The best cruise lines for 2022 have been announced

In:
09 Nov 2021

The best cruise line may be a very subjective question, but U.S. News & World Report has released their opinion of the best lines across various categories.

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The 2022 Best Cruises rankings were announced on Tuesday, which is an annual look at which cruise lines rank among the top picks.

There are six categories of categories for ranking 17 different cruise lines.

Royal Caribbean did not come out as the winner in any one category, but did rank near the top in a few.

Rankings

U.S. News & World Report scouted the cruise lines across six categories to give readers an idea of the strengths each line has.

Royal Caribbean came in the top 3 for two categories this year, Best Cruise Lines for the Money & Best Cruise Lines for Families.

Royal Caribbean came in fourth place for Best Cruise Lines in the Caribbean, and almost last for the Mediterranean rankings.

Best Luxury Cruise Lines

  1. Viking Ocean Cruises
  2. Seabourn Cruise Line
  3. Regent Seven Seas Cruises
  4. Azamara
  5. Crystal Cruises
  6. Silversea Cruises
  7. Oceania Cruises

Best Cruise Lines for the Money

  1. Celebrity Cruises
  2. Holland America Line
  3. Royal Caribbean International
  4. Norwegian Cruise Line
  5. Carnival Cruise Line
  6. Princess Cruises
  7. Costa Cruises
  8. MSC Cruises

Best Cruise Lines in the Caribbean

  1. Disney Cruise Line
  2. Celebrity Cruises
  3. Seabourn Cruise Line
  4. Royal Caribbean International
  5. Crystal Cruises
  6. Regent Seven Seas Cruises
  7. Holland America Line
  8. Carnival Cruise Line
  9. Norwegian Cruise Line
  10. Oceania Cruises
  11. Princess Cruises
  12. MSC Cruises

Best Cruise Lines for Couples

  1. Viking Ocean Cruises
  2. Seabourn Cruise Line
  3. Azamara
  4. Crystal Cruises
  5. Regent Seven Seas Cruises
  6. Celebrity Cruises
  7. Oceania Cruises
  8. Silversea Cruises
  9. Cunard Line
  10. Holland America Line

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Best Cruise Lines for Families

  1. Disney Cruise Line
  2. Royal Caribbean International
  3. Carnival Cruise Line
  4. Norwegian Cruise Line
  5. MSC Cruises
  6. Costa Cruises

Best Cruise Lines in the Mediterranean

  1. Viking Ocean Cruises
  2. Seabourn Cruise Line
  3. Azamara
  4. Regent Seven Seas Cruises
  5. Celebrity Cruises
  6. Oceania Cruises
  7. Crystal Cruises
  8. Costa Cruises
  9. MSC Cruises
  10. Silversea Cruises
  11. Holland America Line
  12. Norwegian Cruise Line
  13. Princess Cruises
  14. Royal Caribbean International
  15. Cunard Line

How they picked the winners

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If you're reading these rankings and want to know how winners were picked (or why one line did better than another), then here is the methodology used.

Here is how U.S. News & World Report explained the way they got to their rankings.

Expert Rating (30 percent weight): Our editors assign each ship an Expert Rating between 1 and 5 based on the ship's level of luxury, with 5 being the highest score. This score represents our editors' analysis of a ship's atmosphere, facilities, activities, cabins, cuisine and service.

Traveler Rating (50 percent weight): A ship's traveler rating is provided under license by Cruiseline.com. Reviewers assign a rating between 1 and 5 based on their level of satisfaction with their cruise experience.

Health Rating (20 percent weight): A ship's health rating is based on sanitation inspection scores published by the Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Individual ship inspection reports can be found here. The CDC defines "Satisfactory Scores" as those that are 86 or above (out of a possible 100 points). A ship's Health Rating is the average of the vessel's individual inspection reports from the 22 months prior to the calculation of the U.S. News Best Cruises rankings. For our rankings, CDC scores are translated to a five-point scale as follows: Vessels with average CDC ratings greater than 97.5 received a score of 5; vessels with average CDC ratings greater than 95 and up to 97.5 received a score of 4.5; vessels with average CDC scores greater than 92.5 and up to 95 received a score of 4; vessels with average CDC scores greater than 90 and up to 92.5 received a score of 3.5; vessels with average CDC scores greater than 87.5 and up to 90 received a score of 3; vessels with average ratings greater than 85.1 and up to 87.5 received a score of 2.5 and vessels with an average CDC rating of 85.1 or lower received a score of 1. If a ship has not received a health inspection score within the past 22 months, the average Health Rating of all CDC-rated ships within the cruise line is used as proxy in the calculation of the ship's Overall Rating.

