A new standard for environmental stewardship has been set by Royal Caribbean.

Photo by Alex Roberson

Next month, Royal Caribbean's new cruise terminal will open in Galveston, Texas and when it does, it will set change the norm for all other terminals around the world.

The cruise line says by using solar panels, it will be able to generate 100% of its needed energy. This makes the terminal the first LEED Zero Energy facility in the world, and for exclusive use by Royal Caribbean International cruise ships.

The new cruise terminal will be the home of Allure of the Seas when she begins offering cruises in November 2022.

The $125 million, 161,334-square-foot Galveston Cruise Terminal will be able to accommodate up to 630,000 guests per year. 

The opening of the terminal will mark the first time Galveston welcomes Royal Caribbean International’s signature Oasis Class, the world’s largest cruise ships, with the arrival of Allure of the Seas and the first time the company is bringing its frictionless arrival and departure process to Texas.

Sustainable cruise terminal

When you think of a cruise terminal, you think about almost any large building that can accommodate a lot of people in that they are on the power grid. In fact, I bet you don't think about it because you just assume it's like any other building.

In building this new cruise terminal, Royal Caribbean Group approached design strategies that aligned with its wholistic environmental goals, its focus to advance the development of sustainable infrastructure as well as its decarbonization strategy.

Last year, Royal Caribbean Group announced it wanted to get to net zero emissions by 2050 under a program it calls, "Destination Net Zero".

The new cruise terminal in Galveston will be the first in Texas to achieve LEED Gold certification, an industry-leading certification expected to be received within the first two quarters of 2023.

Here's how Royal Caribbean Group reached this goal with the Galveston terminal:

• Improved Sustainability in Construction
  • The project prioritized using materials that produce less carbon based on energy used and the transportation process.
  • During construction, the team has diverted 75% of its waste from landfill.
  • Minimized interior sources of pollution through the installation of materials with low or zero volatile organic compounds (VOCs) content, and enhanced air filtration media, focusing on occupant thermal comfort and controllability.
• Renewable Energy and Carbon Reduction
  • The terminal will rely on 30,000 square feet of on-site photovoltaic solar panels, enabling the port’s self-sufficient energy usage. Any remaining energy not used by the terminal will be sent to the local power grid.
  • Carbon emissions are being offset through the purchase of carbon credits.
• Regional and Global Environmental Benefits
  • Materials and construction selection contribute to the reduction of “heat island effect” in the Galveston area, a region that experiences higher temperatures than outlying areas due to an over-stimulated energy grid.
  • Implement strategies to reduce exterior lighting pollution, which may help minimize negative effects to the night-time sky and the surrounding community.
• Community Connectivity
  • By offering bicycle facilities and electric charging stations, the project promotes alternative means of transportation for guests and staff from the surrounding community, reducing transportation-related carbon emissions.
  • As the Port of Galveston increases its Electric Vehicles (EV) charging stations, Royal Caribbean International’s terminal, T10, will supply infrastructure for the future installation of eight EV charging stations within its parking lot.

Royal Caribbean Group President and CEO Jason Liberty celebrated this achievement, "We are focused on innovating across all aspects of our company, especially in our work to advance sustainability in the communities we visit."

"We deeply value both the oceans we sail and the communities we visit and operate in, and the modern design and development features at our terminal in Galveston will work in service of both."

The Galveston terminal is the fourth LEED certified facility, but first to be Gold certified.

Other projects getting LEED certified include:

• Terminal A at PortMiami
• The Springfield, Oregon campus
• The Innovation Lab at Royal Caribbean Group’s corporate headquarters in Miami

The cost of a cocktail on your cruise will probably be a bit higher on your next sailing.

Guests sailing on a variety of ships are reporting seeing the average price of a signature cocktail up from $13 to $14 per drink, before gratuity.

The exact cost of a cocktail depends on a few factors, such as the type of liquor, but Royal Caribbean had priced many of its drinks on its menu at $13 per drink for a few years.

For years some ships had cocktails priced at $12, while others had them at $13. Since cruises restarted in 2021, the price stabilized across the fleet at $13.

Certain drink menus are now showing a $14 drink cost on sailings that have departed over the last few days. An automatic 18% gratuity will be added to that cost for drinks purchased a la carte.

