There's less than 99 days until Royal Caribbean's brand new Quantum of the Seas debuts and we're counting down each day with a brand new blog post all about this amazing cruise ship. Check back every day for something new!

Spa Junior Suite

How can Royal Caribbean make a junior suite a better experience than it already is? By adding a jacuzzi to it!

On Quantum of the Seas, there's a brand new category of stateroom called the Spa Junior Suite with Balcony.  This new stateroom category has never before been offered on a Royal Caribbean ship.

The Spa Junior Suite comes in at 267 square feet and offers a large, spa-inspired split bath with soaking tub.  There's also a shower with frosted glass wall that allows natural light from living area.

You will find the toilet and second sink in a seperate half bath as well.

For those that want to really relax in their stateroom without worrying about getting a spot in the jacuzzi's up on the pool deck, this is the way to enjoy your junior suite.

Thus far, we do not have any photos or renderings of what this new stateroom will offer but it just sounds like a very intriguing category of stateroom to try!

Stay tuned for tomorrow's post as we celebrate 99 days of Quantum!

Hurricane Gonzalo has forced Royal Caribbean to change the itinerary of the largest cruise ship in the world, Allure of the Seas.

Allure of the Seas will modify its itinerary for its western Caribbean sailing.  She will now visit Falmouth, Jamaica on October 15 and Cozumel on October 17.

The storm has already forced Royal Caribbean to change the itinerary of Jewel of the Seas and Explorer of the Seas.

Forecasters expect the hurricane to strengthen from its current Category 1 status and move toward Bermuda later this week.

The Dutch Social Affairs and Employment Inspection Agencey says Royal Caribbean is facing fines of thousands of euros for violating Dutch employment law.

Oasis of the Seas underwent work to update the ship as part of a two-week dry dock, when the Dutch agency claims hundreds of workers were flown in to Rotterdam to help with the work required, however many of them did not have a work permit or were underpaid. The agency also suspects that working time limits are being violated.

According to the agency, the fines focus on 48 Filipino workers who do not have permits. The fine is a maximum €12,000 per worker, which means the cruise company faces a €600,000 bill, the agency says.

Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas is out of a 14-day drydock and back in service with a lot of new upgrades, fixes and enhancements.

The changes to Oasis of the Seas include reimagined dining, game-changing high-speed internet, exciting new retail offerings, a new popular and favorite Broadway show, new suites with exclusive suite dining and lounge.

As we reported earlier, Oasis of the Seas is prepared for its conversion to dynamic dining, with new restaurants

• American Icon Grill  (comfort foods)
• Silk (Asian)
• The Grande (every night here is formal night)

Guests will enjoy menus of the new concepts beginning March 14, 2015, onboard Oasis of the Seas. Guests sailing Oasis of the Seasprior to March 14, will enjoy the traditional dining room experience in the newly designed spaces. 

In addition, other new specialty restaurants were added:

• Izumi Hibachi & Sushi
• Sabor Taqueria & Tequila Bar
• Wonderland
• Coastal Kitchen

Other specialty restaurants that were previously on Oasis of the Seas remain, such as Giovanni’s Table, 150 Central Park and Vintage Wine Bar.

Another big change to Oasis of the Seas  comes in the technology department. New changes include:

• Boatloads of Bandwidth, the game-changing partnership with technology partner O3b that will offer guests onboard Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas connectivity that matches fast broadband connections onshore and is greater than all other cruise ships combined. These new capabilities, allow the cruise line to offer affordable, easy-to-use Internet packages so that guests may watch streaming video, check email, share images on social media and enjoy face-to-face video conversations – even in the middle of the ocean. 
• Royal iQ is a new app that puts guests in charge of their vacation choices.  Thanks to the dramatically improved connectivity, Royal iQ is able to continue dining reservations, shore excursions and spa appointments onboard, through both a downloadable app and at freestanding iQ stations around the ship.  Guests also can use Royal iQ as a convenient calendar that provides at-a-glance views of their program and to keep in touch with one another and home via phone and text capabilities. 

Royal Caribbean is introducing 10 new suites on Oasis-class ships, offering breathtaking views of the ocean or the ships’ signature AquaTheater and Boardwalk neighborhood and includes, two Royal Suites, six Grand Suites and two Royal Family Suites, which can accommodate up to six guests. These suites offer a new level of sophistication when paired with the variety of new exclusive suite amenities that include: 

• The Suite Lounge, an exclusive lounge area for suite guests to relax offering unmatched expansive views of the ship and sea; 
• The Sun Deck, a new sun deck area that gives suites guests the chance to soak-up and relax in the Caribbean sun with lounge furniture, shaded and seating areas and private service; 
• Coastal Kitchen is a suites only full-service restaurant offering breakfast, lunch and dinner with a Mediterranean flare. 

