Two men from Mexico City were arrested in Miami, Florida after being accused of sexually victimizing a teenage boy during a recent Royal Caribbean cruise.

Jose Prudencio Diaz, age 36, and Ricardo Daniel Mondragon Leal, age 37, were arrested on multiple criminal charges, including lewd and lascivious molestation of a child between the ages of 12 to 16 years old. 

Both individuals were arrested on March 21, 2025 in connection with the alleged assault while disembarking Royal Caribbean’s Independence of the Seas in Miami, Florida.

According to arrest reports from the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office, as cited by Miami Local 10 News, the two men were traveling together onboard Royal Caribbean’s Independence of the Seas. While in the sauna, both men are accused of sexually victimizing a 14-year-old boy.

In the reports, deputies said that Prudencio Diaz allegedly exposed himself to the teen while in the sauna. The arrest report states that Prudencio Diaz then proceeded to sexually assault the teenager and forced the teenager to touch him inappropriately.

In addition, the arrest report states that Mondragon Leal also exposed himself in front of the teen and forced the minor to perform sexual acts on him. Deputies also state that Mondragon Leal allegedly forced himself sexually on the 14-year-old boy.

When Independence of the Seas returned to PortMiami on Friday, March 21, 2025, both men were arrested in connection with the alleged crimes. According to the arrest report, the incident occurred aboard Royal Caribbean's Independence of the Seas on Thursday, March 20, 2025.

The arrest reports indicate both men are facing charges of “lewd and lascivious exhibition on a child and lewd and lascivious molestation of a child.” The two individuals are being held without bond in Miami following the arrests. 

Miami 10 Local News also reported that jail records show Mondragon Leal and Prudencio Diaz are on immigration holds. Legally, this means the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has requested that the local Miami jail hold the individuals in custody beyond their scheduled release so they can take be transferred into federal immigration custody. 

According to Miami 10 Local News, one of the prosecutors said in court, "The defendant, in this case, acting in concert with another defendant, they were both on a cruise. This shows that they tried to target a specific minor, and this could be done again."

In addition, Prudencio Diaz is facing a charge of not disclosing his HIV status with the victim. He is currently being held in the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami, Florida following the arrest.

Further, Mondragon Leal faces a count of child sexual battery and is currently being held in the Metrowest Detention Center in Miami, Florida. At this time, Royal Caribbean has not provided a statement about the incident. 

Currently, Independence of the Seas is sailing on a variety of round-trip itineraries from Miami, Florida to the Caribbean. Over the summer, Independence of the Seas will head to Europe and sail from Southampton, England. 

When the incident occurred, Independence of the Seas was sailing on a 4-night itinerary that departed from Miami, Florida on March 17, 2025. The ship visited ports of call in the Bahamas, including Nassau and Royal Caribbean’s private island, Perfect Day at CocoCay. 

According to the ship's itinerary, Independence of the Seas was at sea on Thursday, March 20, 2025 - the day the incident reportedly occurred.

A case of mistaken identification cost one family their highly anticipated Royal Caribbean cruise vacation.

A family from North Carolina was booked to sail on a Royal Caribbean ship from Port Canaveral, but were turned away at the cruise terminal.

According to Shannon Nutting, her son was denied boarding because of the type of identification he had.

Her 16-year-old son attempted to use a student ID as his photo identification.

She claims she cleared it was acceptable to use this form of identification before the cruise began with the cruise line.

"He said, unfortunately, you're not going to be able to board today because the school ID is not acceptable," Nutting said in a report to ABC News. 

"So, I explained to him that we had talked to Royal Caribbean, and they had assured us that the school ID was valid, and I was upset by that point, crying, so I asked could I speak to a supervisor."

She also said the reason her son had this form of ID was because he has special needs, so it's why he didn't have state-issued ID yet.

"I called to make sure he could board without it. She said she didn't care what he had, and we couldn't board, and she just walked away," Nutting said.

In the end, she and her family were unable to get on the cruise and the ship left without them.

"All that year of saving and paying on it, everybody was just heartbroken and devastated. Everybody was exhausted," Nutting said. 

It turned out to be a mistake

Following the debacle at the terminal, Ms. Nutting followed up with Royal Caribbean's offices to figure out what happened.

According to her, Royal Caribbean acknowledged the mistake and said they could fly to Cozumel, Mexico to join the ship there.

"They told her that we should have been able to book. At that point they wanted us to fly to Cozumel. For us to pay to fly to Cozumel and board the ship two days later."

They opted not to do this, and finish out their vacation in Florida.

Royal Caribbean told reporters that this was a human error by staff at the cruise port, and Nutting and her family should have been able to board as they had the right documentation.

Moreover, additional training will be given at the port to prevent similar issues from occurring again.