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Filtering Lists by Criteria: Cutoff points and other criteria are used to identify cruise ships or cruise lines that qualify for a given ranking list.

Traveler Type: Each cruise ship and cruise line's placement on our traveler type cruise rankings takes into account the aggregate traveler rating among specific types of travelers. Cruise ships and lines with the highest Overall Ratings and the greatest approval rating among a certain traveler type (e.g., families), appear on such lists. To qualify for a cruise ship traveler type ranking list, a ship had to have a minimum of 10 total guest reviews, and a certain percentage of reviews had to come from the specified traveler type; the percentage required varies by list.

Region: We rank the best cruise ships in seven popular regions: Alaska, Europe, the Caribbean, the Mediterranean, Mexico, the Pacific and Hawaii. We also rank the Best Cruise Lines in the Caribbean and Best Cruise Lines in the Mediterranean. Regional scores are assigned based on percentage of itineraries a ship has in each of these regions over a 24-month basis. The ship-level regional scores are updated as new information is made available; however, the list of the Best Cruise Lines in the Caribbean and the Best Cruise Lines in the Mediterranean will only be updated once a year.

Price Class: A cruise ship's price class rating is based on its average daily price. Ships with average daily rates of $300 or more are rated 4; average daily rates of $150 to $299 are rated 3; average daily rates of $100 to $149 are rated 2; ships with average daily rates below $100 are rated 1. Cruise lines with average price class ratings of 3.5 and above are included in the Best Luxury Cruise Lines rankings. Cruise lines with average price class ratings of 2.5 or lower are included in the Best Cruise Lines for the Money rankings.

Calculating the Cruise Line Rankings

Best Luxury Cruise Lines: For our luxury cruise lines ranking, we include only cruise lines with a price class rating of 3.5 or above. Qualifying cruise lines are ranked highest to lowest based on their Overall Rating. 

Best Cruise Lines for the Money: For our affordable cruise lines ranking, we include only cruise lines with a price class rating less than 2.5. Qualifying cruise lines are ranked highest to lowest based on their average Overall Rating, which carries a 40 percent weight and their price class rating, which carries a 60 percent weight.

Best Cruise Lines for Couples: This ranking factors in (1) each line's Overall Rating as well as (2) the aggregate traveler rating by "couples" travelers and (3) the percentage of a cruise line's reviews on Cruiseline.com that are left by couples. For example, a cruise line that receives a high percentage of its reviews from couples is more likely to be couples-oriented. Cruise lines are ranked according to the weighted average of their rank within each of these three factors. For a cruise line to be eligible for inclusion in this ranking, at least 62 percent of its total traveler reviews had to come from couples.

Best Cruise Lines for Families: This ranking factors in (1) each line's Overall Rating as well as (2) the aggregate traveler rating by "families with kids" and (3) the percentage of a cruise line's reviews on Cruiseline.com that are left by family travelers. For example, a cruise line that receives a high percentage of its reviews from families is more likely to attract family travelers. Cruise lines are ranked according to the weighted average of their rank within each of these three factors. For a cruise line to qualify for this ranking, at least 25 percent of its total traveler reviews had to come from families.

Best Cruise Lines in the Caribbean: This ranking is based on (1) each line's Overall Rating as well as (2) the percentage of scheduled itineraries in the Caribbean over a 24-month period (3) the number and variety of Caribbean itineraries available over a 24-month period. Cruise lines are ranked highest to lowest according to the weighted average of their rank combined with the annualized rate of scheduled itineraries and the number of total Caribbean itinerary options over a two-year period. The Overall Rating carries a 50 percent weight. Line coverage components are both weighted at 25 percent. 

Best Cruise Lines in the Mediterranean: This ranking is based on (1) each line's Overall Rating as well as (2) the percentage of scheduled itineraries in the Mediterranean over a 24-month period and (3) the number and variety of Mediterranean itineraries available over a 24-month period. Cruise lines are ranked highest to lowest according to the weighted average of their rank combined with the annualized rate of scheduled itineraries and the number of total Mediterranean itinerary options over a two-year period. The Overall Rating carries a 50 percent weight. Line coverage components are both weighted at 25 percent.

