Royal Caribbean will offer overnight stays in Tokyo, Japan during the summer 2020.

In summer 2020, Spectrum of the Seas and Voyager of the Seas will each sail two special cruises into Tokyo’s brand-new cruise terminal, Shinkyaku Pier. Spectrum will depart on July 25 and August 2 from Shanghai, China to Tokyo, and Voyager will offer itineraries beginning July 26 out of Hong Kong and August 2 from Tokyo, each staying overnight. Adding to the excitement, Quantum of the Seas will begin sailing from Singapore in 2019, and with both Spectrum and Quantum sailing from Singapore this year, this marks the start of Royal Caribbean’s Double Quantum Year in the region.

“Our ships are designed and created to deliver unforgettable vacation experiences to our guests, and we are proud to be a part of this once-in-a-lifetime experience in Tokyo next summer,” said Bert Hernandez, President, Royal Caribbean China. 

Royal Caribbean has signed an agreement with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government for a series of ex-Tokyo sailings on Voyager of the Seas in 2014.

The memorandum was signed by Royal Caribbean Regional Vice President for Asia Zinan Liu and Mitsuchika Tarao, Tokyo Metropolitan Government Director Deneral, Bureau of Port and Harbo while they were aboard Voyager of the Seas on Saturday during a Tokyo stopover on a 12-night cruise from Tianjin.

Voyager of the Seas' 2014 Tokyo season will start with a 10-night sailing from Singapore on April 10 with calls at Hong Kong (overnight), Kaohsiung, Taipei (Keelung) and Nagasaki, before arriving in Tokyo on April 20. From Tokyo, the ship will then feature a six-night round-trip South Korea and Nagoya cruise to Jeju Island, Busan and Nagoya on April 20, a nine-night round-trip cruise to Taipei (Keelung), Kaohsiung and Hong Kong on April 26 and a four-night Tokyo to Taipei cruise visiting Kobe and Naha, Okinawa on May 5.

Voyager of the Seas will also offer a seven-night round-trip itinerary from Taipei (Keelung) visiting Nagasaki, Beppu and Osaka departing May 9.

Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas made her first ever stop in Tokyo over the weekend, which begins a season of stops to Japan's capital. 

Voyager of the Seas arrived from Shanghai, China and will be based in a Japanese port for the first time.  She will offer Tokyo sailings ranging from 5 to 6 nights visiting Busan, Jeju and Nagasaki until early May, including one cruise chartered by Club Tourism, a major tour operator in Japan.

As part of Voyager of the Seas' first stop in Tokyo, a traditional plaque exchange between Voyager of the Seas' Captain, Charles Teige and Mitsuchika Tarao, Director General, Bureau of Port & Harbor, Tokyo.

Royal Caribbean’s Regional Director, Asia Pacific Mr Kelvin Tan said, “We are proud to bring Voyager of the Seas to Japan to let our fans here experience directly from home Royal Caribbean’s signature international and innovative cruising style. Japan is one of our top markets in Asia, and we are very encouraged by the strong response from this market for these cruises. We will continue to work with our Japanese representatives, agents and partners to bring more of such cruises to Japan.”

Photo by daigolou_chan

Royal Caribbean will offer an unique six-day cruise from Xiamen, China to Japan on April 2nd.  During this cruise, famous Taiwan singer-songwriter Fei Yu-ching will perform as a special guest on for a concert at sea, the first concert at sea to be held in Asia.

Legend of the Seas will visit two cities in Japan, including Kaoshima and Beppu.  Kaoshima is well known as the "Naples of the Eastern world" and Beppu is known for its geothermal hot spots.  Legend of the Seas will return to Shanghai, China on April 7th.

After the devastating earthquake struck Japan earlier this year, Royal Caribbean halted all stops to the country but we're hearing now that Royal Caribbean is planning on resuming port of call service to the Asian country.

Thanks to Japan's ability to stabilize the situation, Royal Caribbean's Legend of the Seas will start making calls in Japan starting with Okinawa on  August 1, 2011, following its Hong Kong summer season.

Legend of the Seas will offer 11 sailings including a number of charters to various Japanese ports-of-call such as Okinawa, Fukuoka, Kagoshima, Beppu, Nagasaki and Hokkaido, out from Hong Kong, Tianjin and Shanghai, from late July to early October.

These newly planned itineraries are based mostly on Legend of the Seas' original trips that were planned for this year and are areas that are not affected by the tsunami and nuclear crisis.

Royal Caribbean Regional Director of Asia Pacific thinks its time for Royal Caribbean to return to Japan, "Judging from the current situation in Japan, we are well-assured of the safety of traveling to Japan. Japan has always been an attractive tourist destination and its show of great resilience in the face of the recent crisis has given travelers the confidence to visit the country again. Travellers also understand that visiting these cities on a cruise ship is a safe and hassle-free option.”

Royal Caribbean had canceled stops in Japan after the earthquake devastated the country and has now officially decided to change Legend of the Seas' schedule for cruises between April 23 and July 16, 2011.

The new itineraries include two- to seven-night itineraries out of Singapore, Hong Kong and Shanghai.

For those that were already booked on a cruise that has had its itinerary changed due to the earthquake, Royal Caribbean is offering options and refunds.

• Passengers booked on canceled sailings out of Yokohama will receive a 100 percent refund of their cruise fare. Plus, travelers booked on the April 23, May 8, May 16 and May 24 sailings will receive a 10 percent future cruise credit
• Those booked on the April 30 sailing will receive a 20 percent future cruise credit
• For sailings departing between May 24 and July 16, if those who are booked already choose to cancel, they can receive a full refund plus a 10 percent cruise credit towards a future sailing.

Royal Caribbean has decided to  cancel all stops in Japan due to the massive earthquake and tsunami that hit the country last week.

Its Legend of the Seas ship will forgo stops at Fukuoka, Japan and will instead skip ahead in its itinerary to Busan, South Korea.

In a statement, Royal Caribbean explained the motivation behind the change, "We are aware that several countries have issued advisories discouraging travel to Japan, and many of our guests have expressed concern about whether it is safe to call there. Although the areas of concern are far from Fukuoka, Japan, there is no doubt that the situation remains fluid and continues to deteriorate. Therefore, we have decided to cancel Legend of the Seas' port call."

The Japan Cruise Symposium taking place in Fukuoka, Japan is looking at opportunities for Japan to become a major cruise line destination but before that can happen, Japanese ports need to become more appealing for cruise lines to visit.

Royal Caribbean Regional Vice President Rama Rebbapragada said that Royal Caribbean ships stopping in Japan have doubled in recent years.  Rebbapragada is also the current chairman of the Asia Cruise Association (ACA) saw the symposium as a great opportunity to build better partnerships with more communication about shore attractions in Japan.

Other concerns raised by other cruise line representatives include changing the perception that Japan is a very expensive destination, encourage Japanese ports to aim to be marquee ports and promote cruising in the country better to its people.