Royal Caribbean Blog

Royal Caribbean has extended its Cruise with Confidence cancellation policy to now include sailings through November 30, 2020.

The popular program allows guests to cancel a cruise for any reason up to 48 hours before a sailing is scheduled to depart in exchange for a future cruise credit.

It was scheduled to end on September 30, 2020 prior to the extension.

In addition, the Lift and Shift option will be extended to November 30, 2020.  Lift and Shift allows guests to defer their cruise by a year.

The Cruise with Confidence program was introduced at the beginning of the health crisis, and provides significantly relaxed rules concerning canceling a cruise if the situation changes for a guest.

Royal Caribbean Group chairman and CEO Richard Fain thinks this extension makes a lot of sense for guests, "We want our guests to feel they can safely keep their existing cruise bookings or schedule new sailings, because this policy gives them more freedom and flexibility."

Ordinarily, guests would incur a penalty for canceling a sailing beyond the final payment date, which is typically 90 days before a sailing commences. Cruise with Confidence provides a great deal more flexibility to change minds with no penalty.

The extension applies to all cruises with sailing dates on or before April 2022, and applies to the company’s global brands Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, and Azamara.

Cruise with Confidence future cruise credits expire on December 31, 2021 or 12 months from the cancellation date, whichever is further out.

In summer 2021, Royal Caribbean will offer a Kids Sail Free deal that includes nearly all of the summer 2021 cruises.

The Kids Sail Free deal has always been a popular option, where kids 12 years old and under in the same room as two adults are free to cruise, but there has always been a lot of blackout dates that usually coincide with when school is out of session.

The only blackout date is the week of July 4th (June 28 - July 6, 2021).

The new Fall For Adventure sale during the month of October will offer 60% off the second guest, up to $100 off instantly and kids sail free all summer.

The new deal begins October 1, 2020, so you will not see new pricing until that date.

Deal details

Kids Sail Free + Summer applies to new bookings made between October 1 — November 5, 2020. Kids Sail Free provides free cruise fare for 3rd guests and higher who are 12 years old or younger as of cruise departure date, booked in the same stateroom as the first two qualifying guests in a triple or quad-occupancy stateroom.

Kids Sail Free applies to select 3-night or longer Alaska, Bahamas, Bermuda, Canada, Caribbean, CaribNE, Coastal, Europe, Hawaii, and Repositioning sailings departing between November 1, 2020 — December 17, 2020 and January 8, 2021 — December 17, 2021.

Offer excludes 2020 Thanksgiving sailings (Sailings between November 21 — 28, 2020), 2021 President’s Day Sailings (Sailings between February 12 —ƒ 15, 2021), 2021 Spring Break and Easter sailings (Sailings between March 13 — April 4, 2021), Independence Day sailings (Sailings between June 28 — July 6, 2021) and 2021 Thanksgiving Sailings (Sailings between November 19 — 26, 2021).

Taxes, fees, and port expenses are additional and apply to all guests.

Is this a good deal?

Kids Sail Free deals definitely save money, but the issue has always been finding dates that were not blacked out. With Kids Sail Free being offered over the summer, there is ample opportunity for families to take advantage of the offer.

Your best value with Kids Sail Free will be in the higher category rooms, especially balcony and suite rooms, where the savings on the third and fourth passenger are more substantial.

Of course, Kids Sail Free deal requires the kids to be in the same stateroom as the parents, so you cannot split across multiple rooms and use the offer.

Using a good travel agent, you can easily compare and contrast prices between sailings.

When you arrive at the cruise terminal for the first day of your cruise, there are porters waiting to take your luggage so that it can be delivered to your stateroom on the ship.

Should you use their services, and if so, what is the "catch"?

They're there to make things easier

Porters are a convenience meant to simplify the process of getting your belongings on a cruise ship.

Think of porters like curbside luggage check-in at the airport.  You drive up to them, drop off all of your checked luggage and they lug the bags to be delivered to the ship.

There is no fee for their services, but a tip is customary for their services.  Usually $1-2 per bag is what most people pay.

