Royal Caribbean Blog

Our newest podcast episode is out to help give you a quick "audio escape" to a Royal Caribbean cruise!

Episode 312 is available for downloading where our friend Susan reviews her recent Alaska cruise on Radiance of the Seas.

Susan recently took a southbound Alaska cruise on Radiance of the Seas and shares what she saw and did in each port, as well as her tips for taking a cruise to Alaska.

Here’s the podcast page for Episode 312. And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Stitcher or on iTunes!

Take a listen and as always, let us know what you think! Please rate and review the podcast on iTunes and leave your comments below!

Royal Caribbean rolled out its new WOW Sale that features 50% off the second guest, kids sail free and bonus onboard credit.

The WOW Sale runs between July 24 – 28, 2019 and is valid on select sailings departing on or after August 24, 2019.

It includes:

• BOGO50 provides 50% off cruise fare of second guest booked in the same stateroom as first, full-fare paying guest.
• BOGO50 offer also provides 25% cruise fare savings for third guests and higher booked in the same stateroom as the first two qualifying guests.
• Kids Sail Free applies to new bookings made between July 24 –31, 2019 
  • Kids Sail Free provides free cruise fare for 3rd guests and higher who are 12 years old or younger on select 4-night or longer Alaska, Bahamas, Bermuda, Canada, Caribbean, CaribNE, Coastal, Europe, Hawaii, and Repositioning sailings departing between September 1, 2019 – May 15, 2020 and August 31, 2020 – December 17, 2020.
  • Offer excludes 2019 Thanksgiving sailings (Sailings between November 23 – 30, 2019), Holiday sailings (Sailings between December 15, 2019 – January 3, 2020), President’s Day sailings (Sailings between February 14 – 17, 2020), Spring Break sailings (Sailings between March 14 – 23, 2020), Holy Week/Easter sailings (Sailings between April 3 – 17, 2020) and 2020 Thanksgiving sailings (Sailings between November 21 – 27, 2020).
  • In addition, Kids Sail Free applies to all Serenade of the Seas Alaska 2020 sailings.
• WOW Sale offers up to $300 to spend at sea per stateroom determined by category booked and sailing length:
  • Sailings 5 nights or less, $50 OBC for Interior and Ocean View, $75 for Balconies and $150 for Suites
  • Sailings 6 nights or longer, $75 OBC for Interior and Ocean View, $100 for Balconies and $300 for Suites.
  • Onboard credit does not apply to China departures.
• Deck the Holiday Deals applies to new bookings made between July 24-28, 2019
  • Deck the Holiday Deals offers instant savings of up to $100 per stateroom on select sailings departing between December 2 – 31, 2019 and November 30 – December 31, 2020.
  • Savings amount determined by category booked and sailing length:
    • Sailings 5 nights or less, $25 savings for Interior and Ocean View, $50 for Balconies and $50 for Suites
    • Sailings 6 nights or longer, $50 savings for Interior and Ocean View, $75 for Balconies and $100 for Suites

BOGO50 and Deck the Holiday Deals are combinable with each other as well as with promotional OBCs, NextCruise offers, instant savings, restricted discounts (for example, Seniors, Residents, Military), Promo Code driven offers, Free Upgrades, Crown and Anchor discounts and Shareholder Benefits. BOGO50 and Kids Sail Free are combinable with each other as well as with promotional OBCs, NextCruise offers, instant savings, restricted discounts (for example, Seniors, Residents, Military), Promo Code driven offers, Free Upgrades, Crown and Anchor discounts and Shareholder Benefits. Kids Sail Free and Deck the Holiday Deals are combinable with each other for sailings departing December 2-14, 2019 November 28 – December 17, 2020 only. WOW Sale is combinable with BOGO50, Deck the Holiday Deals, Kids Sail Free as well as with promotional OBCs, NextCruise offers, Instant Savings, restricted discounts (for example, Seniors, Residents, Military), Promo Code driven offers Free Upgrades and Shareholder Benefits but not combinable with Crown and Anchor discounts. Offers are not combinable with any other offer or promotion, including, but not limited to, Standard Group, Interline, Travel Agent, Travel Agent Friends and Family, Weekly Sales Events, and Net Rates. Promo Code driven offers are based on select ships and sail dates and must be applied at time of booking, limit one promo code per booking. 

