Royal Caribbean News Round-Up: February 22, 2026

In:
22 Feb 2026
By: 
Matt Hochberg

Happy Sunday, and I hope you had a great week. It was a busy week of Royal Caribbean fun, and I have a round-up of all of it in this hand-dandy blog post.

Royal Caribbean has added a non-smoking casino to another cruise ship, but this change is different.

Non-smoking casino on Radiance of the Seas

After emerging from a scheduled drydock, Radiance of the Seas surprised guests with an unannounced change to replace the pub onboard with a non-smoking casino.

Adding non-smoking casinos isn't new, but this is the first time they've replaced a popular bar with a gambling space.

Royal Caribbean News

Video: The Boarding Day Trick Most Cruisers Don’t Know

The Boarding Day Trick Most Cruisers Don’t Know

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 — The Boarding Day Trick Most Cruisers Don’t Know — and don’t forget to subscribe here.

5 best hidden gems to order at Royal Caribbean's Main Dining Room

Plates of food in Main Dining Room

There are some truly underrated and lesser-known dishes you should be ordering in the Main Dining Room.

While you won't go wrong with the MDR staples, I think a few appetizers and entrees go overlooked but are some of the best food you'll find on a Royal Caribbean ship.

In my 20 years of cruising on Royal Caribbean, it's clear some of these items stand out as being fantastic.

Surprising things about going on a giant cruise ship for the first time

When Allie took her husband on his first megaship, the experience was very different from what he was used to.

There's nothing like an Oasis Class ship, which is why so many new cruisers are drawn to trying them.

Moving from smaller ships to Oasis Class introduced a few surprises and new favorites for Luke.

4 Dining surprises on Royal Caribbean's next new cruise ship

Dining surprises

When Legend of the Seas launches this summer, there's going to be changes to the dining options.

Royal Caribbean is never content to copy its ships, so there are always tweaks and changes. Dining is definitely one area we see the most variations when a new ship comes out.

The cruise line revealed all of the dining options coming to Legend of the Seas, including a few surprises.

6 Mistakes everyone makes when eating in Royal Caribbean's Main Dining Room

Mistakes made in the Main Dining Room

I love eating in the Main Dining Room, but I've seen so many people making mistakes in how they eat there.

It's most common with new cruisers, but even established cruisers will sometimes slip up.

I think everyone wants to have a great meal every time they eat in the MDR, so I came up with mistakes to avoid.

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

Episode 597

We've just released the 597th episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast. In it, Matt talks through the curious situation happening with NCL leadership changes.

You can subscribe to the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast via YouTube, iTunes, Google Play or RSS.


Matt started Royal Caribbean Blog in 2010 as a place to share his passion for all things Royal Caribbean with readers. He oversees all the writers at Royal Caribbean Blog, and writes a great deal of content on a daily basis.  He has become one of the foremost experts on a Royal Caribbean cruise.

Over the years, he has reached Pinnacle Club status with Royal Caribbean's customer loyalty program.

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