Royal Caribbean Blog

Carnival Cruise Line announced today it has cancelled all sailings into February, and even some into March, but Royal Caribbean has no plans yet to match those dates.

Nearly as soon as Carnival Cruise Line made the announcement it would cancel all of its sailings through January 31, 2021 and select cruises in February and March, many cruise fans were wondering if Royal Caribbean would do the same.

Carnival announced it would extend its cancellation for all vessels through at least January 31.

In addition, Carnival canceled all sailings out of Baltimore; Charleston, South Carolina.; Jacksonville, Florida; Long Beach, California; Mobile, Alabama.; New Orleans; and San Diego through the end of February.

Sailings out of Tampa on the line’s Carnival Legend were canceled through March 26.

During a webinar with travel agents, Royal Caribbean's Senior Vice President, Sales, Trade Support and Service Vicki Freed said there was no decision made 

"At this point in time, we've only canceled sailings through the end of December."

"We're staying very fluid with the situation. And if we do need to cancel, we will certainly give everybody a heads up. But right now it's just through the end of December of 2020."

Royal Caribbean's current global cruise suspension expires at the end of December (except for Quantum of the Seas in Singapore), with a January 1, 2021 date to resume operation for the majority of the fleet.

Since the cruise industry have shut down operations in March, the "big three" cruise lines of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, Carnival Corporation and Royal Caribbean Group have had a tendency to match each other with cruise cancellation announcements. While this pattern is far from an absolute guarantee, it has been the dominant pattern.

Time needed to prepare

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lifted the No Sail Order at the end of October, but replaced it with a complex road map for cruise lines to follow if they wish to restart operations.

There are multiple phases to restart, which include preparing ships now to ensure they are free of any virus, conducting test cruises, and applying for a Conditional Sailing Certificate.

None of these steps is simple or quick, and it could take many more weeks or months to go through all the steps.

Royal Caribbean has not provided any kind of guidance of how long they estimate it may take before cruises resume, but executives have been insistent that they will take their time in order to get it right.

Royal Caribbean Group Chairman and CEO Richard Fain has said they want to have a good plan in place before starting back up.

"We have said that we're not sure when we're coming back. We won't come back until we're absolutely sure that we've done everything we can to work to protect the safety of our guests and crew."

"We will work with the authorities. We will work with all the experts that we have asked to help us on this, to make sure that we are doing everything we can to protect our guests and crew."

One of the signature features of Royal Caribbean's Odyssey of the Seas has arrived at the shipyard to be installed on Royal Caribbean's next new cruise ship.

The North Star is a glass observational pod attached to a giant arm that guests can board to get 360-degree views from 300 feet above sea level.

Odyssey of the Seas is a Quantum Ultra Class cruise ship, and the North Star is a signature activity found only on Quantum and Quantum Ultra class cruise ships.

North Star was transported on barge that arrived at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany.

The North Star for Odyssey is painted with lime green and light blue stripes, similar to the concept art for the ship. All other Quantum Class ships have a North Star that has a navy blue striped motif.

Part of that design choice appears to be to better match the Lime and Coconut tropical design that the rest of the pool deck features.

Odyssey of the Seas concept art

Spectrum of the Seas

North Star is complimentary outside of China.

Odyssey of the Seas is due to be delivered to Royal Caribbean in Spring 2021. 

Once complete, Odyssey of the Seas will be Royal Caribbean's second Quantum Ultra Class cruise ship, sailing from Rome in Summer 2021.

After her inaugural season in Europe, Odyssey will then continue its inaugural year in Fort Lauderdale, FL with 8- and 6-night Caribbean itineraries.

Odyssey has been under construction since the steel cutting ceremony in February 2019, but delivery was delayed due to the impact of the global health crisis.

When you book a cruise, is there such thing as a bad stateroom to book?

The last thing anyone wants to do is make a mistake that they will have to live with for the entire length of their cruise, and which room you pick is a major decision in your cruise plans.

The good news is picking a cabin is less "hit or miss" when it comes to Royal Caribbean cruises compared to perhaps other cruise lines. In addition, modern cruise ship design has paid closer attention to room locations to avoid some of the issues of the past.

