Royal Caribbean Blog

The ambitious Royal Amplification project added a slew of new activities, entertainment, dining, and more to older Royal Caribbean ships over the last few years.

After being paused for over five years, the initiative was relaunched, beginning with Allure of the Seas' much-needed upgrades in early 2025. 

The program will continue in 2026, with plans to refresh Ovation of the Seas, Liberty of the Seas, and Harmony of the Seas. 

Still, before the Royal Amplification project came to a screeching halt in 2020, six ships had already undergone multi-million dollar transformations. 

Here's a look at what was added to each ship.

Read more: Royal Caribbean Amplification schedule: Which ships have been upgraded

What is Royal Amplified?

While the range of upgrades varies by ship, the goal of the Royal Amplification program is to add innovative attractions, dining venues, bars, and more to older vessels. Moreover, the upgrades typically include new cabins. 

The Royal Amplification program focuses on three main areas:

Pool Deck & Attractions: A re-imagined, Caribbean resort-style pool deck, plus the boldest attractions and first-of-a-kind thrills on deck. Examples of these experiences are: The Perfect Storm water slides, glow-in-the-dark laser tag, and escape rooms. 

Bars & Nightlife: Distinct new bars and nightlife spots that deliver unique drinks, ways to be entertained, and good food. Examples of these experiences: The Bamboo Room and Playmakers Sports Bar & Arcade.

Dining: Royal Caribbean wants to step up its food game with the flavors guests love most, including Mexican, Italian, and good seafood. They will also add more fast-casual options. Examples of these delicious culinary options are: El Loco Fresh, Hooked, and Jamie’s Italian.

Amplified Ships

Allure of the Seas

Allure of the Seas was the most recent ship to be amplified. Her initial dry dock was scheduled for 2020; however, it was postponed due to the pandemic. 

Nonetheless, Allure of the Seas is caught up to the other Oasis Class ships, with features like the Ultimate Abyss dry slide, Playmakers Sports Bar & Arcade, and more. 

She also has some new venues that have recently debuted on other ships, including the Pesky Parrot tiki bar. Currently, Utopia of the Seas is the only other ship in Royal Caribbean's fleet with this Polynesian-inspired bar onboard.

What's new on Allure of the Seas:

• Perfect Storm water slides
• Renewed adults-only Solarium
• Caribbean resort-style pool deck
• Splashaway Bay
• The Ultimate Abyss
• Royal Escape Room – Apollo 18: Lunar Landing
• Glow-in-the-dark laser tag
• The Lime and Coconut
• El Loco Fresh
• Pesky Parrot tiki bar
• Playmakers Sports Bar & Arcade
• The Mason Jar Southern Restaurant & Bar
• Adventure Ocean refresh
• Social298 for teens
• Over 100 new cabins, including the Ultimate Panoramic Suites
• Aqua80Too

Freedom of the Seas

Freedom of the Seas was the last Royal Caribbean ship to be amplified before the program was indefinitely postponed. Her $116 million upgrades were completed in early 2020.

New features ranged from the cruise line’s first-ever Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen to water slides and enhanced spaces for children and teens. 

What's new on Freedom of the Seas

• Resort-style Caribbean pool deck
• The Lime & Coconut
• Splashaway Bay
• Renewed adults-only Solarium
• Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen
• El Loco Fresh
• Izumi Hibachi & Sushi
• Playmakers Sports Bar & Arcade
• "Clash for the Crystal City" laser tag
• 360-degree transformation of Adventure Ocean
• Social033 for teens

Oasis of the Seas

Oasis of the Seas underwent her Royal Amplification in late 2019. During the dry dock, she received several changes, including the cruise line’s first barbecue restaurant, Portside BBQ, as well as the popular Music Hall live music venue. 

