Travel Weekly has awarded Royal Caribbean 15 Magellan Awards for the year.  Radiance of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas were singled out among the awards along with Royal Caribbean's "The Sea is Calling" advertising campaign.

“We are much honored to be recognized again by Travel Weekly’s distinguished panel of industry experts and judges,” said Lisa Bauer, senior vice president of Global Sales and Marketing, Royal Caribbean International. “We are particularly encouraged that revitalized Radiance of the Seas won Gold for Overall Contemporary Ship. Radiance of the Seas is a glowing example of our ongoing ship revitalizations to introduce some of the most popular Oasis-class amenities across the fleet and make every ship our best ship for vacationers to enjoy.”

Gold Magellan Awards

• Radiance of the Seas - Overall - Contemporary Ship
• Oasis of the Seas - Overall - Eco-Friendly "Green" Cruise Ship 
• The Sea is Calling - Advertising/Marketing Campaign 
• The Sea is Calling - TV Commercial 
• The Sea is Calling... - Vicki Print Advertising 
• Oasis’ 150 Central Park - Contemporary Ship - Restaurant Design 
• DreamWorks Experience - Contemporary Ship - Entertainment 
• Hairspray - Contemporary Ship - Entertainment 
• Royal Promenade -Contemporary Ship - Atrium Design 
• Royal Loft Suites - Contemporary Ship - Suite Design

Silver Magellan Awards :

• Allure of the Seas - Overall - Contemporary Ship 
• Sea Views - Overall - Blog 
• Crown & Anchor Society - Overall - Loyalty Program 
• Vitality at Sea Spa - Contemporary Ship - Spa Design 
• Madagascar 3 - Web Marketing/Advertising

You can watch the full episode of "Mighty Ships: Oasis of the Seas" that documents how this Royal Caribbean mega ship operates behind the scenes.

Photo by Ambius

People that are new to cruising many not be aware of the sheer amount of things to do aboard a Royal Caribbean ship and that's why Travel Weekly highlighted some of the best activities on cruise ships today that aren't expected by a new passenger.

Voyager of the Seas' sports deck is something that stands out because there's so much to choose from.  You can go in-line skating, use the jogging track, try the golf simulator and more.  Aboard Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas, you can zip line, learn to surf or play basketball.

If entertainment is more your thing, the ice shows in Studio B aboard Voyager of the Seas is another fun option.  In addition, the DreamWorks Experience offers you the chance to meet passengers from Kung Fu Panda or Shrek.  Oasis and Allure of the Seas have an Aqua Theater where athletes perform  acrobatics, trapeze artistry and water ballet.

Royal Caribbean has invited two former Olympic Athletes, Michelle Kwan and Greg Louganis, to compete in a number of physical activities aboard Oasis of the Seas.

Dubbed the Royal Deck-athlon, there will be 10 featured events, such as Flow Rider, Rock Climbing wall, figure skating, zip line, diving, mini-golf and more.

You can follow along the progress with video updates on the Facebook page.  Royal Caribbean is also offering a chance for a free seven night cruise aboard Oasis of the Seas for those that watch the videos.

Each year, the Centers for Disease Control conducts surprise government health inspections to make certain that the cruise ships millions enjoy are safe and clean.  Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas, Jewel of the Seas, Serenade of the Seas and Mariner of the Seas all scored a perfect 100 on their test this year.

The Vessel Sanitation Program is run by the CDC and unannounced inspections will occur twice per year in US ports, with a test that grades each ship on a 100 point scale.  The CDC evaluates cruise ships in 42 areas such as adherence to proper food handling, storage procedures, overall galley cleanliness and pool and spa cleanliness.

This is the third perfect score in a row for Oasis of the Seas while the other ships that scored perfectly have also had perfect scores in the past.

Only a small fraction of the dozens of cruise ships inspected each quarter receive a perfect score.  Most infractions are small in nature and are corrected quickly.

We love seeing talented photographers take some amazing photos while aboard Royal Caribbean ships and Bryan Sargent, a New York City photographer, brought his camera aboard a recent Royal Caribbean cruise aboard Oasis of the Seas.

Check out all of his great photos here.

The Washington Post has posted an in-depth look at Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas' cruise director Ricky Matthews and how Ricky has made the job his own.

“My job is to provide the best entertainment and to keep everyone busy,” said the 39-year-old Jamaican of his position with Royal Caribbean. “I need to be able to make the people move even if they’re sleepy.”

Matthews describes his job as captain, head chef, steward, waiter and comedian. He spends his day overseeing the many activities that are occurring around the ship.  For Matthews, it's all about setting the tone for passengers, "First impressions are important, so he strives to set the proper tone — fun, fun, fun — from the outset. During the first hours of the cruise, he strolls the decks like a one-man pep rally, waving his imaginary party flag. He joshes with guests and charms the female persuasion with endearing greetings of 'Hello, ladies.' They fall under his spell, as do their husbands."

Matthews' schedule with Royal Caribbean is also interesting, he spends two months at a time working for the cruise ship and then receives two months off to visit family or friends.  

He has spent a considerable amount of time working for Royal Caribbean.  Prior to Oasis of the Seas, Matthews worked on Majesty of the Seas, Navigator of the Seas and Serenade of the Seas. He occupied the cruise director chair on Oasis of the Seas from March to June, filling in for another cruise director on holiday.

You can read the entire look at Matthews' daily life aboard Oasis of the Seas and see exactly what his job entails.

O3b Networks announced it has signed a multi-year deal worth multi-millions of dollars to provide Royal Caribbean with high-speed satellite-delivered broadband service.  By the summer of 2013, Oasis of the Seas will benefit from O3b's enhanced connectivity at sea that claims it will be like being connected to fiber at home or in the office.

Royal Caribbean will be the first cruise company to utilize O3b's new maritime offering O3b Maritime, which delivers the reach of satellite and the speed and latency of fiber at a fraction of the cost of conventional providers. O3b is enabling maritime service providers to offer affordable fiber-like capacity across the Caribbean and ocean regions around the world. Providing unparalleled bandwidth, O3b's steerable satellite beams will provide cruise industry passengers ultra-fast Internet communications throughout their voyage.

Royal Caribbean CEO Adam Goldstein commented on the deal, "Royal Caribbean is committed to delivering the most contemporary vacation to our guests, and that includes pushing ahead for onboard technological advances that offer the modern conveniences that guests enjoy on land. This milestone agreement with O3b Networks enables us to provide our guests with unprecedented Internet service at sea aboard Oasis of the Seas and potentially in the future aboard other ships in our fleet."