What to wear on your Royal Caribbean cruise seems to be a question we get a lot because no one wants to do the wrong thing.  Cruising has changed a lot over the years, but some traditions of dress codes remain to this day.

Before you go on your Royal Caribbean cruise, here is a handy guide to help you understand what cruise clothing you should wear onboard.

Cruise clothing for embarkation day

The first day of your cruise is a bit of an odd day, with guests arriving onboard and getting acclimated to their new home.  Moreover, luggage deliveries to staterooms can take a bit of time, so not all guests have access to all of their belongings throughout the day.

Nearly all guests will arrive to their Royal Caribbean ship wearing something comfortable and relaxing.  Depending on the weather conditions at the embarkation port, you will find most guests with t-shirts, shorts/jeans, etc.

While Royal Caribbean offers guests the option to check their luggage and have it delivered later to their stateroom, you might consider retaining a day bag that has a change of clothes, swimsuit, work out clothes and anything else you might need between when you board the ship and when your luggage will actually be delivered.  This is especially important for kids, because the pools will be open on embarkation day, but swim suits packed away in checked luggage could lead to disappointment.

Cruise clothing during the day

During the morning and afternoon, there is no dress code and your itinerary will largely dictate what you should wear onboard.

Caribbean, Mediterranean and other warm-weather cruises will see a mix of t-shirts, shorts, blouses, bathing suits and whatever else is comfortable.  Since much of the activities and things to do onboard your ship are outdoors, a vast majority of guests will be dressed for a pool day, and swim suits and associated clothing are quite prevalent.

Cruises to cold weather destinations will see guests wearing heavier clothing, including jeans, sweaters, lounge wear and more. Depending on the season and destination, layering your clothes is common, where t-shirts are worn underneath sweaters to allow for greater flexibility with the changing temperatures.

If you are planning to visit the fitness center, be sure to bring extra shorts, t-shirts, socks and running shoes/sneakers to work out in.

The reality is, there are no guidelines about what you wear during the day on your Royal Caribbean cruise.  Restaurants retain some basic dress guidelines, including a casual dress code in specialty restaurants and the main dining room.  Quick service venues, such as the Windjammer, Cafe Promenade and other grab-and-go locations have just basic guidelines when it comes to dress code, such as shoes and a shirt.

Cruise clothing in the evening

During the dinner hours, Royal Caribbean does have a dress code for its main dining room.  The dress code is only for the dining room, and outside that venue, there is no special dress code .

When people hear dress codes, it causes a great deal of anxiety about what is and what is not allowed.  It is a complicated issue because "appropriate" attire for each dress code will depend on the interpretation of the rules.  Royal Caribbean tends to be a bit ambiguous about its dress code rules, especially when it comes to enforcing them. In practice, Royal Caribbean's dress code is more a guideline that can be used as an enforcement tool, but is not frequently administered to all guests.

There are three basic dress codes Royal Caribbean uses.  We will list each one, along with what Royal Caribbean lists as suggested dress for each one.

• Casual: Sport shirts and slacks for men, sundresses or pants for women. Pants should have no holes, rips or tears.
• Smart Casual: Jackets and ties for men, dresses or pantsuits for women.
• Formal: Suits and ties or tuxedos for men (black tie is optional), cocktail dresses or pantsuit for women

Swimsuits, robes, bare feet, tank tops, baseball caps and pool wear are not allowed in the main restaurants or specialty restaurants. T-shirts, shorts and flip-flops are acceptable for lunch.

Formal night

Despite the name, formal night is not nearly as fancy as you might think.  Formal night is certainly the most dressed up evening attire required on your Royal Caribbean cruise, but it is not as ornate as you might imagine.

Evening wear for formal night will vary, and you will see some guests wearing tuxedoes and gowns.  It is our opinion that most guests tend to dress a bit less fancy than that, with men wearing suits or sports coats and women wearing cocktail dresses.  Essentially, it is clothing that is a bit nicer than you might wear on other nights of the cruise.

Royal Caribbean does provide a tuxedo rental option, which can save on packing space.

If the idea of formal night really bothers you and you, the good news is you absolutely do not have to get dressed up on your Royal Caribbean cruise.  The formal night dress code is only for the main dining room and specialty restaurants, so anywhere else on the ship is fair game for shorts, flip flops and tank tops.  The Windjammer and other quick service venues will be open and without any formal wear.