What's new on Oasis of the Seas

• Caribbean-style pool deck
• Lime & Coconut
• Ultimate Abyss dry slide
• The Perfect Storm water slides
• Splashaway Bay
• Portside BBQ specialty restaurant
• El Loco Fresh
• Playmakers Sports Bar & Arcade
• Sugar Beach candy shop
• Spotlight Karaoke venue
• Music Hall venue
• Bionic Bar
• Revamped Adventure Ocean
• Social298 for teens
• Mission Control: Apollo 18 escape room
• Aqua80
• One Sky

Voyager of the Seas

In October 2019, Royal Caribbean completed the Royal Amplification for Voyager of the Seas, which cost $97 million and took 41 days to complete.

What's new on Voyager of the Seas

• Perfect Storm three-story water slides
• "Battle for Planet Z" laser tag
• Reinvigorated Vitality Spa and Fitness Center
• Redesigned kid and teen spaces
• 72 new inside and balcony staterooms

Navigator of the Seas

Navigator of the Seas had arguably one of the best updates to any Royal Caribbean ship as part of the Royal Amplification program. The $115 million bow-to-stern refurbishment was completed in February 2019.

What's new on Navigator of the Seas

• The Blaster (Royal Caribbean's first aqua coaster)
• Riptide water slide
• To Dry For blow-dry bar at sea
• Reimagined poolscape
• The Lime & Coconut pool bar
• Hooked Seafood specialty restaurant
• The Bamboo Room
• Playmakers Sports Bar & Arcade
• Jamie’s Italian specialty restaurant
• Johnny Rockets Express
• Upgraded Windjammer furnishings
• El Loco Fresh
• Solarium upgrades
• Laser tag in Studio B
• Royal Escape Room: The Observatorium
• Starbucks

Mariner of the Seas

Royal Caribbean invested $120 million into the refurbishment of Mariner of the Seas, and the results were astounding.

What's new on Mariner of the Seas

• Sky Pad bungee trampoline experience (which has since been closed)
• The Perfect Storm water slides
• Laser Tag: Battle for Planet Z
• Escape Room: The Observatorium
• The Bamboo Room
• Playmakers Sports Bar & Arcade
• Jamie’s Italian specialty restaurant
• Izumi Hibachi and Sushi specialty restaurant

Independence of the Seas

The first Royal Caribbean ship to be amplified was Independence of the Seas, which boasted many new and exciting activities.

What's new on Independence of the Seas

• The Perfect Storm water slides
• Laser Tag: Battle for Planet Z
• New escape room
• New lounges
• New Panoramic Oceanview staterooms
• Playmakers Sports Bar & Arcade
• Izumi Hibachi & Sushi
• Fish & Ships
• Sugar Beach candy shop

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) updated its website with a note that indicates the agency has no current regulations that apply to crew member repatriation will necessarily apply to passengers on ships, nor is it certain when sailings can safely resume.

The CDC website lists criteria for cruise ships that are repatriating crew members, and includes a number of requirements to safely get them home via commercial travel.  The CDC specifically mentions these rules do not apply to passengers onboard.

"Meeting these criteria does not mean cruise ships can resume passenger operations. We don’t have enough information at this time to say when it will be safe to resume sailing with passengers. Cruise lines may need to establish additional safety measures before sailing with passengers is permitted to resume. CDC will continue to evaluate and update its recommendations as the situation evolves."

In the meantime, the CDC indicated that all cruise ships must abide by the current No Sail Order and Interim Guidance During the Period of the No Sail Order.

Waiting on the new rules

Royal Caribbean has not released or announced what new regulations and safety policies will be in place once cruising resumes.  While the cruise line says it intends to resume operations on August 1, this has been a moving target that is expected by many to be subject to change.

Norwegian Cruise Line issued its own list of new safety protocols for guests once cruising resumes, but Royal Caribbean is still working on their procedures.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Chairman and CEO Richard Fain has stated they plan to announce soon health safety protocols written by a "blue ribbon panel of experts".

"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."

CDC rules for ships right now

While cruise ships are not sailing with passengers, the CDC has come up with a color-coded system for signifying each cruise ship's infection status.