You will give them anything you will not need for the first few hours after getting onboard.  Luggage gets delivered onboard the ship in the afternoon and early evening, once it gets scanned by security and delivered to the appropriate deck.

Be sure that each piece of luggage is tagged with luggage tags. If not, a porter can provide one on the spot.

What if you don't use a porter?

If you opt not to use a porter, you will have to take your luggage by yourself through the cruise terminal and onto the ship.

Keep in mind your luggage must be able to fit through the security x-ray machine in the cruise terminal, so if it cannot, you will have to send your luggage with the porters.

After the cruise is over

Upon disembarking your cruise ship on the last morning of your cruise, there will be porters available to help you with your luggage.

Just like on embarkation day, there is no fee to use their services, but tipping is expected.

Not only will porters make things easier on you on that final morning, but in many cruise ports, porters have their own line for getting through customs which can greatly speed up exiting the terminal.

Should you use a porter?

I always use porters on embarkation day or on disembarkation for the convenience they provide at very reasonable cost.

For $1-2 per bag, it is a bargain to have someone else lift and drag my bags around. 

Plus, I have found porters to be invaluable on the final day to get through customs faster. In some terminals there are special lines for them, and even when there is not, porters often shave time off by knowing where to go and when to expedite the process.

All too often I see some family with all of their bags dragging them through the ship, into the elevators, and stacking them on the pool deck or in the Windjammer while they wait for the room to be ready. 

In short, the low cost of having to tip is worth using them.

Helpful tips for using porters

• Make sure your luggage tags are affixed to every piece of luggage before you get to the terminal.
• If you run out of luggage tags (or forget them), porters can provide ones for you.
• Luggage may not be delivered until the evening, so keep anything important with you (medicine, sunscreen, swimsuits, anything you need for dinner).
• Keep a few small bills for porters for easy tipping.

Happy weekend! We have a look back at all the Royal Caribbean news from this week to share with all of you.

Royal Caribbean's Healthy Sail Panel released its initial recommendations this week, outlining a plan for cruises to safely return.

The detailed list of recommendations encompasses 74 steps and is 65 pages long, tackling a number of scenarios and approaches for ensuring guests and crew members are safe, while mitigating any infection onboard.

Here is a look at the most important health protocol changes to know about.

Royal Caribbean News

• Royal Caribbean will redeploy five cruise ships for summer 2021.
• Royal Caribbean executives have not ruled out cruises in 2020 yet.
• 4 Cruise CEOs see cruises restarting in USA thanks to newly announced safety policies.
• Miami-Dade Mayor has called for the CDC not to extend No Sail order.
• The option to Lift & Shift your cruise until next year expires in a few days.
• Royal Caribbean Group Chairman says new health protocols help cruises "coming back sooner".
• 6 questions we still have after Royal Caribbean released new health guidelines.
• Will the new Senate bill help the cruise lines restart?
• 5 recommendations for wearing masks on cruise ships by the Healthy Sail Panel.
• Royal Caribbean and NCL CEOs had a good laugh on television this week.
• The best spot for sailaway on every Royal Caribbean cruise ship.
• A preview of a new drone show for Odyssey of the Seas.
• There is still time to save money on a pre-cruise purchase during the Fall into Savings sale.

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 373rd episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available, where Josh shares how a cruise on Adventure of the Seas changed how he cruises forever.

Josh took a cruise on Adventure of the Seas, unaware of all the new friends he would make onboard, and it completely changed how he would approach cruising.

Please feel free to subscribe via iTunes or RSS, and head over to rate and review the podcast on iTunes if you can! We’d appreciate it.

New RCB Video: Top myths people believe about cruises!

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 — Top myths people believe about cruises — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

5 things you've probably overlooked with the new cruise protocols

The Healthy Sail Panel announced sweeping changes in how cruise ships operate in order to keep them safe, so it is very easy to omit some important takeaways.

In looking over the 65 pages of information provided by this group of globally recognized medical and scientific experts, there is a lot of considerations and notes for the future included with the new rules.

