Royal Caribbean Blog

Thank you for joining us for this a look at all the Royal Caribbean news from this week. We had plenty to share, so let us jump right in!

Royal Caribbean released the first set of sailings for Odyssey of the Seas this week, which will begin in November 2020.

Odyssey of the Seas will sail from Port Everglades, Florida upon her arrival in North America.  Odyssey of the Seas will then offer 8- and 6-night Caribbean cruises, which include visits to Perfect Day at CocoCay. Odyssey of the Seas will be the first Quantum Ultra Class ship to call on Aruba and Curacao as part of its 8-night itineraries. 

In summer 2021, she will head over to Europe.

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 319th episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available, where Matt quantifies what exactly being on a cruise means and the feelings that being on a cruise evokes.

Coming back from a Royal Caribbean cruise, the transition back to "civilian life" isn't easy, and often we think back about how much we enjoy being back on the cruise. 

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: What to know before booking the cheapest room on a cruise

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 — What to know before booking the cheapest room on a cruise — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

Royal Caribbean Around the Internet

Medium interviewed Royal Caribbean's SVP of Digital about Royal Caribbean's digital transformation.

Cruise Fever shared when cruises are the cheapest by cruise line.

B&T Magazine reported Royal Caribbean Australia has picked a new strategic PR firm.

There are lots of considerations for booking a cruise vacation, but we have five things you should not pay too much attention to when picking the ship for you.

Out of all the important things to know about a ship before you book, I have picked five things you may read or hear about that should not be a reason to book (or not book) a cruise ship.

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 episode!

What are some things you think should be ignored when booking a specific ship? Share your experience in the comments!

Royal Caribbean's next new cruise ship, Odyssey of the Seas, will sail from her homeport of Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida in November 2020.

Odyssey’s Caribbean cruises are now open for sale; and Europe itineraries will open in November 2019. Odyssey of the Seas begins with an inaugural cruise on November 5, 2020 out of Port Everglades. 

Odyssey of the Seas will then offer 8- and 6-night Caribbean cruises, which include visits to Perfect Day at CocoCay. Odyssey of the Seas will be the first Quantum Ultra Class ship to call on Aruba and Curacao as part of its 8-night itineraries. 

In summer 2021, Odyssey will offer sailings in Europe for summer 2021. 

Odyssey of the Seas will be the second Quantum Ultra Class ships, and offer a number of activities and entertainment.  Royal Caribbean will announce new, soon-to-be-announced experiences soon.  The ship will offer a number of Quantum Class activities, including:

• RipCord by iFLY sky-diving simulator
• North Star observational capsule
• Two70 entertainment venue
• SeaPlex
  • Trapeze school
  • Full-size basketball court
  • Roller-skating rink
  • Bumper cars

Odyssey of the Seas will be the cruise line's second Quantum Ultra Class ship and is under construction at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany.

September 13 Update: 

We have received further clarification on this change.  

• All short itineraries (5-nights or less) offer a “Wear Your Best” evening onboard (in lieu of a formal night).  Royal Caribbean describes it as: Nighttime’s the right time to wear your best look.  That means a step up from your tropical dinner wear, and includes collared shirts, dresses, skirts, blouses and pantsuits.  Jackets, tuxedos/formal wear sports coats and blazers are also appropriate. 
• Sailings that are 6-nights or longer still have formal nights.  This includes Harmony of the Seas and all sister ships sailing 6+ night itineraries.    

Guests sailing on Royal Caribbean's Harmony of the Seas will no longer see "formal night" listed as a dress code, as it is now referred to as "Wear Your Best".

Mike Chase shared a copy of the Cruise Compass from Harmony of the Seas on Facebook, where the new dinner dress suggestion is listed in lieu of what was formerly known as formal night.

The Cruise Compass on Harmony of the Seas lists a dinner dress suggestion of "Wear Your Best", which is described as "Say goodbye to Formal Night, and hello to Wear Your Best.  Get glamorous. Be Chic. It's time to shine - your way."