• Green: no confirmed cases of COVID-19 or COVID-like illness for 28 days.
• Yellow: one or more COVID-like illness cases pending confirmation.
• Red: one or more cases of confirmed COVID-19 or COVID-like illness within the past 28 days

When a cruise ship requests to repatriate crew with the use of commercial travel, the ship will need to ensure not only does it meet the green status, but cruise company officials must sign an acknowledgment of the completeness and accuracy of their response plan.

Currently nine Royal Caribbean International ships have the status of "Provisionally Green" while the cruise line's No Sail Order Response Plan status is under review/revision. Five additional Royal Caribbean International ships have the status "Provisionally Red".

Information accurate as of June 15, 2020. Source: CDC

Provisionally Green means the ship meets the surveillance criteria for “Green” status, but the following have not been completed:

• Review and revision of the cruise line’s No Sail Order response plan, or
• Cruise line’s signed acknowledgement of a complete and accurate plan, or
• Ship’s submission of a signed attestation to CDC for crew to travel commercially.

Provisionally Red means the ship meets the surveillance criteria for “Red” status, but the following have not been completed:

• Review and revision of the cruise line’s No Sail Order response plan, or
• Cruise line’s signed acknowledgement of a complete and accurate plan

Tourism opening up elsewhere

While the cruise lines are forced to adhere to CDC regulation and overview, other areas of tourism in the United States, and around the world, is in the process of reopening.

Notably, major theme parks in the United States and China are open, or in the process of opening up.

Universal Orlando re-opened select resort hotels and parks to guests last week. SeaWorld Orlando & Busch Gardens Tampa re-opened on June 11. Walt Disney World and Disneyland will re-open in July, along with its theme parks in China resuming operations. 

Airlines have had absolutely no direct oversight into their operations, and bars, restaurants, fitness centers and movie theaters having permission to reopen in some US states.

Las Vegas also recently reopened, having their hotels and casino resuming operations.

More information

• When will Royal Caribbean sail again?
• Five lessons I've learned from all these cancelled cruises
• Royal Caribbean: "We're not sure when we're coming back"

Royal Caribbean's specialty restaurants have become a highlight on any ship for the added variety of cuisines and cooking styles, but which one stands out as a fan favorite?

Across the fleet of ships, there are a variety of specialty restaurants to choose from, and Royal Caribbean has been introducing new restaurants regularly with the debut of new vessels or the refurbishment of existing ones.

So which specialty restaurant do Royal Caribbean cruise fans love the most? Which dining establishment garners the most love, admiration, and mouthwatering savoriness? 

To get an answer of where everyone's allegiances lie, I posted a poll on Facebook to ask cruise fans to pick their top favorite Royal Caribbean specialty restaurant.

In just about 24 hours, 875 people cast a vote among 13 choices. The top five results from our unscientific polling were:

1. Chops Grille (45%)

Chops Grille is the specialty restaurant available on most Royal Caribbean ships, and the voting indicates there is a good reason why.

Royal Caribbean's signature steakhouse took the top spot with a commanding lead over the competition. Chops has been a staple of Royal Caribbean's dining choices for years, and it is a restaurant guests come back to time and time again because they really enjoy everything about the experience.

Whether you prefer filet mignon, rib eye, or a New York strip, it seems cruise fans gravitated towards Chops for this time-honored and beloved restaurant.

Must-order item: Filet mignon

2. Izumi (12.5%)

Whether you come for the sushi or hibachi, Izumi has quickly become a must-eat spot on any Royal Caribbean ship.  

These days, specialty restaurant concepts come and go, but Izumi is one restaurant that is continuously added to new and refurbished ships alike. 

At its heart, Izumi offers a wide variety of excellent sushi options that provides a great sampling of Japanese cuisine.  On top of that, you have the fan favorite Teppan style dining that has taken the cruise line by storm.

In the comments, many cruisers had a tough choice between Izumi and Chops, because they each offered a compelling dining experience.  

