Welcome to our weekly showcase of great Royal Caribbean photos that our readers have shared with us.  Let's dive into this week's batch of photos!

Let's kick start this week's edition with a photo by Joseph Ingrassia of sunset taken from running track on Oasis of the Seas.

Next up is a photo of Grandeur of the Seas arriving in Nassau by Dennis Chimelis.

Phyllis Adelsberg sent us this photo of Hubbard Glacier, as seen from Radiance of the Seas.

We head over to Labadee for this photo by Nicole Ballinger.

Here is a look at Anthem of the Seas in Nassau. Photo by Anoop.

Tammy Murphy shared this photo of her family having a great time on their Royal Caribbean cruise.

The pride of New Jersey, John Bamber, took this photo from his balcony stateroom while on Anthem of the Seas.

Thank you to everyone for their photos this week! You can use this form to share your favorite Royal Caribbean photos with all of us.

Veteran Royal Caribbean cruisers will be sad to hear the announcement today that Royal Caribbean's Crown and Anchor Member Director, Millie Quiles, will be stepping down from the role.

In an email sent to Crown and Anchor Society members, Quiles announced her last day on the job will be January 30th.

"After nearly ten years working for Royal Caribbean, I’ve decided to start a new adventure. My last day in the office will be January 30th."

"Please know that we remain completely focused and committed to taking great care of our most loyal guests. In addition to our Crown & Anchor Society Desk, you can also reach Kelly Sanchez, who leads our Crown & Anchor program, at [email protected]."

No word yet on who, if anyone, will take her place.

Royal Caribbean CEO Michael Bayley spoke to TTG about a variety of topics related to the future of Royal Caribbean, and touched upon a few topics that revealed a few hints of what is to come.

When questions about the features and innovations of sister cruise brand Celebrity Cruises, Michael Bayley confirmed that the cruise line is looking at bringing the Infinite Veranda idea over to Royal Caribbean, “Edge has a lot of innovation. We need time to assess what works well and what doesn’t but we will take on some elements and put them on the new class of ship – Icon class and potentially Oasis 5."

Bayley's comments follow up on guest surveys from last year that showed off a possible Infinite Veranda for Royal Caribbean.

Mr. Bayley also commented on the status of the cruise line's new smart phone app, saying the new tech rollout will be available on around 12 ships by the end of year and the rest by "early 2020". He added, “We’re looking at facial recognition and notifications based on the profile of the passenger.”

Hi, there! We’re back with another RoyalCaribbeanBlog Video today, and we are discussing how Royal Caribbean gets you to spend more money on your cruise.

Like all companies, Royal Caribbean utilizes some great strategies to influence your purchasing decisions. These are good to be aware of in advance so you can make the most informed decision on what purchases will work best during your next vacation. So join us as we discuss some of these strategies in our latest YouTube video!

And if you love this video, we have lots of other great cruise videos to watch on our Royal Caribbean Blog YouTube Channel!

By the way, have you subscribed yet? Be sure to subscribe to our channel and never miss a single episode!

So check out the video and then let us know: What are your thoughts on some of these various strategies? 

Royal Caribbean cruises booked this weekend may qualify for 60% off second guest, kids sail for less and up to $300 instant savings.

New cruises booked January 24 – 27, 2019 on sailings departing on or after February 24, 2019 are eligible for this weekend sale.

The offer includes:

• 60% off cruise fare of second guest booked in the same stateroom as first full-fare paying guest.
• 30% off cruise fare for third guests and higher booked in the same stateroom as the first two qualified guests.
• BOGO also offers up to $150 instant savings per stateroom determined by category booked and sailing length:
  • Sailings 5 nights or less, $25 savings for Interior and Ocean View, $50 for Balconies and $75 for Suites
  • Sailings 6 nights or longer, $50 savings for Interior and Ocean View, $75 for Balconies and $150 for Suites. 
• Explore More Sale offers up to $150 instant savings per stateroom (up to $300 instant savings when combined with BOGO instant savings) determined by category booked and sailing length:
  • Sailings 5 nights or less, $25 savings for Interior and Ocean View, $50 for Balconies and $75 for Suites
  • Sailings 6 nights or longer, $50 savings for Interior and Ocean View, $75 for Balconies and $150 for Suites.

BOGO is combinable with Explore More Sale, promotional OBCs, NextCruise offers, Instant Savings, restricted discounts (for example, Seniors, Residents, Military), Promo Code driven offers, Free Upgrades, Crown and Anchor discounts and Shareholder Benefits. Explore More Sale is combinable with promotional OBCs, NextCruise offers, Instant Savings, restricted discounts (for example, Seniors, Residents, Military), Promo Code driven offers and Free Upgrades but not combinable with Crown and Anchor discounts and Shareholder Benefits. Offers are not combinable with any other offer or promotion, including, but not limited to, Standard Group, Interline, Travel Agent, Travel Agent Friends and Family, Weekly Sales Events, Net Rates. Promo Code driven offers are based on select ships and sail dates and must be applied at time of booking, limit one promo code per booking. 

Offer available to residents of United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and select countries in the Caribbean. 

Royal Caribbean will hold a conference call on January 30, 2019 at 10am to discuss its fourth quarter 2018 financial results.

