Royal Caribbean Blog

A virtual balcony is a different kind of inside cabin, because Royal Caribbean wanted to fix the biggest problem cruisers have with it.

After two decades of Royal Caribbean cruising, I’ve sailed in many different cabins. This includes everything from cheap interior staterooms on the oldest ships to a Junior Suite on the newest cruise ships.

When booking my recent cruise aboard Royal Caribbean’s Ovation of the Seas, I was intrigued by the option to book a Virtual Balcony stateroom. Of all the cabins I’ve sailed in, I’ve never booked the unique stateroom.

When Quantum of the Seas debuted as the flagship vessel in Royal Caribbean’s new Quantum class, every interior stateroom featured a virtual balcony. As the Quantum class expanded with new cruise ships, Royal Caribbean continued incorporating the technology. Now, you can find virtual balconies on a select number of cruise ships in Royal Caribbean’s fleet.

As such, I was surprised to find a decent price for one of the inaugural voyages on Ovation of the Seas from Los Angeles. For $1,411, I was able to book a 5-night cruise in an interior cabin with a virtual balcony. This would also be my mom’s first time sailing with a virtual balcony.

We were curious if the virtual balcony would feel gimmicky, or if the technology would actually enhance our stateroom experience. After five nights onboard Ovation of the Seas, I’m not convinced the technology is worth the hype. However, I would probably book one again if the price was right.

Royal Caribbean invested heavily in the virtual balcony technology.

Although technically still considered an interior cabin, Royal Caribbean first introduced virtual balconies on Navigator of the Seas before expanding to other vessels. Surprisingly, the cruise line said at the time that focus groups found the technology to enhance their stateroom experience, with many preferring the virtual balcony over an oceanview cabin.

The virtual balcony technology was considered groundbreaking when it first debuted over 10 years ago. The floor-to-ceiling HD screens stream real-time views from outside the ship. Interior cabins have no window, so you typically can’t see outside views until you physically make your way to an outer deck.

The screens are 80 inches and are designed to have the illusion of a true balcony experience by making the cabin feel less cramped. Royal Caribbean invested heavily in the technology with a continuous feed from RED Epic cameras that are mounted around the ship.

The complex technological process involves cameras capturing real-time footage, which is transferred to a server room and then onto each individual cabin screen. With this, your virtual balcony screen matches the ship’s actual movement.

Royal Caribbean collaborated with experts from MIT and Harvard to design the technology. The cruise line claims it can even reduce motion sickness. Royal Caribbean describes the virtual balcony as “having crystal clear imagery on the screen” to depict a lifelike view.

Truthfully, I had no idea Royal Caribbean invested significant resources into the virtual balcony technology. Because of this, I had some higher standards for my stateroom experience on Ovation of the Seas.

I wasn’t immediately blown away by the virtual balcony.

After boarding Ovation of the Seas in Los Angeles, we were excited to see what the virtual balcony experience would entail. When we first entered the stateroom, we could see the live footage of the ship docked at the Los Angeles World Cruise Center with a direct view of the Battleship USS Iowa Museum.

The video feed accurately portrayed the grey sky outside, which we learned is called “June Gloom” in California. There was a fake balcony superimposed onto the live footage, which added to the balcony illusion. But, you really couldn’t mistake the virtual balcony for an actual one. It’s pretty obvious that you’re looking at a TV screen, essentially.

After reading about Royal Caribbean’s investment in this technology, I did expect the video quality to be more impressive. Ovation of the Seas was built in March 2015, so the technology is more than 10 years old at this point. This could be contributing to some of the graininess on the screen. Either way, I did expect the feed to feel more realistic.

We couldn’t figure out how to turn the screen off before going to bed.

By the time we returned from dinner, the virtual balcony was showing the darkness outside of the ship. According to Royal Caribbean’s website, guests have the option to turn off the virtual balcony. We looked for an easy mechanism to turn the screen off during the first night, but we didn’t have any success.

Instead of turning off the screen at night, you can pull curtains in front of the screen, just like you would with a real balcony. We did find this to be a little comical that we had to draw the curtains each night. It almost felt like putting my fake baby dolls to bed when I was a kid!

There was still a small glow coming from the screen, so we used a fridge clip that my mom had packed to keep the curtains closed. We were thankful she packed the clip, as we prefer the room to be pitch black. After all, this is one of the biggest perks of booking an interior cabin!

We decided to clip the curtains together each night to ensure our room would stay dark. The small glow could be a nice illumination for those who need to navigate the cabin throughout the night, though.

The virtual balcony was more impressive once we arrived in Cabo San Lucas.

During our day at sea, the virtual balcony feed was unsurprisingly boring with the grey sky. We noticed the screen would glitch occasionally and even show a black screen a few times. However, once we arrived in Cabo San Lucas, the screen was more exciting with actual footage of our port.

Our virtual balcony showed a stunning view of the rugged mountains near the beach. Because we had an overnight in Cabo San Lucas, we were able to enjoy the beautiful view of the beach on our virtual balcony for two days!

It was easy to see the weather was beautiful and sunny with our virtual balcony - one of the biggest perks of having this technological feature in your stateroom. Although we had sunny weather for both days of our cruise, this could be particularly useful when cruising in more rainy climates, such as Alaska.

Instead of navigating to one of the outer decks to check the weather, you can simply check your virtual balcony. Of course, you won’t be able to actually feel the temperature, and it’s no substitute for a real balcony’s fresh air.

Other than our virtual balcony, the stateroom was a standard interior cabin.

I’ve cruised in many different interior cabins, and Royal Caribbean has some of the best in the cruise industry. Ovation of the Seas is one of Royal Caribbean’s newer ships, relatively speaking.

As such, the cabin reflected the ship’s modern design, with a clean, functional layout and smart use of space. The color palette was modern with blue hues, soft neutrals, and light wood finishes. This made the cabin feel clean and fresh while still being warm and welcoming.

Our interior cabin on Ovation of the Seas was surprisingly comfortable and spacious. The layout featured two twin beds, which were already separated upon our arrival. We each had our own small nightstand with a few small shelves to use, which we appreciated. By pushing the nightstands together, we felt like we had more space for storing our bedside belongings.