For what it is worth, I voted for Izumi.

Must-order item: Izumi Ryu Futomaki roll

3. Jamie's Italian (11%)

Italian food is always a crowd-pleasing choice, so the question was would the crowd vote for Jamie's Italian or Giovanni's Table.  Perhaps the voting will change once Royal Caribbean updates Giovanni's with their new concept, but for now Jamie's Italian is the favorite.

Serving up new takes on rustic dishes, Jamie's is as well-known for the satisfying dishes as it is for the celebrity chef behind the brand.

The specialty restaurant's menu is based on tasty, simple Italian food, made from fresh ingredients with a casual dining experience, designed to be welcoming to everyone. 

Must-order item: Plank appetizer

4. 150 Central Park (7.4%)

Only available on Oasis Class ships, 150 Central Park was originally the creation of James Beard Award-winning chef Michael Schwartz.  While the collaboration between Schwartz and Royal Caribbean has come to an end, the restaurant lives on with an updated menu that builds on the original concept.

150 Central Park has a commitment to sustainable and seasonal food sourcing that offers the freshest, most distinct ingredients.

Royal Caribbean designed 150 Central Park to offer guests an intimate dining experience that is unlike anything else offered onboard. That means not only dressing up for the occasion, but a wait staff trained to make your meal as personal as possible.

Must-order item: Cucumber martini

5. Giovanni's Table (7.2%)

At one time, it looked like Giovanni's Table was destined to be replaced by Jamie's Italian, but Royal Caribbean has kept a few locations around, and even plans on completely revamping the cruise line's traditional Italian restaurant in the future.

Barely losing out to 150 Central Park, Giovanni's Table offers a selection of Italian fare ranging from pastas, to seafood, to amazing desserts.

Must-order item: Filet steak at dinner

And the rest...

If you are curious how the rest of Royal Caribbean's specialty restaurants stacked up in the voting, here's the results:

• Wonderland - 4.8%
• Sabor - 3.2%
• Johnny Rockets - 2%
• Hooked Seafood - 1.9%
• Chef's Table - 1.4%
• Playmakers - 0.08%
• Samba Grill - 0.68%
• Portside BBQ - 0.45%

What is your favorite Royal Caribbean restaurant?

Which specialty restaurant would you vote for as the best Royal Caribbean specialty restaurant? Is there one that you thought should have done better in the voting? Share your thoughts and comments below!

Royal Caribbean's next new cruise ship has a new construction photo update to check out this week.

The Meyer Werft webcam was updated with a new construction photo of Odyssey.  With the ship's hull construction getting more complete, seeing changes from a webcam positioned away from the ship makes seeing changes a bit more challenging.

Photo from May 18

Photo from June 15

In addition, the shipyard shared photos of the SkyPad arriving to the shipyard this week.

The bungee trampoline virtual reality experience is 16 m wide and 9.7 m high, and has a weight of 24.7 tons. SkyPad will be mounted on deck 14 and will be the fourth Royal Caribbean ship to offer the experience.

When complete, Odyssey of the Seas will be Royal Caribbean's second Quantum Class cruise ship and sail from Port Everglades, Florida, and then transition to Rome in May 2021 and become the first Quantum Ultra Class ship to cruise Europe for the summer. 

Odyssey will feature a number of firsts onboard, including the first Quantum Class ship with Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar, a Playmakers Bar location in the SeaPlex, a revamped Adventure Ocean and two-level pool deck.

Royal Caribbean has not announced everything about the ship quite yet, as we are still waiting to hear about the entertainment onboard. 

While no sailings have been cancelled or specific plans altered yet, Royal Caribbean has warned Wall Street analysts Odyssey's scheduled debut later this year could be delayed due to the health crisis impacting the shipyard operations.

For anyone new to a cruise vacation, there are plenty of options to consider, and not all of them are super obvious.  When it comes to travel agents, a lot of readers are surprised to hear that how important they can be for just about anyone.

