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Mariner of the Seas


mworkman

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I had posted/started a thread just before this under the news and rumors section...here is what I posted. Interested to hear and see more about this!!

 

$100mill is the most Royal has ever spent! Wonder what all in will entail?

 

Also, interesting to see such a big ship for the 3/4 day short Bahamas cruises. I wonder which of the others will be leaving Miami??

 

I would like to get to Coco Cay once before then for old times sake with the tenders......

 

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Just because I can't resist (not attacking @mworkman), the Mariner news and CocoCay news is old. 

We've known about the drydock since April 2017: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2017/04/28/5-interesting-facts-royal-caribbeans-first-quarter-earnings-call and the pier being ready in June since April: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2017/04/27/royal-caribbean-officially-breaks-ground-cococay-pier

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4 hours ago, monctonguy said:

I am still curious and surprised they are putting such a large ship in that market for the short cruises. Not complaining but wondering if the demand is there for 50% more available cabins(assuming they are even moving out one of the smaller ships?)

One possibility comes to mind.

There are a lot of new cruisers who take short cruises as a test to see if they like it or because of price.  Exposing these new guests to a larger ship with more features is possibly more likely to ensure they get hooked on cruising and they will become more likely to try longer cruises on more of the fleet.

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yeah I get the idea behind that, but I just don't know if the demand is there for another 7000 ppl per week doing these 3/4 day cruises? I am all for it and more options and ships for the short cruises is not a bad idea....I guess I am just surprised to think there is that much demand?!

 

I know the smaller ships usually sail pretty full but.....

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5 hours ago, monctonguy said:

I am still curious and surprised they are putting such a large ship in that market for the short cruises. Not complaining but wondering if the demand is there for 50% more available cabins(assuming they are even moving out one of the smaller ships?)

It's not uncommon in the industry.  Disney Cruise Line's newest ship does 3 and 4 nighters out of Port Canaveral, and she's somewhere between Voyager and Freedom class in size.

Frankly, I think it's overdue.

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Yeah..I get that..but right now for example they have Enchantment out of Miami and before that they had Majesty and Port Canaveral had Monarch/Enchantment etc...those are all ships that hold around 2500 or so..now they are going to more than double their capacity overnight starting in 2018?

 

I could see if they were replacing Enchantment with Marnier..so they were going from 2500-3500ish passengers, but even that is a big jump.

 

I am just surprised that IF that demand is there, they hadn't done something before this..if they could sell 7000 cruises a week extra they wouldn't have done it already. Might be some growing pains when they first add that much capacity out of Miami which may lead to some deals and lower prices I can hope for?!.....

 

 

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I have a theory (which admittedly is pure conjecture) that the long-term plan is for Royal Caribbean to phase out all of the smaller ships, including Vision and Radiance Class and focus only on big ships, and then let Celebrity do the smaller ships to offer longer voyages and calls on smaller ports, especially if they require a tender. I'm going to go with this theory until I see RCI order a new build of a smaller ship -- it's been almost 20 years since they ordered anything smaller than Freedom Class.

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That's a bit of a conundrum for all lines these days.  Sell off the smaller fleet only to create or supply a low cost competitor with ships that undercut you.  You also have to consider the RCCL perspective compared to the RCI perspective.  

That raises an interesting idea, like Jazz versus Air Canada (but maybe done better), introduce a new brand that does the low cost simple itineraries while the prime brand does the more lucrative market.   A new low cost brand that targets the entry level or low cost demographic while trying not to cannibalize their own (bigger fleet).  In doing so RCI would become more of a premium product. Hmmm.

On the flip side big ships work in certain markets but Oasis class and even Freedom class to a lesser degree have limitations where they can sail.  

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12 hours ago, donolog said:

I have a theory (which admittedly is pure conjecture) that the long-term plan is for Royal Caribbean to phase out all of the smaller ships, including Vision and Radiance Class and focus only on big ships, and then let Celebrity do the smaller ships to offer longer voyages and calls on smaller ports, especially if they require a tender. I'm going to go with this theory until I see RCI order a new build of a smaller ship -- it's been almost 20 years since they ordered anything smaller than Freedom Class.

Sounds about right.

Also, "big" and "small" ships are relative terms. 20-25 years ago, Sovereign class ships were considered mega ships.

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On 11/1/2017 at 4:30 AM, monctonguy said:

I am still curious and surprised they are putting such a large ship in that market for the short cruises. Not complaining but wondering if the demand is there for 50% more available cabins(assuming they are even moving out one of the smaller ships?)