Connectivity was another design element that we appreciated in the cabin.

On the vanity, there was a charging strip with multiple plugs and outlets. As newer cruise ships continue to include more USB options, just be sure to pack any necessary cords or adapters, like USB-C converters, so you’re covered. We still packed our European outlet extender for more plugs, as most of our cords are now USB-C instead of traditional USB.

There was also an outlet located next to the bed, but only on one side. If you choose to separate the beds, this setup isn’t the most convenient, especially if you’re the one without access to the outlet. 

Because of this, I usually charged my phone in the evening while winding down, then unplugged it before falling asleep. Because the location made it a bit awkward to keep plugged in overnight, this could be inconvenient for some.

There was also plenty of storage.

One of my favorite features of Royal Caribbean’s newer cabins is the storage above the bed. The overhead storage is particularly useful, although storage is plentiful throughout the cabin. Under the flat-screen TV was a dresser with multiple drawers, which my mom used for unpacking.

I ended up using the majority of the closet, which included more shelving and hanging space. This is also where the cabin safe was located. I was able to unpack my carry-on suitcase comfortably and used the bottom of the closet for dirty clothes.

There was also a small cooling fridge, and we used this mainly for keeping our bottled water chilled. I always appreciate Royal Caribbean providing bottled water in the stateroom for loyalty members. We were surprised to find an electric kettle with a selection of tea and coffee on the counter, as I’ve typically only seen this on European sailings.

While the stateroom wasn’t huge by any means, the cabin felt thoughtfully arranged. We had room to unpack and move around without constantly bumping into each other. 

The addition of the chair for sitting was a nice touch, although it quickly turned into a place for us to throw our clothes and bags. Overall, our stateroom was a well-designed space that made the most of its square footage.

The bathroom in our cabin was compact but efficient.

Our virtual balcony cabin included a standard in-suite bathroom for an interior cabin. Just like the rest of the stateroom, the design felt clean and modern. The bathroom featured a warm-toned tile floor, a glass-enclosed shower, and a long, narrow sink counter that made smart use of the limited space. 

Storage was better than expected thanks to open shelving beneath the sink and a couple of shelves beside the mirror. We had plenty of room for toiletries, although we both utilized our hanging cosmetic bags on the doors.

The shower had decent water pressure and came with a handheld wand, which was great for rinsing off after a long port day. We noticed the shower drained slowly on the first night, so we requested our cabin steward to have this looked at. By the next evening, the shower was draining like normal.

Most importantly, the bathroom was well-maintained. For an interior stateroom, it definitely checked all the boxes, and the larger shower was appreciated. It’s still a cruise ship bathroom, so you won’t be stretching out, but it didn’t feel cramped.

Our cabin location under the kids’ club was the worst part of the experience.

For this cruise, our cabin was 10521, which was located on Deck 10 towards the front of the ship. I don’t mind being located further towards the front or the back. However, our stateroom was located directly under Adventure Ocean: Royal Caribbean’s childcare and youth programming club.

Thankfully, I packed my travel-sized sound machine to play (or blast) white noise each night. I also packed earplugs to drown out the noise further. The noise was minimal in the night, but we could start to hear ruckus around 8 a.m. each morning. Thankfully, it wasn’t too disruptive, and we were glad we came prepared to make sure we got a good night’s sleep.

Our neighbors weren’t as lucky, though! We met a nice family from Australia staying in our hallway. By the second morning, she told us they could hardly sleep from all of the noise in Adventure Ocean above them.

In the future, I definitely wouldn’t choose to book another room under Adventure Ocean. I prefer booking cabins that are surrounded by other staterooms to eliminate noise and disruption. I want to sleep on vacation, and not return from my cruise feeling drained and sleep deprived.

It's a nice change from a standard inside room

Overall, we enjoyed our stay in the Virtual Balcony interior cabin. It was our first time trying this type of cabin, and the live footage from outside the ship definitely made the space feel less closed in. The screen was a unique touch that added some pizazz to a standard interior cabin.

Additionally, being able to see the live footage from outside the ship enhanced our experience. We enjoyed watching the ocean, but it was especially fun when we arrived at our port of call in Cabo San Lucas in Mexico.

The virtual balcony also served a practical purpose. We found ourselves checking the virtual balcony in the mornings to get a sense of the weather before heading out for the day. It was also a quick way to tell if the ship had arrived in port yet.

However, we couldn’t figure out how to turn the screen off. It would be nice to have a switch where you can easily turn it off before going to bed. Instead, we relied on the curtains and our chip clip to keep the glow from being too distracting. Pulling the curtains in front of the screen each night made the experience feel a little gimmicky, and I would have preferred just turning it off at night.

Because of Royal Caribbean’s investment in this technology, I did expect the footage to be crisper. The video looked grainy at times, which could be related to the ship’s age. Technology can age quickly, so this could be contributing to the lower quality footage.

Ultimately, I wouldn’t spend extra to have a virtual balcony in the future. If the price were the same, or even cheaper, I would definitely book this type of interior cabin again. It certainly doesn’t replace a traditional cabin balcony with fresh air, but it does jazz up a standard interior stateroom.

My family has only ever cruised in North America, so the opportunity to go on a European cruise was too good to pass up.

I went on an 8-night Northern European cruise on Royal Caribbean's Independence of the Seas, which began in Southampton, UK.

When I boarded the ship, I met a lot of cruisers who also flew from the United States for this voyage and many lamented how tired they were because they came in just before the cruise began.

Immediately, I realized they had made a mistake I avoided in planning out their trip.

Flying to Europe for a cruise means not only more travel logistics, but adjusting the local time as well as the general travel fatigue it comes with. 

Not only would I never think to extend my Caribbean cruise in such a manner, I think adding time on either end of the cruise to see more of the continent is a must-do.

Easier to adjust

You should fly at least two days before your cruise departs when traveling overseas, but I'd recommend coming in even earlier than that.

