The Puerto Rico Tourism Co. (PRTC) has signed a deal with Royal Caribbean that will bring Oasis class cruise ships to the island of Puerto Rico in 2014, according to Caribbean Business.

Royal Caribbean's Oasis class cruise ships are the largest in the world and bring 5,400 passengers.   PRTC Executive Director Luis Gerardo Rivera Marín did not indicate weather Oasis of the Seas or Allure of the Seas would visit the island, but Marín did say the ship would dock at Pier 3 in Old San Juan.  Furthermore, naval architects have been at the pier to verify pier compliance.

Earlier today the government of Finland announced that it would loan STX shipyard in Turku $28 million euros to build Royal Caribbean's third Oasis-class cruise ship.  STX Finland says the loan is not enough and the shipyard is likely to lose the order to STX Europe in France.

Jari Aalto says the shipyard needs more money than the Finnish government has loaned, "We would have needed the 50 million euro loan."

Aalto says that STX Europe in France has a better loan to offer Royal Caribbean.

The Finnish Metalworkers' Union also expressed disappointment at the decision. It said a potential order loss now could harm the shipyard’s ability to attract customers in the future.

In addition, the report from this Finnish web site claims the government loan is 44 million euros, compared to the earlier report of 28 million.

The Government of Finland has announced it will support STX Europe with a $37 million loan if the shipyard can secure a deal with Royal Caribbean to build a third Oasis-class cruise ship.

STX has been lobbying the Finnish government for the 28 million Euro deal without luck until the government stipulated that it would indeed grant the money from its European Union-approved aid provided that a deal between STX and Royal Caribbean can be reached.

STX had previously built the first two Oasis class cruise ships for Royal Caribbean and many reports point to STX to be the leading candidate to build this new cruise ship.  Other possibilities for building the ship include shipyards in France and Germany.

The deal between the Finnish government and STX could employ about 20,000 workers, which would be a welcome boost for the local economy given Finland's cooling economy.

STX Finland said it was disappointed at not getting the loan and would continue talks with other creditors.

At the 19th World Travel Awards in Delhi, India, Royal Caribbean was honored with two awards for excellence in their cruise line.

Royal Caribbean won the World's Leading Cruise Brand and World's Leading Cruise Line awards.  Winners were determined by voting of accredited tourism professionals from around the world as well as readers of the World Travel Awards.

Accepting the awards was Royal Caribbean's Regional Director of Sales for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Helen Beck.  

A 68-year-old man died while on a snorkeling excursion in the eastern Caribbean island of Dominica while traveling aboard Royal Caribbean's Vision of the Seas.

Police are investigating the exact cause of death, but Jim Caves of Riverside, California on a cruise aboard Vision of the Seas while it was docked in Dominica.  According to reports, Caves complained of feeling sick following a snorkeling at a local beach with his family members.

Caves was taken to a local hospital where he died.

We wanted to share a quick update as to what the status of Royal Caribbean ordering a third Oasis class ship is and what the negotiations are looking like.

As you may recall, Royal Caribbean announced a few months ago it was in negotiations with STX Europe shipyards in Finland to possibly order a third Oasis Class ship.  The primary issue has been securing financing for the construction of the cruise ship, which is something Royal Caribbean has looked to the Finnish government in assistance with.

Last Thursday, the Finnish government rejected Royal Caribbean's financing proposal because the state was concerned about being a guarantor for the capital.  

Yesterday and today, the shipyard has become involved in the negotiations by trying to extert pressure on the Finnish government to make a deal happen.  The shipyard is concerned that Royal Caribbean will have the ship built elsewhere, jeopardizing a lot of money and jobs for the company.

Royal Caribbean needs a loan of about 50 million euros to cover the ship construction cost.  The Finnish government is concerned about giving out big project loans using tax payer money.

On the other hand, the STX Europe shipyards could lend the money to Royal Caribbean but the South Korean ownership group of STX want the Finnish government to take on more of the risk.  STX points out that around €100 million in tax revenue will be collected during the €300 million project lifetime.

From last we heard, representatives of the STX Europe shipyards are meeting today with Finnish government as well as the Ministries of Employment and Economy.