The travel agent industry has changed a lot over the years, and while other sectors of travel have seen a fundamental shift in booking things on your own, the cruise industry leans heavily on travel agents because cruise vacations are not "a dime a dozen".

A good travel agent provides so much value and service, and they are an invaluable component to many seasoned cruisers.

You might be surprised to learn a few very important things about using a travel agent, and how they can greatly benefit your vacation.

They cost you nothing extra

Before I talk about any other benefit a travel agent provides, you should know any good travel agent charges you absolutely nothing extra for their services.

Travel agents are paid a commission by the cruise line, which comes out of the cruise line's bottom line, and not charged to you.

When you book a cruise, make changes, re-price and cancel a cruise, these are all activities that the agency provides for no charge.

If you run across an agency that does change fees, I would recommend challenging them on it or simply taking your business elsewhere.

Travel agents can get access to lower cruise prices

In addition to the prices of a cruise you see online, travel agents have access to a variety of other ways to save their clients money.

Many people mistakenly believe travel agents are just middle men and women, who take your information and book the same cruise for the same price you can see online.

It is not unusual for travel agents to discover special group rates that have lower pricing, lower pricing based on residency or occupation, or even special rates offered to a consortia of travel agencies .

Individual agencies may have groups set up for specific sailings, and there is no reason they cannot add you to that group and take advantage of lower prices.

In short, there are a lot of ways a travel agent can get you a lower price than you can find online.  While they cannot always get you a lower price, they have access to far more opportunities to save you money than booking on your own.

Travel agents can reprice when there is a price drop

One of my favorite things a good travel agent can do is take advantage of a price drop and save you money.

For residents of certain countries (United States, Canada, select Caribbean countries, et al), if you are before final payment date, you can re-price your cruise if the price goes down. This entails contacting Royal Caribbean to re-price the booking, and a travel agent can do it all for you.

Not only can they save you time by doing this, some agents will periodically check on their client's bookings if there is a new sale and see if they can get their clients a better rate.

Travel agents can book casino rates

If you gamble enough in Royal Caribbean's Casino Royale, you can might be eligible for significant cruise fare discounts through the Casino Royale program.  Travel agents can book most of these rates for you.

By booking with a travel agent, you can take advantage of the great service they provide, as well as the lower rates.  It is win-win.

Create a group for your friends and family

If a cruise vacation for your family, friends, high school reunion or any other group sounds like a great idea, your first step should be to work with a travel agent.

A travel agent can set up a group with Royal Caribbean that can possibly save money, or get you special perks back.  Moreover, the travel agent can handle the logistical issues of payments, price adjustments and answering common questions.

You love your family, and enjoy spending time with your friends, but reminding Aunt Kathy to make final payment or figuring out if your bestie's 7 year old son needs a passport is not something you need or should be worried about.  A travel agent can handle all of that for you, for no extra cost.

Provide help when there are issues

If I did not think it would be extremely gaudy, I would highlight and add red siren gifs to this point, because I think it is the most important thing a travel agent does that many cruisers are completely unaware of when deciding on using an agent or not.

In these days of policy changes, future cruise credits, and fear of what may come tomorrow, a travel agent is invaluable because they are the ones that will spend hours and hours with the cruise line to sort out these issues.

Even if there is not a global health crisis, things happen on a cruise. Errors in a reservation, mechanical issues in a stateroom, hurricanes and a great deal of other unforeseen situations can occur.  If they do, having a travel agent means you have someone in your corner fighting for you, and taking care of the details.

They are the person that goes back and forth with Royal Caribbean on your behalf, offers options to you, and more.

With the global cruise suspensions, travel agents can help make sense of the refunds you get back, make requests for refunds or future cruise credits, and more. It is not uncommon for the hold times with the cruise line to take a very long time, but a travel agent can be the one dealing with that.

During hurricane season, a travel agent can assist if you vacation is impacted by changing flight plans or excursions.