Online reviews

This is also a good time to remind readers of how subjective online reviews of cruise ships can be, especially for a cruise line or ship, where everyone has different experiences. Everyone on a sailing does not interact with the exact same staff, do the same activities, or stay in the same kind of room.

The reality is 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.

Read moreWhy you can't trust online reviews of cruise ships

9 Guinness World Records held by Royal Caribbean

In:
06 Apr 2020

Perhaps few accolades garner as much attention as the Guinness World Records, and Royal Caribbean is no stranger to these prestigious feats.

Over the years, Royal Caribbean has won its fair share of these awards, and you might be wondering which distinctions are held by the cruise line.

Guinness World Records serve a role in providing media attention to Royal Caribbean for new innovations and offerings. 

1. Largest pasta tasting event

Photo by Guinness World Records

On Brilliance of the Seas, Royal Caribbean set the world record by having 468 people take part in a pasta tasting event.

It took place during a transatlantic crossing on November 15, 2019.

2. Longest duration performing a headstand on a flowboard

Photo by Guinness World Records

While onboard Quantum of the Seas, Zhang Liang from China, set the new world record for longest duration performing a headstand on a flowboard (FlowRider) by doing it for 15.874 seconds.

The ship was docked in Shanghai at the time, and took place on November 13, 2017.

The waves surpassed the minimum speed needed of 20 mph and reached 30 mph during the attempt as confirmed by the engineer.

3. Most nationalities in a hot tub

Brilliance of the Seas helped set this record as well, this time during a Backstreet Boys fan cruise on May 13, 2016.

Thirty people from thirty countries set the record when they all stuffed themselves in a hot tub, while the ship was in Italy.

Here is a list of the nationalities:

  1. Argentina
  2. Australia
  3. Belgium
  4. Chile
  5. Costa Rica
  6. Denmark
  7. France
  8. Germany
  9. Guatemala
  10. Holland/The Netherlands
  11. Hungary
  12. Israel
  13. Ireland
  14. Italy
  15. Japan
  16. Latvia
  17. Mexico
  18. New Zealand
  19. Norway
  20. Pakistan
  21. Peru
  22. Poland
  23. Romania
  24. Switzerland
  25. The Philippines
  26. USA
  27. Uraguay
  28. Uzbekistan
  29. Venezuela
  30. Cuba

4. Largest passenger liner (cruise ship)

Nearly any Royal Caribbean fan should already know that Wonder of the Seas is the largest cruise ship in the world.

Wonder measures  362.04 m long and 65.6 m (215.5 ft) wide, and has a gross tonnage of 236,857 across 18 decks. Wonder of the Seas can accommodate a maximum of 6,988 passengers, as well as a 2,200-strong crew.

Wonder of the Seas’ official maiden voyage departed on March 4, 2022.

5. Largest weight loss lesson

Photo by Guinness World Records

The largest weight loss lesson consisted of 1,874 people on a Royal Caribbean sailing between Vietnam and China in July 13, 2018.

The record does not list which ship, but based on the photo from the record setting event, it is certainly Voyager of the Seas.

6. Most standing front somersaults in a wind tunnel in one minute

Another record set on Quantum of the Seas was set by Zhang Shuang from China, with a total of 30 standing front somersault in Ripcord by iFly on November 13, 2017.

Wind speeds in iFly were above 40mph during the attempt.

7. Tightrope walking (unsupported) – greatest distance

The greatest distance for an unsupported tightrope walk is 130 metres (429 feet) and was achieved by Bello Nock from the USA, when Belo walked across a wire attached to poles onboard Majesty of the Seas on November 10, 2010.

Bello achieved this walk in approximately 15 minutes. He completed one length of the rope-a total of 429 feet. 

The ship was at sea at the time, 1/2 mile from the nearest land mass and 20 miles from any large land mass. He used a balancing pole and had a whole cruise ship full of holiday makers as spectators.

8. Most layers in a cocktail

Photo by Guinness World Records

Zheng Wen of China holds the record for the most layers in a cocktail with ten, when she performed the feat on Quantum of the Seas on November 13, 2017.

The attempt last over one hour and the beverage consisted of 3 fruit sugar syrup mixers and 7 types of alcohol.

9. Tallest observation deck on a cruise ship

Ovation of the Seas has the tallest observation deck on a cruise liner, with the North Star reaching a height of 88.6 m (290 ft 8 in).

The record was set while Ovation was in Hong Kong on October 29, 2016.

It should be noted the record was set by Ovation of the Seas, but there are other Quantum Class ships that also have North Star onboard.

