Royal Caribbean is joining two other cruise lines in ending or reducing their travel to Mexico from southern California, a trend that some in the industry attribute the growing violence in the country has scared off tourists.

Royal Caribbean's luxurious Mariner of the Seas departs on Sunday for her last journey from the Port of Los Angeles to the west coast of Mexico, said port spokesman Phillip Sanfield.

The ship then moved his base to Galveston, Texas, offering seven-night trips to the western Caribbean, the company said.

Norwegian and Carnival Cruise Lines are also pulling their ships from the area.But the loss of Mariner of the Seas, Norwegian Star and Carnival Splendor represents most of the cruise ship traffic in Southern California to Mexico, which has been beaten by the violence and slow U.S. economic recovery.

"Certainly, Mexico has some problems," said Sanfield.

Luxury cruises in Southern California have traditionally made stops in Mexican tourist destinations like Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas, which have prevented some of the worst drug violence that has swept Mexico in recent years.

"However, people are taking a broader view (...) to violence in other parts of Mexico," Sanfield said.

An estimated 755,000 cruise passengers passed through the Port of Los Angeles last year, but expects that number to drop to 605,000 in 2011, said the port. Only the Mariner of the Seas transported 320,000 passengers in the port in 2010, and Royal Caribbean has had a presence in place for most of the past 20 years.

"They have been one of the main pillars, and we hope you come back here in the future," Sanfield said. "Each time a cruise ship visits a port in southern California, contributes 1 to $ 2 million to the local economy."

Drug-related violence in Mexico began to grow in 2006, the year that President Felipe Calderon sent the army to fight the cartels. On January 8, in the latest bloodshed that has occurred in a tourist destination in Mexico, 14 decapitated bodies were found in the resort of Acapulco.  The bodies were found near a shopping mall, with handwritten messages signed by the leader of the powerful Sinaloa cartel.

Stewart Chiron, an industry analyst CruiseGuy.com, said that apart from the poor economy, another factor contributing to the decline in travel to Mexico is that passengers are just tired of these routes.

Royal Caribbean's Independence of the Seas has become the largest ship to have ever visited the Port of Palma in Spain.

The president of the Balearic Islands Port Authority (APB), Francesc Triay, gave the ship's Captain a traditional commemorative plaque to celebrate the visit.

Independence of the Seas has a displacement of 154,407 tonnes, which is more than 148,528 tonnes larger than the legendary Queen Mary 2, which held the mark at the port since 2004, although this last vessel is seven meters in length longer.  Independence of the Seas Freedom has a length of 338 meters, a width of 38 meters and a maximum capacity of 4,370 passengers in 1,817 cabins with a crew of about 2,360 people.

The ship has 15 decks, has a covered mall 150 meters long and an ice rink, among many other attractions for passengers, and an impressive theater with a capacity of 1,350 spectators, a climbing wall for climbing, miniature golf, a basketball court and even a wave pool for surfing.

Frommer's travel guide has named Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas as one of the Best Cruise Ships of 2011.  Judges cited Allure and her sister Oasis of the Seas as, "undoubtedly the best entertainment ship at sea, with truly exceptional programming for both adults and kids."

Judges were impressed by many aspects of the Oasis class ships, especially the innovations Royal Caribbean introduced on these vessels, "The biggest innovation is the vessels' split superstructures, with the top eight decks bisected lengthwise by a long canyon that contains an open-air garden and a boardwalk-like entertainment zone. Besides letting light and air into the center of the ship, this makes the whole vessel feel more 3D -- like you're walking the streets of a high-rise city, not shuffling blindly from one horizontal deck to another."

The list of ships only surveyed ships in the Western Hemisphere, so ships in Europe and Asia were not included.

In addition to taking the top honors, a few other Royal Caribbean ships made the "notables" list.  Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas, Brilliance of the Seas, Serenade of the Seas, and Jewel of the Seas were all mentioned for scoring highly. 

Judges enjoyed the Radiance class of Royal Caribbean ships because. "These four sisters combine sleek, seagoing exteriors with nautically themed interiors and acres of windows."

Photo by Kevin Kennedy

If you're going on a cruise aboard the Brilliance of the Seas, which visits Dubai, there's a new excursion option to check out.  Royal Caribbean has reached an agreement with Dubailand to allow guests to visit  The Walk at Jumeirah Beach Residence and key attractions at Dubailand.

The deal marks the second cruise season that Royal Caribbean and Dubai Properties Group (DPG) have woked together to make this an option for cruisers.

