Royal Caribbean is adding a lot of new things to its third Oasis class cruise ship, Harmony of the Seas, and one particular addition is sure to be very popular with the kids.

Harmony of the Seas will be the first ship to feature the Luckey Climber play area, located at the end of the Boardwalk.

Luckey Climber is a brand of rather large clibming structures that are surrounded by a net, designed for kids to jump on and explore.

These innovative playgrounds are part art and part jungle gym that feature some very bold colors.

Based on the concept art rendering that Royal Caribbean has published, it looks like Harmony of the Seas will receive the Luckey Climber "paper clip climber" model that was used at a children's museum in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Photo by Luckey Climbers, LLC

From the looks of it, Luckey Climber ought to be a great spot for kids of many ages to hop in and engage in the kind of climbing all kids love, while their parents enjoy a milk shake from Johnny Rockets and watch the fun ensue!

Do you think your kids will want to climb the Luckey Climber? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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

Episode 117 is available for downloading where we have an in-depth comparisson of Royal Caribbean versus Carnival Cruise Line.

Anna Blake is back from her first Royal Caribbean cruise aboard Independence of the Seas, and this week, we are we're comparing the two cruise line experiences and seeing which line does better in various aspects of the cruise experience.

Here’s the podcast page for Episode 117. 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!

This is a bit of a break from the typical Royal Caribbean news but something important I wanted to bring up.

For a long time, Royal Caribbean Blog readers have asked me one question, "How can I help the site?"

Starting today, there is a new way you can personally help Royal Caribbean Blog become more helpful and informative, the Royal Caribbean Blog Insiders.

I've also been thinking about how to improve the site for everyone and it comes back to a dream I have for the blog.  My dream is simple: Produce interesting and helpful Royal Caribbean content consistently that people want to read and share.  And I would love to do it much more than I currently am able to do it.

To that end, I have lots of ideas for new exciting and informative information for this site but I need your help.

Through your support, we can continue growing Royal Caribbean Blog and bring you the kind of intriguing and useful content many of you have come to expect every day.

This is a purely voluntary action to take and I know how tough things are for everyone these days.  If it's not in the cards right now to help out financially, keep doing what you're doing here by visiting this site and being a part of our community.

But if you can, there are a number of contribution levels you can join at and along with your assistance, there are some fun rewards for being a member of the Royal Caribbean Blog Insiders.

Becoming a member of the Royal Caribbean Blog Insiders is completely up to you and you can cancel at any time. No questions asked! 

Take a look and consider if becoming an Insider is right for you: https://www.patreon.com/RoyalCaribbeanBlog

Thank you

Matt

Royal Caribbean kicked off today a special 72-hour sale on Anthem of the Seas cruises, where staterooms begin at just $699 per person and guests can get $100 to spend onboard when booking a balcony or suite.

Guests that book a balcony or suite stateroom on Anthem of the Seas for sailings that depart between January 1 and March 31, 2016 will qualify for a $100 bonus onboard credit.

This 72-hour Anthem of the Seas sale runs between October 27 and 29, 2015.

This offer is combinable with restricted rates (for example, Seniors, Residents, Military, 30% Savings) as well as NextCruise offers. OBC offer is not combinable with Crown & Anchor discounts and Shareholder Benefits.

Offer open to residents of the United States or Canada. 

Take a look behind the scenes at the progress of the construction of the world's largest ship! Harmony of the Seas will build upon guest favorites of the Oasis class of ships with even more fun and exciting firsts in store for guests when she debuts in 2016.

Royal Caribbean's Harmony of the Seas is going to be receiving her brand new life boats very soon, after a shipment was spotted at the STX France shipyard.

All photo by Olivier Cabaret

Harmony of the Seas will debut in April 2016 and offer cruises in Europe before moving to Fort Lauderdale, Florida in late 2016 to be homeported there.

Tip of the hat to the Harmony of the Seas - Oasis Class Facebook group for alerting us to this news.

Royal Caribbean will once again have a float in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade this year, likely to promote the arrival of Anthem of the Seas to her new homeport of the New York City area.

Macy's Thanksgiving Parade website has Royal Caribbean's float listed and a photo of the float that Royal Caribbean has used for the last two years, entitled, "A World At Sea".

The float was designed by the creative artists of the Macy’s Parade Studio and depicts three distinct postcard scenes which take place onboard a Royal Caribbean ship. The rotating scenes depict three “WOW” moments found only on Royal Caribbean, including the FlowRider surf simulator, thrilling zip line and iconic rock climbing wall.

Photo by Michael Poole

Royal Caribbean has had a parade float in the annual event the last two years to promote sister ship, Quantum of the Seas.  

The 89th annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade airs nationwide on NBC, on Thursday, Nov. 26, 2014.