Jet lag can ruin your trip, and it should be your first goal when traveling to ensure you don't start off over tired.

Put yourself on local time immediately upon arrival, and don't sleep until a reasonable bed time in the new time zone you're in. It's not foolproof, but I've found it the best strategy for reducing the chance of being jet lagged.

While avoiding jet lag is important, the real mistake is not allocating enough time to enjoy what Europe has to offer.

Port stops on your cruise will be short, so to really feel like you had time in Europe, I'd add more days before or after the cruise.

I flew in a week before my cruise departed, and we visited both Disneyland Paris and London. 

Not only did we get to enjoy what each place had to offer, but I was able to catch up on the lost sleep in the flight over and prepare my body so I'd be ready for the cruise.

The people who flew in a day before the cruise seemed to be overly tired for the first couple days of the cruise, and I think I was able to enjoy the start of the cruise more.

You see more too

I think the overarching goal for many on any European cruise is to see as much as they can.

The first question you'll get from friends or family is what you saw and did. While you don't have to impress anyone, I think it feels like a goal to work in more highlights.

Travel is as much about a humble brag as it is enjoying where you're going.

I was glad we spent so many extra days before the cruise so it truly felt like it wasn't one of those "it was over much too quickly" kind of vacations.

Extra days extend the value of your flights

There's a good chance the airfare for a European cruise could be one of your top expenses. Coming in early means more return on that price.

While you might see added costs of hotel, food, and entertainment arriving to Europe earlier, squeezing more value from your flights is just as important.

Long-haul flights are taxing.  Flying can cause dehydration, and even under the best conditions it's a lot of added stress.

Given how pricey flights are, I think it makes sense to ensure the uncomfortableness of flying and the tiredness it induces be more worthwhile from the trip.

More time in Europe seems to me to make the long, difficult flight more worthwhile.

You can add days after the cruise too

Don't overlook adding days at the end of your cruise as a way to maximize your travel time.

I think most people look to front load their vacation with bonus days in Europe prior to the cruise, but you could easily add more time at the end too.

Spending a few extra days after the cruise is over makes the last day of your cruise so much easier. You don't have to rush to catch a flight, and you can linger on the ship longer to enjoy a final breakfast.

I'm actually doing both this trip, spending an extra week in Europe at the conclusion of my cruise. 

Happy Sunday! Hope you are having a relaxing weekend and enjoying summer! It is time to sit back, relax, and catch up on all the recent Royal Caribbean news!

Royal Caribbean cruisers can breath a sigh of relief that more itinerary changes aren't likely to occur for cruises to San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The Port of San Juan posted an update that the U.S. Coast Guard has approved repairs made to the pier.

For months, Oasis Class ships were unable to dock because of damage to the moorings.

Royal Caribbean News

• Royal Caribbean skips ports and changes itinerary because of "ongoing maintenance"
• Crew member reveals that uneaten food on cruise ships isn't always thrown away
• I went to a German beer garden with strangers. They picked the place and it was a blast
• New cruiser spent almost $7,000 on a family vacation with 6 upgrades. I’d have skipped 3 of them
• When do cruise prices drop?
• I tried this Royal Caribbean crowd favorite that rivals Carnival’s Guy’s Burger Joint
• We used AI for cruise tour planning advice and were surprised by what we found

Royal Caribbean reflects on the cruise ship that changed everything about cruising

Royal Caribbean spoke about the significance of the Oasis Class, and how it set a new standard overnight.

The Oasis Class ships redefined cruising, and almost 20 years later, they're still as relevant today as back then.

Oasis was a radical departure from the ships that came before it, with each new Oasis Class pushing boundaries further.

I shared a 150-square-foot cruise cabin with my parents

Would you share a stateroom with your parents?

Cruise ship rooms are notable for how small they tend to be compared to hotel rooms, so sharing that small space with other adults isn't easy.

Jenna shared a tiny inside room with her parents and while it wasn't ideal, it did save them a lot of money.

Why you shouldn’t skip Royal Caribbean's older ships

Older and smaller ships may not be advertised much, but they're still great ships to sail on.

Some new cruisers question if it's worth it to go on an old ship because they're worried it will be disappointing.

Not only are they wonderful vessels to sail on, but they are a terrific value.

5 mistakes and 5 lessons from trying Anthem of the Seas

Allie sailed on Anthem of the Seas in Asia and came across a number of things she did right and wrong.

Part of trying new itineraries is trial and error, and some gambles work out while others do not.

We hope these experiences help you have a better cruise too.

New RCB Video: WORST & BEST Places On A Cruise Ship For A Cabin

Have you subscribed to the Royal Caribbean Blog YouTube Channel? We share some great videos there regularly, all about taking a Royal Caribbean cruise! This week, we are sharing our latest video — WORST & BEST Places On A Cruise Ship For A Cabin— and don’t forget to subscribe here.

There's a good chance Royal Caribbean's big ships will finally be able to resume visiting San Juan, Puerto Rico.

For many months the biggest ships in the world have been unable to visit San Juan because of damage to the pier.

Repair work has been slow, and it meant the only pier that was able to accommodate Royal Caribbean's giant Oasis-class ships was unavailable.  As a result, it forced the cruise line to cancel visits to the port, often at the last minute.

It now appears that's finally been fixed.

The Port of San Juan posted an update on their Facebook page indicating the proper repairs have been made and authorities have approved it all.

Pier 3 West has been officially restored, after completing a rigorous structural assessment in accordance with U.S. Coast Guard requirements. The slora restriction is lifted and the full use of the facility is enabled.

“It has been a long road, but our priority has always been to meet all the requirements established by the regulatory agencies and ensure the safe arrival of cruise ships in the coming years,” said Clarivette Diaz, General Manager of San Juan Cruise Port.

We deeply thank all the technical teams, consultants and agencies who made this long-awaited breakthrough possible.

We continue to work with commitment so that San Juan continues to lead as the base port of the Caribbean.

El Nuevo Dia reported the repairs are complete as well, "San Juan Cruise Port (SJCP) confirmed this Friday the reopening of Pier 3 West for vessels over 910 feet in length."