The transition from "formal night" to "wear your best" is not new to Royal Caribbean, as we first spotted the change on Mariner of the Seas last year.  That change did coincide with the ship's recent amplification. Similarly, Navigator of the Seas also switched to "Wear Your Best" as part of her amplification. We also spotted the switch on Anthem of the Seas & Enchantment of the Seas.

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

Episode 319 is available for downloading, where Matt talks about what aspects of a cruise do you really miss once you get home.

It almost goes without saying that a cruise is a really fun vacation, but when the cruise comes to an end, there are certain facets of the overall cruise experience that we tend to miss.  This week, Matt talks about what parts of the cruise he misses once it is all over.

Here’s the podcast page for Episode 319. 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!

Are you about to book your first cruise and looking to save money by reserving the cheapest room available? Before you book it, we have important tips to know about those cheap room deals.

It is mighty tempting to book the cheapest room on a cruise to make your vacation dollars go further, but our newest video has some helpful information on what to know about the cheapest rooms.

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 episode!

Do you usually book the cheapest room on a cruise? Was it a good idea? Share your experience in the comments!

Did you know Royal Caribbean ships serve Starbucks beverages on some of its cruise ships?  Both companies have teamed up to give Royal Caribbean guests some of the best coffee available and here is what you need to know to enjoy a cup of your favorite latte, frappuccino or dark roast.

Your Royal Caribbean cruise ship will serve Starbucks coffee from one of these locations.

Oasis Class cruise ships (Oasis of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas, Symphony of the Seas and Allure of the Seas) have Starbucks kiosks onboard that are similar to any Starbucks location you have been to on land.

Mariner of the Seas and Navigator of the Seas have a Starbucks kiosk on Deck 4 in the Centrum.

Starbucks coffee prices

Just like your local Starbucks, the prices can change at any time but in general, they have similar pricing to what you find on land.

Paying for your Starbucks beverage

All Starbucks beverages may be charged to your SeaPass account, or alternatively with the Starbucks app.  

Starbucks gift cards can only be used for payment on Royal Caribbean ships that have a freestanding kiosk.

Starbucks purchases made on a Royal Caribbean ship are eligible to earn rewards, however, you may not redeem rewards at a Starbucks kiosk on Royal Caribbean.

Is Starbucks included in Royal Caribbean drink packages?

On Royal Caribbean ships that have a freestanding Starbucks kiosk, the beverage package cannot be used to pay for Starbucks beverages.

Instead, guests with a beverage package can get their premium coffee and teas from Cafe Promenade or other locations.

Happy weekend! It has been a busy week of Royal Caribbean news and events, and we have a look back at everything that happened this week.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian, this week was dominated by the work Royal Caribbean did to help the people of The Bahamas recover as quickly as possible.

Across many of its cruise ships, Royal Caribbean engaged in an ambitious plan to delivery tens of thousands of meals to people across Grand Bahama Island.

Cruise ships in the area made unscheduled stops in Freeport to deliver meals and supplies to aid agencies so that they could be distributed to people in need.

Royal Caribbean News

• Royal Caribbean began organizing the first relief efforts in Freeport just a few days after Hurricane Dorian.
• Royal Caribbean pledged $1 million in Hurricane Dorian disaster relief.
• Royal Caribbean's CEO met with Bahamian and aid agency officials in Freeport.
• Engines were delivered to the shipyard for Odyssey of the Seas.
• CocoCay island re-opened on September 7.
• Top five coolest things about Mariner of the Seas.
• A look at an 8-year-old's favorite things to do on a Royal Caribbean cruise.

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 318th episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available, where Matt reflects on how a hurricane disrupted his cruise vacation plans.

Cruising in hurricane season comes with its shares of risks, but for the first time a hurricane interrupted Matt's plans and this week's episode is about sharing lessons learned.

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: How much does it cost to go on a Royal Caribbean cruise?

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 — How much does it cost to go on a Royal Caribbean cruise? — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

Royal Caribbean Around the Internet

Orlando Sentinel shared the story of a Bahamian Royal Caribbean worker that was reunited with her family after the hurricane.

