One big change coming to Royal Caribbean's newest ship will be its biggest casino ever.
Royal Caribbean confirmed a change to its casino layout on Legend of the Seas, which will debut next summer.
Instead of the single deck casino layout that both Icon and Star of the Seas have, Legend will expand its casino footprint to two decks.
Here's what Royal Caribbean has shared about its plans for the casino expansion.
Casino upgrade
"Your next Icon Class casino is getting a major upgrade," is what an email to casino loyalty members read to start things off.
Legend of the Seas will be the first Royal Caribbean ship to have a two-story casino.
Concept art released shows a bar at the center of the main level, with table games and slot machines flanking each side.
The upper level appears to have exclusively slot machines, with a sports bar as well.
There's a staircase in the middle, but undoubtedly there will be elevator access at the ends of each deck.
Location onboard
The ship's deck plans don't reflect the second deck yet, but it's likely to encompass deck 3 and 4. As of now, there's a large unmarked area on the deck 3 deck plan that would seem to fit in.
The new layout opens up possibilities, such as high-roller areas, large non-smoking sections, and more.
Moreover, it makes the casino feel more like a land casino instead of a small part of a cruise ship. The aura of a "real casino" is meaningful to some players.
Casino has become a major priority
Royal Caribbean has steadily increased the footprint of its casinos, and it reflects the growing revenue they generate.
Cruise ships have traditionally always had a casino, but it was never a major focal point. In recent years, that has changed.
Royal Caribbean has not only made its casinos bigger on new ships, but also replaced venues with casino space. All of the Jazz on 4 clubs were replaced by non-smoking casinos on the Oasis Class ships.
We've also seen Royal Caribbean replace bars and clubs with additional casino space.
The combination of increasing popularity of gambling among cruisers and very likely higher onboard revenue has proven to be a winning formula for a company hyper focused on profitability.
Another Legend of the Seas change coming
The same day Royal Caribbean confirmed the changes to the ship's casino, we ran across another change.
The cruise giant trademarked the name, "Hollywoodland Supper Club" signaling the name it's chosen for its third supper club experience.
While we've known for over a year the supper club theme on Legend of the Seas would be Hollywood themed, we did not know the specific name of the venue.
Royal Caribbean filed a trademark application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for Hollywoodland Supper Club and filed it under the category of being a restaurant.
The supper club on Icon of the Seas has a New York theme, while the Star of the Seas version is based on Chicago.
Each supper club pairs live musical entertainment, food, and cocktails to the region and time period.
Given the name "Hollywoodland" alludes to the original name for the real estate development that got shortened later to "Hollywood", it's likely this restaurant will also focus on the golden age of Hollywood, which is anywhere from the 1920s to the early 1960s.
