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Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up: December 27, 2020

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Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up
27 Dec 2020

Happy New Year! Before we pop champagne and toast to a better year next year, we have a look back at all the Royal Caribbean news from this week to share.

Earlier this week, The Port of Galveston said they have been told by Royal Caribbean plans for a new cruise terminal are still a go for 2021.

During the monthly meeting of the Board of Trustees of Galveston Wharves, the Port of Galveston reported that Cruise Terminal 3 is still scheduled to begin construction in April 2021 so that it can be ready to open in October 2022. 

The new Terminal 3 in Galveston will be built on 10 acres of land at Pier 10, and will be used exclusively by Royal Caribbean.

Royal Caribbean News

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 386th episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available, featuring an interview with two Royal Caribbean executives discussing the legacy of Empress and Majesty of the Seas.

Royal Caribbean announced it has sold two cruise ships, and this week, Ken Rush and Raimund Gschaider join me to say farewell to Majesty and Empress of the Seas with a look back each ship's legacy.

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 8 things people that cruise a lot say all the time!

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 8 things people that cruise a lot say all the time! — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

Quantum of the Seas Live Blog

Did you know this week we have a live blog running from the only Royal Caribbean cruise ship sailing right now?

Our friends at Singapore Cruise Society are on Quantum of the Seas and sharing daily updates from the ship.

You can catch up on what it's like to be on a cruise ship with all of their updates:

Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up: December 20, 2020

In:
Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up
20 Dec 2020

Merry Christmas! The holidays are here, and so is our weekly round up of this week's Royal Caribbean news.

There was a lot of Royal Caribbean news this week, but the big news was Royal Caribbean's announcement it has sold two of its cruise ships.

Majesty of the Seas and Empress of the Seas have been sold to an undisclosed buyer in the Asia-Pacific region that will release details for future sailings at a later time.

Both ships will depart the fleet later this month and guests who had cruises booked on either vessel will be contacted with their options for rebooking or cancellation.

The news was met with cruise fans and cruise line executives sharing fond memories of both ships, and bidding farewell to two classic vessels.

Read more: A last look at Majesty of the Seas

Royal Caribbean News

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 385th episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available, discussing the restart of cruises on Quantum of the Seas.

Chris Gray Faust from Cruise Critic joins Matt this week to break down Royal Caribbean's first cruise ship to restart operations.

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 to choose the right Alaska 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 to choose the right Alaska cruise — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

5 plans Royal Caribbean will and won’t be able to do in 2021

The new year is right around the corner and Royal Caribbean had some pretty big plans for 2021 before everything changed in 2020.

While there have been significant delays and changes to Royal Caribbean's plans, there are still some projects moving forward and others not so much.

Here is a look at what we can and cannot expect from Royal Caribbean next year.

Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up: December 13, 2020

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Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up
13 Dec 2020

Good news, we are all one week closer to our next Royal Caribbean cruise!  In case you missed any of the Royal Caribbean fun from this week, here is our weekly round up!

Many cruise fans were happy to hear that Royal Caribbean has extended the opportunity to earn double loyalty program points on 2021 cruises.

The Loyalty 2X Points benefit has been extended as a result of some of the recently cancelled cruises in early 2021.

There is no change to existing 2021 cruises booked, as they already qualify for the benefit as well.

Royal Caribbean News

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 384th episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available and this week, Matt and Billy make wishes for cruising in 2021.

Each year, Billy and Matt look back on the wishes they made for the year and make new wishes for the coming year.

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: 5 biggest changes on first Royal Caribbean cruise ship back!

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 — 5 biggest changes on first Royal Caribbean cruise ship back — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

Top 5 odd annoyances on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship

Every cruise ship has its quirks, including a few on Royal Caribbean that leave some guests baffled why it was designed that way.

In general, ship design is quite good across the fleet and the teams that sketched these vessels anticipated a lot of needs, but occasionally there is a peculiarity that we all seem to notice.

Here is a look at the top five odd annoyances on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship that you may have encountered yourself.

Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up: December 6, 2020

In:
Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up
06 Dec 2020

Happy December! We cannot believe that we are already one full week into the month – there is so much going on with holiday preparation and shopping and baking!

The big news this week was the first Royal Caribbean cruise ship in almost nine months successfully completed her first revenue sailing in Singapore.

Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas completed its first cruise after careful planning with Singapore's health and tourism authorities.

This is the first cruise ship to be able to resume operations, and it is limited to residents of Singapore. Quantum sails 3- and 4-night cruises with no port stops, which Royal Caribbean calls "ocean getaways".

You can check out our live blog from onboard Quantum of the Seas to see all the changes:

Royal Caribbean News

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 383rd episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is available to enjoy, which is a discussion of where travel is today and what the short-term future holds.

It feels like we're at a crossroads right now with travel, and this week Len Testa joins Matt to discuss what the future may hold for travel and cruises in the coming year.

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 video: How To Pick A Perfect First 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 To Pick A Perfect First Cruise! — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

New Europe summer 2022 cruises are available to book

Royal Caribbean has released its Europe 2022 cruises, which are available to book now.

