Yesterday was the first stop of Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas in Ravenna, Italy which made it's first stop at the brand new cruise terminal that Royal Caribbean has a share in.

The stop in Ravenna was the first ever for Voyager of the Seas and she will be returning again as she is scheduled to make 20 calls in the port of Romagna, which will bring almost 77,000 passengers.

To mark the occasion, on June 20 there will be an official presentation to celebrate the inaugural season at the cruise terminal.  From May to October in Ravenna will be operating three ships of the fleet for a total of 25 airports and nearly 90 thousand passengers handled.

After the devastating earthquake struck Japan earlier this year, Royal Caribbean halted all stops to the country but we're hearing now that Royal Caribbean is planning on resuming port of call service to the Asian country.

Thanks to Japan's ability to stabilize the situation, Royal Caribbean's Legend of the Seas will start making calls in Japan starting with Okinawa on  August 1, 2011, following its Hong Kong summer season.

Legend of the Seas will offer 11 sailings including a number of charters to various Japanese ports-of-call such as Okinawa, Fukuoka, Kagoshima, Beppu, Nagasaki and Hokkaido, out from Hong Kong, Tianjin and Shanghai, from late July to early October.

These newly planned itineraries are based mostly on Legend of the Seas' original trips that were planned for this year and are areas that are not affected by the tsunami and nuclear crisis.

Royal Caribbean Regional Director of Asia Pacific thinks its time for Royal Caribbean to return to Japan, "Judging from the current situation in Japan, we are well-assured of the safety of traveling to Japan. Japan has always been an attractive tourist destination and its show of great resilience in the face of the recent crisis has given travelers the confidence to visit the country again. Travellers also understand that visiting these cities on a cruise ship is a safe and hassle-free option.”

Photo by Royal Caribbean UK

Royal Caribbean is going to install their first solo cabins on the Radiance of the Seas. Currently under renovation in Canada, Radiance will resume cruises on Wednesday June 10.

The ship, which can accommodate 2,114 passengers, will have 15 new cabins, three of which are single rooms. Adam Goldstein, CEO of Royal Caribbean, describes this as a novelty experience.

The concept of single cabins represents a change in the logic sector, whose business model is based on the idea that we must install at least two people per cabin.

But there is a change in the pattern of passengers and cabin solo could multiply.

Norwegian Cruise Line has made a splash last year with its cabin studios, 128 rooms designed to facilitate interaction between passengers. It had thus overcome the fact that the "cruise forget the many people who enjoy traveling alone.

That could change, as highlighted in the report 2011 of the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA): The number of people opting for cruises should rise, especially with many clients who embark for the first time and multi-generational groups.

The shorter routes should be preferred, according to CLIA, which would bring new customers.

The University of Miami School of Business Administration, Bacardi U.S.A., Inc. and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. today announced a program that provides a unique opportunity for MBA students to experience business from two different company and industry perspectives during a single summer internship. Five students have been selected to participate in the first year of the Emerging Leaders Internship Program this summer.

The students, two in marketing, one in sales, one in finance and one in strategy, will spend the first two months of their internships at the headquarters of Bacardi U.S.A., Inc., the import and distribution area of one of the world's leading spirits and wine producers. After completing their work on the producer/supplier side at Bacardi U.S.A., Inc., the students will spend the next two months working at the headquarters of Royal Caribbean, the world's second largest global cruise brand and one of the largest travel retail customers of Bacardi U.S.A., Inc.

"Unlike traditional MBA internships, most of which take place at just one company, the Emerging Leaders Program enables our students to get a true sense of the buyer-supplier relationship as they experience both sides first-hand," said Frances Aldrich Sevilla-Sacasa, interim dean of the University of Miami School of Business Administration. "We are very fortunate to have the support of Bacardi U.S.A. and Royal Caribbean, both global leaders in their own industries, as we launch this groundbreaking internship program."

The Emerging Leaders Program is the result of collaboration between members of the School's Board of Overseers. The chief financial officers of both Bacardi U.S.A., Inc. and Royal Caribbean, Michael Misiorski and Brian Rice, are members of the board and the program was developed as part of the board's work to develop new career opportunities for the School's students.

