Royal Caribbean Blog

The first week of July means some major holidays in North America, including Canada Day and Independence Day, which means lots of cooking meats to celebrate these holidays.

When you are coming up with your party grill menu, you can bring the "fall off the bone" BBQ Ribs from Portside BBQ on Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas to your home with this easy recipe.

Royal Caribbean Vice President Food & Beverage, Linken D'Souza, shared how to make these super tasty ribs and home, which means you can not only get a great meal for your family, but also bring back some cruise memories from onboard.

Dry Rub Ingredients

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 2 tsp paprika
• 2 tsp coriander
• 2 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp celery salt
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp kosher salt

"Fall off the bone" BBQ Ribs Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Put all dry rub ingredients into a bowl and mix well with a spatula.

Step 2: Time to prepare the ribs. Flip the ribs over to the back side.

Step 3: Take a sharp knife from one side and run it all the way down the center.

Step 4: Use your fingers to get underneath the membrane. Peel back until completely removed.

Step 5: Time to rub the ribs. Bring the ribs to room temperature, and then generously sprinkle the seasoning over the ribs and use your hands to rub into the meat.

Step 6: Flip the ribs and repeat the sprinkling and rubbing until the rubs are completely covered.

Wood Pouch

Ingredients:

• Applewood: 0.75 lb
• Hickory 0.75 lb

Making the Wood Pouch:

Step 1: Take half of each wood flavor and soak in water for 20 minutes.

Step 2: Take remaining dry wood flavors and mix together.

Step 3: Place half of the dry wood mix on 2 pieces of aluminum foil.

Step 4: Mix the soaked wood and dry wood on the aluminum foil sheets.

Step 5: Place the wood in the middle of the foil and fold each side to the middle. Make sure it is tightly wrapped and flip over.

Step 6: Use a knife to poke 6-8 one-inch holes to allow smoke through.

Preparing to grill

Step 1: Remove one of the grates while grill is still cold.

Step 2: Place one wood pouch with holes facing up on the side with the grate removed.

Step 3: Turn on grill only, heating up the side with the pouch and close the lid.

Step 4: Turn down the grill down to low once you reach 300°F and the wood starts to smoke.

Cooking the Ribs

Step 1: Place the ribs on the side where the heat is off and close the lid.

Step 2: After 1.5 hours, place the 2nd pouch of wood over the heat. Let cook for 3 hours.

Step 3: To get the ribs to  "fall of the bone", remove the cooked rubs and place on a foil sheet.

Step 4: Add one chopped white onion around the ribs.

Step 5: Take 1/4 cup of BBQ sauce mixed with 1/4 cup of water and pour over the ribs and evenly baste.

Step 6: Wrap the ribs in foil and place over the grate.

Step 7: Turn the heat under the rub to medium and continue to cook for 1 - 1.5 hours.

Glazing the ribs

Step 1: Remove the rubs from the foil and place over medium high heat.

Step 2: Use your favorite BBQ sauce glaze to glaze the ribs with as little, or as much, sauce as you like to caramelize.

Step 3: Remove from grill after 3-5 minutes.

Enjoy the ribs and have a great holiday weekend!

Many cruise fans have been wondering what Royal Caribbean's plan will be for keeping guests healthy while onboard their ships, including what the fate of the Windjammer buffet will be.

It seems we have a definitive answer from the head of Royal Caribbean's food and beverage: there will be a buffet.

Royal Caribbean Global Vice President Culinary, Dining & Beverage, Linken D'Souza, spoke on the fate of the buffet in a webinar question and answer with travel agents on Wednesday and confirmed the buffet will remain.

Mr. D'Souza was asked about if there will be a buffet on Royal Caribbean's ships, and while Royal Caribbean has not divulged its plans for which policies and changes will be made onboard its cruise ships, he was able to dispel rumors and concerns surrounding what will happen to the buffet.