Offer available to residents of United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and select countries in the Caribbean. 

Our brand new RoyalCaribbeanBlog video is out, and we are sharing the top things Royal Caribbean pros never do, and neither should you!

We have some tips from Royal Caribbean veterans on the things to avoid doing to make sure you have an awesome Royal Caribbean cruise. After all, veteran cruises have been through the wringer a few times, and we can all learn from their experiences! And if you have a tip of your own to share, we would love to hear about it in a comment below!

And if you love this video, we have lots of other great cruise videos to watch on our Royal Caribbean Blog YouTube Channel!

By the way, have you subscribed yet? Be sure to subscribe to our channel and never miss a single video!

So check out the video and then let us know: What is your Royal Caribbean pro tip?

Royal Caribbean has released version 1.19.1 of its new smartphone app, which makes the personalized calendar easier to access and the ability for guests to see their location on the Perfect Day at CocoCay map.

The new update makes it easier for guests to use the app to find their way around Royal Caribbean's private destination in the Bahamas.

The enablement of location services in the app is important, because it is one possible step towards a goal Royal Caribbean has previously advertised of one day allowing guests to order food or beverages via the app and be subsequently delivered to them (known as the Bring Me program).  That feature is being actively worked on, but the digital team is still taking the necessary steps to ensure that the program meets Royal Caribbean's program goals around guest service, technology and operations. 

It remains to be seen if the cruise line will roll out Bring Me first on a ship, or at a location like Perfect Day at CocoCay.

In addition, the 1.19.1 release made the personalized calendar easier to access.

The app is available on the iTunes App Store and Google Play Store.

Happy Sunday! We hope you are having a great weekend! Now it’s time to sit back, relax, and catch up on all the Royal Caribbean news from the week!

The big news of the week was when two Royal Caribbean ships skipped stops in San Juan, Puerto Rico due to concerns over protests in the area.

Empress of the Seas and Harmony of the Seas were re-routed due to political demonstrations in the island's capital. Harmony of the Seas was rerouted on Wednesday to its next port of St. Maarten, while Empress of the Seas visited Tortola instead.

The good news is by Thursday, Allure of the Seas was able to visit San Juan as scheduled.

Royal Caribbean News

• Meet Royal Caribbean's new Crown and Anchor Society Member Ambassador!
• Constructions will begin soon on Coco Beach Club.
• Royal Caribbean will begin charging for select signature attractions on Singapore sailings
• Royal Caribbean's second quarter earnings call with investors is scheduled for next week.
• Royal Caribbean has begun scheduling stops at Glacier Bay National Park.
• Cruise Critic named Royal Caribbean the Top Cruise Line in two regions of the world.
• The first blow-dry bar at sea opened on Navigator of the Seas recently.
• You can now book South Beach Cabanas at Perfect Day at CocoCay.
• Video: Top things you can skip on Royal Caribbean.

New RCB Video: Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas to get $165m makeover

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 — Allure of the Seas list of changes for 2020 — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

Royal Caribbean Around the Internet

Venture Beat shows how Royal Caribbean is using computer vision to track buffet crowds.

Parents Magazine listed Perfect Day at CocoCay as one of its 20 Best Vacations for Kids.

Star2 shared what a cruise on a Royal Caribbean ship is like.

Royal Caribbean is offering bonus instant savings of up to $150 on new bookings this weekend.

The Summer Savings sale is valid on cruises booked between July 19 – 22, 2019 on sailings departing on or after August 19, 2019.