Royal Caribbean has not commented or announced any expectations yet related to the pier's status.

According to the port schedule, it appears the next Oasis Class ship scheduled to visit San Juan is Wonder of the Seas on August 6, 2025.

Icon of the Seas will follow with a visit on August 12, 2025.

Other smaller Royal Caribbean ships will visit before Wonder does, but smaller ships have not had an issue docking because they can fit into other piers.

What happened to the pier

While San Juan has a few piers, only Pier 3 West can handle Royal Caribbean's Oasis Class ships.

Based on reports, damage to the pier that can handle the biggest ships took place in April 2024 when allegedly it was broken after the MSC Meraviglia was involved, however, specific details are not known.

Following that incident, the U.S. Coast Guard assumed operational control of the facility. 

In a statement released in November, the Coast Guard confirmed that Pier 3 West would remain closed to cruise traffic until further notice. The decision is contingent upon a series of structural assessments and an on-site inspection. While other piers at the San Juan Cruise Port remain operational, none are equipped to accommodate the largest cruise vessels, including those of the Oasis Class.

“Since the loss of the facility's mooring structure, Coast Guard Prevention personnel have been actively working with the San Juan Cruise Port and the Puerto Rico Ports Authority to determine if the structure remains sound for cruise ship operations,” said Capt. Luis J. Rodriguez, Commander of Coast Guard Sector San Juan and Captain of the Port.

Capt. Rodriguez added, “We understand the inconvenience of this matter, however, it is critical we ensure the safety of the port, the cruise ships and the thousands of people who operate on or visit the island through this port facility. My team stands ready to move ahead immediately once we receive the awaited studies from San Juan Cruise Port and the Puerto Rico Ports Authority.”

The loss of a dolphin mooring structure just off the main pier is the primary issue.

A dolphin is a group of pilings arrayed together to serve variously as a protective hardpoint along a dock.

Repairs and assessment are out of Royal Caribbean's hands, as it's work managed by port authorities and subject to approval by the Coast Guard.

A Royal Caribbean ship has changed plans for two sailings so far due to "maintenance work" that's forced the ship to reduce speed.

The issue occurred at some point during the June 21, 2025 sailing on Independence of the Seas after the ship departed Hamburg, Germany,

The 8-night cruise was scheduled to visit Rotterdam, Netherlands at 10am the following day, but the Captain informed passengers they'd be late into port.

The exact problem was not disclosed by the cruise line or the Captain, but passengers were told they'd be late coming into port.

"We've had to make some adjustments to the times we'll visit Rotterdam, Netherlands, due to speed restrictions from ongoing maintenance onboard," the letter to passengers said.

"Rest assured, all maintenance work is being conducted with the utmost safety."

Independence was originally scheduled to arrive in Rotterdam at 11am. The initial updated estimate was to arrive by 1:00 or 1:30pm, but that slipped until about 2pm.

While the ship was still in Rotterdam, Royal Caribbean sent out an email to passengers booked on the next sailing their itinerary would be altered too.

Independence of the Seas is a Freedom Class ship, first launched on April 30, 2008.

She is 154,407 gross tons and was one of the largest cruise ships in the world when built. 

The 15-deck ship has a 4,370 passenger capacity and a crew capacity of 1,370.

Skipping a port

Independence of the Seas is scheduled to sail a 7-night Norwegian Fjords cruise next, beginning on June 29th.

"We wanted to inform you about some changes to our itinerary," the email read.

"Due to speed restrictions from ongoing maintenance onboard, we’ve had to make some adjustments."

The new plan is to skip a scheduled visit to Alesund, Norway and replace it with a sea day.

However, Independence will arrive one hour earlier into Molde, Norway at 7am instead of 8am.

No other changes to the itinerary has been made.

The cruise line was quick to apologize for the last minute change and assure passengers the ship is still safe to sail on, "We’re sorry for the inconvenience. Please know that all maintenance work is being conducted with the utmost safety."

Compensation for the change

Passengers on the June 29th sailing will receive some onboard credit for the change in plans.

"As a token of our appreciation for your understanding, you’ll receive a credit to spend onboard per stateroom," is what the email said.

• $150 USD for Interior and Oceanview
• $200 USD for Balcony
• $400 USD for Suites
• Plus, an additional $25 USD for each third or more guest to spend onboard

Any shore excursions booked through Royal Caribbean will be fully refunded automatically.

Propulsion problems aren't unusual

Mechanical problems can occur on cruise ships, just like they can on airplanes, buses, or trains.

Given that they operate every week, propulsion problems are fairly rare.

Independence of the Seas is not a new ship, but Royal Caribbean invests a lot of money into routine maintenance.  However, engine problems will still occasionally happen.

It's common when there is an issue for the ship's speed to be affected and itinerary changed, rather than cancelling the entire sailing.

Maintenance can be done to the ship while in port if necessary, rather than pulling it out of service completely.

Cruise ship buffets dish up hundreds of pounds of food each day to cater to different taste preferences and dietary restrictions, but have you ever wondered what happens to the uneaten food? 

Bryan James, an entertainer for Royal Caribbean, revealed what happens to uneaten food once the passenger buffet closes for the night. 

James has worked on numerous ships in Royal Caribbean's fleet, including Odyssey of the Seas, Wonder of the Seas, and, most recently, Allure of the Seas in Europe. 

He regularly shares vlogs and short videos across multiple social media platforms, showing what life is like as a crew member aboard a cruise ship. His content has attracted a large audience, with more than 835,000 followers on TikTok alone.

In one recent video, James explained that uneaten food doesn't necessarily get thrown away at the end of the night. 

"If there's something really good leftover, it winds up downstairs at something that we call 'midnight mess,'" he explains, "And the sooner you get there, the better the food is. I'd say after an hour, it ends up just being normal crew mess food." 

On this particular night, James shows a few special dishes available for crew members, including grilled pork chops, shrimp curry, and sautéed spinach. 