There are new ways to explore Europe in summer 2022 with a fresh mix of ships, new itineraries and destinations across the region – from Italy and Israel to the British Isles and the Arctic Circle.

Guests can experience culture-rich adventures on board ships new to the Mediterranean and Northern Europe with Brilliance of the Seas sailing roundtrip from Venice, Italy and Voyager of the Seas launching her first season in the Baltic Sea – the first in the Voyager Class to do so. A game-changing lineup of guest favorites, Anthem, Allure and Odyssey of the Seas – Royal Caribbean’s second Quantum Ultra Class ship debuting in 2021 – will return to their respective homeports in Southampton, England; Barcelona and Rome to create a summer of memory-making in Europe’s most sought-after destinations.

Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up: November 29, 2020

In:
Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up
29 Nov 2020

Happy Sunday and Happy Thanksgiving weekend! I hope you enjoyed a wonderful holiday with family and friends! There is a lot of Royal Caribbean news to share this week.

Royal Caribbean will not sell any cruises longer than 7-nights until further notice in order to comply with new rules by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

The CDC's Framework for Conditional Sailing Order stipulates that cruises longer than 7 nights and call on a U.S. port are not allowed while the CSO is in effect.

Therefore, Royal Caribbean sailings between Jan. 1 and Nov. 1, 2021 are "temporarily paused" while Royal Caribbean determines what to do with them.

Royal Caribbean News

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 382nd episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is available to enjoy, where we learn how Royal Caribbean developed the concept for the Central Park neighborhood.

Royal Caribbean's Kelly Gonzalez shares the story of how Central Park went from idea, to test, to failure, to new idea and eventually success.

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 video: 8 NOT STUPIDEST purchases I made to bring 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 — 8 NOT STUPIDEST purchases I made to bring on a cruise — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

Odyssey of the Seas has been floated out!

Royal Caribbean's next new cruise ship was succesfully floated out from her shipyard hall on Saturday, reaching a major milestone in her construction.

Ship building Meyer Werft shared photos of Odyssey of the Seas being pulled out of the shipyard by tugboat and docked just outside the hall.

Now that Odyssey of the Seas is docked outside, more work will be done to add features to her, including the addition of the North Star observation pod.

Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up: November 22, 2020

In:
Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up
22 Nov 2020

Happy Sunday! Temperatures may be dropping, but there is plenty of Royal Caribbean news to share. This is your weekly summary of all the Royal Caribbean news from this past week, perfectly fitted for your consumption.

This week's top story had one hundred thousand reasons why it was big news because Royal Caribbean is seeing strong demand for people volunteering for test cruises.

In less than a week, Royal Caribbean President and CEO Michael Bayley shared on social media that Royal Caribbean has received over 100,000 people sign up as a volunteer for its test cruises through an online form.

The sign ups are for test cruises that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) require cruise lines to conduct prior to regular cruises being approved for restart in the United States.

On Thursday of last week, Royal Caribbean published an online signup form to allow anyone who is at least 18 years old to sign up after receiving thousands of inquiries from the public about how they could sign up to be a test cruiser.

Royal Caribbean News

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 381st episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is available to enjoy, where Matt and Ashley take a deep dive into the CDC's requirements for cruises to be able to restart.

The CDC laid out 40 pages detailing what cruise lines have to do if they want to get approval to cruise again.  This week's podcast episode looks at the important information you need to know about these requirements.

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: 5 Positive signs that cruises are coming back soon!

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 — 5 Positive signs that cruises are coming back soon! — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

Royal Caribbean will finally offer cruises to Bermuda from Florida

If you have ever wanted to visit Bermuda on a cruise without going out of the Northeast, 2022 might be the year for you.

Royal Caribbean released its 2022 Caribbean cruises earlier this week, and included with the array of choices is a new itinerary that offers an overnight stay in Bermuda from Port Canaveral.

Mariner of the Seas will introduce sailings from Florida to Bermuda, which is something that has not been offered in any recent memory.

These 8-night cruises will include two days in Kings Wharf, before heading to Nassau for a late night stay and then a full day at Perfect Day at CocoCay.

Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up: November 15, 2020

In:
Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up
15 Nov 2020

Another busy week of Royal Caribbean fun just wrapped up, but if you missed any of it, I have a concise look at all of it for you in this weekly news round-up!

After a week of speculation, Royal Caribbean is now taking sign ups for anyone that wants to volunteer go on a test sailing.

Royal Caribbean received thousands of requests, and so decided to offer a waitlist form to be notified if there are any opportunities.

The cruise line has a form set up for adults only (18 years or older) to enter basic information about themselves.

Over 20,000 people signed up in just the first 24 hours, with many more since.

Royal Caribbean News

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 380th episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available, which shares Diana's cruise story.

Diana celebrated her 35th wedding anniversary on Enchantment of the Seas, and shared her fun cruise escape on this week's cruise story!

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 10 things you should never do 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 — Top 10 things you should never do on a cruise — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

Why shore excursions are the big change to cruises you aren't thinking about

While the focus on all the changes to cruises largely centers around wearing masks, testing and social distancing, a major change to cruises whenever they return is going to be shore excursions.

