Royal Caribbean Quantum Experience Advisor Dhani Jones has released a second episode all about how he is working with Royal Caribbean to develop new and innovative fitness activities for Quantum of the Seas.
Cruise compass provided by Chad Jones
Royal Caribbean signed an agreement today with Florida International University to build a new rehearsal facility for shipboard performers. Once complete, it will offer FIU students unprecedented access to training, internships and exclusive research opportunities in hospitality and the cruise industry.
Royal Caribbean will break ground this week on the 130,000-square-foot, $20 million facility on the FIU Biscayne Bay Campus and is expected to open its doors in January 2015. The facility will be outfitted with full automation capability, where performers can train in either of two leading rigging systems.
Royal Caribbean Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Richard D. Fain said his team is pleased to have been able to find the ideal conditions right in South Florida to build a new state-of-the-art facility that will make it possible to produce the increasingly sophisticated shows Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises passengers have come to expect. The partnership provides Royal Caribbean with the opportunity to help train FIU students in other areas of the business through internships in operations and management.
“We are excited to partner with FIU on our new entertainment facility, not only because it will enable Royal Caribbean to continue to produce world-class entertainment for our ships, but because it will provide an opportunity for FIU students to receive a unique and hands-on education in the hospitality industry,” said Fain. ”Royal Caribbean considers South Florida home, and what better way to give back to the community than to be able to enrich the education of FIU students.”
The new training facility will feature a number of capabilities that will make it unique in the cruise industry:
The partnership will open extraordinary opportunities for students and faculty in the College of Architecture and the Artsand the Chaplin School of Hospitality and Tourism Management:
It's cold outside so stay indoors and enjoy this week's brand new episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast!
Episode 19 is now available for downloading where we look at what what dress codes Royal Caribbean has for venues aboard its cruise ships.
In this episode, Matt explores what guidelines Royal Caribbean has in terms of what to wear during different times of the day. We will look at dress codes during the day and evening, as well as what each dress code means and what to do if you don't want to dress up at all (which is okay too).
Here’s the podcast page for Episode 19. 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!
Having an infant is a pretty big adjustment to anyone's life but it doesn't mean you can't take a Royal Caribbean cruise vacation. In fact, going on a Royal Caribbean cruise with an infant is a great way to take a meaningful vacation with your new bundle of joy.
In recent years, Royal Caribbean has really changed how they accomodate very young kids with new facilities and activities just for them. Having brought my own toddler onboard a Royal Caribbean cruise a few times, I can tell you it's very doable but it always helps to be prepared.
It is important to note that Royal Caribbean requires infants sailing on a cruise must be at least 6 months old as of the first day of the cruise. For transatlantic, transpacific, Hawaii, select South American and other selected cruises, your infant must be at least 12 months old as of the first day of the cruise.
Any parent can tell you there is no such thing as too many diapers or enough formula. On a cruise, the same rule holds true so bringing enough diapers, wipes, formula, and other baby-centric items is critical because buying these items onboard is limited and in port you may have difficulties in finding the brand you prefer.
A few weeks before your cruise, start getting a sense of how many diapers, wipes, formula your child goes through in an average week. That will give you a ballpark idea of what you need to pack and then probably add another 25% to give yourself some room.
Royal Caribbean offers a program called "Babies 2 Go!", where parents can pre-order Huggies diapers, wipes, and cream, as well as organic Gerber baby food to their room both before and throughout their cruise.
I haven't used this program personally as bring ample supplies yourself is likely the most cost-effective solution, but it is good to know this program is available.
You can purchase the packages by calling (800) 722-5443 in the U.S. or Canada.
Just like adults, if you are taking an airplane to your cruise, the air pressure change during takeoff and landing can cause pain in your toddlers ears. Unlike adults, they don't know the basic strategies to alleviate the pain.
We've often found bringing a bottle is the perfect solution. Ideally, try to withold food prior to your flight from when you arrive at the airport until you get on the plane. Once seated on your plane and the plane begins taxing to the runway, give your child a bottle and let him/her eat through takeoff until you reach at least 10,000 feet.
Onboard the cruise ship you may not necessarily find a need for a stroller and it definitely takes up room in your small stateroom, but having a stroller is worth it. In and around ports of call, having a stroller makes everyone's life easier.
It's also smart to bring a stroller that reclines so your child can sleep in the stroller. Making it easier for your child to nap is always a plus for parents and it allows you to keep doing what you had planned without being confined to the stareroom.
Don't worry about bringing a Pack 'n Play, Royal Caribbean provides one for your child to sleep in, free of charge .
While the pack 'n play does come with a mattress, we've found it more comfortable for our child to take a comforter and fold it up to place on top of the mattress to act as a small mattress topper. The difference was quickly evident in how much longer our daughter would stay asleep versus the mattress alone.
Make sure you or your travel agent reserve a Pack 'n Play in advance so it is waiting in your stateroom when you embark on the first day.
The best place for your child for when you need or want a break is the Royal Babies and Tots Nursery. It's not available on all Royal Caribbean ships yet, but if you are cruising with an infant, be sure to look for a cruise that features one.
The Royal Babies and Tots Nursery is for children between the age of 6 and 36 months old. These faciltiies are made just for young ones and my daughter loved going here. In fact, we always had a hard time convincing her to leave. For a small charge per hour, you can do what you want while your child is supervised by trained professionals.
Dinner time alone is well worth paying for it because you can enjoy a meal in the main dining room or specialty restaurant without constantly dealing with your child becoming bored or making a mess.
If the nursery isn't an option, you can always fall back on in-room babysitting. It's far more expensive than the nursery but allowing your toddler to stay in your room may be a simpler and more ideal solution.