If you are booking a cruise and want to know how to pick the perfect cabin (and which rooms to avoid), here is what you need to know.

Location, location, location

If you are worried about picking a bad room, the question you really should be asking is what is your stateroom near and far away from?

Just like buying a house, the location of your cabin has implications for convenience, neighbors, and what the room has to offer.

The first thing you want to do is pull up a deck plan for your ship to see where your room is located on the ship.  

You will want to check the deck plans for what is one deck above or below your cabin. Ideally, you want a room that has no public spaces (pools, restaurants, venues, etc) above or below your room to mitigate the chance of noise bleed.

If there is a public venue above or below your room, don't assume you are in for a disaster. This is more of a best practice, and Royal Caribbean cabins are generally speaking well insulated from noise.

You may also want to pay attention to distance from your room to elevators or staircases.  On larger cruise ships, the walking distance to an elevator from rooms at the end of a hallway can be lengthy, so anyone with mobility issues or simply wants to reduce the "commute time" should look for a room closer to an elevator.

One other consideration is if you are worried about getting seasick.  To minimize the sensation of movement, pick a room that is as close to the ship's center, and on the lowest possible deck.

Private balcony

Another consideration is if you want a room that has its own private balcony or not.

Booking a room with a balcony means you get not only fresh air whenever you need, but also your own private space to enjoy during the cruise.

First time cruisers may quickly dismiss booking a balcony or suite in order to save money, but a common regret is from people who book interior rooms and later wish they had a balcony.

Of course, you can have a great cruise without a private balcony, but it is something you should absolutely consider.

Does the side of the ship matter?

Another vestige of the old days of cruising is picking which side of the ship your cabin is located in order to get a better view.

For Caribbean and Alaska cruises, the side of the ship your room is located is irrelevant because the views are pretty much the same, and there is no advantage to being on one side or another.

Ships do not dock on the same side of the dock each time they visit a particular port, so it is impossible to guess the direction your ship will be. Depending upon winds, tide, and other ships in port, the same ship could change sides within the same port from trip to trip.

In general, I do not think it is worth worrying about which side of the ship your room happens to be on, and instead consider the other factors, such as proximity to elevators and what is above or below your room.

Guarantee rooms

As you go through the booking process, you will run across an option to let Royal Caribbean pick your specific cabin, which is known as a guarantee cabin.

This means Royal Caribbean will charge you less money for booking a particular category in exchange for giving up the ability to choose your specific stateroom.

This means once you book, you do not know the exact room assignment. At some point in the weeks leading up to the cruise, Royal Caribbean will assign your stateroom.

If you are not picky about your exact room location, you could opt into a guarantee room to potentially save hundreds of dollars.

Which cabin is the best location on a cruise ship?

There is no objective answer to the "best" location on any ship. Your room selection is a combination of availability and personal preference.

In general, the cabin location and cost are the major considerations when you book a cruise. 

You have to weigh the considerations outlined in this post and decide which is most important for you.

More stateroom booking articles:

• What is the best room on a cruise ship?
• Should I book a guarantee stateroom on a cruise?
• Is a suite on Royal Caribbean worth it?
• Avoid these mistakes when picking a cruise ship cabin

There is a new Odyssey of the Seas construction photo shared with the public, although there are quite a bit of objects blocking a view of the ship.

November 16 photo

Royal Caribbean's next new cruise ship is under construction in Hall 6 of Meyer Werft shipyard. 

The photo was released by the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany.

Odyssey of the Seas is scheduled to sail in Spring 2021, with newly added sailings in April from Southampton and Barcelona.

November 10 photo

Once Odyssey completes these new sailings, she will spend her summer in Rome offering sailing Eastern Mediterranean cruises.

Finally, Odyssey will head to the United States for her North American debut in November 2021. There she will continue her inaugural year in Fort Lauderdale, FL with 8- and 6-night Caribbean itineraries.

Delivery still on schedule

Royal Caribbean has confirmed that Odyssey of the Seas is on schedule for her 2021 delivery.