Part of a larger effort to reduce food waste onboard

There's no denying that food waste is a major problem on cruise ships. From multi-course meals in the Main Dining Room to massive all-you-can-eat buffets and quick-service options scattered throughout the ship, the volume of food prepared each day is staggering. 

That said, once food is served — whether in the dining room or placed in the buffet — it can't be returned to the ship's kitchen to be reused later. So, it's either eaten or thrown away. 

To help combat the issue, Royal Caribbean Group created a new initiative dubbed "Win on Waste." As of early 2024, Royal Caribbean Group reported a reduction in food waste of about 33%. 

This milestone marked significant progress toward their goal of reducing food waste across its fleet by 50% by 2025 — as well as saving tens of millions of dollars a year. 

To help reach its goal, the company has implemented programs to track food consumption, introduced food waste awareness campaigns, assigned new onboard roles, and begun tracking guest demand for specific menu items. 

Another major advancement is the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) to adjust food production in real time. For example, AI helps chefs estimate how much food should be ordered, prepped, thawed, and produced on a given day. 

It's been successful, too. When the world's largest cruise ship, Icon of the Seas, began sailing in January 2024, the AI system helped ensure the vessel was utilizing 86% of the onboard food supply.

In the same video, James reveals other facts about life onboard a cruise ship

Depending on the cruise ship, guests might be able to travel as low as Deck 3, 2, or 1. For example, Allure of the Seas' lowest passenger deck is 3, whereas Carnival Luminosa's is Deck 1. 

Regardless, there's a whole different world below the public decks. These lower levels are hidden from guests and are where many ship operations take place, as well as where most crew members live, eat, and relax. 

"Deck 1 is not the lowest deck on a cruise ship," James says, "Below that is Deck 0 [and] below that is Deck -1. We call it 'Tween Deck.'"

The lowest decks of a cruise ship don't look the same as the upper levels, with carpeted hallways and nicely decorated lounges. 

Instead, the industrial spaces, which are often below the waterline, are bare with non-slip tile and fluorescent lighting. James claims that they look more like "a submarine."

Below deck is also where a lot of crew members live. The compact cabins aren't as luxurious as standard staterooms. Plus, many crew members have to share rooms with other employees. 

"Did you know that pretty much everyone [who] works on a cruise ship has a roommate?" James asks in the video. 

"It's either going to look a little bit like this, where you've got bunk beds...or it'll look like this, where you have your own room but you share a bathroom with somebody."

He goes on to add that the shared walls are thin, meaning you can hear everything that your neighbor is doing. 

Read more: Dancer reveals her tiny crew-only cabin she lives in on a cruise ship

"If you wanna have your own room, you have to work your way up the pecking order, either being an engineer [or] running a department," says James. 

Two roles on a cruise ship that typically come with private cabins are the Captain and the Cruise Director.

Instead of booking a tour on my Royal Caribbean ship visit to Hamburg, Germany, I let a stranger plan my day and it worked out really well.

Months ago I was just starting the planning process for my European cruise aboard the Independence of the Seas.

Hamburg is a port I've never been to before, and we only had a few hours of time to visit.  I wasn't sure how to best use the time, but I knew I wanted to visit a beer garden, because it seemed like a very German thing to do.

Unrelated to this, I went for a visit to a facsimile of what a beer garden is like at Walt Disney World, where they have the Biergarten restaurant in Epcot.

Our waitress started talking to us, and I noticed her nametag said she was not only from Germany, but near Hamburg.  I asked her for any recommendations for what to do in town.

Her name is Sariana, and she lives in Bremen. She worked at Walt Disney World for a few years as part of an international employee work program.

As it turned out, she was not only a cruiser, but also a viewer of Royal Caribbean Blog on YouTube and volunteered to show us around when we arrived.

I had my doubts how serious she was, or if she'd even show up.  Sure enough, the week our Independence of the Seas cruise departed, I got a message from her that she hadn't forgotten about us and wanted to help.

She suggested since we loved eating at the fake beer garden, why not try the real thing.

We picked out one place and Sariana made all the arrangements for my family and a few friends to meet up to eat there.

Unfortunately, that place was sold out, but she had a few other suggestions and we landed on Hofbräu Hamburg. It's located right in the city center, and is a traditional German beer garden.

The best way I can describe a beer garden is it's like a big party room, where you drink giant glasses of beer, eat traditional Bavarian/German food, and enjoy a ruckus good time.

You're seated at what is essentially picnic tables, and you very well could eat with or near other patrons.

The menu was giant, and I could have eaten a heck of a lot more.  I wanted to try so many things, but unlike the food on Royal Caribbean, each entree is quite large.

We ordered schnitzel, Bavarian potato soup, spätzle, and more.

And yes, I indulged in a liter of beer. Not only is it traditional, but we all were looking forward to sharing beers together.

The food was so good, and we had a great time sharing cruise stories, talking about how life is different in our countries, and just enjoying each other's company.

Sariana was sure to let the servers know we had to be finished by a certain time. Evidently if we hadn't, the two hours we had allocated for lunch wasn't long enough at a beer garden.

This reminded me the power of cruising

Going into Hamburg and eating with Sariana and her sister reminded me why I love to cruise.

We got to meet amazing people and try foods in a foreign city that we otherwise would not have done otherwise.

I doubt we'd have ever planned a land vacation to Hamburg, and even if we did, without the love of cruising, I never would have had the opportunity to spend time with Sariana and her family.

I think we all had a great time being in Germany and doing a very German thing. When you add friends to the equation, it becomes the perfect kind of day.

Not every cruise can go exactly as planned. I’ve learned that while it’s important to plan ahead, it’s just as important to stay flexible when the unexpected happens. As a matter of fact, traveling has made me more adaptable when plans go awry.

Being able to pivot during my recent cruise proved helpful when things didn’t go as planned. This spring, I embarked on a bucket-list sailing aboard Anthem of the Seas from Singapore to Tokyo, Japan. Traveling with my parents and sister, we couldn’t wait to explore new destinations like Vietnam, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan.

