack and roulette. There's even a tuxedo rentals shop to look the part. The ship also competes with Disneyland with its celebrity DreamWorks characters such as Po and Shrek, who take centre stage in grand parades along the Royal Promenade, the ship's main street, which is lined with duty-free shops selling everything from luxurious Coach handbags to elegant Bulgari watches, perfumes and liquor (bottles delivered to cabins on the last day). Where Hawaii fits in, I am not sure. The 10 swimming pools and whirlpools, perhaps? The ship's enormity is brought home on night two when Captain Teige holds a welcome aboard reception. Unlike every other welcome party I have attended, there is no traditional line-up to shake hands with the captain. On a much smaller ship on Valentine's Day I went to the back of the line three times to be kissed by the captain on both cheeks. Instead, more than 3000 of us gather in the Royal Promenade for a glass of champagne and Teige makes his speech from an overhead bridge. "I try to get around as much as possible and I have a captain's table, but the disadvantage of a ship this big is that you don't have time to talk to everyone," he tells me. His much-sought-after dinner table is on the main deck of the magnificent three-tiered dining room (billed as "the largest restaurant in Australia") under a chandelier that could be a prop from The Phantom of the Opera. There are first and second seatings and My Time Dining, and at the welcome dinner we feast on lobster bisque, prawn cocktail and filet de boeuf. The Windjammer Cafe serves buffet breakfast, lunch and dinner and afternoon snacks, and there is a 24-hour complimentary Cafe Promenade for coffee, pastries and sandwiches. Why passengers purchase anything other than cute earrings at the Cupcake Cupboard is beyond me when Windjammer has a decadent Sweet Indulgences counter and soft ice cream from The Arctic Zone machine. There is a $US4.95 ($4.69) cover charge for Johnny Rockets, a 1950s-style American hamburger joint where the waiters double as entertainers, and a $US20 charge for Portofino, the Italian restaurant where tiramisu with crushed marinated raspberries is a must. Voyager's Adventure Ocean Youth Program for babies, teens and in-betweens remains open in ports for parents who want to go ashore. It is an exemplary program and Johnny Rockets is where the children being minded are taken to dinner. As Captain Teige pointed out, there really is something for everyone and the claim that the ship attracts three generations of the same families from across the world is true (I check around the ship with my investigative journalist's hat on). I also catch up with an old friend, tour manager Margaret McIntyre, who is escorting 78 passengers aged between 60 and 80. "We meet in a bar every night and my group particularly enjoys playing bridge, walking and going to the enhancement lectures," she tells me. I speak to parents, too, including Marc and Claire Smith of Perth, travelling with Hayden, 3, and one-year-old Tatum, who love the "toy library." "We wouldn't be able to see all these destinations with young children if we weren't on a cruise," says Claire. Trevor and Stella Bailey, also of Perth, are on their first cruise with their delightful sons Nicholas, 8, Angus, 6, and Trent, 4. "The staff is friendly and the food is above what I expected," says Trevor. The child-minding is excellent and it gives us a chance to relax. Nicholas and Angus have rock-climbing instructions and make it to the top to ring the victor's bell. I must add here that I resist the wall, even though sports supervisor Sam Kwon reckons someone "much older than me," a 90-year-old Japanese man, had succeeded. I also resist roller-skating, although Kwon offers protective elbow and knee pads and a helmet and suggests a ride on a Harley-Davidson in Challenger's Video Arcade. Young Angus Bailey must have the last word. "This is the best time of my life," is how he sums up his Voyager of the Seas adventure. Hello, sailors VOYAGER of the Seas will be targeting little girls with a new Barbie doll experience when it returns to our waters later this year. For a nominal extra cost, passengers will be able to book Barbie-themed cabins. Ladies, leave the mile-high wedges at home and take worn-in flatties as there's lot of walking on a ship this size. While there were slippers and robes in my category of accommodation, there were no toiletries apart from a shampoo dispenser in the shower cubicle Ladies of a certain age, like me, should take a magnifying make-up mirror as there wasn't one in my cabin. Don't forget socks if you are considering rock-climbing. Helen Hutcheon was a guest of Royal Caribbean. Voyager of the Seas departs Port Hedland on March 12 on its return to Asia and then arrives in Darwin on October 31 for a second season of cruising in Australia. More: royalcaribbean.com.au.