"Windjammer is one of my favorite spots, and we will continue to have a buffet at Royal Caribbean. We have worked through a variety of different scenarios, from employee service to individual portions to individual tongs for self-service, to finger koozies that you can pick up hot dishes with that can be washed and sanitized. So we continue to work through a lot of the details."

"But rest assured, the buffet will exist. There may be some small modifications that allow us to ensure that we have a really great, healthy return to service. But your favorites and what you're used to at the Windjammer will still be there."

"So I'll I'll put that to rest. We will absolutely have a Windjammer with all of your favorites in a very similar fashion to what you've had previously and maybe some different service steps to ensure healthy service."

Buffet indecision

The origins of the idea that the Windjammer might go away started in May, when Royal Caribbean President and CEO Michael Bayley mentioned the cruise line was working on their plan to keep guests healthy and the buffet experience came up.

"I think in the beginning, there will not be a buffet in the beginning, that's how I see it. It depends again upon the timing. We will utilize the space, we will utilize the Windjammer, but in all probability it won't be a classical buffet. It will be something more akin to a restaurant."

While Mr. Bayley did not say the Windjammer buffet was gone, it opened up the idea that significant change could occur. A week later, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Chairman and CEO Richard Fain had a different take on the buffet's fate.

"It doesn't mean that you don't have a buffet. I think it's very likely that you're not going to see that on land or sea."

The changing nature of recommendations by health professionals, as well as the organic discussions Royal Caribbean has had internally likely caused the answer to change depending on the week.

With Mr. D'Souza's affirmation today, it appears guests will have a buffet experience to look forward to once cruising resumes.

Not just Royal Caribbean with buffets

If the idea of a buffet remaining on a cruise ship when cruises resume sounds odd, other cruise lines are keeping theirs as well.

When Norwegian Cruise Line announced their new policies for guests, they indicated buffets and beverage stations will be full service with staff available to serve guests.

Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line announced while self-service buffet stations have been suspended, all food and beverage will be served by crew members wearing face masks, hats, aprons, and gloves.

Royal Caribbean has been diligently working on getting its crew members home, and reported on Wednesday that it has repatriated 95% of its crew members.

Royal Caribbean Senior Vice President of Sales and Trade Support & Service Vicki Freed told travel agents in her weekly webinar that among its corporate brands, Royal Caribbean has repatriated 95% of its crew members so far, and that number will climb to 97% by July 15.

"We have about 40,000 crew members from our corporate collective efforts, of which 95% have now been taken home, either via our own ships or be a chartered aircraft. By July 15th, 97% will be repatriated to their home. So no crew left behind."

"We're happy for them that they get to spend some time with family until we know that we're ready to start service again and we can bring them back and we're excited to bring them back."

In order to get crew members home, Royal Caribbean had to overcome significant legal and political hurdles countries have set up that prevent crew members on a cruise ship from returning home.

Countries around the world, including the United States, have added complex new regulations and travel restrictions meant to protect its citizens at home, while making it extremely difficult for citizens abroad to return simply because they are on a cruise ship.

Top priority

Getting crew members home has been a hot topic in the news, and Royal Caribbean made it a top priority to get its crew members home.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Chairman Richard Fain noted in the company's first quarter results call with analysts that crew repatriation is its first priority.

"In the two months since we suspended operations, we've been working tirelessly to safely repatriate our guests and crew members to their homes," Mr. Fain elaborated,  "Our crew come from more than 100 countries around the world with widely different safety protocols and travel restrictions. This has turned, what should be a simple task into a monumental one."

"It's really hard to convey the complexity of the process to somebody who's used to making simple travel arrangements. But, our teams are working around the clock with the multitude of governing bodies to repatriate our crews as soon as possible. We've even gone to the extent of using our ships as transport vessels and currently have nine ships carry more than 10,000 crew members back to their home countries. It's a complex and expensive way to do it. But it's a most reliable way to get these men and women home to their families as quickly as possible. And therefore, we've undertaken to do it this way."