In-room babysitting is provided by the ship's crew on an availability basis. You will need to go to Guest Services during your cruise and inquire about availability. I've had good luck with getting a baby sitter but keep in mind it's on a first-come, first served basis and there are limited baby sitters.
At the time of this posting, in-room babysitting costs $19 per hour.
On all Royal Caribbean ships, you will find Fisher-Price sponsored play time. These events require parental supervision where lots of fun toys are available for kids to play with.
On some Royal Caribbean cruises, there was a room with set hours that allowed kids and their parents to play with the toys most of the day while other cruises had set times. In both cases, a few luggage bags full of toys are brought for kids to play with.
This is a communal event, so other toddlers may be present and it's yet something else for toddlers to do onboard.
While having your child nap in a stroller is always the best-case scenario, often times it doesn't work. However it's very important for your sanity and your child's enjoyment to keep their nap schedule going.
On days when your ship is docked, getting back onboard for a nap while in port can be rather simple. If your ship is tendered, you may need to hold off morning plans in port just because of the slow nature of tenders.
I've often fallen prey to the thought of "we can just power through their nap time" and what ends up happening is an afternoon filled with temper tantrums by child and parent alike.
If it's in the cards, bring grand-parents, friends, aunts, uncles and anyone else with you on your cruise that can lend a hand now and then.
We all love our kids but getting a break is always welcome and it provides your loved ones with an opportunity to spend time with your child while you can do other things.
Royal Caribbean prohibits any children that wear diapers (even swim diapers) in their pools. The exception is the baby pool, which is available on a few ships such as Freedom of the Seas.
This baby pool is about ankle deep on a baby and a few feet across. Infants and toddlers I've seen in it love it, but that's the only allowed space for swimming.
Another alternative is to bring your own inflatable pool with you. I've found a few inflatable travel pools that can accomodate an infant (diaper or not) that you can bring onboard. This may be an alternative for toddlers sailing on Royal Caribbean ships that do not have a baby pool.
It isn't a question of if your infant will soil their clothes, but how often they will. Royal Caribbean provides laundry services to guests for a fee but you can wash infant clothing in your stateroom for a better price.
You can purchase single use detergent powder packets and wash a few baby clothes at a time in your sink. Then air dry the clothes in your shower using the laundry line.
So parents of teeny tots, what have been your best strategies for cruising on Royal Caribbean with a baby? What do you wish someone had told you when you first visited as a parent? Let us know in the comments below.
Royal Caribbean's Splendour of the Seas arrived today in Salvador for her ninth season in Brazil after travelling from Europe.
Splendour of the Seas' first cruise in Brazil this season will begin on December 8th and offer three to seven night cruises to Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay.
As part of Splendour's return to Brazil, a small commemorative event was held announcing the ship's arrival.
Splendour of the Seas is returning after having had a revitalization that breathed fresh life into the ship, which added a number of new ammenities to the ship such as restaurants and onboard activities.
When you pay off your Royal Caribbean cruise and get close to your sailing, there's one important thing you need to do and that's fill out your cruise documents so you can get checked into your Royal Caribbean cruise without delay.
Cruise documents are a set of paperwork that guests in the same stateroom (regardless of last name) will need to have filled out prior to your cruise. They come in paper and electronic forms (eDoc), with the paper forms costing $35 per document and the electronic form free.
The documents are a checklist of things you need to do, a list of other services and activities you can pre-purchase, important safety and rules that you can review and a few other notable things.
Cruise documents are not a boarding pass. Rather, they are a pre-cruise planner that gives you information about services available to you, waivers to sign and more.
If you choose to receive them electronically, you will receive an e-mail with downloading instructions when your documents are ready. If you choose to receive your documents by mail, they will be printed and sent to the address you provided and a $35 printed document fee will be added to your reservation. If you reserve your cruise with a travel agent or a Certified Vacation Planner, your cruise documents are sent to you (or your travel agent) 20-50 days prior to sailing, assuming your reservation is finalized and your payments have been made.
If your cruise documents are available, you can access them through your reservation dashboard in your My Cruises Account on RoyalCaribbean.com. If your documents are not yet available, check back soon. You should also receive an e-mail with downloading instructions when your documents are ready.
Generally speaking, cruise documents will be available to fill out about 30 days prior to your sail date.
First and foremost, you need to fill out the cruise documents and answer all of the required fields. This will give Royal Caribbean information on who is sailing and provide necessary legal information. After you are done filling the documents out, you have the option of printing them out.
You should bring a copy of the filled out cruise documents with you to your cruise as a matter of good practice. Be sure to keep this copy with you in your carry on luggage; Do not pack it in your checked luggage!
In additio to forms to fill out, there are printable luggage tags in your cruise documents that you can print out right away and affix to your luggage once you start packing. You can print as many luggage tags as you need, and we even like to use luggage tag holders to protect them.
This week's Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available for all you commuters, runners, listening-at-work'ers and everyon else!
Episode 18 is now available for downloading where we look at what Royal Caribbean's WOW sale is all about.
In this episode, Matt explains what a WOW sale is and who might benefit the most from this quartetly promotion. There's a lot that goes into a WOW sale and for some people it can be a great deal while others may actually save more money by waiting for another deal. We also have a lot of listener emails to share.
Here’s the podcast page for Episode 18. 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!
Royal Caribbean has secured a financial loan to subsidize the cost of its third Quantum class cruise ship. The loan is for EUR637 million.
The third Quantum class cruise ship will be finished sometime in mid-2016 and getting the loan is the next important step in building the new ship.
Hermes, a German credit firm, has agreed to guarantee 95% of the loan.
This will be the third Quantum-class ship, behind Quantum of the Seas and Anthem of the Seas. The third ship has no name yet officially announced.