Royal Caribbean Blog

Dredging boats were spotted at Royal Caribbean's private destination of CocoCay in the Bahamas, signaling the start of a pivotal milestone in creating a pier for ships to dock.

Majesty of the Seas visited CocoCay this past weekend, and dredging vessels were onhand to indicate work had begun recently.  

Dredging is a form of excavation carried out underwater to provide a waterway for cruise ships to access the pier that is under construction. Once the new pier and dredging are complete, Royal Caribbean's cruise ships can visit CocoCay by docking instead of tendering.

Royal Caribbean International CEO Michael Bayley estimates out of all the sailings to CocoCay, about 10 or 11% would be missed due to unfavorable tendering conditions. With the new pier, he believes the missed calls will drop to about 2%.

UPDATE: While the sailings appear on Royal Caribbean's website, the sailings do not appear to be bookable.

Royal Caribbean's website is now showing 2020 Alaska and Hawaii sailings are viewable on the website.

While no official announcement has been made, we were able to browse the Royal Caribbean website to see and book the new sailings.

There will be three ships sailing to Alaska in 2020.

Ovation of the Seas will offer a 12-night sailing from Honolulu to Vancouver on May 7, 2020, before starting 7-night roundtrip Alaska Glacier cruises from Seattle, Washington that will begin later in May 2020. Following her Alaska season, Ovation will sail a 10-night Hawaii cruise from Vancouver to Honolulu.

Radiance of the Seas will first sail from Honolulu, Hawaii to Vancouver in May 2020, prior to offering 9-night Destination Denali open-jaw sailings between Vancouver, British Columbia and Seward, Alaska. She will also offer 10-night and 13-night open-jaw sailings between Seward, Alaska and Vancouver, British Columbia (optionally in both directions). Radiance of the Seas will offer a 10-night Hawaii cruise  from Vancouver, British Columbia to Honolulu, Hawaii in September 2020.

By August 2020, Serenade of the Seas will offer primarily 7-night roundtrip Alaska Glacier cruises from Vancouver, British Columbia. Serenade of the Seas will offer a 11-night Hawaii cruise from Vancouver, British Columbia to Honolulu, Hawaii in September 2020.

Be sure to consult the Royal Caribbean website or your travel professional for further assistance with itinerary options and booking.

Royal Caribbean is testing out a new limited quantity VIP guest experience on select Liberty of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas sailings.

Royal Caribbean is calling this pilot program, The Key, it provides guests with special benefits and perks during their cruise. 

The Key is being tested out on Liberty of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas for sailings beginning November 25, 2018 through the end of March 2019. The Key will be available only in the Cruise Planner for purchase at a rate of $24.99 per person, per day.  All guests in a stateroom age 6 and up must purchase in order to receive benefits.

Once purchased, the Key benefits are utilized via the SeaPass card and a summary of benefits will be available in their stateroom on boarding day.

With The Key, guests can enjoy a private lunch at Chops Grille when they board, daily private hours at marquee attractions, like the FlowRider, rock climbing Wall and ice-skating rink, and access to VIP seating at shows. Please note: Guests will need to reserve their seating online at Cruise Planner before they set sail.

The Key provides:

• Carry-on luggage service offering drop off at the Theater (until 1:30 PM) and delivery to your stateroom (Up to 2 bags per guest)
• Private lunch at Chops Grille on boarding day from 11:30 AM until 1:30 PM - this does not need to be reserved, as the dining team will be expecting guests who’ve purchased The Key package
• Daily private hours at signature attractions like the FlowRider, Rock Climbing wall, and ice-skating rink
• Priority tender service from cruise ship to shore
• Access to the VIP seating at shows (reservations required through the Pre-Cruise Planner)
• Complimentary VOOM Surf & Stream (1 device)
• Choice debarkation with an exclusive à la carte breakfast beginning at 6:30 AM until 9:30 AM

From what we understand, this is a pilot program and whether or not it rolls out to other ships and sailings depends on how well the program is received and performs.

Does this sound like something you would want to purchase? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

If your next Royal Caribbean offers the Sky Pad virtual reality jump experience, then you might be able to pre-book it before the cruise via Royal Caribbean's Cruise Planner site.

We have spotted the option to pre-book Sky Pad sessions on the Cruise Planner site for upcoming Mariner of the Seas and Independence of the Seas sailings. The Sky Pad option is under the Entertainment & Activities menu.

There is no cost to reserve a time, and you can select times from 30 minute blocks.

Thanks to Royal Caribbean Blog reader Jason Cook for alerting us to this change.

Happy Sunday! November has arrived, and we hope you had a great week with friends, family, and plenty of food.  Each week we summarize all of this week's Royal Caribbean news, just in case you missed any of it.

The big news this week was Royal Caribbean's announcement of the major changes coming to Navigator of the Seas in 2019.

Navigator of the Seas will undergo a refurbishment in early 2019, and will feature a number of changes including an awe-inspiring Caribbean poolscape, waterslides, the first blow dry bar at sea, nightlife and dining, and thrilling activities for the whole family.