While she was originally scheduled to begin sailings this month before construction delays impacted the timeline, Odyssey of the Seas is on scheduled to join the fleet for a Spring 2021 delivery.

The ship's current delivery date appears to be accurate, as Royal Caribbean Group confirmed this week in its third quarter earnings report that Royal Caribbean Group has allocated funds for delivery of Odyssey of the Seas during the first quarter of 2021.

Some cruise fans have also noted the fact Royal Caribbean added earlier sailings from Southampton and Barcelona to be a positive sign that the ship is going to be delivered on time.

Odyssey will differentiate herself from other Royal Caribbean cruise ships by offering a "next generation SeaPlex" that will have the addition of this venue’s first Playmakers Sports Bar & Arcade with club-level views of the competition below; a reimagined Adventure Ocean kids program and a maxed-out teen lounge with gaming consoles, music and movies.

Dining on Odyssey of the Seas will be top notch as well, with the ship offing Teppanyaki and Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar.

Royal Caribbean announced its 2022 7+ night Caribbean itineraries, which offers cruises on 6 different ships departing from ports all over the United States between May - October 2022.

These new sailings are beginning to appear on Royal Caribbean's website, although not all sailings are showing quite yet. 

According to Royal Caribbean these new sailings are available for Crown & Anchor members on November 17, 2020, and the general public on November 18, 2020.

The round-up so far looks like:

Explorer of the Seas sailing from Miami and offering 6-night Western Caribbean and 8-night Southern Caribbean cruises.

Mariner of the Seas sailing from Port Canaveral and will offer 4- and 5- night Eastern and Western Caribbean cruises, along with 8-night Southern and Eastern Caribbean itineraries.

Liberty of the Seas sailing from Galveston will offer Western Caribbean cruises.

Oasis of the Seas will sail from Cape Liberty, New Jersey and offer 7-night Cruises to Perfect Day at CocoCay and the Bahamas.

Symphony of the Seas sailing from Miami and offering 7-night Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries, with stops at Perfect Day at CocoCay.

Harmony of the Seas sailing from Port Canaveral and offer 7-night Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries, with stops at Perfect Day at CocoCay.

View the full list of sailings:

• Explorer of the Seas 
• Harmony of the Seas
• Liberty of the Seas
• Mariner of the Seas
• Oasis of the Seas 
• Symphony of the Seas

The sailings that are online are available to book now. Be sure to consult the Royal Caribbean website or your travel professional for further assistance with itinerary options and booking.

Royal Caribbean released Alaska 2022 cruises last week, and is scheduled to release Europe Summer 2022 cruises the week of November 30, 2020.

The remainder of the deployment is listed as "coming soon".

The cruise line will announce its remaining Caribbean summer 2022 deployment early next year.

Should you book a 2022 cruise now?

While 2022 may seem like a long time from now, and with all the disruptions in our lives currently, booking a cruise for summer 2022 is not a bad idea.

One good reason to book a sailing now is to lock in the price when it is among the lowest you will find. Cruise prices fluctuate a lot, and over time, prices tend to increase as people book up rooms.

You can always reprice the cruise later with the Best Price Guarantee program, which allows for repricing of cruises in case of a price drop.

Another good reason to book a 2022 cruise is if you are interested in a specific room.  Certain room categories or locations get booked up quickly because of their popularity and limited options.

Suites, staterooms with extra large balconies, and other unique staterooms are popular among cruise fans and booking now is a great way to secure these cabins for yourself.

More about Caribbean cruises:

• What is the best time to cruise to the Caribbean?
• Eight Southern Caribbean Cruise Tips & Secrets
• What is the cheapest month to go on a cruise?

Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley sent an email to guests on Monday with an update on cruises starting up again, more cancelled cruises, where the cruise ships are right now.

The email touched on a variety of topics meant to catch someone up on what's been happening with Royal Caribbean over the last few months.

Here is a summary of everything Mr. Bayley talked about in his email (with the full email at the bottom of this post).

