Veteran developer Bob Ell has a plan to build a new $200 million cruise ship terminal for the Gold Coast of Australia  and Royal Caribbean supports the idea.

The new terminal would include three cruise ship terminal berths, three hotels, a casino, a water park, an underwater observatory, a new North Kirra surf club and a super-yacht marina.

Royal Caribbean managing director for Australia, Gavin Smith, indicated that Royal Caribbean may back the new venture.

"We would investigate the potential for capital involvement in any project," Smith said.

Royal Caribbean was excited by the business community's interest in a new cruise terminal in the area, ""We will certainly work with them and assist with providing any information they require."

"The challenge for the Gold Coast is the marine navigation of the area and building a facility that could be reliably accessed by visiting cruise ships."

Royal Caribbean sent new Public Relations Manager Allison Brennan and Royal Caribbean commercial manager Adam Armstrong to the Sydney Winter Festival to promote Royal Caribbean's own ice rink at sea aboard Voyager of the Seas.

The ice rink at Bondi Beach is a fun opportunity for Australians to ice skate, and Royal Caribbean is hoping to show that passengers aboard Voyager of the Seas can ice skate onboard for free in the Studio B ice rink.

Studio B is a 700-seat venue and offers 45-minutes ice skating sessions at scheduled times on selected sea days, along with evening events including disco skating and rock n’ roll skating.

Complimentary ‘Learn to Skate’ sessions will be offered for beginners while advanced skaters can take advantage of advice from the professional skate team who will be offering lessons for those more adept on the ice.

Twelve professional figure skaters from around the world will take to the ice in “Ice Odyssey”; the 45-minute show that features solo and pair performances. 

Royal Caribbean Australia and New Zealand has named Allison Brennan the new Public Relations Manager.

Brennan joins Royal Caribbean after working with Surf Line Saving Australia, where she was the media and communications manager.  Previously, she had worked in various media and public relation roles for over ten years.

Many members of the travel industry will remember Allison as the media and public relations manager for the Canadian Tourism Commission, where she worked for over four years promoting Canada to Australians. Throughout her career Allison has also worked as a senior publicist with Random House Australia and at some of Australia’s best known public relations agencies.

Royal Caribbean will continue to work with its two local PR agencies - The D'Arcy Partnership in Australia and Dockstreet Group in New Zealand.

“We’re very pleased to welcome Allison to our local team. Allison has great experience in the travel industry and is a perfect fit for our rapidly expanding business,” said Adam Armstrong, commercial manager, Royal Caribbean Australia and New Zealand. 

Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas, the largest cruise ship in Australia when she debuts in November 2012, will be arriving with some special DreamWorks guests.  Royal Caribbean has announced details regarding the DreamWorks Experience at Sea on Voyager of the Seas.

Voyager of the Seas will feature characters from “Madagascar”, “Shrek”, “Kung Fu Panda” and “Puss in Boots”.

“Since being introduced on Allure of the Seas in 2010 – and then rolled out to another four ships in the Royal Caribbean fleet – the DreamWorks Experience has been incredibly popular with guests,” Royal Caribbean Australia and New Zealand Commercial Manager Adam Armstrong said.

In the main dining room, there will be special breakfasts in addition to photo opportunities daily with Po from “King Fu Panda”, Shrek, Fiona and Puss in Boots from “Shrek”, King Julien, Alex, Gloria and the Penguins from “Madagascar”.

Passengers aboard Voyager of the Seas will also be able to meet-and-greet with the characters during surprise appearances throughout the ship, including Voyager’s youth club, Adventure Ocean, where they will be involved in activities including storytelling and dance parties.

Two street parades will be scheduled down the Royal Promenade per cruise while DreamWorks films including “Puss in Boots” and “Madagascar 3” will be shown in the 1,350-seat 3D Cinema.

For an in-cabin fix, there will be a dedicated DreamWorks TV channel which will play programs and movies 24-7. 

Radiance sailing into Fremantle Harbour (Perth Western Australia) by Murray Back

Since launching Royal Caribbean Australia and New Zealand's Facebook page in April, they've received 10,000 likes and the company rewarded one lucky fan with a dream cruise.

Sheree Oakes of Glenmore Park has won a cruise aboard Voyager of the Seas' inaugural cruise when she arrives in Sydney this November.  Sheree was announced the winner of the ‘Share, Like and Win’ competition which asked fans to list their top three cruising destinations - she listed Europe, Alaska and Bahamas as top of her list.

“I’m so excited about this cruise, and I usually never win anything! I recently went on a cruise on Radiance of the Seas and now I tell all of my friends to cruise with Royal Caribbean. When you go on a cruise everything is there, it’s all done for you, so there’s no rushing and you get some real time to rest and relax.”   