Thanks to Cruise Ship News for the find!

Celebrating holidays on a Royal Caribbean ship is always a fun opportunity, because combining the fun of a cruise adventure with holiday traditions just seems to be a great combination.

Halloween is coming up this weekend and Royal Caribbean UK has given its guests an idea of what to expect on a number of Royal Caribbean ships when it comes to special Halloween events.

Photo by Flickr user S K Joiner

These event listings may not be the complete list of activities fleet wide or even on each particular ship.  But they are a glimpse at the fun guests can expect onboard.

Enchantment of the Seas

The Centrum has been decorated for Halloween all month and will become the venue for our fright night costume dance party on October 31st.

Explorer of the Seas

Adults and kids can take part in a fun costume parade through the Royal Promenade, ending with a dance party. Guests will also get the chance to take part in a ‘Thriller’ dance class.

Jewel of the Seas

Jewel will be holding a special costume competition and party, while kids can try their luck trick-or-treating onboard.

Oasis of the Seas

Halloween will be guests’ first night onboard Oasis, and what a great night it will be! There will be a costume competition and party in the Royal Promenade.

Splendour of the Seas

Splendour of the Seas guests and crew will be celebrating Halloween in style, with a huge costume party in the Centrum.

Serenade of the Seas

Hopefully guests have remembered their best costume, as there will be prizes up for grabs at the onboard Halloween party.

Royal Caribbean's Anthem of the Seas is wrapping up her European cruise season in preperation for her move across, "the pond" to the United States, where she will arrive at her new home in the New York City area.

Royal Caribbean Blog reader Steven van Belleghem sent us these great shots of Anthem of the Seas today in Zeebrugge, Belgium.

Enjoy!

All photos by Steven van Belleghem

October is almost over (how did that happen?) and hopefully that means you are getting closer to your next Royal Caribbean cruise!  We have sifted through all of this week's Royal Caribbean news to bring you what you need to know.

The big news this week is Royal Caribbean announced it is bringing back a cruise ship that left the fleet over 7 years ago, Empress of the Seas.

During Royal Caribbean's third quarter financial results call, Chief Financial Officer Jason Liberty announced Empress of the Seas will return to Royal Caribbean International after spending the last number of years as a part of Pullmantur Cruises.

Empress of the Seas will undergo an, "extensive refurbishment" and be available for service sometime in Spring 2016.

We have a lot more to share, so let's jump right in...

Royal Caribbean News

• Harmony of the Seas' Cruise Director was announced.
• Royal Caribbean is sticking with no more last minute discounts and expanding it to the UK and Ireland.
• Splendour of the Seas experienced a fire in one of its engine rooms.
• Five coolest things about Anthem of the Seas!
• Royal iQ app now includes the Cruise Compass.
• The price of a beach cabana and beach couch on Labadee has gone up.
• Royal Caribbean was voted Best Cruise Line Overall by Travel Weekly China and Travel Weekly Asia.
• Our in-depth look at Royal Caribbean's Premium drink package.
• Everything you need to know about Royal Caribbean Broadway shows.

Royal Caribbean Blog Reader Finds

If you are on a Royal Caribbean cruise and spot something cool, new or just fun, share a photo with us on Facebook or Twitter so we can add it to our Royal Caribbean Blog Reader Finds each Sunday!

Ron Lodowski sent us this photo of a United States Coast Guard helicopter coming to aid a group of Cubans that Freedom of the Seas rescued.

Nick Vitani shared this photo of the sushi available on Liberty of the Seas in the Windjammer.

Let's cruise together on Allure of the Seas

I want you to join me on Allure of the Seas!

The Royal Caribbean Blog staff are going on Allure of the Seas and we are inviting all of our blog readers to join us!

We will be sailing on Allure of the Seas on February 21, 2016 and there are some fabulous rates available.  Interior staterooms start at only $850 per person (double occupancy)!

Read all the details (and the fun meets we already have planned).  This will be an amazing week with plenty of surprises and exclusive events for those that book into our group!

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The 116th episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available and this week, and we are talking all about the fabulous shows available on a Royal Caribbean cruise.

In this episode, Matt looks at the shows Royal Caribbean offers on its ships and talks about what makes them so enjoyable.  There is a wide array of shows to cover, and there is bound to be a favorite (or two) that you will want to see on your next cruise.

Please feel free to subscribe via iTunes or RSS, and head over to rate and review the podcast on iTunes if you can! We’d appreciate it.

Royal Caribbean Around the Internet

Calvirose wrote about her experience on Anthem of the Seas this summer.

AdWeek wrote about Royal Caribbean's new marketing campaign that promises them, "an anti-cruise that won't suck."

AboutCruiseShips has a review of Radiance of the Seas.