Cruise clothing for kids

Children on a Royal Caribbean cruise will follow similar patterns to adults in terms of what they wear.  During the day onboard and onshore, it will be casual for kids, so nothing really important to worry about.  Just something they will be comfortable wearing.

In the evening, the dress code for children is the same for adults. There tends to be more leeway in terms of the degree of formality for children's clothing, but at the same time children are expected to be dressed up more than what they would wear during the daytime. The exception would be infants.

For boys, polo shirts and nice pants will suffice for most evenings and girls can wear dresses, skirts and sweaters.

Royal Caribbean's private destination of Labadee is as beautiful as it is serene, and arguably any day there is a day in paradise. While Mother Nature has done an amazing job of providing the perfect spot for a day at the beach, there are a few items you might want consider bringing there for your next visit to enhance the experience.

After several visits to Labadee, I came up with a few items I think are important considerations to bring with you on your next visit.  You can easily have a wonderful day at Labadee with just a towel in hand, but these suggestions add to the experience.  Enjoy!

Bluetooth speaker

Photo by Fred Block

A day at the beach is about relaxing in the sun and surf, but passing the time enjoying those rays and waves is much more enjoyable with some great music.  Royal Caribbean does have some live music on the island, and some recorded music playing near the bars, but back at your beach chair it can be difficult to hear any of it.

We do not advocate blasting your music to disturb other guests, rather, provide a way for you and your family and friends to enjoy some background music while you take it all in.  Enjoying music among friends is a great way to spend the day, especially if you are in a cabana.

There are plenty of good Bluetooth speakers that will hook up to your phone or device, but we recommend one that is water resistant and wireless for ease of use, such as the UE Roll 2, UE Boom 2 or JBL Flip 3.

Water shoes

Photo by Amazon

Natural beauty in Labadee is all around you, including in the ocean.  There is plenty of sand but the beach at Labadee is a bit on the rocky side, so you might want to invest in some water shoes to make the whole experience better.

In my experience, water shoes are a nice-to-have option that makes for one less thing to worry about, but is not required.  If you want to enjoy the ocean without worrying as much about where you are stepping, or just want to have piece of mind (like for your kids), water shoes would be a good idea.

For adults, try the Aleader brand water shoes for men and women because not only do they protect your feet, they also do not look like typical water shoes.  For the kids, try the Northside Brille II Water Shoe for girls and the Aleader Boys Water Shoes.

Water resistant sunscreen

Photo by Jeff Robertson

This one should be obvious, but I feel so strongly about this that I am including it in our list as a sort of public service announcement.  Labadee is in the Caribbean and it is quite sunny in the Caribbean and you absolutely want to protect yourself if for no other reason that to avoid being that guy or girl on the ship that comes back onboard with the lobster look.

Invest in a good sunscreen that will not only protect you from the sun, but not wash off in the ocean quickly.  Consumer Reports recommends two sunscreens that are great for use at the beach. If you prefer a lotion, try the Coppertone Water Babies SPF 50.  If spray sunscreen is more your style, the Neutrogena Beach Defense Water + Sun Protection SPF 70 received high marks.

Waterproof case for your smartphone

Photo by Amazon

I am willing to bet most guests going to Labadee will bring their phones with them to act as cameras and absolutely no one wants their phone to be damaged due to water or sand.

The JOTO smartphone case will protect your phone against water, sand, snow, your toddler trying to eat it and more.

Just drop your phone in the case, seal it up and you can use your phone to take photos in the ocean, pool, beach and anywhere else you want.  

GoPro

Photo by Amazon

If there was a place the folks that designed the GoPro series of cameras had in mind for their product to be used, it has to be Labadee.  Between the zip line, alpine coaster and time in the ocean, there are plenty of opportunities to record memories.

GoPro has carved out for itself a piece of the video camera market by offering a top-quality product that can record high definition video anywhere you go.  Under the water, through the trees and in the sand, the GoPro cameras work everywhere and do not get damaged.

The GoPro HERO4 is plenty good for most people that just want to record memories from anywhere in Labadee.  

Your thoughts

What do you bring to enhance your visit to Labadee? Or do you prefer a more minimalist approach to a day at the beach?  Share your best tips and suggestions in the comments below!

Every Friday, we ask our readers to send us their favorite Royal Caribbean photos so that we can showcase them here on the blog. After all, looking back on past cruise memories is always a great way to get excited for our next cruise!

Our first photo is from Megan, just before she is about to descend down the zip line at Labadee, with Freedom of the Seas in the distance.  Look out below!

Our next photo is of Brilliance of the Seas in Santorini, by Melissa. I am pretty sure every cruise photo from Santorini comes out looking like a postcard.

Here is Jan-Arild Knutsen, who sent in a photo of himself in the belly flop competition on Radiance of the Seas. He says this is his 1930s-style swimsuit and I think that should add bonus points for this competition!

We are going back to Labadee for this next photo. It is by Nancy Ginter and it was from her first cruise.  Love how clear that water is!

More Labadee photos, you say? Here is one by Chuck Rickman from his Oasis of the Seas cruise in 2012.  Such a beautiful piece of paradise!

Stuart Weber sent in this photo of his fiancé, Judy, in St. Thomas aboard their Oasis of the Seas cruise.  Looks like she was having a great time, and who could blame her with the scenery surrounding her!

Our last photo this week is from Norman Sutton while he was onboard Quantum of the Seas, with North Star offering a terrific view at sea.  Looks like a great day!

That wraps up this week's edition of Friday Photos.  Thank you to everyone that submitted their photos, and if you would like to, please feel free to share your Royal Caribbean photos with us for a future edition!

Royal Caribbean's Next Cruise program rewards guests that book another Royal Caribbean cruise while onboard their current cruise and that might generate some questions about how it all works.

If you want to take advantage of this offer when you go on your next Royal Caribbean cruise, then here is what you need to know about Next Cruise.

Why book onboard with Next Cruise

Photo by Bobby Southard

Essentially, booking another Royal Caribbean cruise onboard with Next Cruise gets you free onboard credit for doing so. The price and booking incentives will be the same onboard as on land, but the difference is the extra onboard credit that you will get by doing so.

The Next Cruise offer is perfect for anyone that knows they will certainly take another Royal Caribbean cruise in the future.  Exactly which cruise and when is not important, but considering the Next Cruise offer is "free money," anyone that wants to take another Royal Caribbean cruise in the future will stand to benefit from this offer.

Next Cruise incentives

By booking a cruise with the Next Cruise program, guests will receive onboard credit equivalent to the deposit amount required for the cruise length and stateroom category.

Onboard credit and deposit required per stateroom

• 5-7 night cruises
  • Interior/Oceanview: $50
  • Balcony/Junior Suites: $100
  • Grand Suite & Above: $200
• 8-10 night cruises
  • Interior/Oceanview: $100
  • Balcony/Junior Suites: $150
  • Grand Suite & Above: $300
• 11-14 night cruises
  • Interior/Oceanview: $150
  • Balcony/Junior Suites: $200
  • Grand Suite & Above: $400
• 15 nights or longer cruises
  • Interior/Oceanview: $200
  • Balcony/Junior Suites: $250
  • Grand Suite & Above: $500

Open Booking

If you prefer, there is an open booking Next Cruise option, where instead of booking a specific sailing, you will get a certificate that can be used on any upcoming cruise.

Open booking shipboard credit per stateroom:

• 5-7 night cruises: $25
• 8-10 night cruises: $50
• 11-14 night cruises: $75
• 15+ night cruises: $100

After booking a Next Cruise open booking, you will get via email a booking reservation number and that is the number you will need when you are ready to book a specific Royal Caribbean sailing.  Give your travel agent or Royal Caribbean your Next Cruise number and they will turn it into an active reservation that reflects the deposit amount you made plus booking incentives your certificate has.

Next Cruise also allows additional flexibility for guests with which reservation they make.   These include:

• Option to change your reservation to suit your needs prior to final payment.  This means, you can change the sailing later to any other cruise and retain the Next Cruise benefits.
• Combinable with Crown & Anchor exclusive savings
• You can retain the services of your travel agent with any Next Cruise reservation
• Book up to three staterooms for friends or family on any cruise with the same benefits

Can I still use my travel agent if I book onboard?

Guests can still use their travel agent when making a Next Cruise booking.  In fact, if you booked the cruise you are on with a travel agent, they will automatically get notification of the Next Cruise booking.

Disadvantages of Next Cruise

There is really just one consideration about Next Cruise to keep in mind and that is the deposit you make is non-refundable.  

Unlike other Royal Caribbean cruise reservations, the Next Cruise deposit is non-refundable, which means you either have to take that Royal Caribbean cruise eventually or lose that money.  The reason why we stated earlier to book Next Cruise is if you know with certainty that you will take another Royal Caribbean cruise, it is free money to take advantage of.  But if you have doubts about taking another Royal Caribbean cruise, keep in mind that Next Cruise program is non-refundable.

Downgrades

One other policy you should be aware of is changing your mind to downgrade your cabin after booking.

Downgrades to your NextCruise  will result in an additional charge of between $50 to $500 on your booking and in the loss of your special promotional offer.

Downgrades include booking a shorter duration cruise or booking a lower class of staterooms.

More Next Cruise rules

• For Guests who choose the Instant Onboard Credit offer, downgrades to your Next Cruise booking will result in an additional charge of between $50 to $450 on your booking and in the loss of your special promotional offer. Downgrades include booking a shorter duration cruise or booking a lower class of staterooms.
• Guests who choose the Future Onboard Credit offer and later Downgrade their Next Cruise booking, the amount of that future onboard credit shall be reduced.
• Bookings made through the Next Cruise program are not combinable with certain rate plans, promotions or other offers.

Next Cruise Tips

• The Next Cruise office tends to get busy, especially towards the end of the cruise. Make an appointment early in the cruise to get it done before the crowds hit.
• You can make an appointment with the Next Cruise staff by adding your name and stateroom number to a book near the entrance to their area.
• The Next Cruise office is open on disembarkation day and is often quite empty.
• The best time to visit the Next Cruise office if you do not have a meeting is on port call days, when most guests are off the ship.

Conclusion

The bottom line is if you are certain that you will take another Royal Caribbean cruise at some point in the future, you are best off booking a Next Cruise offer because it is free money.  Seeing as the only drawback is the deposit is non-refundable, there is very little risk involved.

The onboard credit you receive can be taken on the cruise you are on or deferred to the cruise you just booked. We prefer to defer the onboard credit to that future cruise because we have already budgeted for the current cruise, but it is a subjective option.  

Royal Caribbean announced it is building a new Innovation Lab facility at PortMiami, adjacent to its corporate headquarters.

Royal Caribbean is being touted as a first-of-its-kind facility built entirely designed to promote the “relentless innovation” that powers the cruiseline, the building will house unique collaborative spaces where new ideas can tested and tweaked.

Much of the first floor will be open space large enough to allow the construction of full-size mockups of shipboard spaces and the things that fill them – "real" reality rather than virtual – for trials, tests and aesthetics. he rest of the building will contain "ignition hubs" where people from different departments and vendors will gather to spend hours, days or weeks talking through problems and projects.

The new 20,000-square-foot, two-story lab, is intended to be as functional as it is architecturally stunning. Royal Caribbean vice president of architectural design, Kelly Gonzalez, is very excited about the the lab as an idea mill where most of the moving parts are human, "Innovation is nothing new for us. Our daily existence here is thriving off of always wanting to raise the bar a little higher. And go a little further."

"Imagine a large conference room that eight to 10 people would walk into. Now imagine the floor is one seamless sheet of glass and there’s rear projection underneath it."

"The whole room is Virtual Reality," Gonzalez continues. "But when you put the glasses on, you and the people you’re with are all sharing the same experience in that room."

Completion date for the lab is the end of January.

Our newest podcast episode is out to help give you a quick "audio escape" to a Royal Caribbean cruise!

Episode 158 is available for downloading, which has a first-hand review of Royal Caribbean's Empress of the Seas.

Empress of the Seas is back in Royal Caribbean's fleet once again and Michael Poole was able to take a 4-night cruise on her recently.  Michael shares what this ship is like and who might love a cruise on Empress.

Here’s the podcast page for Episode 158. 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!

Royal Caribbean is celebrating Crown and Anchor Society Member Appreciation Week by giving all Crown & Anchor Society members an exclusive perk to celebrate.

From August 15-22, 2016, all tiers will enjoy balconies and suites discounts for the tier above them on sailings departing on or after August 17, 2016, and it is combinable with our current offer of 30% off every ship, every guest! 

Gold, Platinum, Emerald, Diamond, Diamond Plus, and Pinnacle Crown & Anchor Society member will receive an increased discount for making a reservation for a sail date outside of six months.