Oasis of the Seas will also feature CATS as its Broadway show.  This replaces Hairspray, which debuted on Oasis of the Seas back in 2009.  

Sister ship Allure of the Seas will change its Broadway show from Chicago to Mammia Mia!, which is also the Broadway show on Quantum of the Seas.

Lastly, the Royal Promenade on Oasis of the Seas has been updated as well.  Here you'll find shops from Michael Kors and the Britto Art Gallery, as well as a whole new line-up of merchandise and fashion jewelry such as, Alexis Bittar, Uno de 50, Lauren G Adams, and Nina Nguyen. 

Sister ship Allure of the Seas will follow suit in May 2015 with nearly identical enhancements.

We're counting down to the 99 days until Royal Caribbean's newest cruise ship, Quantum of the Seas, launches with a brand new blog post every day. Be sure to check back for something new everyday here. 

Three beautiful Quantum of the Seas photos

If you're anything like me, you really enjoy looking at photos of Quantum of the Seas, especially the pretty ones.  

Photographer Jens Hagens contributed a number of photos back when Quantum of the Seas was floated out and we came across three new ones of his that are quite lovely.

Enjoy the photos and be sure to visit Jens' Facebook page, where you will find lots of beautiful cruise photos.

All photos provided by JENS HAGENS PHOTOGRAPHY.

Stay tuned for tomorrow's post as we celebrate 99 days of Quantum!

The largest cruise ship in the world, Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas, will be converted over to Dynamic Dining.

Dynamic Dining is the new twist on traditional cruise ship dining.  Instead of a main dining room with fixed dining times, smaller restaurants are spread all over the cruise ship to offer more choice in ambiance and cuisine.  Some restaurants will be complimentary while others will have a cover charge to dine there.

Earlier this year Royal Caribbean announced sister ship Oasis of the Seas would be converted to Dynamic Dining and it was widely speculated Allure of the Seas would follow suit. 

SEE DYNAMIC DINING CHANGES COMING TO OASIS OF THE SEAS

Royal Caribbean's web site is now reflecting the change coming to Allure of the Seas, although the content there appears to have been copy and pasted from the Oasis of the Seas description.

Allure of the Seas is scheduled to go into drydock in May 2015 and will then offer Mediterannean cruises from May 2015 to October 2015.

Royal Caribbean's Explorer of the Seas will have to skip a stop in St. Maarten on October 13 and instead go directly to San Juan, Puerto Rico due to Tropical Storm Fay and another unanmed storm in the Atlantic ocean.

Cruise Critic is reporting the change, which will result in Explorer of the Seas arriving in San Juan at 2pm and stay overnight in port.

A Royal Caribbean spokeswoman told Cruise Critic: "The change was due to Tropical Storm Fay and Investigative Area 90 (the low pressure system). Explorer was scheduled to call at San Juan on Tuesday so we have extended the call [to two days]."

Explorer of the Seas is in the middle of a 9-night cruise from Cape Liberty, New Jersey.

There's less than 99 days until Royal Caribbean's brand new Quantum of the Seas debuts and we're counting down each day with a brand new blog post all about this amazing ship. Check into the blog every day for something new to read about Quantum of the Seas.

Quantum of the Seas' cruise director

Photo by Dothan Eagle

The heart of any Royal Caribbean cruise is the cruise director, who is the force behind all the onboard activities you find on your cruise.  On Quantum of the Seas, Royal Caribbean has selected one of the line's best cruise directors, Jimmy Rhodes, to fill the role.

Rhodes will manage a team of about 120 dancers, musicians, youth and activities staff and will head up all the entertainment for guests 18 and older on Quantum of the Seas.

If you've cruises with Royal Caribbean in the past, Rhodes' name may sound familiar.  He's been a cruise director with Royal Caribbean for over 10 years.  In fact, he's been the cruise director on Explorer of the Seas, Monarch of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas.

Here's a little taste of Jimmy from his time on Explorer of the Seas when he listed the top 10 questions cruise passengers ask.

Stay tuned for tomorrow's post as we celebrate 99 days of Quantum!

Royal Caribbean has quietly removed the $25 corkage fee it previously charged to open a bottle of wine in its restaurants and lounges.  The removal of the corkage fee is effective immediately.

Royal Caribbean first started letting guests bring up to two bottles of wine (up to 750ml) per stateroom but included a $25 corkage fee to open the bottles in its restaurants, bars and lounges.

In practice, the corkage fee was infrequently charged and now the policy has been completely removed.

There's no official word from Royal Caribbean why the policy changed but it has been confirmed via Royal Caribbean's official Facebook page.

Thanks to Stacey Cruisedivanj for alerting us to the change.