They offered the Nutting family three options:

• Convert the value of the cruise fare paid into a future cruise credit to use on another sailing, plus a $700 onboard credit.
• Full refund
• Full refund on the cruise, plus a 25% future cruise credit

Nutting said none of the three options were acceptable, because she wanted a refund and to be reimbursed for expenses.

"We wanted the money for the cruise back and the expenses. The expenses that we had for traveling to Florida while we were there for meals, gas, the lodging, and all of that," she said.

Passport is the best and safest form of identification

If you're taking a cruise, you should get a passport to avoid situations like this from occurring in the first place.

It's legal for US citizens sailing on a ship that departs and returns to the same US port to cruise with photo identification and a birth certificate, but situations like what happened to the Nutting family are not unheard of.

In the past, we've seen similar stories of families being denied entry on a cruise because they don't have the right documentation, whether in error or not.

The truth is having a passport is as straightforward as it gets, and no one has been denied entry to a cruise for having a valid and unexpired passport.

Admittedly, passports are expensive for a family to get at first. But they last many years, and it's an investment in your travel future.

You can not only use a passport for cruise ship vacations, but also land trips.  

Plus, if you want to try a cruise outside of the United States, it opens up so many other bucket-list options, such as Europe, Australia, and Asia.

The Instagram-famous Captain Kate McCue is bidding a fond farewell to Celebrity Cruises. 

Captain Kate shared the news on her Instagram on Monday, February 24. 

"Today, I saw farewell to Celebrity," she begins, "I've spent the last 22 years on 11 ships in the Royal Caribbean Group, from 2nd Officer to Captain. I have seen some of the most beautiful places, met inspiring and wonderful people, and had opportunities to live my 12-year-old dream out loud!"

In 2003, Captain Kate began working for Royal Caribbean Group as 2nd Officer onboard Nordic Empress. Then, she became a 1st Officer on Brilliance, Mariner, and Independence of the Seas, according to her LinkedIn. 

However, she rose to prominence when she became the Captain of the Celebrity Summit at 37 years old in 2015. It was the first time an American woman had been named Captain of a mega cruise ship, and she has been with Celebrity Cruises ever since. 

Throughout her time as a Captain, she gained notoriety online. As of February 2025, she has over 4.6 million combined followers on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube, where she gives glimpses into the daily life of a cruise ship Captain. 

For example, she gave behind-the-scenes footage of the Celebrity Beyond's development during the ship's construction, as well as filmed a video showing what her living quarters looked like. Spoiler alert: it wasn't an average cruise ship cabin! 

She also used her platform to help cruisers understand the not-so-fun parts of being a Captain, such as making the disappointing decision to cancel ports of call due to weather.  

Captain Kate was also famous for her sphynx cat who lived with her onboard while at sea. Unfortunately, the 8-year-old Bug Naked passed away from complications following a routine dental surgery the day after Christmas. 

Celebrity Cruises' social media team shared a heartfelt comment on Captain Kate's post: "The journey we have shared together has been absolutely amazing. You brought passion and heart to everything you did, inspiring so many along the way, and leaving a lasting mark on our industry. We wish you fair winds and following seas, always. 💙 ⚓️"

Other users took to the comments to wish Captain Kate the best in her future endeavors. 

"Captain you’re gonna be so missed! You’re such an inspiration and I hope our paths will cross again❤️ Wishing you all the best!!" wrote bettinald. 

meredithreese added, "@captainkatemccue you are just an absolute gem of a human. So grateful our souls crossed!! Wishing you blessings and amazing energy on your continued journeys!! 🩵🩵🩵"

"Captain, you are such an inspiration to us all and easily one of the most impressive humans we’ve ever met," said cruisewithjj. 

"We will all miss you but are also so grateful for the times we had sailing the seas together under your leadership, witty humor, and genuine kindness for us all. ❤️"

She's not retiring 

Per Captain Kate's Instagram post, she isn't ready for life on land. 

"You might be wondering why I am leaving," she continues, "Simply put, life has an incredible way of reminding us what's important and changing up priorities. I've recently had some big life changes, and this just happens to be one of those."

"Are my sailing days over? Absolutely not. I've got too much salt in my veins to leave the sea behind."

Though she doesn't disclose what her next steps are, she could be transitioning to a new company. 

Her deep love for the ocean suggests that, while her time with Celebrity Cruises has come to an end, her journey at sea is far from over. 

Captain Kate longed for life at sea from a young age

She dreamed of being a Cruise Director after her first cruise at 12 years old. Her father supported her aspirations but also encouraged her to dream bigger. 

After graduating from California State University's Maritime Academy with a bachelor's degree in Business Administration, she moved to Hawaii and worked as a general deckhand on a catamaran. She finally got a job onboard a cruise ship with Disney Cruise Line in 2002 aboard the Disney Magic. 

