Grandeur of the Seas first cruise back since it's fire last May is June 12 but unfortunately a few passengers have been forced to not go on the cruise because of unfinished repair work stemming from that fire.

Royal Caribbean confirmed to Cruise Critic that some passengers have been forced to "re-accomodate" to another sailing because of the repairs that are still needed.

Royal Caribbean spokesman Harry Liu commented on the action, In the past weeks, Grandeur of the Seas staff and crew and many others have worked tirelessly to restore the onboard spaces that were affected by a fire in May."

"Every member of Grandeur of the Seas' staff and crew demonstrated a heroic response that night and has since been dedicated to bringing the ship back into service. "

"We unfortunately had to re-accommodate some guests on the July 12 cruise to later sailings so that additional needed workers may stay onboard in order to complete these remaining tasks as quickly as possible." 

The Bermuda Sun is reporting that Royal Caribbean's newest cruise ship that is under construction, Quantum of the Seas, will make regular stops to Bermuda in 2015.

Last night a spokesperson from Bermuda said: “We have received an application from Royal Caribbean to deploy the Quantum of the Seas on a Bermuda itinerary for 2015 but no decision has been made."

“The Ministry is continuously working with our partners in the cruise industry to secure new itineraries for their ships.” 

As of now, Royal Caribbean is only allowing bookings on Quantum of the Seas through April 2015, but itineraries after April 2015 have yet to be announced.

Bringing Quantum of the Seas to Bermuda is a boon for the local economy, with up to 4,180 passengers descending onto the island to put money into the local economy.  It's especially good news after Royal Caribbean cut back the number of cruises going to Bermuda in 2013 by 11.

Quantum of the Seas will sail out of Port Liberty in New Jersey and replace Explorer of the Seas.

Keen eyes have spotted what appears to be the beginning stages of laying the keel for Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas cruise ship at the Meyer Werft shipyard.  Meyer Werft provides a web cam to track the progress of their ship construction and a web cam that was pointed at a Norwegian Cruise Lines ship under construction appears to have caught sight Quantum of the Seas' keel.

The timing sounds about right for Meyer Werft to begin construction on Quantum of the Seas. We had heard her keel was expected to be laid on August 5.

The process of keel laying is basically the joining of the first modular blocks of the cruise ship and is the ceremonial beginning of the ship's life.

Do you think this is the first building block for Quantum of the Seas?

Royal Caribbean posted a new photo from the aft area of Grandeur of the Seas, showing the work being actively done on the ship to prepare her to return to service this weekend.

Other than the photo, Royal Caribbean reports is looking good and finalizing repairs.  The work being done is to repair fire damage that occurred over a month ago in the aft area of the ship at a dockyard in the Bahamas.  Grandeur of the Seas is expected to arrive back in Baltimore on July 11th and be ready to sail on July 12th.

Royal Caribbean announced it will sponsor the Real Club Mediterráneo de Málaga.   The Real Club Mediterráneo is an aquatic based sports organization.  The result of this new agreement, is Royal Caribbean will have a branding presence at sporting events, club facilities, its website and other communication media.

"For Spain's oldest club alliance with Royal Caribbean is a strategic impetus in promoting water sports and strengthening the image of Malaga as a city open to the sea and modernity, contributing to the vision of our future as Nautical Center the new Puerta del Mar Malaga ", praised the president of Real Club Mediterráneo, José Agustín Gómez-Raggio.

The Mediterranean Club, the oldest in Spain, focuses an important business sector, social sports and the city of Malaga. Since its inception in 1873, this institution is dedicated to the promotion and sports activities related to the sea, especially rowing, sailing and swimming.

Since Royal Caribbean rolled out its unlimited alcohol packages last year, there has been a lot of questions out there about package specifics.  So without further adieu, we present answers to the most common questions we've seen about the alcohol packages.

Someone I am cruising with does not/cannot drink alcohol but I would like to.  Can I buy the package just for me?

The rules of the Royal Caribbean unlimited alcohol package stipulate everyone over the age of 21 in a stateroom must buy the package, however, if someone in your cabin has a medical reason why they cannot drink, then you can speak with guest services onboard your ship about getting the package removed for that person.

This is something you must do onboard the ship on the first day of your cruise.  A letter from your health professional should suffice.

As of November 15, 2013 Royal Caribbean no longer requires every eligible adult in the same stateroom to purchase an unlimited alcohol package. 

How much are drinks a la carte? I want to decide if the unlimited package is worth it.

Prices for alcohol varies but generally speaking, you can get most beer onboard for about $5-6 per beer.  Mixed drinks will run you closer to $7-10, depending on the drink and how good alcohol you want.  

How much do I have to drink per day to "break even" with the drink package?

To break even on the standard drink package, you would need to drink about 8-10 beers/glasses of wine.

To break even for the premium drink package, you would need to drink 6-7 mixed drinks per day.  Of course, if you mix in beer or wine, then you will need to increase the amount of drinks per day since beer and wine are cheaper.

These are approximations and it depends on how expensive/cheap your drink happens to be. 

For the premium alcohol package, is ____ included?