This has been a strategy that's been working for Disney Cruise Lines since they've launched. It also gives people the option to do consecutive sailings if they want more nights and will draw people away from NCL and Carnival who tend to use their older ships for these routes.

Wasn't the Indy do short itineraries for awhile?

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Miami gets all the luck - in the meantime, we are stuck with the Majesty of the Seas up at Port Canaveral.  We would LOVE to have the Mariner at our port!!

My wife and I are taking my son and his girlfriend on a Mariner cruise to celebrate his 21st birthday - we are booked for February 2019, so we will get to see the ship post overhaul.  We booked a Grand Suite and got them a Jr. Suite.  I'll be honest, the pictures of the ship look really good even before they update it.  

Meanwhile, the Majesty gets a two day overhaul Feb 2018 and we are giving it a try the month after that with some friends.  Hope they do wonders in those two days.......

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On 11/3/2017 at 3:55 PM, NeonD7 said:

Miami gets all the luck - in the meantime, we are stuck with the Majesty of the Seas up at Port Canaveral.  We would LOVE to have the Mariner at our port!!

My wife and I are taking my son and his girlfriend on a Mariner cruise to celebrate his 21st birthday - we are booked for February 2019, so we will get to see the ship post overhaul.  We booked a Grand Suite and got them a Jr. Suite.  I'll be honest, the pictures of the ship look really good even before they update it.  

Meanwhile, the Majesty gets a two day overhaul Feb 2018 and we are giving it a try the month after that with some friends.  Hope they do wonders in those two days.......

Your wish is coming true!!!

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On 11/8/2017 at 3:16 AM, RestingBirds said:

Your wish is coming true!!!

AMEN!!!  Royal Caribbean has heard our pleas and answered them..... THANK YOU ROYAL CARIBBEAN!!!  Although November 2019 is a ways away before the Mariner comes to Port Canaveral, we already have a bunch of other cruises booked, so it would have been hard to squeeze an additional booking in between the already booked ones.  But after it arrives, I can see my wife and I going out on it every three months or so.  It has been a wonderful thing to live a short ten minute drive over the bridge to the Port, and I drive by the ships every day on the way to work.  

In addition, the Harmony will be a nice addition to Port Canaveral.  I've been on the Oasis once, another trip planned in April.  From what I've read, the differences between the ships are minor, but that will give us an excuse to give Harmony a try to see for ourselves.  

Anyone know what will happen with the Majesty?  Sold for scrap?  Artificial reef?  Target practice for the navy?  

 

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Another speculation I have is that I've heard it mentioned quite a few times that they're bringing in Mariner to attract Millennial cruisers. As someone who falls in to that group (I'm 27 and my husband is 28), I love the idea of being able to take a quick, affordable cruise with minimal vacation time off - and also why I enjoy the 3/4 day sailings.

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21 hours ago, KLAconQueso said:

Another speculation I have is that I've heard it mentioned quite a few times that they're bringing in Mariner to attract Millennial cruisers. As someone who falls in to that group (I'm 27 and my husband is 28), I love the idea of being able to take a quick, affordable cruise with minimal vacation time off - and also why I enjoy the 3/4 day sailings.

I think you're exactly right.  Royal knows their demographics stats, and I bet they're tracking millenials who opt for the Majesty over the Oasis.  Much easier to get the time off work for 3/4 days over a weekend than the whole week (or week and a couple days if flying) a 7-day cruise costs. 

They also know they have to up their game against Carnival, Norwegian and Disney.  All three are sailing much bigger and much newer ships on the 3/4 day loop out of Canaveral.  One of these things is not like the other:

Carnival Liberty - Launched 2005 - 2,974 Passengers - 110k Tons - 503 Balconies

Disney Dream - Launched 2010 - 2,500 Passengers - 130k Tons - 887 Balconies

Norwegian Epic - Launched 2009 - 4,100 Passengers - 155k Tons - 1951 Balconies

Majesty of the Seas - Launched 1992 - 2,744 Passengers - 74k Tons - 0 Balconies (Balconies only available on Junior Suites & up)

Majesty may have the "biggest heart in the fleet," but her cabins are tiny, only offers a handful of balconies in JS & up, and she's much much older than her peers at Canaveral.  It's not a fair fight.  I've had several travel agents tell me that as lukewarm as they are about Carnival, the Majesty just doesn't stack up against the Liberty.  Mariner will change that.

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