Royal Caribbean Cruises named one of the 2020 World's Most Ethical Companies for fifth year in a row

In:
25 Feb 2020

The parent company of Royal Caribbean International has been recognized by the Ethisphere Institute as one of the 2020 World's Most Ethical Companies for the fifth year in a row.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has been recognized since 2015 and is the only honoree in the Leisure & Recreation industry. 

"At Royal Caribbean ethical values have helped make us into who we are," said Richard D. Fain, chairman and CEO, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.  "We value this honor and will work to demonstrate these core, ethical values day in and day out."

The World's Most Ethical Companies assessment is based upon the Ethisphere Institute's Ethics Quotient®(EQ) framework, which offers a quantitative way to assess a company's performance in an objective, consistent and standardized manner. The information collected provides a comprehensive sampling of definitive criteria of core competencies rather than all aspects of corporate governance, risk, sustainability, compliance and ethics.

Scores are generated in five key categories: ethics and compliance program (35 percent), culture of ethics (20 percent), corporate citizenship and responsibility (20 percent), governance (15 percent) and leadership and reputation (10 percent). All companies that participate in the assessment process receive their scores, providing them with valuable insights into how they stack up against leading organizations.

Royal Caribbean named Best Cruise Line Overall for 17th consecutive year

In:
13 Dec 2019

Royal Caribbean has come away with a number of awards at the Travel Weekly Readers' Choice Awards, including the honor of being named the “Best Cruise Line Overall” and “Best Cruise Line in the Caribbean” for the 17th year in a row and “Best Cruise Line Sales & Service” for the 12th consecutive year.

The 2019 awards were held at the Conrad New York in New York City, and the awards recognize the best in travel, as voted on by the travel advisor community. 

The 2019 awards gala in New York City, recognizing the best of the best in travel as voted on by the growing travel advisor community, also honored the cruise line with the following awards once again: “Best Overall Individual Cruise Ship” for Symphony of the Seas and “Best Entertainment.”

The complete list of awards won by Royal Caribbean include:

  • Best in Cruises Lines: Caribbean
  • Best in Cruises Lines: Entertainment
  • Best in Cruises Lines: Sales & Service
  • Best in Cruises Lines: Overall
  • Best in Cruise Ships: Overall Individual (Symphony of the Seas)

The awards are presented to suppliers considered by Travel Weekly readers as those that have led the way in product and service in the past year.         

 

Royal Caribbean cruise ship holds Guinness World Record for largest pasta tasting event

In:
05 Dec 2019

Royal Caribbean's Brilliance of the Seas made history when it became host to the largest pasta tasting event ever.

The Guinness World Records recognized the achievement when 468 guests sailing on Brilliance of the Seas attended the largest pasta tasting event.

The feat was reached during the ship's recent transatlantic repositioning cruise between Spain and the United States on November 15, 2019.

Royal Caribbean invited guests onboard to take part in the event, which was lead by Executive Chef Alastair Gillott.

Royal Caribbean named best cruise line for entertainment & suites by Cruise Critic

In:
04 Dec 2019

Royal Caribbean won three awards when Cruise Critic announced the winners of the 2019 Editors' Picks Awards.

The 12th annual Cruise Critic Editors’ Picks Awards recognizes the best cruise lines of the year across dozens of categories, as chosen by the site’s international team of editors.

Royal Caribbean was the winner in the following categories:

Best Ship Refurbishment: Oasis of the Seas

“Oasis of the Seas set the mega-ship bar high when it debuted in 2009, with a zipline, 20-plus restaurants and a plant-filled Central Park. The ship's latest refurbishment -- part of Royal's outstanding Amplified program -- has added the best of the line, including the Ultimate Abyss slide, the Perfect Storm water slide trio, a redesigned pool deck and several new bars and eateries.”

 Best Entertainment: Royal Caribbean International

“Royal Caribbean continues to entertain with original Broadway-style productions, parades and challenging escape rooms. High-tech enhancements elevate shows in the main theater and skating rink, as well as enable amusements like glow-in-the-dark laser tag and the trampoline-based Sky Pad. With surfing, rock climbing, water slides and flying (by zipline or skydive simulator) onboard many of Royal Caribbean's ships, it's impossible to get bored.”