In case you're wondering, the price of a beer is listed at $7.49 for domestic beers and $7.99 for imports. Red Stripe will cost you $8.25.

Many wines by the glass are still around $10-14 per glass.

While the individual Royal Caribbean drink prices have gone up by a dollar, your Royal Caribbean drink package benefits have also gone up to match it.

Guests who have gotten letters from Crown and Anchor Society with their Diamond benefits noted their vouchers now cover drinks in value up to $14.

Many cruisers opt to purchase an unlimited drink package to help control drink prices while onboard.  For a flat fee, you can enjoy all the beers, cocktails, juices, sodas, premium coffees and teas, and bottled water you want.

The cost of a Royal Caribbean drink package will vary from sailing to sailing, and ship to ship.

On average, the Deluxe Beverage Package (unlimited alcohol package) will cost somewhere between $65.00 - $90.00 per person, per day for a drink package when purchased onboard.

Read more: How much is the drink package on Royal Caribbean?

While the overall cost a drink package isn't necessarily cheap, a lot of people like the fact a drink package offers fixed costs and convenience of being able to order drinks anytime they see fit, without concern of running up a big bill or being stuck with a drink they do not like.

Still cheaper than a lot of places on land

If paying $14 for your next pina colada sounds like a lot, you may feel a little bit better knowing a cocktail on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship is likely cheaper than a lot of other tourist destinations.

Walt Disney World charges anywhere from $17 - $20 for a margarita at its La Cava del Tequila bar in Epcot. A Star Wars-inspired specialty cocktail at Oga’s Cantina in Hollywood Studios will run you $17 or $18 (not counting the Yub Nub $45 cocktail).

If you visit the Hard Rock Cafe in New York City, you'll pay $14.75 for a Classic Caribbean Mojito, and $15 for a Cosmopolitan. 

At the Super Bowl earlier this year, the signature cocktail, "Monday Morning Quarterback," cost $16.

How to save money on drinks during your cruise

While Royal Caribbean's drink packages are quite popular with guests, they do require a moderate amount of drinking every day of your cruise to make the investment worthwhile financially. For those that do not want to drink quite that much every day, there are a number of alternative strategies to the drink package that can still save you some money. 

Bring wine

Did you know that Royal Caribbean allows guests to bring up to two bottles of wine per stateroom on their Royal Caribbean cruise?

Each bottle of wine may be up to 750ml in size and should be brought on in your carry-on luggage. Do not put the wine in your checked luggage.

Wine lovers will be able to bring a couple of bottles of their favorite wine on their cruise at a savings compared to purchasing the wine onboard.  Moreover, bringing your own wine means you will save money on your total bar tab during your cruise.

My favorite aspect of bringing your own wine is if you do not finish the bottle of wine, Royal Caribbean can store the wine for you and deliver it another restaurant at that time.

Look for drink specials onboard

One of the best ways to get a deal on a cocktail is to order the drink of the day.  The drink of the day is a select cocktail that changes every day, which has about a 20% discount on it and is available from most bars onboard.  

You can just ask the bartender or waiter what the drink of the day is and take advantage of those savings.

To find drink specials, consult the Cruise Compass for some advertised deals, as well as walk around bars and look for posted signs.

Get free drinks

Free drinks on Royal Caribbean? Yes. Seriously!

Believe it or not, there are ways to get free drinks on your Royal Caribbean cruise.  Granted, there is no way to effectively drink all day like this, but any free drinks you can get are less drinks you have to buy!

One of the best ways to get free drinks is by being a Crown and Anchor Society member.  Diamond level and above members are eligible for free beverages each day.

All Crown and Anchor Society members will have special coupons pre-loaded on their SeaPass account that provide deals like Buy One, Get one beer, wine or soda by the glass.  In addition, Royal Caribbean holds Crown and Anchor Society events onboard for members, with complimentary cocktails served.

Free champagne can also be found at select events, including art auctions, Captain's Welcome and during holiday celebrations.

Drink in port

There is no question you will save money by drinking at the ports of call you visit compared to onboard.

Bars and restaurants at the ports your Royal Caribbean ship will visit regularly offer cheaper drink prices for beers and cocktails and that can mean big savings if you can wait to enjoy some drinks when on land, compared to on your ship.

Depending on your itinerary, this strategy may be more lucrative than others, but it is a good way to indulge in your favorite mixed drink or cerveza for a lower cost.