While Royal Caribbean has not divulged its full list of new rules guests can expect when cruises resume in North America, limitations on shore excursions are a likely component to the cruise that could see big changes.

Going on a cruise is going to change, including how we plan and book shore excursions.

Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up: November 8, 2020

In:
Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up
08 Nov 2020

Happy Sunday! Temperatures may be dropping, but there is plenty of Royal Caribbean news to share.  This is your weekly summary of all the Royal Caribbean news from this past week, perfectly fitted for your consumption.

Royal Caribbean announced this week it has cancelled its December 2020 cruises in order to take more time to prepare for cruises to restart.

Excluding Quantum of the Seas sailings in Singapore, Royal Caribbean cancelled its December cruises so that it could utilize this time to thoroughly train staff and crew on new health and safety protocols, while also conducting a number of trial sailings to stress-test these measures in real-world conditions.

Rather than being prohibited by the CDC from sailing at all, the pathway for cruises to restart as opened, and Royal Caribbean is working on satisfying the CDC's stringent rules.

Before cruises can fully resume, the CDC has outlined a series of steps that need to occur before cruise ships can begin taking passengers onboard.

Royal Caribbean News

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 379th episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is available to enjoy, where Lauren shares her double cruise firsts story.

Lauren tried her first Royal Caribbean cruise, as well as her first European cruise, and shared how it all went on this week's episode.

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: 5 STUPIDEST purchases I made to bring 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 — 5 STUPIDEST purchases I made to bring on a cruise — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

Royal Caribbean May Need Volunteers for Trial Cruises

Before Royal Caribbean can restart cruises with paying passengers, they will need to conduct test sailings and it is not clear yet how volunteers will be selected for that process.

On Wednesday, Royal Caribbean Senior Vice President, Sales, Trade Support and Service, Vicki Freed, told travel agents that a combination of cruise line employees and volunteers would be used onboard a series of test cruises in order to test out the new health and safety protocols.

Since then, cruise fans have taken to social media to let the cruise line know that they are willing and able to be one of those volunteers.

Simulated sailings will need to meet CDC expectations for certification, which includes passengers wearing masks, wash and sanitize hands, and practice social distancing. 

Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up: November 1, 2020

In:
Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up
01 Nov 2020

Happy Sunday! November has arrived, and we hope you had a great week with friends, family, and plenty of food.  Each week we summarize all of this week's Royal Caribbean news, just in case you missed any of it.

There is big news, and then there is BIG news, and this week's news was seven months in the making: the CDC has lifted the No Sail order and opened a pathway for cruises to restart.

The CDC announced following the expiration of the No Sail order on October 31, the agency will take a "phased approach to resuming cruise ship operations in U.S. waters."

The Conditional Sailing Order will establish a series of phases and requirements for cruise lines to test out its new protocols and demonstrate they can operate cruises in a safe manner.

More on the Conditional Sailing Order:

Royal Caribbean News

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

Have you ever taken your whole family on a cruise?

In this week's podcast episode, Chris shares his experience having a family reunion on Adventure of the Seas.

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: 5 times Royal Caribbean completely changed their mind after announcing something

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 — 5 times Royal Caribbean completely changed their mind after announcing something — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

45 ways to save money on a Royal Caribbean cruise

Want to save money on your cruise vacation? Sure, everyone does, and so I have 45 ways to save money on your Royal Caribbean cruise.

From saving money on your cruise fare, spending less on excursions, or maximizing the value from what you buy, there a lot of ways to spend less.

While you might not be able to utilize all 45 tips for one cruise, a great many of these can be combined to help bring down the overall cost.

Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up: October 25, 2020

In:
Royal Caribbean Post Round-Up
25 Oct 2020

Happy Sunday! We are so happy that you stopped by and hope you are having a wonderful weekend. Grab a mug of your favorite hot beverage, sit back, and check out the latest in Royal Caribbean news.

Royal Caribbean announced it will redeploy six cruise ships in winter 2021-2022 for the Caribbean and Australia regions.

The changes encompass six ships, which offer new ships, as well as new itineraries, from a few different ports.

Royal Caribbean issued a statement that elaborated on the changes, "Our new deployment line-up provides guests with greater variety, including new itineraries in the Caribbean and Australia that will help strengthen the cruise line’s footprint globally."

Royal Caribbean News

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

Groups large and small will book cruises, and in one such instance, Jeff discovered he was going on a Freedom of the Seas cruise with a large group of bikers.

This week's podcast episode looks back on Jeff's cruise, and discusses how Jeff and his family enjoyed his cruise alongside a large group onboard.

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: Why nobody knows when cruises will restart

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 — Why nobody knows when cruises will restart — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

Royal Caribbean offering double loyalty points for all cruises in 2021

Guests who have a 2021 cruise booked will be able to take advantage of perhaps the most lucrative bonus offer ever offered, double Crown and Anchor points.

The Loyalty 2X Points enhancement applies to an existing or new booking that is made prior to December 31, 2020, for sailings departing January 1 – December 31, 2021.

If you have an existing reservation made before December 31, 2020, there is no need to re-book in order to get this benefit. You just need to make certain that a valid Crown & Anchor Society membership number is included in the reservation.

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