Royal Caribbean has issued a new update to guests that are onboard the current sailing of Liberty of the Seas, as well as the upcoming sailing on Sunday.

The cruise line has made no changes to Liberty of the Seas' schedule, but is actively monitoring the path of Hurricane Harvey.

Royal Caribbean's Chief Meteorologist, James Van Fleet, provided a bit more detail into what the cruise line is seeing.

1) If we can safely get #LibertyOfTheSeas in #Sunday we will. Port of Galveston is expected to close down today, however, pic.twitter.com/zN2VDf5r48

— James Van Fleet (@JamesVanFleet) August 25, 2017

we are in constant communication w/ them to see if there will be a window to open up on Sunday. More updates through the day @RoyalCaribbean pic.twitter.com/nbyopj3wCv

— James Van Fleet (@JamesVanFleet) August 25, 2017

Royal Caribbean will post another update on Saturday, August 26, 2017 by 12:00 PM CT.

Every Friday, we share our readers favorite Royal Caribbean cruise photos because, we all can use a "virtual escape" to relive some great cruising memories.

If you want your photo featured in an upcoming Friday Photos post, be sure to use this form to send it to us.

Brian Robinson shared this photo on Royal Caribbean 1 Love of sail away.  Great start to a cruise!

FrodeofNorway took this photo of Rhapsody of the Seas, as seen from Santorini, Greece.

Here is a photo of Adventure of the Seas in St. Maarten, taken by Shana Smith.

Michael Poole took this photo in CocoCay.  He will be back there this weekend with his live blog from Majesty of the Seas!

Glenn Wildenmann took this photo on Anthem of the Seas, and caught a great angle of a lovely ship.

Hannes Scherz took this photo of the Bionic Bar on Harmony of the Seas while on his first cruise ever.

Speaking of Harmony of the Seas, Anne took this photo while docked in Labadee.

Thank you to everyone that sent in their photos that were featured this week, and we want to see your Royal Caribbean photos too! Use this form to send them in and we will feature them in an upcoming edition of Friday Photos!

The Port of Galveston issued an update today regarding the forecasted path of Hurricane Harvey and its impact on Royal Caribbean's Liberty of the Seas.

The Port of Galveston issued an update on their Facebook Page to indicate no changes have been made yet to Liberty of the Seas' itinerary, but Royal Caribbean is monitoring the path.  At this time, Liberty of the Seas will keep her original schedule for Sunday’s turnaround in Galveston, TX. Should the cruise line make any changes to Liberty of the Sea’s itinerary, Royal Caribbean will make sure to inform their guests and travel partners.

Royal Caribbean will provide an update tomorrow, August 25th by 12:00 PM EST.

See how science communicator Kevin Lieber, host of YouTube channel Vsauce2, experienced his first total solar eclipse onboard Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the Seas.

This week's podcast episode is ready to go, as we present episode 212 of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast for your downloading pleasure.

This week, Matt and Len Testa talk about Royal Caribbean's Price Integrity Policy and how it, and the cruise industry, are changing the price of cruise vacations.

Here’s the podcast page for Episode 212. And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast via RSS 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!

If you are in the market for a fantastic guilty pleasure for your next Royal Caribbean cruise, be sure to check out the Thermal Suite in the Vitality Spa.  This ultimate adult retreat offers unlimited access to warm loungers, steam and sauna rooms, and more.  It is a fantastic way to relax while at sea.

Royal Caribbean offers a Thermal Suite on some of its ships, including Harmony of the Seas.  While aboard Harmony of the Seas, we took at tour of the venue to get a sense of what this is all about.

Royal Caribbean sells a limited number of passes to the Thermal Suite on every sailing.  Passes can be purchased onboard the ship at the Vitality Spa, and provide unlimited access to the facilities included with the spa.

The thermal suite is made up of a few areas that allow for relaxation as you see fit.  Unlike a massage, facial, or other service in the spa, guests can come as often as they like to take advantage of the thermal suite benefits.  It is the perfect way to relax and treat yourself at the same time.

What's Included

The thermal suite has the following amenities that can be used only by those that purchase a pass.