The last day of our cruise on Independence of the Seas takes us to Nassau, Bahamas for a short visit.

It's always odd when you only spend a few hours in a port, and the timing of the port times stand out when we are only in Nassau from 8am to 2pm. It also limits what you can do.

Since we didn't have a ton of time in port, we didn't book any shore excursions.  The plan was to treat it like a sea day and stay onboard.

First and foremost, we all took this opportunity to sleep in after a busy couple days at the beginning of the cruise. 

We managed to roll into the Windjammer at 10am for breakfast, followed by a visit to Cafe Promenade for a morning coffee.

My wife and I took our coffee down to deck 4 and outside to the promenade deck. While it's hot and humid out, if you can sit in the shade with a breeze, it's quite comfortable.

Maybe it was the caffeine, but I started getting an itch to do something and get off the ship for a little bit. So we grabbed our stuff to take a short walk around Nassau.

Your best bet when visiting Nassau is to have some kind of a tour or activity planned, as the area near the pier is a rather large tourist trap of shops and bars. 

Read more: Best things to do in Nassau on a cruise

Just walking off the ship, you could see the progress the port is making to upgrade everything. The pier and port area are in the process of being completely upgraded, which is a multi-year effort.

We started off doing a little bit of window shopping at the various souvenir stores.

We stopped for a drink at my favorite bar, Pirate Republic Brewery.

They had a limited amount of beer today, so I decided to try their hard seltzer since I like Truly. 

It was good, but too much of a seltzer taste compared to Truly, so I think next time I'll stick to whatever beer they have available.

We made our way back to the ship and I got exactly what I wanted out of our visit: a short excuse to walk around port for a bit.

Back in the cabin, I had one thing on my mind now: a nap.

Independence of the Seas departed Nassau right around the time I got up, and I made a quick run to the Windjammer for a late lunch.

My wife went with my oldest daughter to see the Broadway musical, Grease, while I napped/stayed with my youngest daughter in the cabin. I would have enjoyed seeing it, but naps are serious business.

After my nap, I went up to the Diamond Lounge to have a drink and spend a few minutes up there.

One of the many fabulous benefits of being at least Diamond in Royal Caribbean's Crown and Anchor Society is access to a dedicated lounge for Diamond, Diamond Plus, and Pinnacle Guests. It's kind of like their own clubhouse, meeting place, and bar wrapped into one.

On Independence of the Seas, it's located on Deck 14 near the Viking Crown Lounge and it has great views. Plus, there's a nice outdoor part to it as well.

Dinner tonight was at Izumi hibachi, which is always a popular restaurant on almost any ship that has an Izumi location.

Food was great, and the kids enjoyed the experience. If you want to dine at hibachi, you definitely want to make reservations as early as possible. With the dining package, I recommend going immediately after you board the ship to get a reservation.

After dinner, it was back to the pub for music for one last evening.

Overall, we had a great time on Independence of the Seas. Three night cruises always feel like they go by so quickly because of the fact it's only a few days, but it's better to have cruised quickly than not to have cruised at all!

Weather was great, sea conditions perfect, and the ship itself was lovely. The crew members did a great job of taking care of us, and I hope we can do another weekend sailing sooner than later.

This wraps up my live blog here, but Allie will be live blogging in a few days from Odyssey of the Seas in Europe, and I'll be back with another live blog on Allure of the Seas from her new home in Galveston next month!

Thanks for reading and all the wonderful comments!

I hope everyone reading this is having a wonderful Sunday and enjoying some time this weekend with friends, family and some good food too.  Here is a summary of all the Royal Caribbean news from this week in one easy-to-read blog post for your convenience!

We have new photos of Icon of the Seas ship construction to share this week!

We're as curious as you to know what this new cruise ship is all about, so RoyalCaribbeanBlog commissioned photos to be taken from the shipyard to see what's new and different.

Not only has the bow been nearly all installed, but a number of top deck designs are starting to take shape. You can view all the Icon of the Seas construction photos and see for yourself!