Set up payment plans

One of the most requested options from anyone booking a cruise is a way to pay off the cruise over time, and travel agents can take payments along the way leading up to your final payment date.

Not only does this save you from not having to call in to make a payment, but they can do it automatically for you.

Royal Caribbean was busy last week at the US Trademark and Patent Office with three new video game characters being registered for a trademark.

The cruise line registered three different image trademarks, each indicating in the trademark registration that they are for use in "recorded interactive video game programs", as well as "RFID tags embodied in wristbands for use on cruise ships for personal identification, onboard navigation, room access, interactive video game access, and conducting financial transactions."

A child wearing a winged hat along with a pair of goggles and wearing a two-piece outfit with a back pack emblazoned with a crown and anchor symbol that is resting on the child's left hip, with the child's mouth closed in a smile.

An anthropomorphic creature wearing a fitted scuba suit accented with a series of lines and a chest plate emblazoned with a crown and anchor symbol with two flippers connected to the bottom of the legs of the scuba suit, and wearing a helmet that includes two parallel fins on top.

An oval bodied creature with two tiny arms, two small legs, two small ears and a cat-like tail, with its mouth open in a smile.

Each of the  trademarks were filed on June 13, 2020.

As is the case with all trademark registrations, there is very little information provided as to how or if Royal Caribbean will use them going forward.

Royal Caribbean recently rolled out a series of new video games on refurbished Oasis of the Seas in November 2019. These games were added primarily in and around Adventure Ocean for children to use at their leisure.

Games would allow kids to play by logging in with their RFID SeaPass card, and then logging their progress and high scores.

The technology upgrades and enhancements are part of the cruise line's collective effort known internally as "Project Excalibur", which aims to leverage new tech and innovations to enhance and simplify the onboard experience.

Project Excalibur has been the driving force behind the cruise line's new app, simplified check-in process, facial recognition and more. The next-gen tech is part of Royal Caribbean's Digital Experience team, which has been in place for almost 4 years.

Adventure Ocean on Oasis of the Seas was the first major overhaul that "rebooted" Royal Caribbean's children's programming. Its goal was to use the technology that the cruise line has partnered with other companies, as well as created in-house.

Happy Sunday! We hope you are having a great weekend and ready to talk a little Royal Caribbean.

The big cruise news this week was Royal Caribbean's announcement that it has postponed indefinitely its upcoming Royal Amplification projects.

Four ships had upgrades scheduled this year and next year, but those are now on hold until further notice.

While technical dry docks may still occur (where the propulsion and necessary maintenance upgrades take place), new features, activities and amenities will not be added as scheduled for Allure of the Seas, Explorer of the Seas, Liberty of the Seas and Adventure of the Seas.

Despite the news, Royal Caribbean says they still plan to complete the delayed cruise ship makeovers at a later date.

Royal Caribbean News

• Allure of the Seas will not sail from Galveston in winter 2021-2022.
• Three ships will sail from Australia in 2021-2022.
• Could this be the eMuster functionality we think is coming to cruise ships?
• Royal Caribbean pushes back China sailings return & cancels Denmark cruises.
• You can now use a Future Cruise Credit to pay for a Royal Caribbean cruise deposit.
• Royal Caribbean provided an update on how many crew members it has repatriated.
• The top ten Royal Caribbean questions people are searching for on Google.
• Five lessons I've learned from all of these cancelled cruises.
• Latest Odyssey of the Seas construction photo update.
• Navigator of the Seas tips & best things to do.
• How do you get free drink packages on Royal Caribbean?
• US Passport service is starting to resume again.

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 358th episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available, featuring the story of Donna's attempt to add some family fun to their cruise.

In this episode, Donna tells us about her family Olympics idea that she incorporated into a Radiance of the Seas cruise as an ongoing activity the family was able to enjoy throughout the cruise.

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

What I wish I'd known before I went on a Royal Caribbean cruise

There are so many times in life that we wish we could go back in time and change what we did based on what we know now, including avoiding mistakes on a cruise ship.