The Walk at Jumeirah Beach Residence is a lifestyle, shopping and leisure destination known for its stunning beach-side setting. The diversity of food, beverage, entertainment and cultural offerings has made The Walk at JBR a must-see for tourists.

Other key destinations in DUBAILAND® will also be promoted in Royal Caribbean's pre and post cruise tour land packages, as well as on-shore excursion programs. These attractions include Dubai Autodrome in MotorCity, Dubai Outlet Mall in Outlet City, The Global Village, and Dubai Sports City which features the Els Club, the Butch Harmon School of Golf and the Cricket Stadium. These projects currently receive millions of visitors annually, and add further variety to Dubai's tourism offering by providing visitors with exciting entertainment options and value for money.

From January 24 through April 9, Royal Caribbean's Brilliance of the Seas will offer seven night cruises that vist destinations in the Arabian Gulf area.  In addition, Royal Caribbean has added new 12 night itineraries that include stops in India as well. 

"We are delighted to resume the extremely successful marketing alliance between these two strong brands which has allowed thousands of visitors to experience our popular DPG designations last season," said Khalid Al Malik, CEO, Dubai Properties Group.

Rama Rebbapragada, Regional Vice President of Royal Caribbean International, said: "We hope to replicate the success of our full capacity 2010 sailings, and are thrilled that our new 12-night itinerary has received a huge amount of interest from key global source markets including the UK, North America and Germany."

The port of Balitmore, Maryland set a new record for number of cruise passengers in 2010.  Thanks in part to Royal Caribbean offering year-round cruises from the port, 210,549 people sailed on 91 cruises from the Cruise Maryland Terminal. The 2010 cruise record beat the previous record set a year earlier in 2009 of 167,235 passengers on 81 cruises.

According to the Maryland Port Administration, the cruises in 2010 generated about $90 million for the state's economy in 2010, an increase of about $10 million from the previous year.

Royal Caribbean's Enchantment of the Seas will return in 2011 and offer cruises to Bahamas, Bermuda and the Caribbean.

Customs and Border Patrol agents found a stash of $100,000 in drugs hidden in a cruise ship equipment locker.  Drug sniffing dogs discovered the stash on Royal Caribbean's Enchantment of the Seas as it returned to Baltimore harbor this past Saturday.

The agents discovered two packages of heroin that weighed a total of one pound, eight ounces, and a 14-ounce package of cocaine on the ship.

CBP spokesman Steve Sapp said authorities don't know whom the drugs belonged to and no one has been arrested. The drugs were found in an area off-limits to passengers, he said.

Enchantment of the Seas was being targeted by Customs and Border Patrol agents because of it's history of drugs being discovered onboard the ship.  Officials are working with Royal Caribbean to find out who these drugs belonged to.

Good news for those worried about the recent outbreak of norovirus on Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports number of outbreaks of gastrointestinal illness on cruise ships sailing from U.S. ports dropped again in 2010.

There were 14 outbreaks of norovirus in 2010, down from 15 in 2009 and 2008, 21 in 2007 and 34 in 2006.

More encouraging is the number of outbreaks dropped despite an increase in cruisers overall.  The Cruise Lines International Association has estimated the industry carried 14.3 million passengers in 2010, up from 13.4 million in 2009.

In 2010, Royal Caribbean only reported one outbreak

Royal Caribbean is extending it's successful Wine Experience Program that was on Allure of the Seas to its entire fleet later this year.  

The hour long Lafite Wine Experience debuted last month on the brand new Allure of the Seas and will now be available on all of its ships by March 2011.  

"Royal Caribbean International continues to expand our extensive range of food and beverage offerings through enrichment programs such as the Lafite Wine Experience,” said Frank Weber, vice president of food and beverage operations at RCI. “This robust wine experience provides even the most novice wine drinkers the opportunity to refine their palate and discover the fine nuances of one of the world’s most renowned vintners.”

Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas was delayed on January 3rd after an outbreak of illness struck the ship, causing 150 passengers to become sick.

Royal Caribbean reports a gastro-intestinal illness marked by diarrhea and vomiting affected some passengers, including three crew members.  Royal Caribbean took measures to ensure the ship was ready for its next voyage by remaining in port five hours longer than normal to undergo a ship-wide cleaning.

The cruise terminal was also sanitized and the ship is scheduled to depart on another cruise Saturday night.

During the voyage, crew took precautions to prevent the spread of the virus such as banning menus and silverware from meals.