"This innovative partnership is a big win for all three of our organizations," said Michael Misiorski, senior vice president and chief financial officer, Americas, Bacardi U.S.A., Inc. "The students will benefit by having the opportunity to not only gain practical experience through mentoring and coaching and enhance their leadership skills, but to also see how our companies operate internally from the supplier side to the consumer side. Likewise, our companies can tap into the University of Miami's remarkable MBA talent."

"While our existing internship program has proven itself extremely fruitful, Royal Caribbean is excited to work with another successful, local company to take the program to the next level," said Brian Rice, chief financial officer, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. "Together with Bacardi, we will introduce a group of top-quality MBA students to our industries, company cultures and dynamic business models, and provide them with a thorough understanding of our organization in the hopes that they will choose to continue applying their skills in South Florida."

The Emerging Leaders Program interns are competitively selected. The 2011 interns include: Erica Lynn Durst, Irena Katzarkov, Brett Harbin, Marian Johnson, and G. Wesley McGeorge.

This weekend, May 28 and 29, Royal Caribbean will take you on a cruise while still on land.  Located in the Plaza de Callao in Madrid, Spain, the Royal Caribbean Park is an entertainment area of 350 square meters where each family member can enjoy the experiences of Royal Caribbean ships, but on land.

The Royal Caribbean Park offers the possibility to enjoy various facilities in a single space. Among them, a playground where children can enjoy the presence of Shrek, DreamWorks films and activities especially designed for them.

Adults can relax in a space of Wellness and Spa where they will receive a massage or beauty treatment or in an area of ​​sport, where you climb a climbing wall six feet high, descend into zip or play basketball. These experiences are complemented by the dining room to sample regional specialties from the Mediterranean ports.

Those who choose to test three of these areas will enjoy a break in the deck space. In addition, those who photographed in the 'Photocall' Royal Caribbean Park and upload the picture to the Facebook page of Royal Caribbean Spain entered into a draw for a Mediterranean cruise.

During the month of June, a smaller version of Royal Caribbean Park will be located in various shopping malls in the capital.

Royal Caribbean held its annual shareholder meeting yesterday in Miami, Florida.  Here are the results of the 2011 Annual Meeting of Shareholders.

• The shareholders..
  • elected each of Laura D.B. Laviada, Eyal M. Ofer, William K. Reilly and Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen to serve as Class III directors of Royal Caribbean for a term of three years each
  • approved on an advisory basis the compensation of the Royal Caribbean's named executive officers
  • approved a three-year frequency for holding future shareholder advisory votes on named executive officer compensation
  • ratified the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as Royal Caribbean's independent registered public accounting firm for 2011
  • rejected the shareholder proposal to hold future advisory votes on non-executive director compensation

A judge ordered Royal Caribbean to pay a crew member that was injured while working on Jewel of the Seas in June 2008 and subsequently forced to continue working $1.25 million.  The amount is the highest arbitration cost ever awarded to an injured crew member.

The crew member, from Serbia, hurt her back when another crew member violently slammed a door into her back while she was walking down a narrow hallway.  She went to the ship's infirmary where she was found unfit for duty after being diagnosed with a herniated disc in her back.  Her supervisor, however, ordered her to continue working.

Royal Caribbean announced today that it will open a new corporate office in Paris, France in July 2011 due to "increasing local demand and as part of the company's international growth strategy".

The head of this new office will be Frederic Martinez, who joins the cruise giant after a career in marketing, commercial and management roles for American Express and Air France-KLM.

Royal Caribbean's new corporate office will be located Blvd. Haussmann in Paris' central business district and will include sales, marketing and commercial operations personnel to serve the company's three cruise brands: Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises.  Prior to opening this new office, Royal Caribbean's presence in France was limited to an international representative office.

Cruisers sailing on Royal Caribbean in 2012 will have some new sailings to choose from from three French ports - LeHavre, Toulon and Marseille.  The European deployment is adding numerous departures and overall, Royal Caribbean International is adding 23 ports in seven additional countries to its European schedule. 

Royal Caribbean Executive Vice President Michael Bayley talked about the new office and its goals, "We know that our guests from France enjoy our brands, products and destination offerings.  Frederic is tasked with growing the business and responding to customer demand in France on issues such as enhanced product offerings during July and August, and creating fly and cruise packages for the Caribbean."