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Port Everglades port traffic up 25%

In:
26 Jan 2011

Port Everglades, Florida is the home to Royal Caribbean's flagships, Oasis and Allure of the Seas and the last quarter of 2010 saw cruise traffic up 25% to 1.17 million cruise passengers.

This is great news for not just Royal Caribbean but the cruise industry as a whole because it shows the industry has rebounded nicely from the recession, thanks in part to new ships like Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas or Oasis of the Seas.  Locals in Fort Lauderdale area are happy as well as that means more cruise passengers spending money in the local area before and after their cruises.

In addition, port revenue for the first fiscal quarter was at $37.5 million, a level that exceeds the previous first fiscal quarter peak of $30.6 million in 2008.

Taylor Swift to perform on Allure of the Seas on Friday

In:
18 Jan 2011

Country music star Taylor Swift is ready for her first concert at sea.  Swift will perform on Royal Caribbean's brand new Allure of the Seas on Friday, January 21, 2011 while the ship is in Cozumel, Mexico.

Taylor, who has won a Grammy award four times, will perform in Allure's AquaTheater that can hold 735 people.  Guests onboard Allure of the Seas can also win passes to the performance by participating in Taylor Swift-themed events aboard, including a look-alike contest, trivia contest, Taylor Swift karaoke and other activities.

Guests on the ship also can win passes to the performance by taking part in Taylor Swift-themed events aboard, including a look-alike contest, trivia contest, Taylor Swift karaoke and other activities, the cruise line said.

Frommer's names Allure of the Seas best ship of 2011

In:
14 Jan 2011

Frommer's travel guide has named Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas as one of the Best Cruise Ships of 2011.  Judges cited Allure and her sister Oasis of the Seas as, "undoubtedly the best entertainment ship at sea, with truly exceptional programming for both adults and kids."

Judges were impressed by many aspects of the Oasis class ships, especially the innovations Royal Caribbean introduced on these vessels, "The biggest innovation is the vessels' split superstructures, with the top eight decks bisected lengthwise by a long canyon that contains an open-air garden and a boardwalk-like entertainment zone. Besides letting light and air into the center of the ship, this makes the whole vessel feel more 3D -- like you're walking the streets of a high-rise city, not shuffling blindly from one horizontal deck to another."

The list of ships only surveyed ships in the Western Hemisphere, so ships in Europe and Asia were not included.

In addition to taking the top honors, a few other Royal Caribbean ships made the "notables" list.  Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas, Brilliance of the Seas, Serenade of the Seas, and Jewel of the Seas were all mentioned for scoring highly. 

Judges enjoyed the Radiance class of Royal Caribbean ships because. "These four sisters combine sleek, seagoing exteriors with nautically themed interiors and acres of windows."

Royal Caribbean extends wine program across the fleet

In:
10 Jan 2011

Royal Caribbean is extending it's successful Wine Experience Program that was on Allure of the Seas to its entire fleet later this year.  

The hour long Lafite Wine Experience debuted last month on the brand new Allure of the Seas and will now be available on all of its ships by March 2011.  

"Royal Caribbean International continues to expand our extensive range of food and beverage offerings through enrichment programs such as the Lafite Wine Experience,” said Frank Weber, vice president of food and beverage operations at RCI. “This robust wine experience provides even the most novice wine drinkers the opportunity to refine their palate and discover the fine nuances of one of the world’s most renowned vintners.”

Photovoltaics installed on Allure of the Seas

In:
06 Jan 2011

United Solar, a leading global manufacturer of light-weight, flexible thin-film solar modules and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Energy Conversion Devices, announced today that their UNI-SOLAR® brand photovoltaics have been installed on Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas cruise ship.

Royal Caribbean International launched the Allure of the Seas on December 5 out of Port Everglades in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, with UNI-SOLAR laminates installed by BAM Solar of Miami providing electricity for the ship's shopping district.

"UNI-SOLAR laminates were the only solution that works for such a unique solar application like this," said Andrew Rasken, President of BAM Solar. "We needed lightweight. We needed a solar product that doesn't require surface penetrations, one durable enough that people can walk on, and that will stand up to the rigors of the harsh elements of being at sea. UNI-SOLAR's product versatility, flexibility and numerous unique characteristics of the laminates were the perfect solution for this exclusive and fun application—one which BAM Solar is honored to have been selected to design, manage and install."

This project is BAM Solar's second installation of UNI-SOLAR laminates on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship.

"The first Oasis-class ship, Oasis of the Seas, has had such positive feedback for using solar that we knew we had to do it again with our Oasis' sister ship, Allure of the Seas," said Rasmus Norling, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., Manager of R&D Environmental Technologies and Environmental Stewardship. "Royal Caribbean is devoted to environmental protection and is the industry leader in our commitment to energy sustainability. Solar is one part of that mission."

"United Solar has exciting new product developments in both commercial and residential solar," said Mark Morelli, President and CEO of United Solar's parent company, Energy Conversion Devices. "The use of our laminates on cruise ships is just one more application that has proven to be a great fit for our flexible, light-weight, durable product—powered by UNI-SOLAR. We are very pleased to have partnered with BAM Solar on this very unique installation."

Royal Caribbean Selects Point-of-Sale Solution by Agilysys

In:
27 Dec 2010

Agilysys, Inc has announced that Royal Caribbean will use its InfoGenesis Point of Sales (POS) system on seven of its cruise ships.

Allure of the Seas, Explorer of the Seas, Voyager of the Seas, Azamara Journey, Celebrity Infinity, Celebrity Millennium and Celebrity Summit will all utilize the system.

Allure of the Seas makes first stop in St Thomas

In:
17 Dec 2010

Allure of the Seas, Royal Caribbean's newest ship and the largest cruise ship in the world, made its first stop ever at St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands earlier this week.

To commemorate the occasion, Allure of the Seas Captain Herman Zini told those in attendance "Thank you once again for the continuous focus you have on making the destination better and better.".  A plaque commemorated the event as well.

Royal Caribbean vice president of government relations was excited about the stop in St. Thomas, "The passengers want to take the greatest ship in the world to the greatest destination in the world".

The people of St. Thomas and every port Allure stops at have very good reason to be excited.  Both Allure and her sister ship, Oasis of the Seas, are expected to bring $1.5 million in revenues to the territory during each port call - $78 million a year.  In addition, the Florida Caribbean Cruise Associatian reports the average cruise passenger spends $193 while in the U.S. Virgin islands and crew members spend about $150.  Adding to the potential riches, the ship itself brings revenue through taxes and fees that Royal Caribbean is responsible for in accordance with docking and berthing the ship.

By 2012, Royal Caribbean estimates about 875,000 passengers will visit St. Thomas on an annual basis.

Nassau/Royal Caribbean Fun Run in Paradise cancelled

In:
15 Dec 2010

Due to weather, the Nassau/Royal Caribbean Fun Run in Paradise that was being put on by Royal Caribbean and ESPN, has been cancelled.  The run was scheduled to take place yesterday morning but Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas could not dock in Nassau due to high seas and windy conditions.

Prior to the race being cancelled, over 100 Royal Caribbean passengers were scheduled to participate, including several competitive running celebrities.  

The Fun Run in Paradise was scheduled to be part of the inaugural Royal 5K St Maarten Lifestyle, Running and Fitness Show which will air January 27 and 28 on the ESPN Caribbean Networks.

There is still a possibility that Allure of the Seas will be able to dock at Nassau later in the cruise itinerary.

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