In 2003, she was offered a job for Royal Caribbean, a company she stayed with until 2015. She worked as a 2nd Officer, traveling the world and visiting Asia, Alaska, Australia, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean. 

Read more: Take a look inside a cruise ship captain's living quarters

While working with Royal Caribbean, she obtained her Chief Mate and Master's License in 2009 from the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies, which gave her the necessary qualifications to take command of a vessel. 

She then became a Chief Officer for Royal Caribbean, working aboard ships like Mariner of the Seas and Allure of the Seas. 

A few years later, she was asked to apply to Celebrity Cruises, a sister brand to Royal Caribbean owned by Royal Caribbean Group, by then-President Lisa Lutoff-Perlo and accepted the position of cruise ship Captain in 2015. 

She started on Celebrity Summit, one of the line's smallest ships that debuted in 2001, and remained there until 2018 when she became the commanding officer aboard the Celebrity Equinox. 

Captain Kate moved to Celebrity Edge in 2019, where she became the first female Captain to command one of the line’s newest and most innovative ships. 

She ended her time with Celebrity Cruises as the Captain of Celebrity Beyond, a mega-ship measuring 140,600 gross registered tons and 1,073 feet long. 

An unruly Royal Caribbean passenger terrorized other guests and crew members shortly after departing from California. 

UPDATE: The man was detained and died shortly thereafter.

A cell phone video shows a man hurling threats and trying to kick down a door aboard Navigator of the Seas. 

The 139,999 gross registered ton vessel had departed San Pedro, California, and was bound for Ensenada, Mexico when the incident occurred. 

"The gentleman that was drunk said that he was gonna kill us, and then he started chasing us down the hallway," Christifer Mikhail told FOX 11. 

Mikhail was sailing aboard Navigator to celebrate his and his wife's birthdays and anniversary. They were traveling with a dozen family and friends. 

Less than an hour after departing San Pedro, Mikhail tried to return to his stateroom to charge his phone and grab a jacket to watch a movie on the pool deck when he encountered the rowdy guest. 

"I was waiting for them to say cut and come out of the rooms," he remarked, "I was kinda scared [because] I was like, 'Dude, I'm stuck in this hallway [and] everyone else is kind of behind something.'" 

The disruptive passenger kicked a crew member in the face and punched another. Mikhail sailed that the crew member who was punched was hit with such force that he "flew a couple feet back."

Eventually, the ship's security team—armed with pepper spray, zip ties, and handcuffs—was able to subdue the now shirtless guest who had also been spewing profanity and racial comments. 

"[They] kinda acted like [a] SWAT team and set up a barrier and then they attacked, so they just waited for him to kind of run out of energy," Mikhail recalled. 

Though the unidentified passenger was no longer at risk of harming Mikhail, the incident followed him throughout the rest of the cruise, as he had to speak with Royal Caribbean management and the FBI about the ordeal. 

The guest spent the cruise in one of the ship's two jail cells. "He kind of ruined [the vacation] for his family," said Mikhail. 

What happens when guests get violent on cruise ships?

Though Royal Caribbean hasn't issued a statement about the incident, it's safe to assume the passenger will be banned from sailing with the cruise line again. 

Earlier this year, a group of guests sailing aboard Carnival Paradise was banned after an argument turned into a violent fight in the ship's buffet. 

The footage, which Nick Richardson uploaded to YouTube and TikTok, depicts about 10 to 15 passengers screaming, slapping, and tackling one another to the floor. Things escalated even further when guests began throwing chairs. 

In an emailed statement to USA Today, Carnival confirmed the fight took place onboard Carnival Paradise. 

“Carnival Paradise’s security team intervened in an incident that took place on June 6. As is our policy, we will not tolerate such behavior and the guests involved were fined and will not sail on Carnival Cruise Line again," Matt Lupoli said in the statement. 

Incidents like these often result in immediate intervention by the ship's security staff, with offenders facing fines, legal action, and permanent bans from the cruise line, especially when crew members are assaulted. 

Unruly guests disrupt the experience for other passengers and risk the safety of guests and crew, which is of paramount importance to cruise lines. 

Navigator of the Seas is a Voyager Class ship that sails out of California year-round

The 3,968-passenger ship offers voyages ranging from 3 to 8 nights. 

The shortest cruises visit Ensenada, Mexico, while the longer ones sail to the Mexican Riviera, calling at ports like Puerto Vallarta, Cabo San Lucas, and Mazatlán. 

Read more: What it's like to cruise on Royal Caribbean's Navigator of the Seas

Royal Caribbean has announced some exciting changes and updates this week.