• Martinis are INCLUDED
• Shots are INCLUDED, although certain uber-premium brands, like Patron, were not included.
• All beer is INCLUDED
• Mixers are INCLUDED (including Red Bull)
• The only spirits not avail are any Scotch over 12 years old Cognac VSOP and above
• Ultimate Vodka, Belvedere. chopin and Grey Goose are INCLUDED
• Patron is NOT INCLUDED
• House wine are INCLUDED (although we've heard the included house wines are not very good)
• Drinks on Private islands are INCLUDED
• Virgin (non-alcoholic) mixed drinks are INCLUDED

What does the unlimited alcohol packages not cover?

Package does not include room service or in-stateroom purchases, specialty coffee, mini bar items, canned sodas, bottled water / juice and souvenir glassware, specialty beers as listed on bar menus, or super premium category beverages. 

What beers are NOT included with either drink package?

Officially, all beers $6.25 and under are included.  Here are the beers we've found not to be covered.  There may be others...

• Sam Adams Imperial White
• Sam Adams Double Bock
• Foster's Oil Can
• Grolsch Premium Lager
• Chimay Blue 750ml

Are you charged the price of the unlimited drink package each night? All at once? At the end of the cruise?

Royal Caribbean will charge you immediately on the first day for the duration of your cruise for the price of the package.  So for a 7-night cruise for the premium package, you will be charged $385 (7 nights x $55) per person.

Did we miss your question? Post it in the comments below and we will try our best to answer it!

Royal Caribbean is looking to fill 500 vacancies with Brazilians interested in working onboard their cruise ships around the world.  Positions in food service, housekeeping and management are all available.  The term duration for each of these jobs is a 6-8 month contract, with the possibility of renewal and growth at the conclusion of the contract.

Those interested in a position must be at least 21 years old and be fluent in English.  Expertise in some areas may be needed but regional recruiter in South America, Sandra Farias, stresses that it takes something more, "Must have technical knowledge, but also have to be very dynamic, proactive, enjoy working with services and have a good attitude."

Royal Caribbean employs workers from many other countries but Brazil tends to fill a number of vacancies because of their positive people skills, "Normally, Brazilians are more charismatic and offer a more personalized service, attention to duplicate the guest, "he says.

For the duration of their contract, the workers will work onboard Royal Caribbean ships.  At the end of their contract, they are evaluated and return to their home country on vacation for at least two months.  Those workers that are the highest rated may have their contract renewed and even promoted. 

To apply for a position you must submit resume to Royal Caribbean by email to [email protected]. The selection is to work in the second half of this year, but has no end date. In addition to salary, employees also can increase earnings from tips.

Happy Independence Day to our American readers! It's probably very hot where you are so I hope you're able to cool down and enjoy some interesting Royal Caribbean news from this week. So sit back, relax, and enjoy this week's Royal Caribbean news!

Royal Caribbean News

Here's what happened in the world of Royal Caribbean this week

• What's cool on Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas?  We don't know everything about the ship yet but we do have the list of the top five coolest things on Quantum of the Seas.
• Speaking of Quantum of the Seas, Royal Caribbean's CEO hinted at a few more details that we can expect to find on this brand new ship.
• If you're thinking of bringing your toddler on a Royal Caribbean cruise, then check out our in-depth review of the Royal Babies & Tots Nursery.
• Good news coming our way that Grandeur of the Seas fire damage repair work is still on schedule.
• Royal Caribbean was recognized this week by winning Baxter Travel Media’s 2013 Agent’s Choice Awards for the tenth year in a row.

Join us for the first ever Royal Caribbean Blog Cruise!

We're so excited to announce the first ever group cruise for readers and staff of RoyalCaribbeanBlog.com aboard Quantum of the Seas!  This is an exclusive group where we are inviting you, our readers, to join us on one of the first Quantum of the Seas sailings on an 8-night cruise to the Caribbean.

This Royal Caribbean Blog group cruise is all about enjoying this brand new ship with other fans who are big fans of Royal Caribbean.  Don't miss this opportunity to check out the brand new cruise ship as well as be a part of exclusive events for those that book with our group!

For more details on booking the cruise, the itinerary and prices, check out the Royal Caribbean Blog group cruise page and if you have any questions, email me!

Royal Caribbean Around the Internet

Cruise Critic has a list of five ways to get a cruise ship cabin upgrade!

CruizeCast is talking about their favorite specialty restaurants across every cruise line.

Popular Cruising has a photo tour of the Norwegian Getaway shipyard.

Royal Caribbean was voted the top cruise line by Canadian travel agents in Baxter Travel Media’s 2013 Agent’s Choice Awards for the tenth year in a row.

Royal Caribbean received the most first and second most votes in the Large Ship (over 2,500 passengers) and Medium Ship (600 – 2,500 passengers) division.

Royal Caribbean senior vice president of Sales, Trade Support and Services, Vicki Freed, commented on the award, “We are honored to be recognized by Canadian travel agents as Canada’s favorite large ship cruise line. Royal Caribbean has always supported travel professionals and will continue to be the loyal and biggest supporter of the trade. We are committed to supporting our valued travel agent partners and helping them grow their business. Royal Caribbean thanks Canadian travel agents for voting for us for 10 years in a row.”

The Agent's Choice Award has been running for 14 years and is among the largest of its kind in Canada. Baxter Travel Media is the publisher of Canadian Travel Press and Travel Courier magazine and has been the main source of information for the Canadian travel industry for more than 60 years.