Instead of picking a ship, you might be picking the private destination as the top reason to choose a cruise.
Royal Caribbean revealed the full details of four different beach destination projects it's working on, and collectively it's evolving its product offering forward beyond any other cruise line or resort.
"Now, guests are choosing to sail with us so that they can go to CocoCay," said Royal Caribbean's Senior Vice President and Chief Product Innovation Officer Jay Schneider. "Sometimes it's actually more important CocoCay than it is the ship that they're on."
The success Royal Caribbean has had with its Perfect Day at CocoCay project lead them on the path to spawn an even bigger project in Mexico, along with two beach clubs and a new private destination.
According to Schneider, visiting destinations is the top reason their customers choose a Royal Caribbean cruise. But new Royal Caribbean exclusives could change how people think of picking a vacation.
"The difference is, in addition to saying, I want to go to Aruba, they're going to continue to say... I want to go to Perfect Day at CocoCay."
That change in approach to picking private destinations as a primary factor could be a real difference maker for Royal Caribbean.
Caribbean cruises with an oasis at each stop
By the time we get to the end of 2027, Royal Caribbean will have two Perfect Day operations open, along with two beach clubs, across the Caribbean.
It's not difficult to imagine itineraries where each stop has a top rated spot at each port that Royal Caribbean customers can enjoy.
Your cruise could sail away from Miami, stop at the Royal Beach Club Cozumel, then hit Perfect Day Mexico the next day, and conclude with a visit to Perfect Day at CocoCay before returning home.
Royal Caribbean isn't moving away from bringing its customers to everywhere else in the Caribbean, but they're also looking to offer its customers what they want: highly rated experiences that passengers love.
At the official announcement event in New York on Wednesday, Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley restated that Perfect Day at CocoCay is the number one rated place by customers their ships visit.
Like any business, Royal Caribbean wants to take that winning formula that makes its customers so satisfied and spread it around.
In the case of Nassau, the line wants to address a much-needed problem where passengers frankly hate visiting there.
In terms of guest satisfaction, Nassau ranks in the bottom 10% of ports, and that's a big reason why Royal Caribbean wants to build a club there.
But with Cozumel and Costa Maya, there are opportunities to add more and spread what worked at CocoCay so its passengers can have a great experience elsewhere.
In all cases, the goal is simple: elevate the experience by making things easier and better for passengers. Take that formula and apply it liberally.
Dreaming of perfect cruises
Almost as soon as Royal Caribbean announced its plans for Perfect Day Mexico and its beach clubs, cruise fans began asking for sailings that visit them all.
"Would love to go to Coco Cay and Perfect Day Mexico on the same cruise," posted RCIfan1912 on the Royal Caribbean message boards.
aherrera04 posted on Reddit, "With all the new Perfect Day projects released I just need a cruise that stops in all of them maybe with a sea day in between."
"5 night from Orlando, stops at CoCoCay and Mexico… where do I sign up" added NathanJax.
When does each of these new places open?
It's going to be a busy few years as Royal Caribbean gets all of these new spots ready to go.
Perfect Day Mexico is slated to open September 2027, and Royal Caribbean will likely offer itineraries that visit both Perfect Day locales when they go on sale.
Expect the first batch of new cruises to be on sale in the fall, around November of this year.
Royal Beach Club Cozumel is expected to open in December 2026, and it sounds like it will be at the very end of December.
Royal Beach Club Paradise Island will be the first beach club to open, and that will start up operations in December 2025. Once again, expect a late opening in the month.
Finally, Lelepa will open sometime in early 2027.
Keep in mind you cannot book admission or tickets to any of the beach clubs yet. Royal Caribbean says more information and pricing will be released soon.