I picked out five really important things to keep in mind when it comes to reviewing these new protocols.

Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos A. Gimenez issued a statement on Saturday to call for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to not extend or renew the No Sail order.

The the Miami-Dade County Commission passed a resolution "to expedite and conclude any analysis necessary for the establishment of the public health guidance and preventative measures required prior to the resumption of travel on cruise ships."

The No Sail order is scheduled to expire on September 30, unless it gets extended, and it is chiefly responsible for cruise lines from resuming sailings in the United States.

Mayor Gimenez simply stated, "Now that the cruise industry has adopted the mandatory core elements, I urge the CDC to not extend or renew the “No Sail Order."

The statement highlighted the core elements of the new health protocols aimed at allowing cruise ships to resume passenger service.

The new health measures mentioned by the Mayor in his statement focus on the major changes proposed including:

1. 100% testing of passengers and crew for COVID-19 prior to embarkation
2. Mandatory wearing of masks by all passengers and crew onboard 
3. Physical distancing in terminals, onboard ships, on private islands and during shore excursions.
4. Air management and ventilation strategies to increase fresh air onboard and, where feasible, using enhanced filters and other technologies to mitigate risk.
5. Dedicated cabin capacity for isolation and other operational measures, and arrangements with private providers for shoreside quarantine, medical facilities and transportation.

After Royal Caribbean Group announced the initial recommendations of its Healthy Sail Panel, Royal Caribbean's top executives said that cruises in 2020 are not completely out of the question.

There is no doubt that every cruise line would love to salvage something of the 2020 season, but the question is how feasible is it to have cruises this year?

Speaking to a few different media outlets this past week, sailings from the United States at some point in 2020 have not been completely ruled out.

When Royal Caribbean Group Chairman and CEO Richard Fain was asked by Cruise Critic if cruises starting in November was realistic, he stated, "I think the idea that we could be having cruising in November, under a very strict set of protocols, is absolutely in the cards."

Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley told The Points Guy that there is scenario he can envision where cruises begin in November, "If everything lined up, then we would be feeling good about starting in November."

Mr. Bayley also spoke to Seatrade Cruise News and said, "I feel like things are lining up. Everything's beginning to fall in place".

Both executives cautioned readers in every statement that any resumption of cruises in 2020 is dependent on a things falling into place, and there is ample examples in the past few months why caution is necessary.

Royal Caribbean has been shutdown since mid-March, and currently has sailings possibly restarting in November, but still has not released its cruise-line specific new health protocols derived from the Healthy Sail Panel recommendations, nor have they released a startup plan of which ships will begin sailing and where.

The other major factor is the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) No Sail Order, which is set to expire on September 30, but could still be extended.

Richard Fain told travel advisors his company has not yet heard back from the CDC officially on the Healthy Sail Panel protocols, nor if the No Sail Order will be extended or not.

"No, we only just gave it to them on Monday, and as you've seen, it is a extensive and comprehensive document, but we have not heard any comment back from them since we submitted it on Monday, nor would we have expected to do that quickly."

Mr. Fain indicated that its new cruise line policies will be issued "relatively soon".

Assuming Royal Caribbean follows the recommendations for restarting cruises that the Healthy Sail Panel outlined, they will begin with a series of test cruises, where Royal Caribbean employees act as guests and the cruise experience is simulated in order to test and adjust the new policies.

The cruise industry has a history of conducting test sailings when they introduce a new product. These are normally several cruises of short duration with selected invited guests and limited itineraries, which gives the operator the opportunity to train the crew and refine its procedures. We believe that such a process could be helpful in the introduction of these protocols and procedures, giving the operators the opportunity to ensure that their programs are well understood and work appropriately.

In conjunction with succesful tests, it is likely the cruise line will announce some kind of start up plan where certain ships and sail dates are confirmed as ready to sail.

All of this work is centered around the question of can Royal Caribbean come back to a safe and healthy environment, which is what Mr. Fain asked the Panel.