Royal Caribbean News

• Spotted: Royal Caribbean makes face masks optional for crew members
• Royal Caribbean brings back kids cruise free promotion
• Royal Caribbean offering fall fares as low as $89 per person
• Royal Caribbean cruises in October 2022: What to expect
• Should you book the Izumi pre-fixed sushi option?
• We're live blogging from Independence of the Seas this weekend!
• Marriott Fort Lauderdale Airport Hotel Review

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 471st episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available, where Matt sums up his Allure of the Seas cruise and answers many more listener emails.

As an addendum to last week's episode, Matt talks about the rest of the sailing and how the hurricane impacted the sailing.

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: I tried the best inside cabin hacks

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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 — I tried the best inside cabin hacks — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

I tried The Key (again) to see if it's worth it

On a recent 6-night cruise on Allure of the Seas, Jenna purchased The Key to see if the experience was any better or different than in the past.

The Key provides VIP benefits to guests that pay for it, but is it worth it to spend the extra money?

Royal Caribbean advertises plenty of benefits, but are they as good as they sound?

Is Black Friday the best time to buy a Royal Caribbean drink package?

One mantra I see cruise fans repeat is the advice for people to wait for Black Friday to buy their cruise add-ons because they feel the best discounts are offered that week.

The problem with waiting for any one sale is you're putting a lot at risk for a potential discount that may or may not materialize.

Should you wait or book now? Here's a look at the pros and cons of waiting for a Black Friday sale.

Allure of the Seas Guide & Review

Want to know everything about Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas?

Our planning guide will give you all the important information about Allure before you get onboard.

Our first stop on this quick 3-night cruise is Royal Caribbean's private island of Perfect Day at CocoCay.

Independence of the Seas was cleared for guests to disembark around 8am, but that's a bit too early to round up our family, so we planned to walk off the ship at 9am.

Our first stop was the Windjammer for breakfast. It's strange when I don't go to the Windjammer on the first day, because of how much of a usual stop that is for us.

A lot of other people had the same idea because the Windjammer was packed. We had to do a loop around until we found a table.

Breakfast was great, and just what we needed to make it off the ship and keep us sustained until the Snack Shack opened up on CocoCay.

Joining us on the island were guests from Freedom of the Seas, also doing a quick weekend sailing.

Our plan was to grab some seats near Oasis Lagoon and then explore the island. 

First up was Harbor Beach, which I really liked the last time we were here.

Unfortunately, there were too many fish for my preference. Yes, I know the ocean is where fish live, but there lots of minnows and slightly larger fish that kept swimming around so we decided to hit up the beach later.

Next was to the 100% fish-free area of Oasis Lagoon.  The DJ didn't get set up until later in the morning, so it was nice and relaxing to enjoy being in the water before the Spring Break vibes kicked up.

Our "early lunch" was a visit to the Snack Shack to enjoy my favorite "secret sandwich", which consists of the chicken sandwich combined with the mozzarella sticks. 

The kids then explored the various outdoor games available near Breezy Bay. I was surprised how busy this area was.

My kids really enjoyed the soccer ball billiards game. I would have spent more time here had there been more shade.

To cool off, we went to Breezy Bay and the ocean here was the perfect temperature. While I'm sure there were just as many fish around as before, I didn't see them as much so I was able to cool down.

Since it had been 90 minutes, my kids were ready to eat again so we took another break over at Chill Grill to enjoy another lunch.

I really like the make-your-own taco bar so I can create my favorite type of taco salad.

After we ate, the kids wanted to go to Splashaway Bay. I didn't object when I found a comfortable Adirondack chair in the shade to catch a few zzz's.

By about 3pm, everyone started to feel a little tired too, so we got our stuff and went back to the ship to shower, change, and nap.

I had to decide if I was going to nap or power through it, and ultimately decided to get a coffee from Cafe Promenade and stayed awake while my kids napped.

Independence of the Seas set sail right around 4pm or so to start the very short journey to Nassau.

We had dinner reservations for Chops Grill, but since I decided to cut out red meat for health reasons, the menu doesn't excite me much. The family ate at Chops, while I took a detour to grab something to eat at the Windjammer.

It turned out to be Italian night in the Windjammer, and there were so many great choices, including a custom cooking pasta station.

It was a great decision for me, and everyone else got to enjoy a lovely meal at Chops.

After dinner, we went down to Playmakers. The Mets/Padres games was not being shown again, so we streamed the game on a phone. Tonight the internet worked better, with far less buffering than last night.

After a bit we moved up to the pub to enjoy some live music.  