While there can be big news reveals some days, such as the Royal Beach Club announcement last week, other times we get minor bits of news worth sharing too.

In trying to capture it all, here's a run-through of what's new in Royal Caribbean over the last few days.

Updated casino exclusion program

Royal Caribbean has updated its exclusion program details to make it a bit easier.

The exclusion program allows someone to prevent themselves from gambling in the ship's casino.  Usually it's because that person has a gambling problem and needs a preventative measure in place.

You might be unfamiliar with this option, because the old program was not advertised, and it you did enroll, you would be banned from sailing on all Royal Caribbean ships.  

Under the new program, there's an option for a one year ban or a lifetime ban from the casino.

To request a review of a lifetime ban, the casino requires at least a year to have elapsed before that request can be considered.

Once enrolled, the casino team will refuse your wagers.  If you were somehow able to gamble, you would be ineligible to collect any winnings or recover any losses.

Thanks to Bryan for sharing this update with us.

Royal Beach Club construction photos

With Royal Caribbean revealing the first Royal Beach Club will open in The Bahamas in December 2025, you might be curious how it looks now.

I was sailing on Utopia of the Seas this weekend and have these photos from our visit to Nassau that were taken on December 14.

Royal Beach Club Paradise Island is set to open in December 2025 and will come at an extra cost for passengers, providing a day pass to experience pools, food, and games.

It covers 17 acres of land, offering two stunning beaches, three pools, the world’s largest swim-up bar, and an array of dining and drinking options. 

All-inclusive day passes and cabanas for Royal Beach Club Paradise Island will be available for purchase starting in spring 2025.

Don't forget, this is just one of three beach clubs currently planned.

They've got a Royal Beach Club going to Cozumel, Mexico, and Vanuatu.

Beach clubs are like a "super shore excursion" that aims to offer an elevated beach day experience for passengers who want a beach day with Royal Caribbean's standards in place.

Plus, the beach club will address a decades long problem of poor customer feedback regarding Nassau.

On top of that, Perfect Day Mexico will open in 2027 to offer the cruise line's third private beach destination.

Beverage change update

Reports began circulating last week that a policy change has been made to require a can of beer to be served opened, rather than closed.

As it turns out, the rumor was half-true.

A post from Royal Caribbean in reply to a disgruntled cruiser explained what the change affects.

"We're sorry for any confusion. Kindly note, this policy does not apply to non-alcoholic beverages, such as canned sodas and bottled water. Only alcoholic drinks."

This means drinks ordered with a drink voucher from the Crown and Anchor Society benefits that begin at the Diamond Level will have to be opened for the guest.  Ditto for cans of beer ordered with a drink package.

So if you order a can of beer, expect it to be opened for you, regardless of if you want it to be opened or not.

Royal Caribbean's Brilliance of the Seas was stuck in Progreso, Mexico, overnight due to technical issues. As a result, the ship's return to New Orleans, Louisiana, has been delayed. 

User cgbdpm shared the news to a Royal Caribbean Blog discussion forum on Oct. 24, saying, "Currently on [Brilliance] of the seas in Progresso, Mexico. We should have left port 2 hours ago and captain said engineers said we should be underway hopefully soon. Sounds like engine issues."

CruiseGus later commented that the ship was just sitting in port with the casino closed. "Big revenue lost," they added. Not only that, but they mentioned that the bars were "slammed."

The issues come at the end of a 7-night Western Caribbean cruise from New Orleans, Louisiana. Progreso was the last port of call, following Cozumel, Mexico, and Grand Cayman. 

As of 11:00am EST on Friday, October 25, the vessel's location has moved, indicating the ship has successfully departed Mexico. 

"We are moving.. I will update when they give us an arrival time for New Orleans," commented cgbdpm on the discussion forum. 

Brilliance of the Seas, a 90,090 gross registered ton ship launched in 2002, is due back in New Orleans on Saturday, Oct. 26. However, Brilliance was supposed to have a full day at sea en route back to Louisiana. Now, the ship is expected to arrive in NOLA around 5:00pm, delaying the next cruise's departure. 

The Radiance Class vessel is scheduled to depart on a 7-night Western Caribbean cruise to Cozumel, Grand Cayman, and Progreso on the 26th. However, Royal Caribbean emailed impacted guests informing them of a delayed embarkation process. 

"We’re excited to welcome you onboard Brilliance of the Seas for our October 26, 2024, sailing! Before you head to the terminal, we have an important update to share with you," the email reads.

"To ensure a smooth boarding process, all guests should plan on arriving at your new arrival time as listed below. All guests must be checked in and onboard by 11:00 PM and we'll now set sail at 11:30 PM.  Additionally, arriving earlier than your adjusted time will result in being turned away until your new check-in time. Please arrive no later than 10:30 PM."