Lifting the No Sail Order

Mr. Bayley start off the email with the fact the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lifted the No Sail Order at the end of October, and replaced it with the Framework for Conditional Sailing.

"It’s a step in the right direction we can all appreciate – a light at the end of the proverbial tunnel."

Royal Caribbean is "poring over the details of the order" as the cruise line prepares for its next steps.

"While we all know there is still more work to be done, I’m still as confident as ever about our comeback."

Cancelled December 2020 cruises

While the cruise industry now has an avenue to cruises restarting, more work is needed, which is why Royal Caribbean had to cancel the remaining 2020 cruises through December 31.

"As eager as we are to welcome your smiling faces back on board, we are sticking to our promise to take things slow for your well-being, our crew and the communities we visit."

"I can imagine how disappointing this was to hear. If there’s one thing we’re all looking forward to doing, it’s spending time on board a ship with family, friends and your favorite crew members again. That day will soon come."

Quantum of the Seas will restart in Singapore first

Mr. Bayley highlighted the fact that Quantum of the Seas will be the first Royal Caribbean ship to resume sailings when it sails from Singapore on December 1.

The three and four-night cruises are open only to residents of Singapore. 

"In anticipation of our startup in Singapore, we’re in the process of bringing back our crew members. Each of them take a series of steps before they can travel and join Quantum, including quarantine and COVID-19 testing. And for weeks now, they’ve been preparing by going through extensive training on the new protocols."

Crew members

Mr. Bayley almost always mentions the hard working crew members on their ships, and in this email he mentioned there are almost 3,000 crew members across the fleet helping keep cruise ships ready.

"There are close to 3,000 crew members currently on board who are keeping our fleet in ship shape for your return. The thousands of other crew in our family are home with their loved ones and feeling hopeful about the movement forward toward getting back to what they love to do."

Where are Royal Caribbean's ships now?

Mr. Bayley also included a list of where Royal Caribbean's ships are right now:

• Ovation, Quantum, Radiance, Spectrum and Voyager in Asia
• Empress and Majesty in Greece
• Jewel, Explorer, Allure and Anthem in the UK
• Other ships are around The Bahamas, Barbados and South Florida.

Odyssey of the Seas under construction in Germany.

"Her progress is fantastic, and we can’t wait to welcome her to the family next year in March."

While no official announcement has been made, many Royal Caribbean cruises longer than 7-nights from the United States have been removed from being available to book on its website.

Over the weekend, a number of RoyalCaribbeanBlog readers reported while the 8-night or longer cruises they have booked are still showing in their online account, searching for these sailings is impossible on Royal Caribbean's booking site.

While closed for new bookings, these cruises are not cancelled at this time. Existing reservations on these longer itineraries remain valid at this point.

When viewing Royal Caribbean's website, if you select any American port and try any date prior to late November 2021, no results are found. This apparent change does not seem to affect European sailings, or 2022 cruises.

All of the cruises longer than 7-nights have not been removed yet. Three 12-night Southern Caribbean cruises remain available in November and December 2021, and there are ten 8-night cruises still listed in December 2021.

One of the requirements of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Framework for Conditional Sailing Order is to limit cruises to no longer than 7-nights.

"The cruise ship operator must not sail or offer to sail on an itinerary longer than 7 days. CDC may shorten or lengthen the number of days permitted to sail based on public health
considerations and as set forth in technical instructions or orders."

In conducting spot checking of a few cruises, I could not locate these sailings for booking on Royal Caribbean's website:

• Oasis of the Seas July 30, 2021 9-night Eastern Caribbean from Cape Liberty
• Jewel of the Seas September 12, 2021 8-night Canada from Cape Liberty
• Anthem of the Seas October 30, 2021 8-Night Bahamas from Cape Liberty
• All Explorer of the Seas 9-Night Southern Caribbean from Miami
• Radiance of the Seas October 15, 2021 9-Night Southern Caribbean from Miami

Once again, Royal Caribbean has not announced any new cancellations related to these 7-night cruises, nor if the longer sailings would be shortened to adhere to the CDC rules.