News4Jax reported on the work Royal Caribbean is doing to sends thousands of meals, supplies to the Bahamas.

Fox 35 reported on Royal Caribbean's work to transport 261 evacuees from Freeport.

Royal Caribbean's top management met with Bahamian officials and its charity partners earlier today in Freeport, Bahamas to discuss its hurricane relief efforts.

Richard Fain, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Chairman and CEO and Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley arrived in Freeport as Navigator of the Seas helped distribute thousands of meals and supplies to continue the food relief effort in Grand Bahama in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian.

Volunteers from Royal Caribbean’s offices in South Florida joined the effort by boarding Navigator of the Seas this week to assist with hurricane relief. Known as “Go Team” the group is assisting unload relief supplies and evacuee efforts.

Royal Caribbean crew members unloaded relief supplies and meals for distribution at Grand Bahama as part of the company’s disaster relief operation to bring relief supplies and 20,000 daily meals to the impacted community. Meals include sandwiches, proteins with rice and fruits and snacks. Navigator of the Seas is one of many Royal Caribbean ships that will visit Freeport until they can equip a field kitchen to continue the work from there.

As part of its relief efforts in Grand Bahama, Royal Caribbean worked with Bahamian officials to transport evacuees from Freeport, Grand Bahama, to Nassau, Bahamas onboard its ships.

“We can’t make every bad memory of Dorian go away. But we can start making things better—today,” said Richard Fain, Chairman and CEO, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.

In the days since Hurricane Dorian rolled through The Bahamas and inflicted a great deal of damage to many islands, Royal Caribbean has assembled a colossal relief effort by having its ships deliver much-needed supplies.  

Royal Caribbean invited us to join them on Mariner of the Seas to get a first-hand look at the hard work their crew, volunteers and staff are doing on a near daily basis across many ships to assist Bahamians who have had their lives disrupted by the storm.

From her homeport of Port Canaveral, Mariner of the Seas sails three and four night sailings to The Bahamas, and while many cruise guests are enjoying a fantastic cruise vacation, a veritable army of volunteer crew members from all types of roles across the ship report to the main dining room to assemble 10,000 meals.

Dancers, technicians, servers, officers and more prepared sandwiches, proteins with rice and fruits and snacks so that they can be distributed in a few short hours to locals in The Bahamas who desperately need it.

These crew members took a break from their personal time to join in the effort and ensure these meals would be ready for delivery on-time.

Beginning at 10:30pm, crew members worked tirelessly to assemble the meals, while occasionally breaking out into a song, cheering a crate being filled and otherwise sharing a smile with each other.  

Fast-forward a few hours later, and at daybreak carts after carts of food was standing by to be delivered into Freeport, Bahamas.

Royal Caribbean is working with the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to help distribute the food to those that need it the most.  NEMA is part of The Bahamanian disaster management effort, and essentially Royal Caribbean provides the disaster relief supplies, as well as the manpower to load it for NEMA to distribute. 

A convoy of buses, trucks, and other private vehicles arrived to pick up the supplies. In less than 12 hours, food went from storage to packaged to on a vehicle to be delivered. 

In addition to the supplies delivered, Royal Caribbean also brought aboard hundreds of evacuees so that they could be taken out of Freeport and brought to Nassau, Bahamas. Evacuees enjoyed breakfast, beverages and a movie screening during the short voyage to Nassau. 

Earlier today, Mariner of the Seas became the third ship in Royal Caribbean International's fleet to provide such aid, and there are a number of other ships prepared to do the same in the coming days and weeks.

Royal Caribbean is committing $1 million to Dorian disaster relief and matching every dollar of guest and employee donations. To make sure those donations go where they can do the most good, they are collaborating with the Bahamian government and its non-profit partner, the Pan American Development Foundation (PADF), and a network of Bahamian charities and other local organizations, including the Bahamas Feeding Network.

You can donate money by visiting the PADF site.