"And their answer was, if you adopt all these protocols, you can."

"And obviously we are going to, and we believe that will greatly accelerate the time, so we're looking forward to coming back sooner."

When your Royal Caribbean cruise ship begins to sail away from port and your cruise actually begins, you will probably want to have the best spot to enjoy the view as your ship departs.

There is plenty going on during sailaway on a Royal Caribbean ship, and if you want to find my recommendation for the best spot to enjoy sailaway, here is a list of the top spot on every ship in the fleet.

Keep in mind that this is a very subjective list, as there is no way to qualitatively determine the superior spot. I have chosen some good places that should fit most people's needs, but keep in mind you should scout out your own spot ahead of sailaway and determine what you want in a sailaway spot.

Some people prefer there to be music and a party, ample beverages available, or perhaps the best view possible.

Top sailaway spots for every ship

Spectrum of the Seas: Bridge wings near Solarium, or anywhere on top deck

Symphony of the Seas: Bridge wings on deck 14

Ovation of the Seas: Bridge wings near Solarium, or anywhere on top deck

Harmony of the Seas: Bridge wings on deck 14

Anthem of the Seas: Bridge wings near Solarium, or anywhere on top deck

Quantum of the Seas: Bridge wings near Solarium, or anywhere on top deck

Allure of the Seas: Bridge wings on deck 14

Oasis of the Seas: Bridge wings on deck 14

Independence of the Seas: Helipad on deck 4

Liberty of the Seas: Helipad on deck 4

Freedom of the Seas: Helipad on deck 4

Jewel of the Seas: Helipad on deck 5

Serenade of the Seas: Helipad on deck 5

Mariner of the Seas: Helipad on deck 4

Brilliance of the Seas: Helipad on deck 5

Navigator of the Seas: Helipad on deck 4

Radiance of the Seas: Helipad on deck 5

Adventure of the Seas: Helipad on deck 4

Explorer of the Seas: Helipad on deck 4

Voyager of the Seas: Helipad on deck 4

Vision of the Seas: Solarium or anywhere on top deck

Enchantment of the Seas: Solarium or anywhere on top deck

Rhapsody of the Seas: Solarium or anywhere on top deck

Grandeur of the Seas: Solarium or anywhere on top deck

Majesty of the Seas: Viking Crown Lounge

Empress of the Seas: Anywhere on top deck

Other great spots for sailaway on any ship

Your balcony

If you are staying in a balcony or suite cabin, you have access to your own private spot to enjoy sailaway.

Having a balcony is a quieter experience than sailaway on other decks of the ship, and it allows you to see the scenery going by from the comfort of your balcony, or even from inside the room with the blinds open.

Families with young children may find sailaway from their balcony room a great choice, since the child can nap or play quietly while you still get to see everything going by.

Pool deck party

Weather permitting, there will be a party somewhere on the ship that coincides with sailaway. 

You can expect a DJ playing fun music and crew members leading everyone in dancing.  In addition, the nearby bars are open and waiters taking drink orders as well.

The sailaway party is usually a safe bet if you are new to cruising, or looking for where to go where most others will congregate.

Spa

If you are looking for an alternative way to enjoy sailaway, how about from the massage table at the Vitality Spa?

The spa is open on embarkation day, and some of the best deals are offered to anyone who wants to book a treatment on the first day of the cruise, especially during sailaway. Since there are less people willing to skip sailaway, the deals can be quite lucrative.

Plus, getting a massage is a fun and relaxing way to kick off your cruise vacation.

What is your favorite sailaway spot?

Which sailaway spot do you love to go to? Share the ship and place you love to go for sailaway in the comments!

One of Royal Caribbean's most popular ways to move a booked cruise during the shutdown is about to expire.

The Lift and Shift program allows guests to take a booking they have and move to next year, while keeping the price they have locked in from this year.

Lift and Shift is set to expire as an option to use at the end of this month, and RoyalCaribbeanBlog has learned there are no plans to extend it.