As one of Royal Caribbean’s most unique itineraries, I had a hard time finding other reviews while preparing for this trip. While you can find plenty of resources about cruising to the Caribbean, Alaska, and even Europe, this itinerary is far less popular.

Actually, the cruise line only operates this itinerary once or twice each year, particularly when ships are repositioning between Alaska and Australia. Anthem of the Seas was repositioning for her season in Alaska after cruising from Singapore.

I tried my best to plan accordingly for this port-intensive sailing across multiple countries in Asia. Even so, I made a few big mistakes during my recent cruise on Anthem of the Seas, and I learned valuable lessons along the way.

Mistake: I should have planned tours further in advance.

One of the biggest mistakes I made when planning this trip was not arranging all of our planned tours in advance. And when I say in advance, I mean several months before embarkation.

Although we had the majority of our excursions planned, there were a few days during our cruise that we left without plans. Sometimes, it can be nice to have flexibility in your schedule. However, we unfortunately waited too long to plan a tour for our disembarkation day in Tokyo, Japan.

I typically like to take advantage of disembarkation tours offered by the cruise line, especially when I have an evening flight. They’re a great way to spend the morning and early afternoon exploring before heading to the airport. These tours offer several benefits, including priority disembarkation, luggage storage, and convenient airport drop-off.

We kept waiting to see if Royal Caribbean would offer a disembarkation tour in Tokyo, but this was never offered. When we finally started to look for alternative options a few weeks before the cruise, we realized quickly that we should have planned months in advance. Little did we know our cruise would arrive in Japan during Golden Week, one of the country’s busiest tourist periods.

Instead of arranging tours with experienced guides for our time in Tokyo, we struggled to navigate the train stations on our own. When it came time to disembark, we couldn’t find a local company to provide the tour we were hoping for. Instead, we settled for Royal Caribbean’s transfer and spent most of our day waiting at the airport.

Read more: 5 things I wish I knew before trying a Royal Caribbean cruise in Asia

Lesson: I learned the importance of booking cruise-sponsored excursions.

Booking excursions through the cruise line can be expensive, and multiple tours on a longer itinerary can add up fast. Because we hadn’t visited many of these ports before, we opted to book Royal Caribbean excursions exclusively. In particular, some of the ports were located almost two hours from the actual city, such as Vietnam.

I was thankful we booked excursions with Royal Caribbean for these ports. First, we were able to enjoy our tours without stressing about returning for all aboard time. Some of the tours were hours late because of congested traffic in Vietnam, and I would have been stressed navigating heavy traffic on an independent excursion.

In addition, Royal Caribbean provided a refund on our excursion in Jeju Island, South Korea, when we arrived at the port an hour later than planned. When it was pouring rain, we even had the option to get a full refund due to the weather.

Mistake: I struggled to apply for the correct visa.

For this itinerary, Royal Caribbean provided guidance for visa applications. Like always, guests need to meet all entry requirements for countries on their cruise. As a United States citizen, we were told all Americans needed a Vietnam visa for this cruise. We were told to apply online for an electronic visa and to bring a printed copy for boarding in Singapore.

I followed the instructions for the visa, but my payment kept failing on the Vietnam government website. I panicked that my visa wouldn’t be approved in time. After charging a different credit card, I realized that my previous application had actually been approved when my credit card was charged twice. I ended up with two separate visas for Vietnam and paid more than necessary.

After warning my parents of the tedious and slightly confusing application process, they decided to use a consulate visa service. This was pricey at $200 each, but they received their visas without issue. Comparatively, my sister applied without issue and received her visa quickly.

Nonetheless, I wish I had applied earlier for the visa to allow more time for issues. I probably wouldn't have been in such a rush to submit a second application and avoided being double-charged.

Lesson: Make sure you always triple-check boarding requirements.

I’m a frequent cruiser, but I almost forgot to confirm all of my boarding requirements before heading to the airport. In an email, Royal Caribbean specifically provided guidance to bring multiple copies of your passport to board in Singapore. For some reason, I missed this email entirely.

Luckily, my dad sent a reminder in our family group chat for everyone to make copies of their passport before heading to Singapore. I was thankful for this reminder, as I would have completely missed this boarding requirement. During embarkation, it appeared Royal Caribbean would assist passengers who didn’t have the correct documentation. This would have slowed down the boarding process significantly, and it was a good reminder to always confirm the necessary documentation for a cruise.

Read more: I spent $6,773 to cruise on Anthem of the Seas. Here's what everything cost

Mistake: I should have pre-arranged transportation in Singapore.

My family isn’t exactly known for packing light, and with a two-week trip ahead of us, we ended up with even more luggage than you might expect! Because of this, we normally pre-arrange transportation from the airport and to the cruise port through a tour company, like Viator.

Although we had arranged transportation to the hotel, we hadn’t made plans for embarkation day transport. I tried to book numerous shuttles online, but every company was either booked or couldn’t transport all of our luggage.

It turned out to be more stressful than we expected, and we ultimately had to arrange two separate vehicles — one for us and another just for our luggage! It would have been better to prearrange our transportation to the cruise port so we didn’t need to worry about logistics on the morning of embarkation day.

Lesson: Get an early immigration ticket or waste your day waiting around.

For most cruises, you won’t need to worry about immigration requirements. However, some countries do require face-to-face immigration to disembark the ship, such as Japan. Royal Caribbean announced that immigration tickets would be handed out early in the morning before our arrival in the afternoon.

Luckily, my sister was ambitious and woke up early to wait in line for the immigration ticket. The line weaved across the entire Royal Esplanade! She was able to get us tickets for Immigration Group #3, allowing us to disembark quickly after our ship had arrived.

This proved to be crucial, as others in the later boarding group waited for hours for their immigration number to be called! We were able to visit Tokyo from Yokohama for a few hours and return to the ship before some passengers were able to immigrate. If you don’t want to waste time ashore, you should plan to wait in line for an early immigration ticket.

Mistake: I wasn’t prepared for the bad air quality.

Although I’ve visited countries across Asia before, I had never visited places like Vietnam or Hong Kong. As an asthmatic, I always travel with multiple inhalers, although my asthma rarely flares up.