Royal Caribbean is offering its broadest range ever of itineraries in Australia and New Zealand come summer 2013-2014.  For the second consecutive cruise season, Voyager Of The Seas, Radiance Of The Seas And Rhapsody Of The Seas will offer cruises to the region.

Voyager of the Seas will offer 53 distinctive itineraries along with the recently revitalized Radiance of the Seas and Rhapsody of the Seas.  In total, Royal Caribbean will offer 55 cruises at 56 Australian, New Zealand and South Pacific ports, with departures from September 2013 to April 2014.

Royal Caribbean commercial manager for Australia, Adam Armstrong, commented on the news, "It’s with great pleasure that we can confirm that sister ships, Voyager of the Seas, Radiance of the Seas and Rhapsody of the Seas, will be back to wow Australian cruisers in summer 2013-14. For the next two summer cruise seasons, Royal Caribbean International will be the largest cruise line operating out of Sydney, and these newly revitalised “premierships” will offer the very latest in cruising – experiences guests previously had to travel to other parts of the world to have."

“We’ve added more cruises on Australia’s first megaliner Voyager of the Seas and some new itineraries across the entire fleet to ensure that there are even more options to suit different lifestyles and needs. It’s our widest ever range of cruises Down Under."

Voyager of the Seas will reposition from Singapore to Sydney on a 14-night cruise in late October 2013 that begins with an overnight in Singapore and calls at Port Keland for Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Darwin and Brisbane, Australia. The ship then homeports at Sydney for nine sailings to New Zealand, Fiji and New Caledonia. These cruises range from nine to 14 nights.

A nine-night Tasmania cruise in early February 2014 features an overnight at Hobart on a one-time-only itinerary. At the end of the season, Voyager of the Seas will sail an 18-night Australia and New Zealand itinerary to Perth before returning to the Far East on a 14-night sailing in late March to Singapore via Bangkok.

Radiance of the Seas and Rhapsody of the Seas also homeport at Sydney from October 2013 to early May 2014, and will operate a wide variety of itineraries ranging from seven to 15 nights.

The cruises visit Australia’s Tasmania and Queensland, New Zealand, Fiji and New Caledonia. Radiance of the Seas will circumnavigate Australia twice with a 16-night north coast and a 17-night south coast and New Zealand itinerary.

Pacific crossings between Vancouver, BC and Sydney bookend both ships’ Australia season. These are a 12-night Hawaii and a 16- or 17-night South Pacific sailing, departing Sept. 13, 2013 and April 10, 2014 aboard Radiance of the Seas, and Sept. 6, 2013 and April 18, 2014 aboard Rhapsody of the Seas. 

The Sydney Morning Herald sent a writer to check out Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas cruise from Australia to New Zealand and they seemed to be impressed.

Radiance of the Seas departed Sydney for New Zealand's South Island and Milford Sound.  The water was described as "sapphire-blue" and the area as "an untouched wilderness with towering mountains plunging into a freshwater sound, icy water pouring off the hillsides in dramatic waterfalls and jagged, snowcapped peaks tearing through clouds in search of sunlight."

The cruise was of particular interest since this was Radiance's first trip back to Australia after its revitalization this past June that afforded it many new upgrades.  They described the changes as "the hallmarks of a modern liner, with interesting artworks and a trendy interior design. It also has excellent facilities for children, decent shopping opportunities, entertainment options and plenty to keep adults as busy as they choose."

What about the new restaurants?  The writer claims the new specialty restaurants, such as Izumi, Chops Grille and Rita's Cantina, are all worth the extra money.

In addition the upgraded staterooms offer more.  While they found the rooms a little "compact", they found the stateroom to be nicely appointed with plush furninishings.

You can read the full report of their voyage aboard Radiance of the Seas here.

Royal Caribbean's Managing Director of Australia, Gavin Smith, is calling once again on authorities at the Cairns, Australia to dredge the shipping channel  and the swing basin.

Smith said that while Rhapsody of the Seas was able to safely traverse the Trinity Inlet, it was "at the limit and edge of its physical capabilities".  He said that Royal Caribbean would prefer the dredging take place to allow for easier and safer crossings as well as allow larger ships, such as Radiance of the Seas, to dock at the cruise terminal.

Currently, Radiance of the Seas is required to anchor off Port Douglas when she arrives in February 2012.

Earlier in the year, Smith had asked for the channel to be dredged to allow the ship to dock even in poor weather conditions. Royal Caribbean prefers to dock rather than moor and force its passengers to be transported via tenders ashore.