An email from a Royal Caribbean Strategic Account Manager confirmed the program is set to expire, "Currently we do not have a plan to extend the Lift & Shift past this end of the month.  Should anything change with the Global suspension, dates will be adjusted accordingly. "

Since being offered as an option during the global cruise shutdown, Lift and Shift has proven to be a practical and lucrative option for guests who simply wish to push off their cruise until the same time next year.

Not only does it avoid having to cancel a reservation, get a refund, and then re-book and re-pay for everything, it also allows the guest to keep their current price, which is often lower than the price of a cruise next year.

Until September 30, guests can protect their original cruise fare and promotional offer by shifting to a future sailing on the same itinerary type, length, stateroom category and within the same four-week period of their original cruise date same time next year.

Guests are eligible to rebook under the Lift & Shift guidelines between now and September 30, 2020. After this point, Lift & Shift expires and is no longer eligible.

Note that while Lift & Shift is set to expire, the Cruise with Confidence program still allows customers to cancel their cruise up to 48 hours before their cruise and recieve a Future Cruise Credit for sailings that set sail on or before April 30th, 2022.

Earlier this week, the Healthy Sail Panel released its initial recommendations for every cruise line to employ in order to make a safe and healthy return to sailing, but it did not answer every question cruisers have about what cruises will be like once they start up.

The Healthy Sail Panel addressed the major topics related to keeping guests and crew healthy on a cruise, while mitigating the chances of any kind of widespread infections. However, there are still a few areas that will need to be addressed by Royal Caribbean in their cruise line-specific protocols.

Here are the major questions RoyalCaribbeanBlog readers have expressed after reading the new recommendations.

What will be the reduced capacity of ships?

For quite a while we have known that the initial cruises that start up will not be at 100% capacity. Royal Caribbean has said many times, and the Panel agrees, that it will artificially reduce the capacity of its ships by not selling as many staterooms as possible.

Neither the Panel nor Royal Caribbean have given an exact percentage to this figure.

Royal Caribbean Group Chairman and CEO Richard Fain was not able to give an exact figure during a webinar with travel advisors on Wednesday, "I think that is something that we will be dealing with. It will change over time. One of the recommendations from the panel is that we do this incrementally. So we start back and we do some test sailing."

"I don't have a number, and any number I start with is going to be wrong right away afterwards....it may depend on the ships too, it's not there's some magic percentage."

In addition, many guests want to know what happens if a particular sailing already is sold beyond that threshold and what logic will be implemented in order to determine who is not able to sail.

Any changes to Adventure Ocean?

The Healthy Sail Panel recommendations made little mention of children, and no references at all to the children's programming onboard.

While some may believe it will continue operating like any other area of the ship (albeit with the same mask protocols and other ship-wide policies), others are wondering if additional protocols for Adventure Ocean will be added.

Could there be reduced capacity at Adventure Ocean? Will check-in or check-out be handled differently in order to promote social distancing?

Will I get a refund if I test positive?

Another major concern is what happens if you test positive, either before your cruise or at check-in. Will you receive a refund since you are unable (but not unwilling) to cruise?

While the cruise contract everyone signs when booking a cruise seemingly offers no compensation, nothing about the current situation is usual, so will there be any special handling.

One of the recommendations by the Panel is Royal Caribbean is  "incumbent upon cruise operators to foster a culture of caring and compliance for guests."

"This includes education around the need for honesty and timeliness in reporting of COVID-19 symptoms or exposure without fear of negative repercussions."

Can I sightsee before my cruise?

A popular choice for many is to fly to their cruise embarkation port early and do some sightseeing, but will that still be permitted?

The Panel recommends getting a negative test in the days leading up to the cruise, but will going out to see various tourist attractions compromise the integrity of the test.

Will there be a rule prohibiting it, or will testing at the cruise terminal be the final means of determining health.

What changes will be made to the Windjammer and other counter service venues?

A major concern over the last few months was the fate of the Windjammer buffet, but the Panel barely mentioned it.