Sailings longer than seven nights from U.S. homeports are showing as available to book as of November 2021, when the CDC's new Framework for Conditional Sailing is expected to expire.

UPDATE: Vicki Freed, Royal Caribbean's Senior Vice President, Sales, Trade Support and Service, told travel agents on Wednesday that 8-night cruises between January 1 - November 1, 2021 are on hold.

"The eight-night cruises right now are on hold on pause from January 1st to November 1st, 2021. So we're still re-evaluating the whole situation."

Following other cruise lines?

If Royal Caribbean is about to alter or cancel cruises longer than 7 nights in 2021, it is not the first cruise line to do so.

Earlier this month, Carnival Cruise Line also removed cruises from its website from the U.S. that were longer than a week without any announcement.

Royal Caribbean shareholders have started their week on a positive note thanks to excellent COVID-19 vaccine news.

Royal Caribbean (RCL) shares jumped by almost 10% on Monday (it closed up almost 7% at the end of trading) after pharmaceutical company reported its vaccine tests showed 94.5% effectiveness.

The good news spurred all cruise line stocks to spike even before the market opened.

Moderna's results are on top of last week's Pfizer's results that showed its vaccine candidate was more than 90% effective.

Moderna says about 20 million doses will be available in the United States by the end of this year, and have between 500 million a 1 billion doses worldwide in 2021.

The company says it will apply for Emergency Use Authorization with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration within the coming weeks.

Vaccine results

During Moderna's late-stage trials, 15,000 study participants were given a placebo, which is a shot of saline that has no effect. Over several months, 90 of them developed COVID-19, with 11 developing severe forms of the disease.

Another 15,000 participants were given the vaccine, and only five of them developed COVID-19. None of the five became severely ill.

Moderna says its vaccine did not have any serious side effects. A small percentage of those who received it experienced symptoms such as body aches and headaches.

The vaccine is not only more effective than Pfizer's vaccine, but it can be stored for up to six months when stored at standard freezer temperatures of -4 degrees Fahrenheit, compared to the -94 degree temperatures required for the Pfizer vaccine. 

Both vaccines are using messenger RNA, or mRNA to produce an immune response in the vaccine.

The mRNA vaccine approach uses genetic material called mRNA to trick cells into producing bits of protein that look like pieces of the virus. The immune system learns to recognize and attack those bits and, in theory, would react fast to any actual infection.

Vaccine potential great news for Royal Caribbean

While the cruise industry's attempt to restart operations does not rely on a vaccine, it certainly will do nothing but help their cause.

Royal Caribbean Group Chairman and CEO Richard Fain spoke on Monday about the "transformational" progress being made on the vaccine front.

"The most at risk Americans will be vaccinated first, and then it will spread throughout our population."

"I noticed that Dr. Fauci said he believes that any American who wants one will be able to get an inoculation by April of next year. That's exciting news."

While it waits for a vaccine, the cruise industry will rely on a multi-faceted approach to mitigate risk by relying on social distancing, reduced ship capacity, and 100% testing of everyone onboard.

Royal Caribbean Chairman and CEO Richard Fain shared a new video update that talked about the progress being made on new vaccines, as well as update on what Royal Caribbean is doing to get approval to offer cruises again.

Mr. Fain kicked off the video by highlighting the "transformational" progress being made on the vaccine front, with Pfizer and Moderna vaccines showing incredible results in their third phase of testing.

In addition to the vaccine progress, Mr. Fain mentioned Eli Lilly's antibody treatment and Regeneron as two very promising treatments that have provided a "quantum leap in our ability to deal with the disease".

"It's the extraordinary improvement in drugs and medical knowledge that's making COVID-19 progressively less dangerous every single day."

"And the real measure for the threat of this disease is the number of hospitalizations and deaths it causes. Getting that under control will be an enormous milestone for all of us."

Working with the CDC

Mr. Fain also talked about the Conditional Sail Order, which provides a framework for cruises to be able to resume if certain steps and milestones are met.

He said Royal Caribbean is up to the task of working with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to get cruises back on the water again.