"Obviously, our industry and our Company are undergoing unprecedented challenges, and we are having to quickly adapt to this new and evolving environment. But, our priorities are clear, we will work to protect the safety of our guests and crew, we will proactively enhance our liquidity, we will protect the Company's brands and our travel partners, and we will define and prepare for a new normal."

While Royal Caribbean has not officially announced its new policies procedures aimed to limit and prevent the spread of COVID-19 on its ships, one possibility is having a lower occupancy on ships to promote social distancing.

Royal Caribbean Senior Vice President of Sales and Trade Support & Service Vicki Freed told Travel Weekly that a lowered capacity is one strategy that is in play.

Freed spoke on the nature of cruise pricing, and alluded to the fact cruise lines will have less than full ships, and in order not to compromise on quality, will not be reducing prices.

"We know that initially we're not sailing at 100% occupancy and we'll have to have lower load factors.  I think all the cruise lines are planning that. And we're going to need to have more staff onboard and still offer the quality people expect from Royal Caribbean. If suddenly we downgrade the product onboard people will say, 'they're not the same brand I thought they were ' So you do keep your price integrity up in order to fund what we need to fund."

Limiting the amount of passengers on a ship below the regular capacity could be one of Royal Caribbean's health and safety protocols that is forthcoming.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Chairman and CEO Richard Fain has mentioned many times the cruise line is working behind-the-scenes on their plan, which has not been announced yet.

"Looking forward to restarting, health and safety are absolutely paramount as I've said before, what was fine just a few weeks ago is no longer adequate. Good enough just good enough. We need to raise the bar to new heights, and we have teams of doctors, of scientists, of epidemiologists, and teams of people who know our business, all looking hard and charting the safest and surest path forward that we can."

In terms of profitability, Royal Caribbean told Wall Street investors that its newer ships break even on costs with less passengers, than its older ships.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Chief Financial Officer Jason Liberty answered by saying the company could break even with use of fewer, but newer cruise ships, in lieu of older ships.

"For our newer ships, you need about 30 percent load factors to kind of break even. And then they skew to about 50 percent load factor on onto our older ships."

How would they limit capacity?

If Royal Caribbean does have lower load factors, how would they determine which rooms would not be sold, and would there be any cancellations if someone was already booked?

These are among the many questions left unanswered at this time, and Ms. Freed did not comment on the logistics involved with reducing ship capacity.

UBS Analyst Robin Farley said in a recent note the cheapest staterooms are likely candidates to be excluded.

"We note that since cruise lines are taking so much capacity out of service and not pricing to fill what is in service, they could potentially eliminate some of the lowest-margin demand that they might normally turn to when filling a ship."

There is no clear indication what Royal Caribbean may or may not do, nor is there any signs if they would cancel certain reservations that are already booked.

There is plenty of speculation, including perhaps leaving specific cabins unbooked between reserved staterooms, as well as only allowing cabins with access to fresh air to be booked.

Other cruise lines approaches

Another way to figure out what Royal Caribbean might do to limit capacity is see what other cruise lines have done.

Genting Cruise Lines, which operates China-based Star Cruises and Dream Cruise Line, was among the first cruise lines to announce new health protocols, including limiting capacity.

Their approach was to limit the capacity in most venues to half of what it was previously.  

Prior to shutting down its global fleet, Carnival Cruise Line announced in early April it would close inventory on select sailing dates. Essentially, not selling any more cabins on select sailings once they reach a certain point.

Royal Caribbean's Liberty of the Seas will resume sailings earlier than originally scheduled in February 2021, and take over for Jewel of the Seas as well.

Liberty of the Seas was scheduled to undergo a Royal Amplification dry dock in early 2021, but Royal Caribbean has postponed the remaining Royal Amplifcations until further notice.

The new schedule is for Liberty of the Seas to arrive to Galveston and take over for Jewel of the Seas, beginning with the February 21, 2021 sailing.