Moreover, the email states that while no ports of call have been canceled, the times will differ because of the delayed departure. Additionally, Monday will be a sea day, with Cozumel's stop being moved to Wednesday. 

Brilliance will be docked in Grand Cayman from 8:00am to 4:00pm on Tuesday, Oct. 29, Cozumel from 10:00am to 6:00pm on Wednesday, and Progreso from 9am to 6:00pm on Thursday. Then, the ship will have one day at sea before returning to NOLA on Saturday, Nov. 2. 

As compensation, Royal Caribbean is providing guests with a refund of one day's cruise fare as onboard credit, as well as a pro-rated refund for prepaid daily packages and gratuities. Any unused credits will be refunded to the card on file up to 14 business days from disembarkation.  

Issues earlier this year

During her stint in Australia and the South Pacific, Royal Caribbean canceled a 5-night cruise onboard Brilliance of the Seas due to unexpected technical issues.

The previous 11-night sailing was also impacted, with the ship canceling its scheduled stops in New Caledonia, Mystery Island, Port Vila, and Luganville. Instead, the vessel returned to Sydney, Australia, 4 nights earlier than anticipated. 

Moreover, the April 4, 2024, cruise's departure date was pushed back to April 7. 

Brilliance of the Seas isn't the first Radiance Class ship to struggle with technical problems

Last September, Radiance of the Seas canceled two Alaska cruises because of unplanned technical problems with the ship's propulsion system. 

Passengers on the Sept. 1 sailing were informed on embarkation day that their cruise was canceled. As guests had already boarded the ship, Royal Caribbean let them stay onboard for two nights to give them time to adjust their travel plans. The Sept. 7 cruise was canceled as well. 

The issues continued into 2024, with Royal Caribbean altering a 4-night open-jaw sailing from Los Angeles to Vancouver. Though passengers disembarked on April 26 as scheduled, all stops along the way were canceled, and Radiance arrived in Canada at around 9:00pm on April 25, spending the night in port. 

Subsequently, the April 26 cruise was canceled, too. Passengers found out after they had boarded the ship. Guests boarded as planned after being informed that their departure would be delayed by two days to allow ample time to fix the issue. 

However, around mid-day on Sunday, an announcement was made informing passengers that their cruise would have to be canceled to fix the ongoing technical problem. 

A Royal Caribbean guest is suing the cruise line and its former crew member, alleging she was filmed by a hidden camera in her stateroom bathroom. 

The class action lawsuit was filmed on behalf of the guest in the Southern District of Florida this Tuesday, as first reported by the Miami Herald.

The guest was only identified as Jane Doe, but the lawsuit was also filed on behalf of "all other similarly situated passengers."

In August, former crew member Arvin Joseph Mirasol was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison. 

He was found guilty of filming guests, including children, with hidden cameras while they were naked, in addition to hiding under cabin beds on Symphony of the Seas.

Read more: "I will be checking under the bed now": Royal Caribbean crew member accused of hiding cameras to spy on guests

Federal authorities found images of women and children undressing on his electronic devices, "numerous videos of naked females," as well as child sexual abuse material.

During a post-Miranda interview, Mirasol admitted to pleasuring himself while watching the videos. He told authorities he "wants to control it...but can't." 

Mirasol was also charged with six pending counts of video voyeurism in Florida state court after the Broward Sheriff’s Office interviewed him.

According to the lawsuit, Mirasol captured images of Doe "while undressed and engaging in private activities" during a February cruise.

The guest, Jane Doe, also alleges that Mirasol uploaded images of her to the Internet, including the dark web.

“Upon information and belief, Mirasol transmitted and/or uploaded images of the Plaintiff while undressed and engaging in private activities, to third parties and/or to the world wide web, including, but not limited to, the dark web, without Plaintiff’s prior knowledge or consent,” the complaint states. 

As a result, she has suffered extreme emotional distress, including physical symptoms like insomnia and dizziness.

The lawsuit places the blame on Royal Caribbean for failing to provide sufficient security, training, or supervision to prevent sexual assaults.

The cruise line did not warn guests about such crimes and allegedly did not notify passengers who stayed in cabins served by Mirasol.

According to the lawsuit, there may be up to 960 impacted passengers, who stayed on Symphony of the Seas between December 1st, 2023, and February 26th, 2024.

Royal Caribbean “knew or should have known sexual assaults were reasonably foreseeable considering the prevalence of sexual assaults aboard RCCL’s cruise ships," the lawsuit states.

The lawsuit referenced a 2023 incident on Royal Caribbean's Harmony of the Seas in which passenger Jeremy Froias installed a hidden camera on a 7-night sailing from Miami, Florida.