The call will be available on-line at the company's investor relations web site,www.rclinvestor.com. To listen to the call by phone, please dial (877) 663-9606 in the US and Canada. International phone calls should be made to (706) 758-4628. There is no passcode or meeting number. A replay of the webcast will be available at the same site for a month following the call.

Royal Caribbean announced today its 17 top-performing travel advisors for the 2018 Travel Partners of the Year Awards of North America and Puerto Rico. 

The winners for the coveted awards include 2017’s Chairman’s Award recipient, Cruise Planners – an American Express Travel Representative, securing the coveted spot once again; Expedia Group, chosen for the President’s Award, and first-time honorees throughout North America: Cruises & Tours Unlimited (Southeast Partner of the Year), Magical Vacation Planner (Central Partner of the Year), MEI Travel (West Partner of the Year) and The Travel Agent Next Door (Canada Partner of the Year).

“Each year it is an honor to recognize our partners who have consistently shined with their skills, tremendous knowledge and passion for Royal Caribbean,” said Vicki Freed, senior vice president, Sales, Trade Support and Service, Royal Caribbean International. “As we gear up for another memorable year with the May 2019 opening of our new Perfect Day at CocoCay private island in The Bahamas, it is exciting to see a mix of new and familiar faces in our lineup of winners. This not only shows the strength among our longtime advisors but also the great growth we continue to see in the industry overall. We thank the travel advisor community for their support, and many congratulations to our 2018 winners.”

The 2018 Royal Caribbean Travel Partners of the Year: (*First-time winner)

Chairman's Award for Overall Achievement: Cruise Planners – an American Express Travel Representative

President's Award for Overall Achievement: Expedia Group

New to Cruise Partner of the Year: World Travel Holdings

Southeast Partner of the Year: Cruises & Tours Unlimited*

Northeast Partner of the Year: Crown Cruise Vacations

Central Partner of the Year: Magical Vacation Planner*

West Partner of the Year: MEI Travel*

Canada Partner of the Year: The Travel Agent Next Door*

Home-Based Partner of the Year: CruiseOne/Dream Vacations and Cruises Inc.

Online Partner of the Year: WMPH

Consortia Partner of the Year: Ensemble Travel Group

Corporate Incentive Partner of the Year: Buy the Sea

Host Agency Partner of the Year: Nexion Travel Group

Marketing Partner of the Year: ICE Enterprise

Top Overall Producer – Puerto Rico: A & A Tours Network

Top Independent Producer – Puerto Rico: Travel Planners Inc/Expedia CentrodeCruceros

Automation Partner of the Year: Vacations To Go

Our newest podcast episode is out to help give you a quick "audio escape" to a Royal Caribbean cruise!

Episode 286 is available for downloading, which is all about taking a Royal Caribbean cruise from Australia.

Perhaps no cruise market has become as popular in such a short time as Australia, and this week's episode is dedicated to all things cruising from the land down under.  Pippa joins Matt to talk about the basics of taking a cruise from Australia, what the current cruise season looks like, and some of the highlights from the amazing places you can visit.

Here’s the podcast page for Episode 286. And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Stitcher or on iTunes!

Take a listen and as always, let us know what you think! Please rate and review the podcast on iTunes and leave your comments below!

Guests can save up to 30% off on select pre-cruise purchases with Royal Caribbean's new Cruise Planner sale.

The Set Sail & Save sale runs between January 23, 2019 and January 28, 2019 on sailings between January 30, 2019 and July 15, 2019.

Royal Caribbean states guests can expect to see:

• Beverage Packages: Up to 30% off on select sailings
  • Deluxe Beverage Package + VOOM Surf & Stream 1 Device: Discount varies by ship.
  • Deluxe Beverage Package: Discount varies by ship.
  • Refreshment Package: 30% off onboard prices. Discount varies by ship.
• Save up to 25% on select shore excursions. Discount varies by ship.
• Internet
  • VOOM Surf + Stream Voyage Package 1, 2, 3, 4 Device(s): Discount varies by ship.
  • VOOM Surf Voyage Package 1, 2, 3, 4 Device(s): Discount varies by ship.
• Dining Packages
  • 3 Night Dining Package. Discount varies by ship.
  • 3 Night, 4 Night and 5 Night Ultimate Dining Package. Discount varies by ship.
• Activities: Up to 10% off on select sailings
  • All Access Ship Tour: 10% off.

To check if your sailing has this new offer available, log into the Cruise Planner on Royal Caribbean's web site look for any available offers. Keep in mind that not all sailings may see the sale applicable, nor are all offers significantly cheaper than previously posted.

If you spot a better discount on something you already pre-purchased, you should be able to cancel the purchase and then re-purchase the same item under this promotion.

We are back with another RoyalCaribbeanBlog Video today, and we are letting you in on the cruise line jargon that you might hear or read while planning a Royal Caribbean cruise.

In the cruise industry, there is a lot of words and phrases thrown around that have roots in the sailing industry as well as on cruise ships.  We have a breakdown of the most important words you should know prior to going on a cruise so that you know exactly what people are talking about.

And if you love this video, we have lots of other great cruise videos to watch on our Royal Caribbean Blog YouTube Channel!

By the way, have you subscribed yet? Be sure to subscribe to our channel and never miss a single episode!