Thermal loungers

Steam room

Sauna room

Pricing

The thermal suite comes in three options:

• Single guest: $109 and includes 1 DIY scrub of your choice
• Couples (two guests): $199 and includes 2 DIY scrubs of your choice
• Ultimate Pass
  • $250
  • Good for two guests and includes 2 DIY scrubs and couples bath

Keep in mind that while the pricing refers to "couples", in reality, it means any two guests can take advantage of it.  Friends can book the couples option and take advantage of reduced pricing.

Guests can purchase their thermal suite passes from the desk at the Vitality Spa.  It is best to purchase them on embarkation day.

Bonnie Tyler performed a duet with DNCE of the Welsh singer's hit song, "Total Eclipse of the Heart" during a total solar eclipse.

The artists shared the AquaTheater stage aboard Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas as part of the Total Eclipse Cruise. The performance coincided with the Great American Eclipse that was 99 years in the making.

“As if moving our ship to sail along the eclipse’s path of totality to give our guests 100 percent visibility of this phenomenon wasn’t enough, we wanted to take it to another level – just above ‘out of this world’,” said Michael Bayley, President and CEO, Royal Caribbean International. “Royal Caribbean is known as the most innovative cruise line, always pushing to create bigger and bolder adventures for vacationers. We’re excited to have DNCE and Bonnie on board, and even more thrilled to have seen the looks on our guests’ faces when she was brought on stage to sing ‘Total Eclipse of the Heart.’ This is what we live for – to make unforgettable memories. ”

As the moon made its way to cover the sun for the celestial event of the century, DNCE took center stage in Oasis of the Seas’ open-air AquaTheater, performing the band’s chart-topping hits, including “Kissing Strangers,” “Body Moves” and, of course, “Cake by the Ocean.” The concert culminated in the ultimate performance by DNCE and the Welsh-born singer. All eyes were on Joe Jonas and Tyler, alongside DNCE bandmates Cole Whittle, JinJoo and Jack Lawless, as they sang a powerful remix of Tyler’s classic, paying tribute to the solar eclipse.

Royal Caribbean’s Chief Meteorologist James Van Fleet and Oasis of the Seas Captain Per Kristoffersen collaborate to navigate toward the path of totality for the Great American Eclipse – a celestial phenomenon 99 years in the making.

Royal Caribbean has offered cabanas at its private destination of CocoCay for years, but these cabanas have lacked direct ocean access.  A new set of cabanas have been relocated that remedy that issue and provide waterfront access.

The waterfront cabanas at Water Sports Beach provide direct water access and Royal Caribbean Blog reader Nick Vitani shared photos of these cabanas.

The cabana relocation is part of Royal Caribbean's island-wide updates that are in the process of being implemented.  

Welcome to this week's edition of the Royal Caribbean post round-up, where we summarize all of the Royal Caribbean news and information from this week into one handy-dandy post! There is plenty of great content to enjoy, so sit back, relax, and enjoy this week's round-up!

This week, Royal Caribbean was forced to make changes to upcoming Allure of the Seas itineraries due to a speed restriction.  

It seems one of the propellers is damaged, which necessitated a reduction in speed and that resulted in more time to get from one port to another.

In addition, Royal Caribbean cancelled the January 21, 2018 sailing in order to take time to fix the cause of the speed restriction.  The work will take one week, and cruises will resume with the January 28, 2018 sailing.

Royal Caribbean News

• Royal Caribbean announced the name of its new Quantum Ultra class ship, Spectrum of the Seas.
• Bonnie Tyler will perform her hit song on Oasis of the Seas during the Eclipse.
• A new dining package and beverage package combo is now available on some sailings.
• Shay Mitchell is Royal Caribbean's new Adventurist.
• Royal Caribbean provided an outlook for the ships that will be able to see next week's solar eclipse.
• Our list of nine things you must try on Allure of the Seas.
• Top five things to do in Nassau, Bahamas.

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 211th episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available, where we share an overview of dining on Royal Caribbean ships.

There is a lot of great dining opportunities on a Royal Caribbean cruise, and this week, Matt talks about the different food available to enjoy on a Royal Caribbean 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.

Royal Caribbean Around the Internet

PR Week shared the inside story of how Royal Caribbean managed to get Bonnie Tyler to perform onboard.

CNBC interviewed Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Chairman and CEO Richard Fain learned to protest in college.

Travel Weekly reported Royal Caribbean upgraded its online booking tool for travel agents.

Skift shares how cruise lines are dealing with customers booking earlier than ever.