Froias was arrested after placing a hidden WiFi camera in the public bathroom between the FlowRider and a bar.

His camera, which was up for 24 hours before security removed it, allegedly depicted more than 150 individuals in various states of undress, including minors as young as four and five years old.

The number of sexual assaults onboard cruise ships rose in 2023, according to the US Department of Transportation. 

Onboard cruise ships embarking and disembarking in the United States, 131 sex crimes were reported to the FBI in 2023.

This is a significant increase from 2022, which saw 87 alleged sexual assaults.

However, the actual numbers could be even higher. 

According to the Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network, more than two out of three of all sexual assaults are never reported.

Of these alleged sex crimes in 2023, 75% were committed by cruise ship passengers (98 in total), and only 27 crimes were committed by crew members. Six of the incidents had an "unknown" perpetrator.

Jason Margulies, an attorney with Lipcon, Margulies & Winkleman, P.A., in Miami Florida, is representing the plaintiff in this case.

Margulies addressed the allegations that Royal Caribbean hasn't been informing affected guests who sailed on Symphony of the Seas.

“If you're a company that's looking out for the best interest of your passengers, and aren't acting in your own financial interests, then you would certainly be telling all these people that they could be potential victims, right?"

"I mean, that's the humane thing to do.”

The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages, including punitive damages, and a jury trial.

Royal Caribbean emailed a statement to USA TODAY: “The safety and privacy of our guests is our highest priority, and we have zero tolerance for this behavior."

“We immediately reported this case to law enforcement and terminated the crew member. As this is pending litigation, we are unable to comment further at this time.”

Changes coming to Royal Caribbean may offer you new ways to vacation, or shake up the cruise industry.

Royal Caribbean is never content maintaining the status quo when it comes to their product. I'm reminded of Royal Caribbean Group Chairman Richard Fain's comments about how there is no "new normal" when it comes to cruise.

"When we design our ships, we talk about a design formula of one third tradition, one third evolution and one third revolution," he said in a video a few years ago. 

"As I said, our mantra is continuous improvement. And it means just that everything gets better. Every chance we get."

To that point, there are four big changes that we know about already for Royal Caribbean in 2025 that you should be tracking now. 

The line will undoubtedly add other changes during the course of the year, but these are significant evolutions you can expect in the coming year.

Opening the first beach club

The first of three beach clubs in Royal Caribbean's portfolio will open in 2025.

Royal Beach Club Paradise Island will open in Nassau, Bahamas and be unlike a private island experience.  It will be limited to just Royal Caribbean guests, but there will be an admission cost to it and not every passenger will have the opportunity to go because there is a maximum capacity.

It's essentially a Royal Caribbean run shore excursion, built to the standards their customers expect from them.  It incorporates some of the best features from Perfect Day at CocoCay, along with some new improvements.

The beach club is conveniently located where the cruise ships dock.  It will offer three pools with swim-up bars, live music, two beaches, and four restaurants.

There is no official opening date, but Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley said last month he expects the opening to happen sometime between October-December 2025.

Two more beach clubs will open in the next few years in Cozumel, Mexico and Vanuatu.

It's a bold plan to offer something no other cruise line has, separating it from other vacations.

Major upgrades to Allure of the Seas

After delaying improvements to Allure of the Seas in 2020, one of the biggest cruise ship's in the world is about to get some serious enhancements.

In March 2025, Allure of the Seas will take a break for a month and undergo significant changes.

The ship is getting all sorts of additions:

• Redesigned Caribbean pool deck
• Ultimate Abyss slide
• New waterslides
• Kids aquapark
• Pesky parrot tiki bar
• Playmakers Sports Bar and Arcade (specialty)
• Mason Jar southern American food restaurant (specialty)
• El Loco Fresh Mexican restaurant (included)
• Escape room
• Laser tag
• Upgraded kids & Teens spaces
• New suites

The total cost of all this work is $100 million-plus, and it will breathe new life into Allure.

Cabin recategorization

Beginning with cruises in 2025, Royal Caribbean will implement its new cabin codes.

These became visible when the 2025-2026 deployment was released, but we'll now have new room codes for certain cabins.

Part of the reason to make this change is to simplify the choices for travel agents as well as add new room types meant to appeal to certain types of people that cruise.

The goals of the room recategorization are:

• More options & configurations for guests with large families
• Separated Triple and Quad occupancy interior & oceanview staterooms
• New high occupancy guarantee staterooms
• New Junior Suite & Balcony categories

What this really means is this will be the first year the new room categories are in effect as it relates to the actual cabins on a ship. Most of this is changing the cruise lexicon, but it's important to be aware of these new sorts of cabins, especially if you're used to booking a certain room.

A prime example of this are the aft balcony cabins.

