Royal Caribbean has added a new way for its guests to help support Hurricane Irma relief efforts, with a promise to match donations up to $1 million.
Royal Caribbean added a link on their homepage for guests to donate any amount towards Hurricane Irma relief efforts.
Royal Caribbean announced today it has cancelled the September 13th sailing of Empress of the Seas sailing to Cuba due to Hurricane Irma.
Royal Caribbean decided to cancel this sailing, along with the September 15th Majesty of the Seas sailing, to utilize the ship for humanitarian efforts in areas of the Caribbean with urgent need. Empress of the Seas and Enchantment of the Seas are ready to assist Key West and Tampa once the impact of the storm is known.
For both the Empress sailing on 9/13 and the Majesty sailing on 9/15, the cruise fare and fees will be 100% refunded to the original form of payment, and Royal Caribbean is also offering a 25% future cruise credit, based on the cruise fare, if a new cruise is booked in the next 30 days. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call 1-800-256-6649.
Hurricane Irma is a category 4 storm with sustained winds of 130 mph. The eye of the storm is currently moving through the Keys and is moving northwest at 8 mph. The storm should exit the Florida area late Monday, pre-dawn Tuesday.
Royal Caribbean announced it has cancelled the September 15 sailing of Majesty of the Seas so that the cruise line can utilize the ship for humanitarian efforts in areas of the Caribbean with urgent need.
Hurricane Irma has caused Royal Caribbean to alter and even cancel a number of sailings, including the previous September 11 sailing of Majesty of the Seas.
Guests who were scheduled to sail on Majesty of the Seas on the September 15th sailing will receive a 100% refund of the cruise fare and fees to the original form of payment. Plus, Royal Caribbean is also offering a 25% future cruise credit, based on the cruise fare, if a new cruise is booked in the next 30 days.
If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call 1-800-256-6649.
Hurricane Irma is a category 4 storm with sustained winds of 130 mph. The storm is currently located north of Cuba and is moving northwest at 12 mph. The current forecast suggests that the eye will be coming ashore in the Lower to Middle Keys and Naples early Sunday morning, followed by Tampa Bay Sunday evening. The storm should exit the Florida area late Monday, pre-dawn Tuesday. This farther west track we have seen over the last couple days is due to Hurricane Jose’s strength and its proximity to Hurricane Irma.
Royal Caribbean announced today that Oasis of the Seas next sailing will be delayed by one additional day, and will now sail on Wednesday, September 13.
Oasis of the Seas had been scheduled to sail on September 10th, but Hurricane Irma has forced Royal Caribbean to keep the ship at sea to avoid the storm. As a result of the delay, Oasis will sail a 4-night itinerary to Cozumel instead.
Guests scheduled to sail on the shorted sailing will have an increased refund of 50% of their cruise fare paid in the form of a refundable onboard credit, as well as an additional 50% future cruise credit.
Also due to Hurricane Irma, Royal Caribbean cancelled a chartered sailing of Majesty of the Seas that was scheduled to depart on September 11. Thirty One Gifts has made the decision to cancel this sailing. If you have any questions, please contact [email protected].
Hurricane Irma is a category 3 storm with sustained winds of 130 mph. The storm is currently located north of Cuba and is moving northwest at 12 mph. The current forecast suggests that the eye will be coming ashore in the Lower to Middle Keys and Naples early Sunday morning, followed by Tampa Bay Sunday evening. The storm should exit the Florida area late Monday, pre-dawn Tuesday. This farther west track we have seen over the last couple days is due to Hurricane Jose's strength and its proximity to Hurricane Irma.
We love sharing Royal Caribbean photos that our readers send in because they are so much fun to look at. We want your photos too, so send us your best Royal Caribbean photos to share with the world.
We start things off with a photo by Marie Isbell from a day at sea. Sign me up for one of these right about now!
Next is a photo of Oasis of the Seas in Labadee, taken by Paul Collins.
Here is a lovely sunset photo, taken aboard Liberty of the Seas, by Kyle Ritch.
Mike took this photo of Freedom of the Seas from the streets of San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Check out this photo of the sun rising on a Harmony of the Seas transatlantic cruise, taken by Susan Widdowson.
Speaking of Harmony of the Seas, here she is in Palma Majorca, as seen from the bridge of Independence of the Seas. Suzanne took this photo.
We wrap things up this week with a photo by Ken of Navigator of the Seas in Cozumel.
If we didn't include your photo this week, then that means you need to send it in to us for use on a future Friday Photos post. We want to see your favorite Royal Caribbean cruise photos and you can use this form to send them to us.
Royal Caribbean announced more changes to its scheduled itineraries due to Hurricane Irma.
Adventure of the Seas will depart as planned on Saturday, September 9, but will skip a port stop in St. Maarten due to the damage caused by Hurricane Irma. Instead, the ship will replace this port with an overnight in Aruba.
The Enchantment of the Seas sailing scheduled for September 11th has been delayed and will now depart on Tuesday, September 12th and will sail a 3-night itinerary to the Bahamas. Given the unpredictability of Irma, Royal Caribbean will advise if there are any changes to the itinerary as soon as they know. Guests opting to sail on Enchantment will receive a refund of 25% of your cruise fare paid in the form of a refundable onboard credit.
Guests who are unable to travel and need to cancel their cruise can receive a 100% future cruise credit. Pre-booked shore excursions will be refunded to your original form of payment.
Royal Caribbean is still monitoring these sailings, and will provide an update at 6pm EDT:
Hurricane Irma is a category 5 storm with sustained winds of 180 mph. Irma passed just north of San Juan, Puerto Rico and is currently located just north of the Dominican moving west at 17 mph. The current forecasts suggest that Hurricane Irma is tracking towards southeast Florida and should arrive Sunday morning, and then proceed to Port Canaveral Monday morning. The storm should exit the Florida area late Monday, pre-dawn Tuesday.
The following sailings are departing as scheduled:
The following sailings are canceled:
If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call 1-800-256-6649.
Royal Caribbean has released a new batch of construction photos that show off the progress of the cruise line's newest cruise ship, Symphony of the Seas.
Symphony of the Seas will be the fourth Oasis class ship and will debut in April 2018.
Our newest podcast episode is out to help give you a quick "audio escape" to a Royal Caribbean cruise!
Episode 214 is available for downloading, where Matt discusses everything you need to know between when you arrive at the port to when you actually board your ship.
Matt shares what guests can expect when they arrive at the pier for embarkation day and share tips for parking, porters, check in and more.
Here’s the podcast page for Episode 214. And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Stitcher 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!
Embarkation day is a very exciting day for any cruiser, and being prepared for what to expect when it is time to get onboard makes for a smooth experience. On this episode, Matt talks about what you need to know in those first few hours leading to getting onboard your Royal Caribbean ship.
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Royal Caribbean announced a new batch of itinerary changes and even a cancellation due to Hurricane Irma.
The September 9th sailing of Empress of the Seas is now cancelled, which joins the September 8th sailings of Majesty of the Seas and Enchantment of the Seas announced earlier today.
Moreover, Royal Caribbean announced delays for a return for a few other ships. Oasis of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas and Allure of the Seas will be delayed returning to their homeport until the storm passes.
"Due to the unpredictability of the storm, we plan to keep all of our guests currently sailing on these ships safely out of harm’s way, " Royal Caribbean said in a statement.
As a result of the delayed return, the following sailings are being modified:
The following sailings are departing as scheduled:
The following sailing is still being evaluated and Royal Caribbean will provide further details in the 11 AM EDT update: