Friday is here and that means we're sharing our reader's favorite Royal Caribbean cruise photos to give the rest of us a little "cruise fix" until our next cruise.  Let's see what we have this week.

Jared sent us this photo from St. Maarten with a number of cruise ships in port, including Independence of the Seas, which is on the right. I love to compare ships when in port and this is a great view!

John McCormack sent us this photo of the cast of the Ice Games show on Allure of the Seas. Love the shows in the evening!

How about a black and white photo of Oasis of the Seas by Connor De La Pena? A black and white photo here and there is always a nice change.

How about another photo of Independence of the Seas? Here's one from Jeremy from the pool deck and boy, do I wish I was looking at this right now!

Frank Battiston sent in this great sunset photo from Allure of the Seas.  It was taken on his Aqua Theater Suite deck and it looks amazing!

Last, but not least, we have this photo by John Siegmund of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge sailing into Cape Liberty on morning of departure on Explorer of the Seas. Great view!

Thank you to everyone who sent in photos and don't forget that we want to see your photos too.  Use our form to send us your favorite Royal Caribbean photos and we will share them in an upcoming Friday Photos post!

Royal Caribbean announced today its plans for cruise ships sailing out of Galveston, Texas and the New York area.  

Royal Caribbean re-confirmed Liberty of the Seas will sail out of Cape Liberty in summer 2015 as well as confirming that Navigator of the Seas will remain in Galveston, Texas to offer seven-night cruises throughout summer 2015.

By winter 2015-2016, Anthem of the Seas will replace Liberty of the Seas in offering cruises out of Cape Liberty.  In turn, Liberty of the Seas will head to Galveston to offer weekly Caribbean cruises there.  Finally, Navigator of the Seas will sail six- and eight-night Caribbean itineraries from Fort Lauderdale.

Brilliance of the Seas and Vision of the Seas will return to Tampa in winter 2015-16.

Liberty of the Seas, Navigator of the Seas, Brilliance of the Seas, and Vision of the Seas’ 2015-16 cruise seasons are now open for booking.

Crown & Anchor Society loyalty members have the exclusive privilege to book Anthem of the Seas’ winter 2015-16 season starting April 25, 2014, in advance of the general opening to the public on April 29. 

Following Royal Caribbean's big news that Quantum of the Seas will go to China in 2015, sister ship Anthem of the Seas is going to also be moving in 2015.  She will replace Liberty of the Seas in Bayonne, New Jersey for the winter 2015-2016 cruise season.

Anthem of the Seas is the second in the Quantum-class of cruise ships Royal Caribbean is building and will debut in Southampton, England in April 2015 first and then move to New York for the winter.

This is a change for Anthem of the Seas since she was previously planned to be sailing out of Fort Lauderdale, Florida in winter 2015.

Royal Caribbean announced today it will send its brand new Quantum of the Seas to home port in Shanghai (Baoshan), China in May 2015.

In China, Quantum of the Seas will join Mariner of the Seas and Voyager of the Seas in Asia, increasing the company’s capacity in the region by 66 percent.

The move by Royal Caribbean shows how important the Chinese cruise market is to Royal Caribbean by putting a brand new cruise ship there instead of the usual pattern of older ships going to Asia.

MORE: ANTHEM OF THE SEAS TO REPLACE QUANTUM OF THE SEAS | QUANTUM OF THE SEAS GALLERY

Royal Caribbean COO Adam Goldstein commented on the announcement, "Consumers in China have grown to expect the best the world has to offer, and Quantum of the Seas meets that standard like no other ship.  We are ready to accelerate the growth of this vital market with a ship that will capture the imagination of travelers looking for a one-of-a-kind vacation experience."

"Every trend we are seeing in China tells us we can achieve real long-term competitive advantage and appealing returns on our investments in this fast-growing market by accelerating our presence there,” Goldstein said. “We will have to be nimble, but the ability to move fast is one of our strengths."

To replace Quantum of the Seas once it leaves New York, Liberty of the Seas will sail up and take her place and offer cruises to the Bahamas and Caribbean for the winter of 2015-2016.

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

Episode 37 is available for downloading where we look at what booking incentives Royal Caribbean offers.

Matt look's at all the different booking incentives Royal Caribbean offers its guests, including what they are and which ones tend to be a better deal than others.

Here’s the podcast page for Episode 37. 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 launched today its newest discount cruise program for Crown and Anchor Society members, dubbed Crown and Anchor Society Exclusive Rates. 

The Crown and Anchor Society Exclusive Rates replace the Crown and Anchor Society Savings Certificates and offer lower on select cruises directly from the Crown and Anchor Society section of the Royal Caribbean web site.

The new Crown and Anchor Society Exclusive Rates offer discounts on select cruises. Travel agents can apply Crown and Anchor Society Exclusive Rates for any customer.

For guests, this new programs means discounts are applied instantly instead of having to do math to see what the discount will be.  The aim of the new program is to simplify discounts for guests.

Royal Caribbean’s navigational team do everything they can to provide the most stable ride possible. It keeps the entertainers safe and the guests cheering.

Happy Sunday and I hope you had a great week (and weekend)!  This week's biggest news was Royal Caribbean's CEO, Adam Goldstein, has been promoted and the company is now looking for a new CEO.

Goldstein is now the president and chief operating officer of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., the parent company of Royal Caribbean International.

Among other duties, Goldstein's new position will have him working with Royal Caribbean Chairman Richard Fain on the strategic direction for the cruise line.

Royal Caribbean News

• Quantum of the Seas floats!
• Almost 100 passengers are sick on Grandeur of the Seas.
• Royal Caribbean announced Australia and South Pacific cruises for 2015-2016.
• Our Royal Caribbean Italian food showdown.
• We reviewed Goff's Caye excursion in Belize City.

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The thirty-sixth episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is available that is all about booking shore excursions.

Royal Caribbean recently announced its brand new approach to dining for the Quantum­-class cruise ships, Quantum of the Seas and Anthem of the Seas and this week Matt is exploring what Dynamic Dining is and if this is a change for the best.

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

MDLblog has photos of his food from his Navigator of the Seas cruise.

Disney Cruise Line Blog has a book review of the Unofficial Guide to Disney Cruise Line.

Royal Caribbean has the top 3 tips for picking the right vacation destination.

Seatrade Insider says Royal Caribbean government relations now fall under Kalisch.

NBC Miami reports a 10-month old was airlifted from Enchantment of the Seas after having difficulty breathing.

Royal Caribbean's Grandeur of the Seas is dealing with a gastrointestinal sickness that has broken out on the ship for the second time in two weeks.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is reporting almost 100 passengers on the Grandeur of the Seas cruise that left Baltimore on April 5th.

Royal Caribbean spokeswoman commented, "Those affected by the short-lived illness have responded well to over-the-counter medication being administered onboard the ship."

A cruise that departed Baltimore March 28 on the same ship also had an outbreak of viral illness that the CDC said was caused by norovirus. During that cruise, more than 100 passengers became ill. Fewer than a dozen crew members were sickened. 

Grandeur of the Seas is expected to return to Baltimore as scheduled Saturday morning. 

Upon its return to Baltimore, the ship is expected to be thoroughly sanitized. In addition, "two CDC Vessel Sanitation Program environmental health officers and an epidemiologist will board the ship," as part of the ongoing investigation, according to disease control officials.