Liberty of the Seas will sail seven night cruises to the Western Caribbean and the Bahamas from Galveston in February/March 2021.

Guests bookings on Jewel of the Seas will be automatically transferred to an equivalent stateroom on Liberty of the Seas.

Royal Caribbean has no indicated yet if Liberty of the Seas will get a "technical drydock" similar to Allure of the Seas and Explorer of the Seas, where just the propulsion and navigation systems are repaired, leaving out the add-ons and enhancements such as new venues or activities.

With the Royal Amplifications on hold, the cruise line never announced that specific upgrades were coming to Liberty of the Seas as part of her drydock.

Royal Caribbean added Jewel of the Seas sailings from Galveston in December - March 2021 in order to accommodate the time needed for Liberty of the Seas to undergo her Royal Amplification.

The original plan was for Liberty of the Seas was scheduled to be out of service from January through early March, and return to service in Galveston in mid-March.

UPDATE: Royal Caribbean has released the updated itineraries for both ships.

Jewel of the Seas 2020-2021 sailings

Liberty of the Seas 2020-2021 sailings

Royal Caribbean has announced due to COVID-19's impact on the cruise line and shipyard operations, it has cancelled all scheduled Odyssey of the Seas sailings between November 5, 2020 - April 17, 2021.

The cruise line made the announcement on Tuesday that the next new cruise ship on order is officially delayed due to a variety of factors that Royal Caribbean faces in the current economic climate.

In the wake of COVID-19, our initial global suspension and its subsequent extensions, we understand the uneasiness all of this has caused both for you as a travel advisor and, of course, your clients whose vacations have been regrettably disrupted. The health crisis has unfortunately also impacted shipyard operations, as well as our supply chain. As a result, the debut of our newest fleet member, Odyssey of the Seas, will be delayed, resulting in the unfortunate cancellation of all sailings between November 5, 2020 - April 17, 2021.

In addition to the cancelled sailings, Royal Caribbean also announced two other changes to Odyssey of the Seas.

First, the trapeze school will no longer be a feature of the SeaPlex.

Second, the age restrictions for the Sky Pad virtual trampoline experience will change: guests must be at least 7 years old to jump, and at least 13 years old to jump with a virtual reality headset.

Compensation options

Just like all cancelled Royal Caribbean sailings during the pandemic, guests have a few options if they were booked on any of the affected cruises.

Lift & Shift: Select next year’s sailing with the same itinerary type, sailing length, stateroom category, and within the same 4-week window of the original cruise date, and you can take your existing reservation and move it to next year. Option expires on July 17, 2020.

125% Future Cruise Credit: Guests are eligible for a 125% Future Cruise Credit (FCC) that is based on the total cruise fare paid at the guest-level to be redeemed on-or-before December 31, 2021 on sailings through April 2022. This option is automatic and will default as if neither of the other options are selected.

FCCs for cancelled Odyssey sailings can be expected via email no later than August 7, 2020.

Refund: If you prefer a cash refund, you can do so by requesting this option on-or-before December 31, 2020.

You can expect their refund to the original form of payment within 45-60 days from the cancellation date. 

Switch ships: Royal Caribbean has added another option for Odyssey cancelled cruise. Move your Odyssey of the Seas reservation to another 7-night Caribbean sailing that departs within 1 week before or after your original sail date and you'll receive the following:

• Your original Odyssey cruise fare paid will be price protected at the original cruise fare rate or reduced to the current cruise fare rate (whichever is lower) of your new reservation. This excludes taxes, fees, gratuities, and other non-cruise fare items.
  • If you had already paid in full and your cruise fare rate decreases, you will get a refund if there is any difference in pricing. You can expect to receive your refund to your original form of payment within 45 days of the price change. Kindly note, refund times may vary depending on your financial institution.
  • Royal Caribbean will also waive any non-refundable deposit change fees associated with the move.
•  Please know, if you weren't previously booked on a holiday sailing (Christmas, New Year's, and Easter), sailings during that timeframe are excluded from your options.