The pub singer's set was cut short due to the 80's dance party on the Royal Promenade, but he had one more set before he was done for the evening.

We wrapped up our evening with a few games in the casino.

Tomorrow is our final day, and we'll be in Nassau.

A three-day weekend on my kids' school calendar is the perfect opportunity to escape for the weekend to the Bahamas on Independence of the Seas!

Since we live in the Orlando area, weekend cruises are an easy sailing to hop on, especially when there's an extra day off of school.

We're sailing on Independence of the Seas for a 3-night cruise that visits Perfect Day at CocoCay and Nassau, Bahamas.

We left our home at 10:30am and made the drive over to Port Canaveral. No traffic and an easy hour or so ride to the coast.

The check-in might have been the easiest and fastest check-in and boarding I've had since cruises restarted last year. We rarely stopped walking, and when we did, it was just to verify everything.  The ship was already open and boarding guests when we got to the terminal.

After getting on the ship, we headed to Playmakers for lunch.

We booked the unlimited dining package for this cruise, so one easy way to maximize the package value is to start the cruise with a specialty restaurant lunch.

I was concerned it would be overly busy, but we had no problem getting a table and the food came out nice and quick.

Our waiter was very nice, but he mistakenly told us we could each only eat at Playmakers once per day. Unfortunately, I've heard waiters occasionally say that, but it's simply not the policy.  In short, the unlimited dining package is unlimited, with no quotas or limitations to how many restaurants or times you can dine at a restaurant on any day. I didn't say anything to him, figuring I can cross that bridge if we need to later.

While we waited for the food, I went over to Izumi to book our dinners. If you have a specialty restaurant package, it's a good idea to go ahead and book a reservation once you get onboard. We had no issues getting the restaurants and times we wanted.

Lunch was served quickly and it was very warm.  Wings, burgers and fries...oh my!

Next up was a visit to our muster station to complete the muster drill process. Couldn't have been easier and still so happy to not have to do the old muster drill process!

The staterooms weren't ready until 1:30pm, so my wife and I took time to hang out in the Solarium for a bit and enjoy the beautiful weather.

For this cruise, we booked connecting Promenade View cabins. 

One of my favorite family cruise tactics is to book two connecting cabins, rather than one large room. We get separation from the kids and an extra bathroom.

Since we booked this cruise a few months ago, prices were much cheaper for this category, so an inside cabin is just fine for a quick weekend cruise.

After the rooms were ready, it was back up to the pool deck for some afternoon sun and sailaway.

The weather was absolutely fantastic, and we enjoyed bright sunny skies for our departure, along with a lot of other guests who were ready to party.

Dinner took us to Giovanni's Table.

This is still the "old" Giovanni's Table menu (and not the new Giovanni's Italian Kitchen), but just like on Allure of the Seas last week, it was great.

We also were treated to a lovely sunset from our table.

After dinner we grabbed a drink at Boleros, where Michael poured a drink in a very unique way.

This leads me to using the new Starlink internet that is now available on Independence of the Seas. Overall, it works great when browsing the web, checking Facebook and whatnot.

Just like pre-Starlink, it will struggle at times as you wait for something to load. We also tried streaming the Mets/Padres playoff game via both MLB.TV and our cable provider web portal. The live stream held up about 50% of the time, with lots of buffering.  This could be a product of too many people also using the wifi, poor connectivity to the closest router, or something else.

In my experience, there are so many variables on the cruise ship that can affect internet performance that it's difficult to assign blame. 

The good news is the internet is substantially faster than what Independence had before, so there's no question it's an upgrade. We'll see how the rest of the cruise goes with regard to performance.

Back to the cruise fun, we went to the Schooner Bar since the piano player there started up first and there was a big crowd for the show.

We rounded out the night in the pub with live guitar music.

Tomorrow we will be at Perfect Day at CocoCay.

Stray Observations

I don't ever recall seeing these wood tables in the Solarium on this, or any ship.

We stopped by Cafe Promenade and noticed they also have the new Starbucks drinks available here. This means if you have a Diamond drink voucher or unlimited drink package, you can get drinks here included (unlike the Starbucks kiosk).

One strange thing about our Promenade View cabin is the telephone is on the desk, and not by the bed.