Looking back on the cruises I have taken, I compiled the top things I wish I knew before I ever got onboard any Royal Caribbean ship.

Learn from what I have learned over the past few years, and check out these tips for avoiding common cruise mistakes.

In the months since Royal Caribbean suspended operations, the cruise line has made protecting and repatriating its crew its top priority.

Recently, Royal Caribbean executives have specifically called out the hard work its teams around the world are doing to help get crew members home, despite daunting legal hurdles.

Crew comes first

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Chairman Richard Fain started off his quarterly results calll with Wall Street analysts by making a point to say crew repatriation is its first priority, even ahead of the company's financial future.

"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."

The task of getting crew home is more than simply buying a plane ticket 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.

"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."

Royal Caribbean International President & CEO Michael Bayley spoke at length about the work being done by the cruise line to get crew home safely, despite inaccurate media reports to the contrary.

Mr. Bayley characterized getting crew members home as, "genuinely a massive challenge," and went on to reassure the public it is doing everything it can, "We love our crew. We are doing everything in our power to take care for them, and to make sure that they get home to their families."

"We're doing everything we can to take care of our crew and get them home. The crew are pleased with what we're doing, they're thankful, they're understanding."

Getting crew home by the numbers

Saying you will do something, and actually doing it, are two different things, and Royal Caribbean has been actively getting more and more crew home each week.

Mr. Bayley shared an update on Facebook that as of Friday, 22,558 crew members have been repatriated, and Royal Caribbean has plans for another 4,041 crew to make it home next week.

"We’re working very hard for each member of our crew and we’re getting there! By the end of the month, we’re looking to have 95% of our repatriation efforts complete. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and every day it’s looking brighter."

Since Royal Caribbean started cancelling cruises in March, there has been a lot of changes across the cruise industry. Things we never thought we would see, have happened repeatedly.

With so much changing during this global cruise suspension, we have all had to adapt to new policies and procedures.  If fact, I have found some new strategies that have worked well, along with reminders of the importance of some other tried-and-true advice.

Here are the my top five lessons that the current cruise shutdown have taught me since this all began.

Always book refundable cruise fare

While Cruise with Confidence has added an incredible amount of flexibility for cancelling cruises, it seems there are a lot of people who simply want their money back, and quite often non-refundable deposits stand in the way of this, especially for cruises before final payment date.

In short, if you are going to book a cruise, be sure to book refundable fare.

The announcement this week that Allure of the Seas will not sail from Galveston is a great example of why having refundable cruise fare is such an advantage.  People found themselves stuck between being forced on Liberty of the Seas instead, or taking a future cruise credit.  For some people, this was a big problem because they wanted to cancel to change to a different sailing all together, or get their money back.  While Royal Caribbean reversed course and offered more flexible options, you cannot always count on a scenario like that.

While I usually booked refundable cruise fare even before the shutdown, I think now it is even more important to err on the side of caution and book refundable deposits whenever possible.

It is should be noted that there are situations where non-refundable cruise fare is unavoidable, such as with suites. In that case, there is not a choice, but if you have the option, I strongly recommend refundable deposits.

Travel insurance does not help much if the cruise never happens

An investment in travel insurance is never a bad idea, but it is important to always read the policy and know when the coverage applies. 

While it may seem like trip interruption coverage would apply for scenarios when cruises are cancelled, nearly every insurance company does not cover pandemics, so the policy did not apply.

I think many of us were hoping early on that travel insurance might cover non-refundable purchases associated with the trip, but that was not the case. Luckily, most travel providers ended up giving more flexible cancellation terms (such as the airlines), but the notion that travel insurance is a blanket policy to cover anything that gets in the way of your cruise is not exactly true.

A good travel agent is invaluable

I have been a proponent of using a good travel agent for years, and the rounds of cruise cancellations exacerbated the need for a good agent like never before.