I was surprised by the air quality’s impact on my asthma during this trip, especially in Vietnam and Hong Kong. Even sailing between these countries seemed to irritate my breathing. I used my inhaler more during this cruise than I have all year! My chest was tight, and I found myself wheezing in the mornings.

I should have prepared better for the air quality, and even considered bringing my additional inhaler for daily use. While I might not need to use this at home, I don’t want to find myself abroad without this. I should have planned better for this, but it wasn’t something that crossed my mind.

Lesson: Having travel insurance is crucial.

I learned just how valuable travel insurance can be during this cruise! I have an annual policy with Allianz, which provides coverage for all of my trips throughout the year. My return flight from Tokyo to Atlanta was delayed for 24 hours, leaving me and my sister stranded for the night.

Because of the busy tourist week in Japan, hotel rooms for the night were more than $400. To my surprise, Delta Air Lines only covered up to $250 for accommodations. Luckily, my travel insurance policy covered everything that the airline didn’t pay for. I was grateful knowing I was covered in these unexpected situations.

Moreover, my dad ended up visiting the medical facility onboard. Because he also has the same annual insurance policy, he didn’t hesitate to visit the shipboard doctor for a round of antibiotics when he needed.

If you travel more than once or twice each year, I highly recommend investing in an annual travel insurance policy so you are always covered while away from home.

Mistake: Booking a cruise right after dry dock.

Anthem of the Seas was scheduled to receive routine maintenance in Singapore during her spring dry dock. When we booked this cruise, we didn’t realize our sailing would be the first itinerary immediately after her dry dock.

I wasn’t worried about this until fellow Royal Caribbean Blog writer, Jenna, mentioned her Allure of the Seas sailing was delayed. She was also cruising on the first itinerary after Allure of the Seas’ major refurbishment dry dock. For this reason, Jenna said she typically avoids cruises right after dry dock because delays with maintenance can happen.

Thankfully, our itinerary wasn’t delayed. However, our ship did need to operate at a slower speed, which caused us to lose time in Jeju Island and Japan. We heard this was because of maintenance from the ship’s dry dock, although this wasn’t confirmed.

Even still, I hadn’t considered the risks of booking a cruise immediately after dry dock. Now, I will definitely keep this in mind when booking future itineraries.

Lesson: Having connecting rooms made all the difference on our cruise.

For this cruise, my sister and I chose to book a connecting balcony cabin with our parents. We had never purposely booked a connecting cabin before, so we were eager to see if we would like this stateroom arrangement.

To our surprise, this was one of the best decisions we made! When my dad was run down with a cold and coughing throughout the night, my mom ended up sleeping on our couch. Having the connecting stateroom allowed her to easily move from one room to the next. She ended up spending a few nights on our couch!

Overall, it was incredibly convenient to be able to pop in and out of each other’s cabins. We were even able to share our balconies together, which made the stateroom experience even better. We are already planning to book connecting balconies again in the future. 

When artificial intelligence first became mainstream with ChatGPT, I would have warned you against using it for planning your cruise.

Since the early adopters embraced artificial intelligence in 2023, it's leaped a considerable amount in terms of capabilities, and I think it can play a helpful role in planning a vacation.

The problem with planning a cruise is it's very nuanced and cruise line (and even ship) specific. I've found AI tends to lump policies and lines together and jump to certain conclusions that aren't reflective of the reality.

However, it's much better at land travel because there's so much more information available.

For my Royal Caribbean cruise to Europe, I determined booking traditional shore excursions was going to be a mistake because it's so easy to get around the cities of Europe on foot and via public transportation.

Instead, I started coming up with a list of places I wanted to visit in each city.  That's easy, but how to manage it all so I can see everything in the best order?

I looked to artificial intelligence for the easy answer

I created a spreadsheet of the restaurants, historical sights, and interesting places I wanted to visit in each city.  I compiled this list by watching a lot of YouTube videos to get a sense of what there was to do.

My goal was to determine the best order to see everything, minimize backtracking, and incorporate lunch and snack breaks.  

I could have spent time popping each area into Google Maps, but I'd have to cross reference hours of operation and then figure out the transportation system in each city.

Almost immediately, I was ready to give ChatGPT a try.

Using ChatGPT is easy, but the secret is to be as descriptive and specific as you can in your prompts to get the answer you want.  What I'm effectively asking it to do is read my mind with what I want.  

I started out with Oslo, Norway, and wrote out exactly what I wanted. Here's the prompt I used:

I want to visit Oslo, Norway and visit these 4 places:

- Opera house
- Royal Palace 
- Vigeland Sculpture Garden 
- Karl Johans Gate

Create a walking tour that begins where Royal Caribbean cruise ships dock, and ensure the walking tour takes a logical path to minimize backtracking, while taking us through the most scenic and beautiful areas tourists might be interested to see.

Prioritize walking, but if utilizing public transportation (such as the metro system) makes sense, than include that.

Our hours in port are 10am to 6pm, but plan to have us back at the ship by 4pm at the latest.

We have teenagers and tweens with us, so keep the walking pace leisurely.

Suggest spots for lunch or a snack where appropriate, but the 4 places identified are the top priorities to see.

It generated a time based list of each place to visit, how to get there, and what to look for at each spot.

There's a certain amount of trust that its plan will work out, but I was willing to try.

I then asked it to export the tour to a custom Google Map, after reading an unrelated article about how easy it's become to create custom maps.

It initially gave me directions how to add each pinpoint on my own, but at the end it offered to provide a downloadable KML file that I could import into My Maps to save time.

"Heck yea I want to save time!"

It gave me the code to use, I saved it as a file, and then imported the data into Google Maps.  Instantly, I had a map planned out with all our stops and in which order to use it.

I repeated this process for each port.  After trying it once, it becomes very quick.

Embrace, but use with caution

I loved how easy it all was to create these custom tours, but I was sure to verify it wouldn't lead me astray.

In our first port of Oslo, ChatGPT guessed incorrectly which port we'd dock at.  It thought we would be at the Akershus Cruise Terminal, but Independence of the Seas docked near Akker Brygge. 