MORE: What you should do now that Royal Caribbean cancelled your cruise?

Onboard credit: One additional option is available for guests that want to convert their pre-cruise purchases, such as shore excursions, specialty dining, beverage package, and other add-ons, into onboard credit.

Guests choosing the FCC option can elect to convert their purchases into an onboard credit (OBC) valued at 125% of the amount paid via the Cruise Planner tool.

This can be opted-into by July 17, 2020 for Odyssey of the Seas sailings.

Warnings of a delay

The news that Odyssey of the Seas' debut would be delayed should not come as a shock, given the warning signs that have been around for months now.

In early May 2020, Royal Caribbean told its investors it believes COVID-19 has impacted shipyard operations and will result in delivery delays of ships previously planned for delivery in 2020 and 2021.

A few weeks later, Royal Caribbean International President & CEO Michael Bayley spoke briefly on the topic of Odyssey of the Seas, indicating there were delays at the shipyard, and that Royal Caribbean's newbuild team was working with Meyer Werft to craft a strategy.  

"I think there may be some delays, but we're working through it as a team to try and figure that out."

This past weekend, Meyer Werft shipyard posted a video that spoke about delays related to both the virus impacting shipyard operations, as well as a construction fire onboard the caused a setback.

"And the fire at 713 Odyssey of the Seas is another stroke of fate in this overall very difficult situation. It results in high property damage and leads to further expensive delays."

The Meyer Werft shipyard has released a few photos that show off the progress being made on Odyssey of the Seas.

Within Hall 6 of the Meyer Werft shipyard, the shipyard's webcam was updated with a wide view of the ship in position.

In addition to the weekly webcam photo of Odyssey, the shipyard also added a couple of other photos to indicate Odyssey will soon be on the move.

In the next few days, Odyssey will move to a new position within the hall to the water side of the complex.

Meyer Werft set up palings today, and due to the exact positioning of the palings, the ship has a fixed stand after the move.

The updated photos of Odyssey come just days after a construction site fire caused some damage onboard the ship, that the shipyard's owners are concerned could cause delays in the construction plans.

While no change to scheduled sailings has occurred, Royal Caribbean did tell Wall Street in May that impacted shipyard operations will result in delivery delays of ships previously planned for delivery in 2020 and 2021.

UPDATE: Royal Caribbean has delayed Odyssey of the Seas' debut until at least April 2021.

Bernard and Tim Meyer posted a video providing a sobering look at the German shipyard's operations, and touched on an incident on a Royal Caribbean ship under construction and what it could mean for the project.

The Meyers shared a video that talked about some of the issues at the Meyer Werft shipyard, where Odyssey of the Seas is under construction.

Tim talked about Royal Caribbean's next new cruise ship in the video.

Recently, a fire was reported at the construction site, which was the second reported fire in the last few months. This incident, coupled with project complications on other ships under construction, lead Mr. Meyer to speak about the situation at hand in German.

"And the fire at 713 Odyssey of the Seas is another stroke of fate in this overall very difficult situation. It results in high property damage and leads to further expensive delays."

UPDATE: Royal Caribbean has announced it has pushed back Odyssey of the Seas debut, and cancelled all scheduled sailings through April 2021.

On June 24, the second fire reportedly involved insulation materials and took place on deck 2 of the ship. On May 28, there was another fire reported on deck 8 near a stateroom.

Meyer Werft is also juggling other issues, including P&O Cruise Lines refusing to take delivery of its new ship, Iona, which has financial consequences for the shipyard.

Last week, Royal Caribbean Vice President of Revenue Management Michael Goldner was asked about any delays in the status of Odyssey of the Seas, where Mr. Goldner indicated an update was likely forthcoming.

