Royal Caribbean Blog

Guests onboard Royal Caribbean's Freedom of the Seas are reporting the ship was denied entry to San Juan, Puerto Rico and as a result, is heading to Miami, Florida to disembark.

The cruise was scheduled to end today, but instead will add two more days to the sailing and let guests leave in Miami.

The ship was concluding a 7-night Southern Caribbean sailing, with San Juan being Freedom's homeport.

Our friends from EatSleepCruise.com are onboard Freedom of the Seas can corroborate the reporting.

Breaking News! Live from @RoyalCaribbean #freedomoftheseas as the ship is not being allowed to dock in Puerto Rico. So, we are heading to Miami and expected to arrive on Tuesday morning. #cruise #cruiseship #travel #cruising #RoyalCaribbean #CoronaVirusUpdate #CoronavirusUSA pic.twitter.com/8q8QAaKs0y

— DB and The Princess (@EatSleepCruise) March 15, 2020

A letter to guests indicates the Port Authorities of Puerto Rico advised Royal Caribbean that they have closed the port to cruise ships.

Freedom of the Seas has no reported cases of COVID-19 onboard, and the cruise line has been employing extra stringent sanitization methods. Moreover, Freedom of the Seas had no issues visiting any of her scheduled ports of call during the sailing.

Any internet, beverage or dining packages purchased for the cruise will automatically be extended for guests at no additional cost for the extra cruise days, along with a complimentary hour of wifi access so that guests may make necessary travel arrangements.

Freedom of the Seas is one of the last Royal Caribbean ships still at sea, having departed before Royal Caribbean announced a global suspension of its cruises for 30 days due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

It appears Allure of the Seas scheduled $165 million amplification is on hold temporarily while all of Spain's ports are closed for at least two weeks due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Oasis of the Seas in Cadiz, Spain during her 2019 Royal Amplification

Local media reports in Spain say that Allure of the Seas was scheduled to undergo the Royal Amplification at the Navantia shipyard in Cadiz, Spain, but that has been postponed.

Spain's Council of Ministers announced that in an effort to avoid Coronavirus, cruise ships from any origin will not be permitted to visit Spanish ports between March 13 and 26.

No official word by Royal Caribbean on the impact, if any, on the timetable for Allure to rejoin the fleet. The delay in work may be mitigated by a number of other Coronavirus travel restrictions and port closures in Europe that have the entire European cruise season in doubt.

Once the work begins, Allure of the Seas will undergo a 58-day, $165 million transformation that will add new features, including the Ultimate Abyss, the tallest slide at sea; The Perfect Storm trio of waterslides, completely redesigned Adventure Ocean kids and teens spaces, the first Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar, and Music Hall.

Allure was scheduled to resume sailings in May 2020 with 7-night Western Mediterranean cruises sailing roundtrip out of Barcelona.

Royal Caribbean has announced its refund policy for guests affected by canceled sailings between March 14 and April 10, 2020.

Royal Caribbean has voluntarily suspended its US sailings for 30 days due to the gravity of the public health crisis confronting the United States in the form of COVID-19.

Guests on affected sailings between March 14 - April 10, 2020 will automatically receive a 125% Future Cruise Credit that can be used anytime before December 31, 2021. Future Cruise Credits will be automatically issued on Monday, April 13, 2020 via email.

If a guest prefers a full refund instead of a Future Cruise Credit, they can get a 100% refund instead. Guests have up until December 31, 2021 to request a full refund. Refunds can be expected 30 days after submitting the request.

Refund requests can be done automatically via Royal Caribbean's form, or by calling Royal Caribbean.

Important update on all U.S. sailings departing between March 14th to April 10th, 2020. (1/3)

? https://t.co/n8sSjx3Vbl pic.twitter.com/QLGtHg8z8P

— Royal Caribbean (@RoyalCaribbean) March 14, 2020

Important update on all U.S. sailings departing between March 14th to April 10th, 2020. (3/3)

? https://t.co/n8sSjxlwzV pic.twitter.com/qIl8X5rlq3

— Royal Caribbean (@RoyalCaribbean) March 14, 2020

Any pre-purchased amenities and packages, such as internet, beverage packages, dining or RoyalUp upgrades, will automatically be refunded.

If you purchased air or hotel through Royal Caribbean, these will be automatically refunded to you as well.

Royal Caribbean International announced it will voluntarily suspend all operations of its cruise ships for 30 days due to the Coronavirus epidemic.

Beginning at midnight on March 14, Royal Caribbean will pause the fleet's United States sailings for 30 days. In addition, the global fleet will be suspened at midnight on March 15.

"We are reaching out to our guests to help them work through this disruption to their vacations, and we are truly sorry for their inconvenience. We are also communicating with our crew to work out the issues this decision presents for them. We know this adds great stress to our guests, employees and crew, and we are working to minimize the disruption."

5:37 UPDATE: Cruises that depart US ports before midnight and international cruises will operate their scheduled itineraries. U.S. ships already at sea will finish their itineraries as planned.

6:56 UPDATE: Vicki Freed, Royal Caribbean International's Senior Vice President of Sales, Trade Support and Service, reports US sailings will resume operations on April 11, 2020.

8:24PM UPDATE: Royal Caribbean has released refund options for guests affected by this shutdown.

MARCH 14 10:57AM UPDATE: Royal Caribbean has decided to suspend the sailings of our fleet globally at midnight tonight. All current sailings will conclude as scheduled. Royal Caribbean expects to return to service on April 11, 2020.

Royal Caribbean joins a number of other cruise lines who also voluntarily shut down temporarily in hope they can reopen when the COVID-19 outbreak slows down, including Princess Cruises, MSC Cruises, Disney Cruise Line and others.