Best Suites: Royal Caribbean International

“Royal Caribbean blends extravagance and inclusiveness in its perfectly conceived suites -- some ships offer up to a dozen top-level categories. Suite passengers get plenty of space, along with a bounty of perks, including special restaurants and "Royal Genie" personal concierges. Choose from suites with lavish penthouse trappings, duplexes with space for a full dinner party and family suites with slides.”

Royal Caribbean has won each of these awards at least once since last year, with taking home Best Entertainment for the second year in a row, Best Suites for the fifth year in a row, and Best Ship Refurbishment two years in a row (last year's winner was Mariner of the Seas).

Royal Caribbean named best cruise line for the money

In:
12 Nov 2019

U.S. News & World Report named Royal Caribbean International as the best cruise line for your money in its 2020 list of the best cruise lines.

With more than 20 cruise ships, Royal Caribbean is one of the largest lines sailing the ocean today. Having the ability to accommodate thousands of guests per ship allows the company to keep rates low. In fact, travelers may find itineraries in popular Caribbean, European and Alaskan destinations for less than $200 per person.

The top five for the Best Cruise Line for the Money were:

  1. Royal Caribbean International
  2. Celebrity Cruises
  3. Norwegian Cruise Line
  4. Princess Cruises
  5. Carnival Cruise Line

Royal Caribbean has won this award in 2017, 2015 and 2013. It was edged out last year by Celebrity Cruises.

U.S. News & World Reports compiles its rankings based on "an analysis of expert and user opinions." U.S. News ranked the cruise lines based on a methodology that factors in itinerary affordability, health ratings and reputation among experts and travelers.

Royal Caribbean wins two awards at Travel Weekly Asia 2019 Readers’ Choice Awards

In:
16 Oct 2019

Royal Caribbean won the award for Best Cruise Line – Asia Pacific and Best New Ship (Spectrum of the Seas) at the Travel Weekly Asia 2019 Readers’ Choice Awards.

Angie Stephen at the award ceremony

At a ceremony held in Singapore this week, the cruise line has been a winner of Travel Weekly Asia awards since their inception in 2015.

The awards are presented to travel companies and individuals for their outstanding achievements, and recognize top travel organizations for their commitment, contributions and accomplishments.  The winners were determined by the travel trade and public through voting of 10 categories.  The categories represent the different segments of the travel industry which includes cruise, airline, resort, hotel, service residence, destination, technology, tourism experience, car rental and travel agency.

Angie Stephen, Managing Director, Asia Pacific of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. who accepted the awards said, “Our double Travel Weekly Asia awards are such a great way to start our upcoming new seasons in the region, and we thank all Travel Weekly Asia readers and our travel agents for their long-time recognition and support for Royal Caribbean.  We aim to continue delivering our award-winning cruise experience and service with our best ships Quantum of the Seas and Voyager of the Seas to all our customers and agents in Asia, as we look forward to the new decade with more growth opportunities.”

Royal Caribbean named Top Cruise Line in Cruise Critic Destination Awards

In:
17 Jul 2019

Cruise Critic named Royal Caribbean as the Top Cruise Line in the South Pacific and the Top Cruise Line in the Western Mediterranean in the fourth annual Cruisers’ Choice Destination Awards.

Royal Caribbean won both awards in the Large Ship Cruise Line Category.

Royal Caribbean also made the final list for six additional regions, as noted below:

  • Alaska (#2)
  • Australia & New Zealand (#3)
  • Eastern Mediterranean (#2)
  • Southern Caribbean (#3)
  • U.S. & Canada (#2)
  • Western Caribbean & Riviera Maya (#3)

The awards rank the world’s most popular cruise destinations, based entirely on consumer ratings submitted with reviews on Cruise Critic. The awards name the top cruise destinations across 18 regions worldwide. The awards also highlight the best cruise lines to visit each region.

Royal Caribbean wins four awards in Cruise Critic Cruisers’ Choice Awards

In:
06 Mar 2019

The 2019  Cruise Critic Cruisers’ Choice Awards were announced today, and Royal Caribbean came away with four wins.

The ninth annual awards celebrate the most popular cruise ships of the year, based on consumer reviews and ratings shared on Cruise Critic over the past year.  

Royal Caribbean won awards for:

  • Best Cabins (Large Ship Category): Harmony of the Seas
  • Best Entertainment (Large Ship Category): Symphony of the Seas
  • Best for Fitness & Recreation (Large Ship Category): Allure of the Seas
  • Best Service (Mid-Sized Category): Grandeur of the Seas

For the full list of winners, visit the 2019 Cruise Critic Cruisers’ Choice Awards.

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