"We will know within the next week or two on whether there's any impact on the delivery. I don't have an answer for you today but in the next week or two we will have a more definitive answer."

The current schedule has Odyssey of the Seas arriving in Port Everglades in early November to begin sailings, with her first sailing on November 5.

Thanks to Rich Freudenberg for assisting in translating the video.

Happy Sunday! Hope you are having a relaxing weekend and enjoying summer! It is time to sit back, relax, and catch up on all the recent Royal Caribbean news!

Royal Caribbean announced this week it cancelled more cruises, extending its cruise suspension through September 15, 2020.

The cruise line's announcement comes a few days after Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) trade group announced its member cruise lines will cancel all cruises from U.S. ports until September 15, 2020.

Exceptions to this timeline include China sailings paused through July onboard Spectrum of the Seas and Quantum of the Seas, as well as the further suspension of the 2020 Bermuda season onboard Grandeur of the Seas and Adventure of the Seas through October 31, 2020.  Voyager of the Seas sailings through September 30th, 2020 have also been cancelled.

Royal Caribbean plans to resume sailings on September 16, 2020 for the majority of its fleet.

Royal Caribbean News

• Royal Caribbean subsidiary Pullmantur Cruises to be reorganized.
• Water bottles have been replaced by water cans.
• You should expect cruise prices to go up soon.
• New Odyssey of the Seas construction photo update.
• Up to 45% off pre-cruise purchases during Royal Caribbean's Summer Sale.
• If your cruise was cancelled, here is what you should do now.
• It looks like cruise bookings for 2021 are being booked by a lot of people.
• Royal Caribbean has added a way to combine Future Cruise Credits instead of them being reissued.
• The worst cruise mistakes our readers have made on a ship.
• The do's and don'ts of Symphony of the Seas.
• 15 really cool things to do that you can only find on Royal Caribbean cruise ships.
• Check out these expert-level cruise tips that all the cruise pros use.
• Five times Royal Caribbean changed its mind after announcing something

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 360th episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available, featuring how Ryan proposed to his girlfriend while on a Royal Caribbean cruise.

Ryan took his girlfriend on Oasis of the Seas, and shares what steps he took to plan the perfect proposal.

Please feel free to subscribe via iTunes or RSS, and head over to rate and review the podcast on iTunes if you can! 

Five costly lessons learned on a cruise

We all make mistakes, including some that cost a lot in the long run, so I wanted to share how to avoid making five really costly lessons-learned on a cruise.

Going on vacation means spending money to splurge and enjoy yourself, but it does not have to mean wasting money. There are plenty of first-time cruise mistakes to avoid, and a few of them could really cost you in the long run.

The proverb, "Experience is The Best Teacher" holds true even on cruises, because there are a few mistakes that could cost you a lot of money.

We all make mistakes, including when on a cruise ship.  While making a mistake is bound to happen, we can learn from each other by hearing the one big mistake our readers have had on a cruise.

A cruise vacation is filled with fun activities, great dining and exotic ports of call to explore.  With so many possibilities, a misstep along the way is not uncommon.  The key is to avoid the pitfalls.

I reached out to our blog readers to hear some of the worst mistakes they have ever made on a cruise. These pitfalls are the perfect lessons for the rest of us to know about and avoid on our own sailings.

Taking online reviews too seriously

This next cruise fail is a giant pet peeve of mine, which is to take one person's opinion of something as gospel.

WanderPam almost cancelled her cruise plans based on a negative review online!

"The worst thing I did was consider canceling our Explorer cruise because I took negative reviews too seriously. So glad I didn't because we had the most amazing 2 week cruise ever!"

There is nothing wrong with consulting others' opinions (this entire blog post is made up of opinions), but do not treat cruise ship reviews like you would a Yelp review.

Cruise ships offer such a varied and experiential vacation that it cannot be properly reviewed in its entirety based on a single experience. Cruises are by their very design a "create your own adventure" experience.  You could sit at the pool every day of the cruise and never do one activity, whereas the guy next to you could be zip lining, crocheting, belly flopping and dancing the night away.  In short, we all cruise differently.