Prior to shutting down, Royal Caribbean attempted to provide confidence to consumers by greatly expanding the window to cancel a cruise up until 48 hours. 

Earlier on Friday, Norwegian Cruise Line also announced they would temporarily shut down until mid-April.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Chairman and CEO Richard Fain reached out to travel agents to offer words of encouragement during a time when Coronavirus is dominating the news, and many people's travel plans.

"I just want to say one thing: breathe. Step back, shake a little stress out of your shoulders, and breathe. All of us in the cruise industry are working as hard as we can to help get us through this difficult time."

In a recorded video, Mr. Fain spoke to the current situation, and offered words of encouragement to continue on, and that this will all eventually pass.

"It's a long road ahead on the home front, and it's important to keep your focus on helping each other get through this challenging time."

This is the second video Mr. Fain has produced that is aimed at the travel partners that Royal Caribbean relies on, although his message is more universal than just travel professionals. Earlier this month, Mr. Fain shared a video message to reassure everyone that the Coronavirus threat will eventually pass.

Royal Caribbean has updated its coronavirus protocols effective Monday, March 16, boarding will be denied to any person age 70 or older, unless the guest provides written verification from a qualified treating physician that certifies the person has no severe, chronic medical condition and is fit to travel.

In addition, boarding will be denied to any person with a severe, chronic medical condition, including those specified by the CDC.

Guests of all ages will be screened prior to boarding, regarding underlying health issues that may prevent them from sailing, i.e.  chronic heart, lung, liver, or kidney disease, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, or cancer.

For guests 70 years or older, they can have this letter template filled out by a physician.

This new policy is in addition to the cruise line's enhanced screening policy that include mandatory temperature screenings, denial of boarding to anyone that has been to mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Europe, Iran, or South Korea 15-20 days prior to embarkation.

Royal Caribbean has also implemented additional protocols that include professional medical treatment; isolation of unwell individuals from the general ship population; and intensified ship cleaning, air filtration, and sanitization procedures.

Royal Caribbean has released its Short Caribbean sailings for May 2021 - April 2022 and they are now available for booking.

Adventure of the Seas will sail out of Galveston, offering 4- and 5-night Western Caribbean sailings.

Brilliance of the Seas will alternate homeports between Tampa and Miami.  While in Tampa, she will offer 4- and 5-night Western Caribbean sailings.  Her summer season will take her to Miami, where she will sail 6- and 8-night itineraries to the Western and Southern Caribbean.

Explorer of the Seas will reposition from Miami to Galveston in April 2021, and then offer 4- and 5-night Western Caribbean sailings.  She then moves back to Miami in October 2021, to offer longer Southern and Western cruises.

Independence of the Seas will start off her season in Fort Lauderdale, offering 3- and 4-night sailings to the Bahamas and Perfect Day at CocoCay.  In November 2021, she will move up to her new homeport of Port Canaveral and sail 3- and 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day itineraries.

Mariner of the Seas will remain in Port Canaveral, but shift to 4- and 5-night Caribbean and Bahamas sailings in November 2021.

Navigator of the Seas will remain in Miami, offering 3- and 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day itineraries.

You can view all of the new sailings available to book here:

• Adventure of the Seas
• Brilliance of the Seas
• Explorer of the Seas
• Independence of the Seas
• Mariner of the Seas
• Navigator of the Seas

The new sailings are available to book immediately.

When Royal Caribbean decided to move Spectrum of the Seas out of Asia due to the Coronavirus outbreak, the cruise line took this opportunity to give back to the first responders of Australia.

A number of complimentary humanitarian sailings were offered in support of Australia's volunteer first responder community, who worked tirelessly during the recent bushfire crisis. 

Volunteers and their families were invited from all over Australia to sail on Spectrum of the Seas.

Royal Caribbean worked with state-based volunteer agencies directly to notify and encourage eligible volunteers to register for their complimentary cruise. The company partnered with Lifeline to provide individual support sessions for any guests who have been impacted by the bushfires and need to talk through calling the Bushfire Recovery line 13HELP on 13 43 57.

Our newest podcast episode is out to help give you a quick "audio escape" to a Royal Caribbean cruise!

Episode 345 is available for downloading, and Matt lists his favorite restaurants on a Royal Caribbean ship.

Which restaurants on Royal Caribbean are my favorite? On this week's podcast, I dish (get it, "dish"?) on my preferred dining venues.

Here’s the podcast page for Episode 345. And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Stitcher or on iTunes!

Take a listen and as always, let us know what you think! Please rate and review the podcast on iTunes and leave your comments below!

Royal Caribbean's second Royal Beach Club property will be built at the western end of Paradise Island in The Bahamas.

Built for Royal Caribbean International guests, The Royal Beach Club is the cruise line's take on a private shore excursion. 

Built exclusively for Royal Caribbean guests, The Royal Beach Club will combine the island’s striking beaches with the cruise line’s signature service and amenities.

Royal Caribbean International has announced its newest mission: delivering the ultimate beach day. We’re kicking this off with the first Royal Beach Club launching for your clients in Antigua in 2021. And we’ve also secured land for this new feat at the western end of Paradise Island in The Bahamas.

The news was shared with travel agents that confirms Royal Caribbean's recent land acquisition on Paradise Island will become the second Royal Beach Club location.

The first Royal Beach Club is slated to open in Antigua in 2021.

Royal Caribbean is investing heavily in The Bahamas, having just completed a $250 million makeover of its private island, CocoCay, along with a $300 million cruise terminal, resort and destination in Freeport, Bahamas.

There is no timeline for when this Royal Beach Club on Paradise Island will open, nor what features or amenities it will include.