Parenting.com names Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas one of the Best Cruise Ships for Families

In:
11 Jun 2011

Parenting.com recognized Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas as one of the "Best Cruise Ships for Families".  In a survey of their top picks for best cruise ships to bring a family on, Allure was picked for among other reasons, the Dreamworks film connection.

You’d be hard-pressed to find a Royal Caribbean ship that doesn’t indulge pint-sized passengers, but Allure and Oasis are the latest and greatest in the 22-ship fleet.

Parents of infants will appreciate Royal Caribbean’s Babies 2 Go program, which allows you to order organic baby food, and Huggies diapers, wipes, and creams for delivery to your stateroom. Don’t worry about packing toys either. The cruise line’s Fisher-Price Toy Lending Program lets you borrow them like library books.

Royal Caribbean honors Jamaican Transport and Works Minister

In:
03 May 2011

Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas played host to a special luncheon gathering of Royal Caribbean staff and Jamaican officials on April 27th to honor Jamaica's Transport and Works Minister Mike Henry and to celebrate the partnership between Royal Caribbean and the Port Authority of Jamaica.

During the ceremony, Allure of the Seas' Captain, Hernam Zini, presented Mr. Henry with a plaque while Mr. Henry returned the favor and gave Captain Zini a plaque of his own.  There was also special commemorative gifts presented to Royal Caribbean by local members of Trelawny and Falmouth.

Both organizations had worked together to revamp and open Falmouth, Jamaica as a premiere cruise port.  Joining the group were members of Jamaica's government officials, members of the diplomatic corps and the business sector.

Henry was pleased with how the partnership was going, "I am calling on the Falmouth community for an integration of the local residents and visitors in affording them the opportunity of having the greatest experience in Jamaica, as this is crucial to the sustainability of the Jamaica's visitors' market".

Royal Caribbean will offer 3-D screenings of Kung Fu Panda 2

In:
25 Apr 2011

Royal Caribbean will offer showings of Dreamwork Animations newest film "Kung Fu Panda 2" on some of their newest ships.

Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas, Oasis of the Seas, Freedom of the Seas and Liberty of the Seas will have the new film playing onboard from June through August 2011. In addition, there will be  a series of red-carpet premieres aboard each ship, which will be celebrated onboard Oasis of the Seas on June 4, Freedom of the Seas and Allure of the Seas on June 5, and Liberty of the Seas on June 18.

In coordination with the new film, Royal Caribbean is rolling out a new promotion called “Pandamonium,” which is a cruise promotion aimed at families who are looking to cruise this summer.  The package is available onboard the four Royal Caribbean ships that feature the DreamWorks Experience, and includes VIP seating at one of the onboard “Kung Fu Panda 2” premieres, exclusive meet and greets with DreamWorks Animation characters, two soft drink packages, two cupcakes from the Cupcake Cupboard, a complimentary family photo and a chance for guests to build their own Pets at Sea plush animal. The Pandamonium package can be booked using the promotional code YNOTxxPO.

Underwater lifts on Allure and Oasis of the Seas made possible by Handling Specialty

In:
09 Mar 2011

The brand new Oasis and Allure of the Seas cruise ships can thank Handling Specialty for creating the three huge underwater lifts, two tilting diving boards and one rotating trampoline for Royal Caribbean's newest ships.

These innovations are what make the AquaTheater shows possible.  These systems, manufactured in Canada were shipped to Turku, Finland, where they were installed over the course of about 18 months to create the AquaTheater stage area for the largest and deepest freshwater pools at sea.

"This is very high profile and very exciting," said Handling Specialty president Tom Beach, adding the devices have already been featured in a couple of documentaries, including a Discovery Channel show, The Mighty Ships.

James Brolin to direct new Royal Caribbean web video series

In:
07 Mar 2011

Royal Caribbean is tapping famous Hollywood actor James Brolin to star and direct a new series of video clips that can be seen online. Called "Ocean Views", these webisodes will be available on March 14 on the Royal Caribbean's web site as well as its YouTube channel.

The episode Brolin will star in and direct is called "Royal Reunion", which will tell the story of how many different generations of family are taking a cruise on Allure of the Seas.  Joining Brolin in the cast will be other actors such as Dean Cain and Amy Yasbeck.

Brolin's episode is one of many in the video series that will feature actors starring and directing in their own episodes.  Jenny McCarthy will act in and direct a video called “The Allure of Love,” which also takes place on the ship; it is a comedic look at a star-crossed romance.  Other stars set to appear include Samantha Bee, Adam Carolla, Paula Deen and Albert Pujols.

St. Kitts added to Allure of the Seas' itinerary

In:
01 Mar 2011

St. Kitts and Nevis’ Minister of Tourism Richard “Ricky” Skerritt announced that Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas, the largest cruise ship in the world, will make a stop to St. Kitts in December 2011.

Allure will make a stop at the island's Port Zante cruise pier on December 30.

Royal Caribbean's vice president of Government Relations, Michael Ronan, is excited about the news of bringing Allure to St. Kitts for the first time, "Royal Caribbean International is delighted to bring the world-renowned Allure of the Seas to St. Kitts. While Allure of the Seas is the world’s largest and most revolutionary cruise ship, the ship’s ports of call are also very important to our guests. We look forward to bringing more of them to beautiful and vibrant St. Kitts."

Royal Caribbean now expects 45 ports of call to St. Kitts in the 2011-2012 season by its ships, doubling the 2010-2011 season when just 20 calls were made there.

Royal Caribbean to introduce 3D theater to Allure of the Seas

In:
01 Mar 2011

Royal Caribbean announced it will partner with FUNA International to provide stereoscopic 3D digital cinema to Royal Caribbean's brand new Allure of the Seas.  Thanks to Royal Caribbean's partnership with Dreamworks Animation, the deal with FUNA will make it possible for guests on Allure of the Seas to enjoy all the current 3D DreamWorks titles as well as other 3D movies, in the ship's Amber Theater.

Christopher Vlassopulos, Entertainment Technology and Technical Direction for Royal Caribbean International had this to say about the new deal, "We called upon FUNA and their team to come up with creative technical design solutions in a number of areas including physical placement, additional cooling and power and integration with the existing audio system, and the result is a 3D movie experience as good as or better than any land-based theater.  On testing the finished product, people at the highest level at Barco [projection supplier], DreamWorks and Dolby [sound system supplier] were 'blown away' with the result. We wanted to do a good job but to impress them out of the gate was a real bonus and obviously something the guest will really enjoy. It looks and sounds great."

In addition to Allure of the Seas, other Royal Caribbean ships are set to receieve the 3D theater upgrade. Vlassopulos confirmed that Oasis of the Seas, Freedom of the Seas and Liberty of the Seas will reveive the 3D upgrade.

In addition to the new theater, FUNA has provided technical design, engineering, integration and consulting for entertainment, display and communications in most of the theaters, restaurants, clubs, and public spaces - as well as the crew recreation and support areas.

Tampa Bay couple selected for Royal Caribbean brochure

In:
15 Feb 2011

Design Squared, the marketing firm Royal Caribbean hired to make Crown and Anchor Society promotional materials, was in search of a family to put on an upcoming promotional material for Royal Caribbean's Crown and Anchor Society during Allure of the Sea's inaugural cruise.  They found their match in Scott and Terri Lynn Crutchfield of Sebring, Florida.

Kathy Watrous, Design Squared's managing partner, approached the couple and asked them to be in a photo shoot. After signing media release forms, they were told they would be contacted if and when their photos were selected for use.

After combing over 15 other couples that Waltrous took photos of, the Crutchfields were selected.

"This was fun and we were kind of caught up in the moment," she said. "We never thought we would hear from them again."

The Crutchfields were notified via email and were sent photos that would be in the brochure for the Crown and Anchor Society.  About one million brochures have been created and will be distributed around the United States and Canada.

"We were happy they chose us," Terri Lynn said. "It is kind of an honor."

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