My favorite way to explain why online reviews of cruise ships should not be used as a basis for anything other than entertainment is The Great Wall of China.

If you do an internet search for "The Great Wall of China", which is one of the greatest achievements of mankind, it only has a 4.2 star rating on Google!

No ship in the fleet is inherently flawed, and no ship is a mistake to sail on. Figure out what the ship offers (and doesn't offer), and make the right decision based on what you are looking for in a cruise vacation.

Not considering the holiday schedule

There are cruises offered throughout the year, including over major holidays.

Coneyraven booked a cruise on Brilliance of the Seas not realizing it was over the Easter holiday, which meant there were many more kids onboard than he was anticipating.

"Our biggest mistake was not looking at the holiday calendar before we booked a cruise. Had we known it was going to be Easter, we would not have booked that date.  We tend to gravitate more towards holiday's that are more "adult oriented", as opposed to "Family Oriented", like Halloween and New Years Eve."

You might be wondering why he did not cancel and rebook to a non-holiday cruise? He committed a double faux-pas by booking a non-refundable cruise fare, which is one of my pitfalls to avoid.

Beyond the issue of kids, not looking at the calendar means you could also end up paying more for hotels or aifare because holidays will drive up the cost of those incidentals as well.

Not researching anything

Our next cruise fail is one that I hear about all the time from first time cruisers and that is not learning about their ship, or where the places they are visiting.

Geoff P shared how on his first cruise, they did not research anything to maximize their vacation.

"We had a good time of course, but learned my lesson to do more research to really get the most out of our experience.  For our second cruise and now our third on upcoming have done much more research and planning ahead of time and its been so much better."

Learning about your cruise ship, as well as the ports you visit only benefits you in the long run. Not only can a little exploration into what your cruise ship offers save you time, it can reveal activities and opportunities you might not have otherwise know about.

All too often, I hear from cruisers who wish they knew about a certain activity, excursion or deal, and the key to not missing out on any of it is pre-cruise research.

Knowledge is power, so take advantage of your time before a cruise begins to learn as much as you can!

Going to a port without anything planned

Each port of call your ship will visit offers something a little bit different, and in many cases there are opportunities to explore the history, culture or natural beauty of these destinations.  

In the case of SteveinSC, not knowing about what the ports offered lead to a lackluster experience.

"My first couple of cruises, at our stops, I just got off the boat and walked around the port area. Big mistake. I wasn't taking advantage of all the stop had to offer!!! In my other cruises, I started booking excursions and taking taxis and really venturing out. Completely changed how I viewed, not only the itinerary, but the whole cruise."

One of the best things about the internet is the ability to learn about what nearly anywhere in the world has to offer, so look up the popular attractions and offerings to have a good idea of what the best choices are out there.

Next, look at booking a Royal Caribbean shore excursion to see what the cruise line is offering.

You have everything to gain by looking into what there is to do in any of the ports you will be visiting, and coming up with a plan for each port day.

Trying to do it all

I mentioned that cruise ships have so much to do onboard, and that leads us to our next cruise mistake, which is trying to do everything.

Melmar02 shared how she wanted to work everything in and that lead to more frustration than fun.

"I'm all for seeing and experiencing everything, but husband wants a laid back relaxing vacation...big fights may have broken out on our second cruise. I'm much more "go with the flow" now."

Achieving a balance of activities and relaxation is a great idea, and overdoing it in order to see it all often leads to burnout.

It is nearly impossible to do every single activity on a single sailing, so your best bet is to prioritize the must-do activities onboard and then come back for another sailing later to do more. 

Lots of people have had amazing cruise experiences by sleeping in, relaxing by the pool, and otherwise taking it easy. No one said a fabulous vacation can only be one where you are hiking, ATV-ing, and running around for 7 days.