There is one mention of buffet, where it says it should not be self-service, "the Panel believes that removal of, and substitution for, self-service buffets during this time will help to maintain these general distancing guidelines and avoid overcrowding, and should therefore be implemented across all ships."

This could be easily achieved by having crew members serve guests, but it is unclear yet as to if that will be the only change.

Exactly where will I be able to not wear a mask?

A major focal point is the requirement to wear masks while onboard, although there are at least a few areas where masks are not required.

The question remains where exactly will masks not be required.

The Panel noted masks are not needed in these locations:

• Cabin
• Seating in restaurants and bars/lounges
• Outdoor settings as long as physical distancing is feasible

Will this be the only places, or are more available? How will smoking be handled in designated areas? Is the Solarium considered an outdoor setting?

Last week, two U.S. Senators introduced a new piece of legislation to Congress that it hopes will get cruise ships sailing again while changing the structure of how cruise lines are regulated, but does this bill have a chance of actually becoming law?

Senators Rick Scott and Marco Rubio introduced the Set Sail Safely Act that if passed, will create a Maritime Task Force focused on the health, safety, security, & logistical changes to allow cruise lines & ports to resume operations. 

While this proposed new law sounds great, what exactly should cruise fans and the industry expect going forward? 

The reality of most bills

In order to get some answers, I turned to Kelli Davis, who is an adjunct government professor and high school social studies teacher in Texas.

In order for any bill to become law, it has to pass a few key steps, including a few votes along the way. In fact, only about two to three percent of legislation that gets introduced actually becomes law.

Otto von Bismark famously said, "If you like laws and sausages, you should never watch either one being made," and digging into the nuances of Congress, it becomes quite clear why.

Many times in Congress, bills are introduced as so-called "PR bills", whose purpose is to build public relations with constituents or other allies within the Senate or House of Representatives.

While these PR bills may not ever have a chance of becoming law, it does bring attention to the issue. In the case of the Set Sail Safely Act, both Senators issued press releases related to it, and it got national attention across major media outlets.

The Set Sail Safely Act

While we won't know the full intention of this bill without talking to either Senator, it does stand to reason that both Florida Senators created this bill as a way to demonstrate they recognize the concern for the cruise industry and the ripple effect it is having on their constituents.

Ms. Davis provided her opinion of the motivation behind proposing this kind of legislation, "It's the people that own businesses in Fort Lauderdale, in Miami, in Cocoa Beach, who are dealing with the ripple effect of the cruisers and the cruise industry not being there. And so Rubio and Scott, both with this bill, are able to say, if anything, they're able to put out a press release. Hey, we're trying to do something for you. We're trying to help you."

The Set Sail Safely Act has been introduced, and has been read into the record and referred to the Commerce Committee that deals with science and transpiration.

Ms. Davis points out that of the twenty three members of the Commerce Committee, only six have cruise ports their states. Not to mention the Senate is currently embroiled in the fight over whether or not to replace the vacancy on the Supreme Court.

"Ultimately what will determine whether or not this bill gets a vote is whether it's deemed important," Ms. Davis explained. "Is it important enough to the committee members to give it a hearing, to give it time, to give it consideration, to give it a vote, because it requires a vote from the committee to get it to the floor for a full Senate vote."

Royal Caribbean Group Chairman and CEO Richard Fain was asked about the new legislation during a webinar with travel advisors on Wednesday, and he also seems to feel the thought behind the bill means more than the potential new law itself.

"I'm not really going to comment so much on the legislation that's been proposed, but I think what it does show is it's another example of the desire of people to get back to closer sense of normalcy if and only if we can do it in a healthy and safe manner."

"I think the introduction of that legislation shows there is political support and we have it in so many other ways that provided we can do so in a healthy and safe manner."

Next steps for the bill

In order for the Set Sail Safely Act to become law, it would have to get enough votes to make it out of committee, then it goes to the full floor for a debate on the full floor. 

Depending on how the debate turns out, then it would go to full vote and then the whole process has to start all over again in the House of Representatives.

You can track the progress of the bill on the U.S. Congress website.