Happy Sunday and welcome to October, which means there is plenty of pumpkin flavored everything, changing colors of the leaves and plenty of Royal Caribbean news!

Hurricane Matthew is brewing in the Caribbean as we speak, and it has already lead to four Royal Caribbean itineraries being changed.

Due to the path of the storm, Royal Caribbean had to change the itinerary for Adventure of the Seas, Enchantment of the Seas and twice for Allure of the Seas.

The storm has taken a path across the Caribbean and is headed to the Bahamas with potentially more cruise changes on the way.  If there are anymore changes, we will be sure to report it here.

Royal Caribbean News

• A new Royal Caribbean deal began for October, with 60% off second guest plus other discounts.
• Royal Caribbean built an Ultimate Abyss in a Miami-area mall.
• Adventure of the Seas is getting a new two story mini golf course.
• Royal Caribbean won the Best Cruise Operator award for the 9th time in a row.
• Clarification on Royal Caribbean's drink package premium coffee benefit.
• A new video of the Harmony of the Seas art reveal.
• Where to get coffee on a Royal Caribbean cruise.
• 8 ways Harmony of the Seas is different from other Oasis-class cruise ships.
• The amenities for the beach loungers on CocoCay have changed.
• Royal Caribbean will make the first call to the Kingdom of Tonga.

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 165th episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available, where we list the top 5 experiences on Liberty of the Seas.

In this episode, Matt and Justin discuss what aspects of Liberty of the Seas stand out as their favorite in another edition of our Top 5 series.

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

Royal Caribbean Ltd looks at the impressive robot technology in Two70.

Wherever I May Roam takes a look at what there is to do in Labadee.

The Wanderer has a look at the epic adventures on Harmony of the Seas.

Royal Caribbean has a look at the top spots in the Mediterranean that Royal Caribbean can take you to.

Cruise Critic has a list of 10 things to know before going on Empress of the Seas.

Royal Caribbean has made a change to Freedom of the Seas' cruise that leaves today to avoid the path of Hurricane Matthew.

Royal Caribbean announced it will replace a scheduled stop in its private island of CocoCay in The Bahamas with a stop in San Juan, Puerto Rico instead.

@sttsxm Hi Meg. Freedom is going to San Juan, Puerto Rico instead of the Bahamas. Have a great cruise!

— Royal Caribbean (@RoyalCaribbean) October 2, 2016

In addition to Freedom of the Seas, Allure of the Seas and Enchantment of the Seas have had their itineraries changed this week.

Hurricane Matthew is a Category 4 storm that is heading north through the Caribbean. As of 8 a.m. EDT (1200 GMT), the storm was centered about 340 miles (545 kilometers) south-southwest of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. It was traveling north-northwest at 5 mph (7 kph).

At the TTG Travel Awards 2016, Royal Caribbean was named the Best Cruise Operator, which marks the ninth time in a row the cruise line has won the award.

Royal Caribbean was recognized for offering the best product, services and facilitires.  Ovation of the Seas, the newest Quantum Class ship, highlighted the awards by being the newest and largest ship in Asia. The award is also recognition for Royal Caribbean for being the most professional sales and marketing team in terms of innovative ideas and servicing.

At a ceremony in Bangkok, Royal Caribbean has been voted unanimously by readers of TTG Asia, TTG China, TTG India, TTGmice, TTG-BTmice China, TTGassociations and TTG Asia Luxury for the award. 

Sean Treacy, Managing Director, Singapore & Southeast Asia of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. who received the award said, "It’s a great honour to receive this prestigious award for the ninth consecutive time. It shows Royal Caribbean’s growing strength as the leading cruise brand of choice in Asia with our amazing ships and revolutionary onboard experiences. We will continue to deliver to everyone “the One holiday” with “endless adventures". 

"We thank all our partners for their strong confidence and support, in our journey in making the cruise industry more vibrant and our brand a top vacation choice across the region. Come 2017, we can look forward to another exciting year together with even more sailings and most of all, celebrating Royal Caribbean’s 10 th anniversary in Asia!" he added.

The TTG Travel Awards are given out annually to honour organizations in Asia Pacific’s travel industry fortheir strong commitment towards service excellence.

Royal Caribbean is kicking off a brand new promotion today with 60% off the second guest in a stateroom, plus 30% off third and fourth guests in the same room.

The BOGO60 offer is valid on cruises booked October 1 through November 2, 2016 on all sailings departing on or after November 1, 2016 (excluding China).