Not pre-booking

If there is one mistake I always bring up it is not taking advantage of prebooking activities and add-ons to save you time and money later on.

JasonL shared how not pre-booking things cost him while on the cruise.

"Didn't use to pre-purchase as much as possible before the cruise. Also didn't pre-book activities. Of course I didn't have any money for extras back then, but  still it's a very common rookie mistake."

If you wait to purchase drink packages, shore excursions, restaurant reservations or spa appointments onboard your Royal Caribbean ship, you are wasting money.

Royal Caribbean offers pre-cruise discounts in the months leading up to its cruises and these discounts are significant enough to make it well worth your time to pre-book instead of waiting to buy it on the ship.

An intangible benefit to pre-purchasing anything is it saves you time onboard from doing the exact same thing, which means more vacation time back to you.

Taking the time to purchase anything onboard does not take very much time, but every little bit helps, and some purchases on the first day of the cruise can require waiting in a line, such as drink packages.

Not having a packing list

I still struggle with packing as efficiently as possible, but the fear of getting onboard a cruise ship only to realize you forgot something really important is an all too real concern.

ptod wrote about how her husband refused to use a packing list, and ended up getting onboard without something pretty darn important.

"My husband was a little irked that I wanted to review the basic clothes that we had packed for one cruise....so I just let it go.  Come to find out that he completely forgot to pack any underwear - none, nada, zilch.  All he had was what he wore to travel."

While I admit that I do not always use a packing list, it is generally a good idea to refer to one to ensure you bring the most important things to pack for your Royal Caribbean cruise.

Not putting phone into airplane mode

A very costly mistake is not protecting your phone against roaming charges that can run up a giant bill later.

Rose City Cruiser committed this mistake, and it was not pretty after the cruise was over.

"Forgetting to put my cell phone in airplane mode.  Was able to negotiate down the outstanding balance.  It was a huge lesson."

It is really easy to put your phone into airplane mode to protect against a costly bill later. 

Make sure once you get on the cruise ship, disable your phone's ability to connect to other networks, and then have the peace of mind that you will not have an expensive surprise waiting for you next month.

Missing the cruise because of a flight delay

Perhaps the most common mistake I see made is by people that fly in the same day their cruise departs. In my opinion, you are playing with fire by doing this instead of flying in at least a day ahead of time.

twangster wrote how it cost him once by doing that.

"I don’t make cruise mistakes. Okay, there was that one time I flew to the cruise on the morning of the cruise... and missed my cruise."

If you are flying to your cruise embarkation port, be sure to fly in at least one day early to avoid travel delays impacting your ability to make the cruise.

Having an extra day or two provides a buffer to account for travel delays.  You really do not want to be that person in the airport losing their mind because the latest delay means the entire vacation is in jeopardy.

As an added bonus, by arriving to your embarkation port at least a day early, that means you get to start your vacation sooner!  And in many cases, the port you are departing from has its own cultural and historical attractions that you can explore.

Having cash with you

While Royal Caribbean's ships are cashless, other people outside the ship definitely still use green backs.

Brobbins246 confessed to a time she forgot to grab some cash.

"My confession is completely forgetting to have some cash available for tipping the porters on embarkation day.  We had a rental car to return that morning, so my husband dropped me, our kids and our luggage at the cruise port, then drove off to return the car.  After a porter took care of our luggage, I realized all our cash was still with my husband and I had nothing to give him except a profuse apology, thank you, and a hand shake.  Awkward....."

It is a good idea to bring some cash with you for before and after the cruise, as well as in any of the ports you visit. Be sure to also have smaller bills for tipping.

What's your worst cruise mistake?

Time to fess up to the worst rookie mistake you made on a cruise, even if you aren't a first time cruiser. Is there one here that you also committed, or do you have your own story to share? Please share the single mistake/slip up/fail you made on a cruise, so that we can all learn from these mistakes!