That meant our walking plan was off kilter because our starting point was at a different area of town.

That's not a big deal, because my custom Google Map allowed me to pick the closest spot, and get walking directions and go from there.

In fact, leveraging Google Maps was the best idea. ChatGPT had the plan, but Google Maps gave me real-time advice on if I should walk, taxi, or use public transportation.

I'd advise anyone to export the data into Google Maps to easily reference where you're going.

In Copenhagen, it was correct where we docked and just about everything. 

Sometimes the coordinates it used for the custom Map would be off by a block, but it got me so close that I could easily look around and figure it out.

The lesson is you still need to double check your plan as you go, and not simply blindly follow it.

It lacks the benefits of a good tour guide

I think I absolutely did the right thing by planning out my city tour in each port on my own with the assistance of AI, but it couldn't do everything.

I wish I had more information along the way, like I would with a tour. Or at least more information at the places I visited.

On the one hand, I don't love traditional tours where the host points out everything around you at all times and shares an endless stream of historical facts. But on the other hand, I wish there was a little more information about the things we saw.

An audio guide is what I probably want, but audio guides have a lot of extra fluff in them.  I'd love to be able to ask questions on the fly, like who is that statue and why are they important? Or what else is nearby that might be cool to see?

Or I could have ChatGPT provide more detail on each stop and I could somehow reference that information in Google Maps or bookmark it somehow.

AI can be a great tool, but it's not foolproof

Without a doubt, using AI to plan my city touring in Europe was a really smart decision that made it so much easier.

I loved how it organized and analyzed what I wanted to do. 

However, it was critical that I put in the effort to find interesting things to do rather than rely on it to provide them. 

Plus, you can't blindly let it lead you. Consider it your first suggestion, but always double check it as you progress.  

Lastly, I'd highly recommend having Google Maps and a cellular data connection so you can make the right transportation decision easily. My favorite eSim to use is Orange sim (this is an affiliate link, that costs you nothing extra but I make a small commission). 

The newest and biggest ships get the most attention, but there are lots of good reasons to sail the older ships too.

New cruisers might be tepid about going on an older ship because they're not sure if it's better to cruise on a small ship.  

When I started cruising, I thought small ships were going to disappointing and lack the aspects of a cruise that I thought I needed.  But the more I cruised, the more I discovered what smaller ships can offer.

Royal Caribbean's older ships might be the best choice for value and what they offer onboard.

What’s the difference between older and newer Royal Caribbean ships

The age of a cruise ship is a detail, but it doesn't tell the whole story of what a cruise ship is all about.

In general, an older ship usually correlates to being smaller too.  As ships have been built over the years, they've gotten bigger and added more activities, restaurants, and special areas.

The first thing you'll notice about an older Royal Caribbean ship is the size, and the second thing is what it may not have onboard.

If you've cruised on new ships, you may quickly notice if there's an area or feature not onboard.  But if you've never cruised before, the differences may not be as obvious.

Older ships may not have as many dining choices, or they may not have the updated menus with them. 

You may also find there's less of the top deck signature attractions that families clamor for. A ship built 10-15 years ago would have more than a ship built 20 years ago.  It's almost like a sliding scale in that regard.

Something else different about an older ship is the aesthetic of the vessel, such as the cabin decor and look of the halls and public venues.

It's not a problem, but going from a brand new ship to an older ship would have a different look and feel.

Pros and cons of older Royal Caribbean ships

There are many good reasons to try an older ship, so don't let it stop you.

I think the top reason I pick an older ship is the value.  Older ships don't command the higher prices that new ones do, and that opens up more possibilities.

Spending less on a cruise means money saved, or you could move up to a bigger stateroom.

The other best thing about an older ship is where it sails to, as you're more likely to find more exotic destinations on them compared to new ships.

While new ships are relegated primarily to the same traditional ports, older ships get to visit more far flung places.

Something else I like about older ships is they have received upgrades that keep the ship interesting.

Depending on the exact ship, there could be new restaurants, water slides, or even shows onboard. Many of these concepts come from new ships, so you can experience the better options without paying for a new ship.

However, there's no question a new ship has the latest and greatest Royal Caribbean has come up with.

New ships are fun because of how much there is to do, eat, and experience. It's overwhelming in a good way, and I love it.

Families especially love new ships because there's more specialized for them. You'll find many more areas dedicated for kids programming on new ships, especially younger cruisers.

New ships have an undeniable cool factor to them. There's a humble brag that comes with being able to say you tried a new ship.

Older ships I recommend trying

If you're sold on the idea of trying an older ship, here are the best small Royal Caribbean ships to consider.

Brilliance of the Seas: The Radiance Class is my favorite small ship in the fleet because they're beautiful ships with good variety of dining choices.

I'd pick Brilliance for where it sails to, as well as the fun onboard. I've sailed the most on Brilliance, and it's never disappointed.

Mariner of the Seas: One of early my favorite cruise ships, Mariner of the Seas has some of the best upgrades of any older ship.

Because it has a Royal Promenade, it has a big ship feel without the new ship price.  I consistently find great deals on Mariner, which also contributed to why I've sailed as often as I have on it.

Freedom of the Seas: Another ship that got fun upgrades as part of a refurbishment, Freedom of the Seas is even bigger than Mariner and it's probably the best "step down" from a new ship to try first.

Are older Royal Caribbean ships worth it?

I think there are really good reasons to cruise on a small and old ship, so don't limit yourself just to the new ones.

While I think a new ship is ideal for a new cruiser because they offer the greatest variety of how to cruise, older ships are a good idea to graduate to as you want to sail more often.

Families that want non-stop activities and the best options for kids of varying ages will still find new ships to be ideal.

If you're worried about being bored on a small ship, pick a port intensive itinerary so you're less dependent on the ship.

Writing off a ship based on age or size alone is a mistake because of how much more of the cruising experience you can take advantage of. From different places to visit, venues to try, and money to save, I think older ships are a great idea for just about anyone.