The deal includes

• Buy One, Get One Guest 60% off
• 30% off third and fourth guests
• Anthem of the Seas free upgrade
  • From Ocean View to Balcony on Anthem sailings. Please note that the “upgrade” will be reflected as “purchase a balcony at the price of an ocean view”

The BOGO60 deal is also combinable with the Holiday Offer on bookings made Oct.1-11, 2016 for eligible Bahamas and Caribbean holiday sailings

• $100 OBC per stateroom for eligible holiday sailings 3-5 nights departing December 22-31, 2016 and December 22-31, 2017
• $100 OBC per stateroom for eligible holiday sailings 6-9 nights departing December 15-31, 2016 and December 15-31, 2017
• $200 OBC per stateroom for eligible holiday sailings 10 nights or longer departing December 15-31, 2016 and December 15-31, 2017

BOGO60 is combinable with adjoining 30% Savings for 3rd and 4th guests, Anthem Upgrade, Holiday OBC, Crown & Anchor discounts and NextCruise offers. BOGO60 and 3rd and 4th Guest Savings are not combinable with restricted rates (for example, Seniors, Residents, Military). Anthem Upgrade and Holiday OBC are combinable with restricted rates (for example, Seniors, Residents, Military) and NextCruise offers. Anthem Upgrade is combinable with Crown & Anchor discounts. Holiday OBC is not combinable Crown & Anchor discounts. All offers are not combinable with any other offer or promotion, including, but not limited to, Standard Group, Interline, Travel Agent, Travel Agent Friends and Family, Weekly Sales Events, Net Rates, Shareholder Benefits.

Offer available to residents of United States and Canada.

The projected path of Hurricane Matthew has forced Royal Caribbean to change the itinerary for two more cruise ships.

Cruise Critic is reporting changes to Allure of the Seas and Enchantment of the Seas due to this massive storm.

Allure of the Seas will depart from Port Everglades as scheduled on October 2, but will change the order in which she visits her ports. 

• October 2: Depart Port Everglades at 4:30pm
• October 3: Sea Day
• October 4: Cozumel 7am - 6pm
• October 5: Sea day
• October 6: Falmouth 7am - 4pm
• October 7: Labadee 9:30am - 6pm
• October 8: Sea Day
• October 9: Port Everglades 6:15am

In addition, Enchantment of the Seas has canceled both of her stops in the Bahamas. Instead, she will sail on a Western Caribbean itinerary

• October 3: Depart Miami at 4pm
• October 4: Sea Day
• October 5: Cozumel 8am - 2pm
• October 6: Key West 1:15pm - 7pm
• October 7: Miami 6:15am

Royal Caribbean changed the itinerary already for Adventure of the Seas and Allure of the Seas earlier this week to avoid the path of the storm that has become Hurricane Matthew.

Every Friday, we invite our readers to send in their favorite Royal Caribbean photos so that we can showcase them right here on the blog.  We have a great selection of photos to share this week, but be sure to submit your favorite Royal Caribbean photos too!

Our first photo this week is of Radiance of the Seas by Dave Rimington from Mo'orea, French Polynesia. Look at that landscape!

Next is a photo by Steve Bovee of Oasis of the Seas next to Empress of the Seas in Cozumel.  Quite a striking contrast in ship size!

Here is Independence of the Seas docked in Southampton, by David Donnelly.  Independence is a fan-favorite in the UK and she looks radiant as ever in this photo.

This photo by Linda Stephens was a bit depressing to take, because she took it as her flight home took her right over Independence of the Seas. She had just gotten off Independence of the Seas earlier that morning. That is salt in the wound, Linda.

Bob (aka Sailor_to_Cruiser) took this photo immediately after his back to back Oasis of the Seas cruise to welcome his new grandson.  Mazel tov and it looks like the perfect gift for a newborn!

Here is a photo from Labadee by Brett Oresky of the zip liners in the background going past him.  Just another day in paradise!

Our final photo this week is by Andrew Mack of Anthem of the Seas in Nassau, Bahamas.  Beautiful ship and beautiful water color!

That wraps up this week's edition of Friday Photos. Thank you to everyone who shared photos and be sure to send in your Royal Caribbean photos so that we can share them in an upcoming edition!

The Harmony of the Seas exhibit “The Wonder of Our World, The World We Live In,” presents over 3,000 pieces from artists spanning 60 countries. Led by curatorial director Mariangela Capuzzo at ICArt, the collection explores wonder from four perspectives— people, places, what we do and what inspires us —through an array of media. Many of the works were created specifically for Harmony of the Seas and designed to bring joy to all who sail.