The aft facing balconies and Junior Suites are now going to be separated out as new categories new categories, starting with the Sunset Junior Suite.

Royal Caribbean says they are making the change so that guests can quickly and easily find these cabins.

Star of the Seas launch

It doesn't get more exciting than welcoming a new cruise ship, and the second Icon Class ship joins the fleet in 2025.

Star of the Seas will begin offering cruises from Port Canaveral, Florida in August 2025.

Star is the follow-up to Icon of the Seas, and considering how popular Icon has been, this will be Royal Caribbean's attempt to match their success.

While the ship will be more similar to Icon than not, there are a few tweaks, updates, and changes we can expect on Star.

There will be a couple revamped and new dining choices. Pier 7 is getting completely replaced, while Empire Supper Club is getting a new motif.

It also looks like Star will have a Broadway show onboard, with Back to the Future: The Musical.

The launch of Star of the Seas has a side effect, in that it will shift Wonder of the Seas to offer short cruises from Miami. This is significant, because Wonder will become the second Oasis Class ship to sail weekend cruises.  And with Icon and Star offering weeklong cruises, and Utopia and Wonder doing short cruises, it sets up Royal Caribbean's proverbial chess pieces exactly where they want to be.

From sick passengers, to happy kids, and a strike looming, there's been a lot of cruise news worth catching up on.

On any given week, there's a lot of Royal Caribbean news you should know about, and our team wanted to make sure you didn't miss any of these important updates.

Over the weekend, there were a few bits of cruise news that came out and this post provides a quick digest of what you need to know.

Gastrointestinal illness outbreak on Alaska cruise

Update: 180 167 people onboard a cruise ship were sick in gastrointestinal illness outbreak, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

The passengers were on Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas during its September 20, 2024 sailing in Alaska.

In addition 3 crew members also reported being sick.

That constitutes a little over 8% of the passengers and 0.3% of crew members reporting getting sick. Cruise lines are obliged to report the incident of sick cases to the CDC when it affects more than 3% of the ship's total population.

The CDC report says symptoms included diarrhea, abdominal cramps, headache and muscle aches.

The CDC did not list what caused the illnesses in its report.

Royal Caribbean took action immediately by increasing cleaning and disinfection procedures according to their outbreak prevention and response plan.

While gastro illness on a cruise ship gets a lot of media attention, it's important to remember only 1% of all reported outbreaks occur on cruise ships.

Longshoreman strike won't affect cruise ship passengers

While a US port strike by 45,000 dockworkers looms, don't worry about it impacting your cruise vacation.

The strike is scheduled to start on Tuesday and affect ports on the U.S. East Coast and Gulf of Mexico. It would be the first coast-wide ILA strike since 1977, affecting ports that handle about half the nation's ocean shipping.

According to a statement made by the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA), cruise ship operations will continue to be serviced by the ILA as to not inconvenience those tens of thousands of passengers who have booked cruises.

Royal Caribbean helps make over 20 wishes come true for kids with critical illnesses

Royal Caribbean and Inter Miami CF worked with Make-A-Wish to bring a bright day to kids who have life threatening illnesses.

A four day experience was held in South Florida for 23 kids that traveled from South Florida to Texas and Canada to Israel. The event was held between between Saturday, Sept. 21 – Tuesday, Sept. 24.

Their wish? To meet Inter Miami captain and football legend, Lionel Messi.

Prior to meeting Messi, Royal Caribbean hosted the kids on Icon of the Seas in an effort to bring joy and normalcy to the kids and their families.

The families enjoyed look up close at the first theatrical rendition of “The Wizard of Oz”, time on the water slides at the Category 6 waterpark, and plenty of snacks and food on the ship.

Later in the week, the kids went to Chase Stadium to meet Messi and other members of his team on the field.

Update on the travel item ban

In case you missed it, Royal Caribbean updated exactly what it means when it said it banned "multi-plug outlets" on its ships.

The cruise line has banned "Extension Cords and Multi-Plug Outlets/ Power Strips," but that lead to a lot of confusion among cruisers.

With the new update, you can bring a USB outlet extender onboard and/or a single plug device.

"We do allow consumer type power conversion device USB charger (multi-plug blocks on which the outputs are for USB cables)."

This confirms a USB hub would be acceptable since it adds just USB outlets, and no power outlets. (Contains affiliate link, which costs you nothing extra to use).

Two famous influencers are facing harsh backlash for leaving their two young children unattended during their recent Royal Caribbean cruise.

The couple - Matt and Abby Howard - are known for their online presence, as the two are the hosts of a popular podcast called The Unplanned Podcast. In addition, the couple has a large following on Instagram and TikTok, where they chronicle their lives as parents of two young children to millions of followers. Their children include two sons, a 1-year-old named August and a 2-year-old named Griffin.