All too often, I would see posts on social media from people upset about a variety of issues related to cancelled cruises. Refunds, future cruise credits, errors in reimbursement and trying to change dates were just some of the common areas where those without an agent were stuck on hold for hours to get a response.

Those of us that worked with travel agents generally had an easier time, because the agents were tirelessly working on our behalf.  Travel agents have been among the most hard hit during the cruise shutdown, as they only get paid commission by the cruise line after a client goes on their trip. Nonetheless, so many agents have worked very hard to stay and assist their clients.

While the old argument against using a travel agent of, "I prefer to manage it myself" may have been fine in the past, those managing it themselves were also dealing with relentless hold times and changing policies.

Cancel cruise planner purchases early

One strategy that seems to work well for getting money back quicker, is to cancel pre-cruise purchases before the sailing gets officially cancelled in Royal Caribbean's system.

Usually there are a few hours or more between when Royal Caribbean announces cruises being cancelled and when their system starts to process these cancellations.  

It seems if you can get into the Cruise Planner site and start canceling your drink packages, excursions, spa appointments and more before they automatically get cancelled, refunds were processing sooner.  

This is more anecdotal than scientific, but something to keep in mind going forward.

Sales are real now

Another silver lining to our current state of affairs is we have seen significant discounts in Royal Caribbean's latest sales.

The last few rounds of pre-cruise purchase sales and cruise fare sales seem to have netted cruises the most lucrative savings I can recall seeing in quite sometime.

It is no secret that Royal Caribbean (and all cruise lines) are hurting for cash, so any revenue coming in is quite welcome.  Moreover, there are quite a few people that have cancelled cruises this year and next year.  So with all of that in mind, it looks like the cruise line has been more aggressive in their discounts.

Keep an eye out for discounts going forward, especially for 2020 sailings. There seems to be changing prices constantly, and impressive savings too.

One more thing: refunds

It is hard not to talk about the elephant in the room, and that is how long it has taken for refunds and future cruise credits to be processed.  

Royal Caribbean has admitted to these delays, and it is perhaps the top complaint from readers since the first round of cancellations occurred. While Royal Caribbean has given timelines of 30 or 45 days (business or calendar), the reality has been quite different for a lot of people.

As I stated earlier, the value of a travel agent has made this process so much easier on me and so many others.  In reading people's experiences, it seems there is a clear divide between people with a good travel agent, and those that did not book with one.  Worse yet were those that booked through third-party big box stores or other big resellers that left their customers out in the rain, so to speak.

But even with a good agent, refunds are not processed any quicker. However, they are getting processed.  Yes, sometimes incorrectly, but the money is flowing out there.

The lesson learned about cruise refunds is it will take arguably longer than it should to be received, but it is happening. Royal Caribbean has brought back more call center representatives and rolled out a suite of self-service forms for travel agents and consumers alike to use.

Patience has gone from a virtue to a repeating mantra, but the money does show up.

Your thoughts

What has been something you have learned through all of this? Is there something you would have done differently? Share your experiences in our comments!

If you are in need of a U.S. passport, there appears to be a plan to resume offering them again to the public.

The U.S. State Department announced on Thursday it was entering Phase One of its three-phase approach to the resuming of operations.

During Phase 1, limited staff are returning to work at these agencies and centers, allowing the agency to resume limited processing of applications they have already received.

Applications will be processed on a first in, first out basis.

Since March 20, passport applications have been nearly impossible, only available in "qualified life-or-death emergencies".

Phase two will see additional staff return to agencies, and appointments for life-or-death emergencies only. Applications will be processed on first in, first out basis.

Phase three is a return to normalcy, with all staff returning to agencies.  There will be limited appointments for customers traveling within 2 weeks, and applications will be processed on first in, first out basis.

The State Department said customers may always apply by mail or at an acceptance facility near their homes (if it is a life-or-death emergency requiring international travel within 72 hours).

In addition, if you submitted your documents along with your passport application, they are still awaiting further processing.