"We are determined to work with the CDC to implement, adjust and clarify all those requirements so that we can meet the goal of safe and healthy sailing."

Moreover, Mr. Fain said it will not be a quick process, but it is achievable.

"It won't be easy and it won't be quick, but it will be thorough and it will be effective."

In preparation for these hurdles set up by the CDC, Royal Caribbean is doing what it can to be "masters of our own destiny".

"We have established rigorous protocols designed to make cruise ships safer than comparable places on land. We're training our people and we're preparing our ships to face all of these challenges head on."

Cruise fans are ready to get back to sea, and Royal Caribbean is seeing that demand in the form of people volunteering for test cruises.

In less than a week, Royal Caribbean has received over 100,000 people sign up as a volunteer for its test cruises through an online form.

Royal Caribbean President and CEO Michael Bayley shared the milestone on social media in a brief post.

Mr. Bayley also shared in a different Facebook post how "gratifying" it is to see so many people want to help get cruises back, "As many know from reading the CDC conditional sale order we will be operating trial sailings with volunteer guests. It has been so gratifying to receive literally thousands of emails and calls offering to volunteer."

The sign ups are for test cruises that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) require cruise lines to conduct prior to regular cruises being approved for restart in the United States.

On Thursday of last week, Royal Caribbean published an online signup form to allow anyone who is at least 18 years old to sign up after receiving thousands of inquiries from the public about how they could sign up to be a test cruiser.

The opportunity has spread across social media as cruise fans are showing that a lot are ready to cruise again, despite any risks associated with the current global health crisis.

Royal Caribbean has not announced any plans on when its test sailings might begin, although they could start as early as December.

In addition, Royal Caribbean has not said how it would pick people from the public to help test out these cruises. The only requirement listed when signing up was you had to be 18 years old.

If you want to sign up, you can fill out this form.

Willing and able

The incredible amount of signups in such a short amount of time is a testament to the pent-up demand that Royal Caribbean has seen from its customers since it shutdown operations in March.

Royal Caribbean has told investors that demand for cruises in the future remains strong because people want to get back on vacation.

On the RoyalCaribbeanBlog message boards, many cruise fans shared why they wanted signed up as volunteer.

IRMO12HD wrote, "I volunteered because I'm in a position to (retired, able to quarantine if necessary, willing to accept the risks involved, in good health) and because I want to support Royal Caribbean in returning to cruising.  My eyes are wide open; I know this will be a test, not a 'cruise' as such, and that many of the things I love about cruising will not be occurring.  That's okay.  I believe at this point, the industry needs support; more than that, I think it needs belief and trust."

krhardy is also eager to get back on a cruise ship, "I volunteered because I love cruising, and I am eager to be part of the return to sea. I want to help test the procedures and provide the feedback they need so that we can ALL get back to cruising."

Neesa also wants to do what she can to help Royal Caribbean, "I know I could be a flexible participant, standing by and patiently working with and alongside the team for a meaningful outcome. My love of the ocean and sailing drove me to sign up and support Royal Caribbean's efforts, I personally feel they have gotten a pretty raw deal."

sk8erguy1978 did not sign up, but admits it is intriguing, "With rising cases in my area and new restrictions being put in place, I'm not sure non-essential air travel is a good idea. It does sound like an amazing "once in a lifetime" opportunity and would love to be part of it."

What do volunteers have to do?

While volunteers would get on a cruise ship sooner, it will not necessarily be a complete pleasure cruise.

The CDC has outlined a variety of important tasks that volunteers on a test cruise would have to help test out.

During the test cruise, the following activities must be simulated:

• embarkation and disembarkation procedures, including terminal check-in, 
• on board activities, including at dining and entertainment venues,
• private island shore excursions (if a port is visited)
• evacuation procedures,
• transfer of symptomatic passengers or crew, or those who test positive for SARSCoV-2, from cabins to isolation rooms,
• quarantine of all remaining passengers and non-essential crew, and
• other activities as may be listed in CDC technical instructions and orders.

Royal Caribbean must modify meal service and entertainment venues to facilitate social distancing during the simulated voyage.