Izumi is Royal Caribbean's popular Japanese specialty restaurant on nearly all of its ships, so is it a good idea to purchased the pre-fixed option instead of paying as you go?

I've been eating at Izumi since it was first introduced on Oasis of the Seas when the restaurant was tucked away on deck 16 and always loved the assortment of sushi (and non-sushi) options. I've always thought besides the variety of food, it also allows for a very filling or light meal because everything is priced a la carte.

Recently, many blog readers have been choosing the pre-fixed menu option and it got me wonder if it was a better idea. Would I save money with it, and would I leave the restaurant feeling as satisfied compared to paying as I go?

On a recent Allure of the Seas cruise I chose to go with the fixed menu option in order to see how well it would work for my style of eating.

What is the pre-fixed menu?

The Izumi menu is priced individually for each item, and that means you pay for what you order.

Royal Caribbean has an alternative option where you pay one price and get certain amount of food included. They've tweaked what's included over the years, but today it's:

• 1 small plate, like Miso Soup or Pork Gyoza Dumplings.
• 2 large plates from a selection of signature rolls, sushi & sashimi, flavorful bowls of ramen and more.
• 1 dessert like mochi ice cream offered in a variety of flavors.

The cost onboard is $34.99 per adult or $10.99 per child (children between the ages of 6-12. Children ages 0-5 are complimentary).  You may find a better price if purchased before your cruise from a Cruise Planner sale. If you have a dining package, you can opt into the pre-fixed menu.

Royal Caribbean sometimes offers the Sushi & Sake lunch, which is different from the pre-fixed menu as it includes alcohol, isn't available for kids, and is more of an experience with the sake instruction aspect.

My meal

I had the unlimited dining package for my cruise and decided to give the pre-fixed option a try.

The waiter gave all of us the choice, and once I opted into it, he took my order based on the three courses I could choose from.

The online menu didn't make the distinction, but at the restaurant, a bowl of miso soup was included in addition to the 1 small plate.  I went with the soup and the vegetable fried rice. I usually do just sushi, but I was really in the mood for fried rice.

As for the large plates, there's quite a few choices to consider.

I ended up with the spicy crispy tuna roll and the chef's sushi selection. The sushi selection has plenty of sushi variety for what I like, and the crispy tuna roll helps bring a different texture to the meal.

To round it out, I went with the chocolate lava cake for dessert.

Izumi prix-fixe review

After trying the pre-fixed menu, I came away from my meal thinking this is an option to simplify the menu down for someone who may be completely new to Japanese food.

I eat a lot of sushi on cruise ships and on land, so I have a pretty good idea of what I like and don't like. Moreover, I've spent years trying different things on the Izumi menu to find the right combination for me.

Thanks to years of dining package prowess, maximizing every dollar out of my dining package has proven to be a fruitful endeavor. 

Depending on how adventurous you are, the prix-fixe menu can be advantageous in terms of value.

I think it's fair to compare it to the dining package, which allocates $35 worth of food to each person.  Unlike the fixed price option, the dining package stipend can be pooled among everyone at your table, which means the light eaters can provide greater value to the friends.  This is usually the case when I eat with my wife, as she rarely ever comes close to getting $35 of value from her dining package.

In adding up the prix-fixed menu option I chose, I came away with $46 of value compared to if I bought the same items a la carte. That sounds like a great value, but there's a few things I would have done differently had things not been included. I would have only gotten one small plate, but since miso soup came with it at no additional cost, I opted for the soup and a small plate. 

I also never order dessert at Izumi. I'd much rather get my extra calories from another sushi roll because I love their sushi that much.

Of course, if you don't eat sushi, then the fixed price menu has fewer options and I think beef teriyaki and an udon or ramen bowl sounds like a lot of food.

Ultimately, if you're looking for a big meal, everyone getting a dining package and pooling your money together should get you more food than everyone on the prix-fixe.  If you are a light eater, I think you'll find more food than you can handle with the option and better off paying for Izumi a la carte.

I certainly didn't walk away disappointed or hungry, but I think for the way I enjoy sushi, I'll stick to the individual item pricing at Izumi for the time being.

If you can go on a cruise in the first two weeks of November or December, there are some seriously good fares available.

Royal Caribbean routinely puts out a weekly offer with last-minute cruise deals out to its travel agent partners, but this week's offers include some really deep discounts.