Royal Caribbean News

• Royal Caribbean held a grand opening ceremony for Terminal A in PortMiami.
• Kids Sail Free offer is back for the month of November.
• Check out these self-service merchandise machines found on Symphony of the Seas.
• Here's the latest look at the CocoCay pier progress being made.
• Navigator of the Seas had to divert to Vigo, Spain to conduct emergency repairs earlier this week.
• Royal Caribbean created a fun timelapse video of Symphony of the Seas' departure from Malaga.
• We tried to answer as many of the commonly asked Symphony of the Seas questions as we could.
• Royal Caribbean released a new version of its smart phone app.
• Royal Caribbean thinks Symphony of the Seas offers the best family vacation at sea.

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

Have you ever dined at Izumi Japanese specialty restaurant?

In this week's podcast episode, Matt shares an overview of what Izumi offers, the various options across the fleet, and mentions which menu items are his favorite.

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.

New RCB Video: Royal Caribbean cruise money saving tips

Have you subscribed to the Royal Caribbean Blog YouTube Channel? We share some great videos there regularly, all about taking a Royal Caribbean cruise! This week, we are sharing our latest video — Royal Caribbean cruise money saving tips — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

Royal Caribbean Around the Internet

The Pinay Solo Backpacker Blog shared a guide for first timers to Ovation of the Seas.

Disney Tourist Blog shared their first impressions of Royal Caribbean from a Disney Cruise Line sucker loyalist.

CNBC quoted Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Chairman Richard Fain talking about fuel costs and their effect on earnings.

Cruise Habit recorded a podcast about cruise line loyalty programs (including Crown and Anchor Society).

Royal Caribbean is hard at work to transform its private island of CocoCay in the Bahamas to Perfect Day at CocoCay, and we have a look at the progress that has been made recently.

Royal Caribbean Blog readers Brian and Elizabeth Robison visited CocoCay while on Mariner of the Seas and provided these photos.

The new pier is expected to open around the end of this year.

Watch a timelapse video of the world's largest cruise ship, Symphony of the Seas, begin her transatlantic journey to her new homeport in Miami, Fl from Malaga, Spain.

Welcome to this week's edition of Friday Photos, where we showcase our readers favorite Royal Caribbean photos.  If we all cannot be on a Royal Caribbean cruise at the moment, then the next best thing is to look at photos of a cruise longingly as a means of getting a "cruise fix."

If you want to submit your photos for a future Friday Photos post, be sure to send them to us via this form.

Our first photo this week is of Susan Widdowson's "big" winnings on Harmony of the Seas.

Michael Bonham took this photo of Explorer of the Seas in Sydney harbor.

Here is a photo from North Star, taken by Bob Carpenter overlooking the city of Nha Trang, Vietnam.

Here is a photo from Costa Maya, taken by Kinny Lee, of a Carnival ship departing.

Adam G. took this panoramic photo of Anthem of the Seas while docked in Bermuda.

Next is a fun photo of Adventure of the Seas shrouded in fog, taken from Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park in Maine by Michael Kho.

Our final photo this week is from Ken, and it is of Oasis of the Seas in Labadee on what looks like a perfect day.

That wraps up this week's edition of Friday Photos. If you want your Royal Caribbean photo featured here, use this form to send them in!

Royal Caribbean formally opened its new cruise terminal in PortMiami with a celebration event held inside Terminal A.

The event was headlined with speeches by Royal Caribbean's leadership, as well as Miami city and PortMiami officials.

Richard Fain, Chairman & CEO of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. started off the day talking about what this new terminal means to the cruise line.

Miami Mayor Carlos Gimenez and Commissioner Rebecca Sosa, Chairwoman for the Economic & Tourism Committee, both congratulated Royal Caribbean on the opening of this terminal, and declared today to be Royal Caribbean day in Miami.

Michael Bayley, President & CEO of Royal Caribbean International, also said a few words at the event.

The official opening saw Royal Caribbean's leadership, along with the Mayor of Miami and other city officials, activate the 56 foot tall gold propellors to welcome everyone into the terminal.

Terminal A is a brand new, state-of-the-art cruise terminal that was built to be the home of Royal Caribbean's newest cruise ship, Symphony of the Seas and her sister, Allure of the Seas.  The building was designed by England-based global architecture firm Broadway Malyan. 

The names of Royal Caribbean ships appear on the staircase.

A fire department celebration of the special day.

Check-in and security screening area

Security screening area

The 170,000-square-foot terminal is nicknamed the ‘Crown of Miami’ because of its distinct shape.

Symphony of the Seas arrives to Terminal A on November 9, 2018.

Royal Caribbean International’s newest ship, Symphony of the Seas, will bring a new sound of adventure to Miami in November 2018. A playground for all ages, the world’s largest cruise ship offers a lineup of exciting new thrills along with ways to unwind. From laser tag and waterslides, to “me time” at the spa and the one-and-only Ultimate Family Suite, the quintessential family vacation is reaching new heights.