It includes:

• BOGO50 provides 50% off cruise fare of second guest booked in the same stateroom as first, full-fare paying guest.
• BOGO50 offer also provides 25% cruise fare savings for third guests and higher booked in the same stateroom as the first two qualifying guests. 
• Instant savings of up to $150 per stateroom on select sailings departing between on or after August 19, 2019.
  • Savings amount determined by category booked and sailing length:
  • Sailings 5 nights or less, $25 savings for Interior and Ocean View, $50 for Balconies and $75 for Suites
  • Sailings 6 nights or longer, $50 savings for Interior and Ocean View, $75 for Balconies and $150 for Suites
• Deck the Holiday Deals
  • Instant savings of up to $100 per stateroom on select sailings departing between December 2 – 31, 2019.
  • Savings amount determined by category booked and sailing length:
    • Sailings 5 nights or less, $25 savings for Interior and Ocean View, $50 for Balconies and $50 for Suites
    • Sailings 6 nights or longer, $50 savings for Interior and Ocean View, $75 for Balconies and $100 for Suites

BOGO50 and Deck the Holiday Deals are combinable with each other as well as with Summer Savings, promotional OBCs, NextCruise offers, instant savings, restricted discounts (for example, Seniors, Residents, Military), Promo Code driven offers, Free Upgrades, Crown and Anchor discounts and Shareholder Benefits. Offers are not combinable with any other offer or promotion, including, but not limited to, Standard Group, Interline, Travel Agent, Travel Agent Friends and Family, Weekly Sales Events, and Net Rates. Promo Code driven offers are based on select ships and sail dates and must be applied at time of booking, limit one promo code per booking. 

Offer available to residents of United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and select countries in the Caribbean. 

Welcome back to Friday Photos, our weekly showcase of Royal Caribbean photos that were taken by readers of this blog.  

Every week, we ask our readers to send us their best Royal Caribbean vacation photos to be considered for this post. We love to feature photos of the ships, excursions, activities onboard and anything else that reminds you of a great time while sailing with Royal Caribbean.

So without further adieu, here is this week's batch of photos.

Our first photo this week is by Greg Surgeon of Symphony of the Seas in Nassau, Bahamas.

Next up is a photo from a Labadee beach bungalow by Mike Pastore.

Thea shared this photo of Symphony of the Seas alongside other ships in Nassau, Bahamas.

Here is a look at the Grand Canal from the Realto Bridge in Venice, taken by Elaine Scotti while cruising on Rhapsody of the Seas.

Charlotte Whibley snapped this photo of Ovation of the Seas and Radiance of the Seas in Tauranga, New Zealand.

Our next photo is of Empress of the Seas in Nassau, Bahamas. Photo by Adrienne O'Sullivan.

Our final photo this week is by DJ Epstein of a towel animal from Grandeur of the Seas.

Thanks to everyone who sent in their photos this week.  Be sure to send your photos in as well by using this form.

Royal Caribbean will hold a conference call on July 25, 2019 at 10:00 a.m. to discuss its second quarter 2019 financial results.

The call will be available on-line at the company's investor relations web site, www.rclinvestor.com. To listen to the call by phone, please dial (877) 663-9606 in the US and Canada. International phone calls should be made to (706) 758-4628. There is no passcode or meeting number. A replay of the webcast will be available at the same site for a month following the call.

Royal Caribbean recently announced big changes coming to Allure of the Seas in 2020, and we have a brand new video outlining exactly what the cruise line is adding, changing and enhancing.

Allure of the Seas is set to undergo a $165 million transformation, which will see the addition of new features, before setting sail in 2020. Wondering what exactly is getting changed? We have a full list of what Royal Caribbean has planned in this video.

And if you love this video, we have lots of other great cruise videos to watch on our Royal Caribbean Blog YouTube Channel!

By the way, have you subscribed yet? Be sure to subscribe to our channel and never miss a single video!

So check out the video and then let us know: Which change are you most excited about on Allure of the Seas?

After two consecutive Royal Caribbean ships cancelled scheduled stops in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Allure of the Seas was able to dock in San Juan earlier today.

MarineTraffic and El Nuevo Día indicate Allure of the Seas was able to dock in Old San Juan this morning on Pier 3.

Earlier this week, Empress of the Seas and Harmony of the Seas skipped stops in San Juan due to political demonstrations in the island's capital.Harmony of the Seas was rerouted on Wednesday to its next port of St. Maarten, while Empress of the Seas visited Tortola instead.

The demonstrations are part of a multi-day protest that are calling for the resignation of Governor Ricardo Rosselló after sexist private chat messages were leaked.