Royal Caribbean's Crown and Anchor Society has posted an update that it will stop offering a balcony discount for members that book a cruise less than six months out.

As of September 1, 2016, balcony and suite discounts that Crown and Anchor members are eligible for, will only apply to sailing’s booked more than six months out.  Royal Caribbean has offered a discount on balcony and suite staterooms to Crown and Anchor Society members that were at least a Platinum level member on all cruises, but this will now change a bit.

In the event a guest purchases an upgrade within six months of sailing, the Balcony & Suites Discount will be protected.

UPDATE: Royal Caribbean shared on their Facebook page a little more insight into why this change is occuring: "We've found that a large majority of our Crown & Anchor guests reserve outside of the 6 month window. For those who do not, we've noticed that, due to the lack of promotional combinability, it's more beneficial for our guests to take advantage of other promotions offered. We appreciate your honest feedback, and are using it to research ways to improve our Crown & Anchor offerings."

What do you think of this change in the balcony discount? Will this change what stateroom you book? Tell us your thoughts in the comments.

The largest cruise ships in Asia, Ovation of the Seas, Mariner of the Seas and Voyager of the Seas, will be back in Singapore from October 2016 through May 2017 to offer Royal Caribbean's longest-ever homeporting season in Singapore.  The season will run for eight months, totalling 55 cruises and will bring about 200,000 guests to ports in Southeast Asia.

Photo by Royal Caribbean International

The 2016-2017 cruise season will see a 30% increase in Royal Caribbean's capacity in Southeast Asia over last year.

Ovation of the Seas, which is Asia's largest and newest cruise ship, will be back in March to April 2017 with a total of 10 new sailings, comprising three to five nights to Penang, Phuket, Bangkok (Laem Chabang) and a 12-night one-way cruise to Tianjin with calls at Ho Chi Minh City (Phu My) for an overnight, Hue/Danang (Chan May), Hong Kong and Seoul (Incheon).

Mariner of the Seas will offer 39 sailings until next March, ranging from three to seven nights to popular destinations such as Penang, Langkawi, Kuala Lumpur (Port Klang), Phuket, Bangkok (Laem Chabang) and Ho Chi Minh City (Phu My). The new itineraries for the season are the 3-night Penang Weekend Cruise which will feature night touring and the 4-night Phuket Cruise.

Voyager of the Seas is returning in May 2017 to offer six sailings of three to five night Southeast Asian itineraries to Kuala Lumpur (Port Klang), Penang, Phuket and an 8-night one-way cruise to Hong Kong, with stopovers at Bangkok (Laem Chabang) for an overnight, Ho Chi Minh City (Phu My) and Nha Trang.

Located in the Forward Centrum deck 10 of Royal Caribbean's Freedom of the Seas, is a mixed media art display that features fighter jets that you might notice when taking a ride in one of the elevators.

This is not just a display of F-18 and F-16 planes, but actually the work of Italian artist Antonio Riello, entitled "Komba Tiepolo 30, 31 and 32".

If you look closely, you can see that Riello has taken fighter planes and decorated them with mythological fragments from Giambattista Tiepolo frescoes found in Italian churches and palaces.  The artist likes to explore the common territory and the curiosities of our collective imagination.  By turning what we desire or fear into a mix of the banal and the sublime, he creates the unexpected and the unpredictable.

Riello gathers his inspirations from the great amount of historical and artistic heritage found all over Italy - Roman ruins, medieval walls, Baroque churches and more.  He likes to mix these elements of the past with contemporary Italian life.

In this piece, Riello uses the Tiepolo frescoes to mask war instruments, which turns them into delightful and irresistibly bizarre paintings.

“Komba Tiepolo 30” The paintings are inspired by G.B. Tiepolo’s frescos in Wurzburg Residence. The aircraft is a copy of an F18 (Hornet).

“Kompa Tiepolo 31” Paintings are inspired by G.B. Tiepolo’s in Wurzburg Residence and Venice’s Ca Rezzonico. The aircraft is a copy of an F16.

“Kompa Tiepolo 32” Paintings are inspired by G.B. Tiepolo’s frescos in villas of the countryside in Venice. The aircraft is a copy of an F16.

The pieces are made of fiberglass, resin, metal wood and acrylic.