The controversy comes after Abby shared on her Instagram story about their recent cruise on Royal Caribbean’s Navigator of the Seas. The mom of two shared with her 1.3 million followers how she and Matt decided partway through their 5-night cruise to leave their children unattended in their stateroom during dinner.

In the now-deleted Instagram story, Abby said, “So, we ended up taking them for 5 nights and it became apparent that they weren’t enjoying it and therefore we weren’t either.”

“So, THEN we switched our dinner time to AFTER their bedtime and we FaceTimed the [baby] monitors while we ate,” she continued. Further, Abby shared how their baby monitors wouldn’t work onboard Navigator of the Seas unless they were within 10 feet of the device.

Abby stated, “And that worked out muchhhh better for everyone!”

According to online reports, Abby had shared that the parents had tried to leave the children with the onboard childcare services, but their baby was too upset by the ordeal. Moreover, Abby shared in an Instagram story how they tried to reserve slots for their children, but struggled to find availability.

“Our game plan was to play all day with the kids and then let them hang out in the kids club while the adults went to formal dining, as long, nice dinners [are] not a setting designed for them,” Abby said.

“Well, you need to book ahead if your child is under 3 and pretty much all of the dinner slots were already booked before I could get to the nursery (an hour after boarding),” she continued. As a solution, the parents opted to put their children to bed before dinner, relying on their phones to FaceTime a baby monitor to watch the kids.

As a family-friendly cruise line, Royal Caribbean’s Navigator of the Seas provides nursery care for children under 3 years old for an additional cost. The cruise line states on their website, "If you’re cruising with a baby or a toddler, you’ll be pleased to know that Navigator of the Seas offers an abundance of childcare options for little ones, like the cruise line’s award-winning Adventure Ocean Youth Program and the Royal Babies and Tots Nursery. That’s in addition to convenience-boosting amenities like cribs brought to your stateroom and babysitting services run by qualified, caring professionals."

According to Royal Caribbean’s website, Royal Babies and Tots has an additional cost based on an hourly rate. Parents need to register their children and reserve slots for the nursery, which is fully equipped with staff to supervise young children safely.

Unsurprisingly, the Instagram story has brought the parents under scrutiny for leaving their young children alone in their stateroom to have dinner. The story, which was shared to r/royalcaribbean on Reddit, garnered more than 200 comments. The original post on Reddit was captioned, "Influencers leave their kids in their room unattended… y'all, do NOT DO THIS!!"

Social media users and cruisers alike were outraged by the incident, calling the parents “neglectful,” "insane," and “irresponsible.” Moreover, many questioned how the parents would reach their children in the event of an emergency, such as an onboard fire.

“They could have easily had their dinner brought to their room and ate there. So irresponsible and selfish,” states one commenter.

Another cruiser stated, “I mean, I’ve cruised a lot and there is always something crazy that happens. A rogue wave. A lockdown. Storm. Lost child. The ocean is wild and to leave your 1-year-old and 2-year-old alone on a boat at any time is so so so so so so stupid.”

“If you can’t stay with your kids at all times or have appropriate adults watching them, then don’t bring them!”

Another user shared, “I expected to see a bunch of overreacting, assuming the kids were a bit older. 1 and 2? One is entirely helpless and the other is self-destructive. Yikes.”

“Wow, this is insane. I just took my 2-year-old and 11-month-old on a cruise and I never thought to myself, I should leave them alone in our room,” writes another commenter.

One person commented, “I was thinking that maybe they were older kids since I’m not familiar with these TikTokers. This information makes it so, so much worse.”

Others compared the incident to the story of Madeleine McCann, in which the British parents of the 3-year-old toddler left her unattended in a resort-style apartment to have dinner with their friends nearby. Other children were in the apartment at the time of the incident as well.

Although the parents took turns checking on the kids during dinner, the young Madeline was gone from her bed around 10PM that night - and she remains missing to this day.

“Clearly, they’re too young to know the story of Madeleine McCann. That’s exactly what happened in their case and I am sure those parents regret that choice to go have dinner when the kids are sleeping every single day,” writes one commenter.

Similarly, another person commented, “Dude. No way. Older little kids can leave the room without you stopping them. [For] babies, [it's] basically criminal neglect to leave like that. Madeleine McCann, anyone?”

“I guess they’ve never heard of Madeleine McCann?” commented one user on social media.

Another echoed this sentiment writing, “This seriously reminds me of the Madeleine McCann. Like many years ago, a couple on holiday left their child in the room for dinner and she was kidnapped. I mean that’s a worse case scenario but like literally a billion things can happen."

Abby and Matt have not responded to the criticism publicly, although the couple did remove the story from Abby's Instagram following the backlash.