In addition to the changes previously announced for Royal Caribbean's Adventure of the Seas, one more change coming to the ship is a two story mini golf course.

The new two story golf course will be at Adventure Dunes, and will be Royal Caribbean's first two story mini golf course.  

Royal Caribbean added a similar golf course to Liberty of the Seas, known as Liberty Dunes, but Adventure of the Seas will feature a two-story version.

Photos of Liberty Dunes from Liberty of the Seas

Adventure of the Seas is undergoing a $61 million refurbishment in November 2016 and will add new staterooms, dining locations, a FlowRider, waterslides and more.

In case you were not aware, today is National Coffee Day.  And we all know that java lovers do not check their passion for this magical elixir when they step foot aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise.

Whether it is National Coffee Day or not, here are six places on Royal Caribbean ships to get your favorite coffee beverage.

Complimentary Coffee

On Royal Caribbean ships, guests can enjoy unlimited complimentary coffee during their cruise.  Guests can find complimentary coffee available at a number of locations throughout the ship.

In most cases, the complimentary coffee is either Seattle's Best or Illy's brand.

Where one will find complimentary coffee will depend on the exact ship you are on, but here are a few popular and easy-to-get-to locations for the free stuff.

• Cafe Promenade
• Café Latté-tudes
• Main dining room
• Windjammer
• Room service
• Park Cafe

Premium Coffee

Starbucks

Did you know Royal Caribbean ships serve Starbucks beverages? 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.

Royal Caribbean has stand alone Starbucks kiosks on Oasis of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas and Allure of the Seas.

In fact, the Starbucks location on Harmony of the Seas features more of a store than the Royal Promenade kiosk found on the other Oasis-class ships.  

Unlike on other ships, guests on Oasis-class ships are able to use Starbucks gift cards for payment.

Cafe Promenade

Any Royal Caribbean ship with a Royal Promenade has a dedicate location for coffee, tea, pastries and other light snacks known as Cafe Promenade.

The coffees found on Royal Promenade are a combination of complimentary coffee and premium coffee.  Often, the premium coffee consists of Starbucks brewed coffee beverages.

Ships with a Cafe Promenade include Voyager, Freedom and Oasis-class ships.

Café Latté-tudes

The Café Latté-tudes coffee bar serves up fresh brewed coffee, lattes and more throughout the day.

Much like Cafe Promenade, Café Latté-tudes serves complimentary coffee, along with specialty coffee drinks, lattes, cappuccino and espresso for a nominal fee.  There are also assorted pastries and cookies available to go along with your coffee.

Ships with Café Latté-tudes include Vision and Radiance-class ships and Majesty of the Seas.

La Patisserie

La Patisserie is a café-style dining option and the perfect place to grab a cup of joe on the Royal Esplanade.

There are some similarities to Cafe Promenade, but La Patisserie has a more colorful look, and tends to have more of a coffee-house vibe than Cafe Promenade.

La Patisserie is found on Quantum-class ships.

Park Cafe

Royal Caribbean's Oasis-class ships offer a lot to guests, including a fan-favorite spot for meals and a quick coffee, Park Cafe.

Besides the great coffee available at Park Cafe, you have the option of enjoying it in Central Park, among the lush surroundings that make this neighborhood so appealing.  It is such a pleasure to enjoy your cup of coffee with a good book and views of the flora that surrounds you.

Park Cafe offers complimentary and premium coffee on Oasis-class ships.

On other ships, Park Cafe can also be found on the pool deck in a smaller location.  While these options may lack the Central Park view, they still serve up great coffee throughout the day.

Cafe @ Two70

Somewhat similar to Park Cafe in offerings, Cafe @ Two70 is a more modern looking cafe that has a wide selection of food to compliment its complimentary and premium coffees.

As the name implies, Cafe @ Two70 is located adjacent to Two70 and makes it easy to grab your cup of joe and bring it next door to enjoy with a fantastic aft view of the ship.

Cafe @ Two70 is found on Quantum-class ships.

What is your favorite spot to get coffee on a Royal Caribbean cruise? Tell us in the comments below!

Earlier this month, Royal Caribbean changed the drink package rules to exclude Starbucks beverages, but there is now further clarification on what the drink packages do and do not include.

On Royal Caribbean's Facebook page, an update provides information on what the change means across the fleet.

Furthermore, Royal Caribbean amended its drink package document again to be more specific about the use of drink packages with Starbucks beverages.

Essentially, this sounds like the premium coffee rule is similar to how Starbucks beverages were handled with the former drink packages, that have been replaced with the new drink packages.

Thanks to reader Glen R., who shared this update with us!