Some sailings on 2- or 3-night cruises are coming in at just $89 or $99 per person based on double occupancy, which is pretty much the cheapest cruise fare you will find offered by Royal Caribbean.

Listed under the Going, Going, Gone rates, there are dozens of fares listed, with prices ranging in value.

Best of this week's cruise deals

I've gone through all the prices listed to find the lowest deals.

Keep in mind these prices are valid October 5 & 6, 2022, but could easily sell out at the rates listed. There's no way to know if it's still available until you go ahead and price out the cruise.

• Freedom of the Seas 2-night Perfect Day Getaway Cruise from Miami on December 5, 2022: $89 per person
• Independence of the Seas 3-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on December 5, 2022: $99 per person
• Liberty of the Seas 3-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Fort Lauderdale on November 1, 2022: $99 per person

• Liberty of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Fort Lauderdale on November 7, 2022: $129 per person
• Liberty of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Fort Lauderdale on November 14, 2022: $129 per person
• Liberty of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Fort Lauderdale on November 7, 2022: $129 per person
• Liberty of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Fort Lauderdale on November 28, 2022: $129 per person
• Liberty of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Fort Lauderdale on December 5, 2022: $129 per person

• Freedom of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Miami on October 24, 2022: $149 per person
• Freedom of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Miami on October 31, 2022: $149 per person
• Freedom of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Miami on November 7, 2022: $149 per person
• Freedom of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Miami on November 14, 2022: $149 per person
• Freedom of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Miami on November 28, 2022: $149 per person
• Freedom of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Miami on December 12, 2022: $149 per person
• Independence of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on October 24, 2022: $149 per person
• Independence of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on October 31, 2022: $149 per person
• Independence of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on November 7, 2022: $149 per person
• Independence of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on November 14, 2022: $149 per person
• Independence of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on November 28, 2022: $149 per person
• Independence of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on December 12, 2022: $149 per person

Prices are per person, cruise only, based on double occupancy.

Prices listed are not combinable with any promotional offers or discounts with the exception of Crown & Anchor benefits and NextCruise Onboard Booking Bonus.

Governmental departure taxes and fees are additional.

Why are these cruises so cheap?

Are you wondering why these prices are so inexpensive?

Cruise prices vary depending on the ship and time of year, but if you look at the dates listed, there's a common thread among them. They're all right around very popular times for vacations in Thanksgiving and Christmas, but in weeks before or after these major holidays.

Typically the first two weeks of November and first two weeks of December have much less demand for cruises than nearly any other time of the year. This is because most people get built-in time off from school and work over Thanksgiving or Christmas, so fewer people are able or willing to take time off just before or after these holidays.

And of course, these are all 3- and 4-night cruises.  Short cruises will almost always have a lower total price since there are less nights.

4-night cruises are always harder to fill because they begin on a Monday and end on a Friday. Arguably, you could take the same amount of days off of work and get a 7-night cruise for the same investment in time off when counting weekends.

With less people willing or able to cruise these times of year, you can find great deals.

The catch: taxes and fees

While the cruise prices are cheap, there is a catch when you get to the final price.

When you price out the cruise, you may find yourself paying more in taxes and fees than the cruise fare itself. These are fees charged by local governments for each passenger.

These come in the form of government taxes, fees, or surcharges that may be assessed by any governmental agencies, as well as third party fees and charges arising from a vessel’s presence in a harbor or port.

If you care to break it down, cruise taxes essentially cover these services and charges:

• Tolls
• Ship inspections 
• Local harbor pilots
• Air, hotel, or VAT taxes incurred as part of a land excursion 
• Immigration and naturalization costs
• Internal Revenue Service charges
• Baggage handling at embarkation and disembarkation ports
• Security services

In case you were thinking about it, there's no way to avoid paying government taxes and port charges.

The other catch: getting to the cruise

If you live in Florida and can drive to these cruises, then the prices might just be a wonderful deal.  But others may find the value foiled by extra costs.

The cost of airfare to fly down for this cruise could negate the low prices, especially with how high airfare can be in the final weeks before the trip.  Then there's the food, parking, and hotel costs that come along with it.

There's no doubt these deals are primarily aimed at people with a lot of free time that can drive to the cruise ships easily.

Just like any cruise, alcoholic drinks, internet access, and shore excursions will all cost you extra.