It's Friday and naturally we are sharing fun Royal Caribbean photos that our readers sent in.  In fact, every week we ask our readers to send us their best Royal Caribbean photos to share with everyone!

Our first photo this week comes from Don Donahue, who took this photo of a Cruise Critic cabin crawl while on Brilliance of the Seas. A cabin crawl is when everyone in the group allows others in the group to come see their cabins so people can get a sense of the differences.  

Next we have a photo from Kayla of her husband on Radiance of the Seas enjoying a beer while playing mini golf.  If this isn't relaxing then I don't know what is.

Here's a photo from Phil Catarella of Radiance of the Seas anchored in Moorea, French Polynesia.  I'd love to take a Royal Caribbean cruise like this to be able to visit the south Pacific!

How about a perfect pool day on Adventure of the Seas?  Neil Davies sent us this photo from his trans-Atlantic cruise and it looks lovely!

Chris Davis sent us this photo of Explorer of the Seas, as seen from the top of the Empire State Building in January 2014.  Great view (and zoom lens)!

Lastly we have Enchantment of the Seas coming into port at 6:30 the morning of January 10th. Kelly Tarman sent us this photo and she writes, "It was our kids first cruise and they were very excited to board her just a few short hours later, so we drove to the pier to capture her arrival into Port Canaveral."  Love that excitement Kelly!

Is your photo missing from here?  Well, send all your Royal Caribbean photos in right now and we can use it for upcoming Friday Photo blog posts! 

British TV star Tom Daley, who is well known in the UK for his television show on ITV called, "Splash", helped begin Royal Caribbean's new marketing campaign to highlight Caribbean cruises aboard Allure of the Seas.

The campaign is called "Caribbean Cup" and stars Daley along with Australian swimmer Ian Thorpe and American gymnast Gabby Douglas in a variety of athletic challenges including surfing, rock climbing and dodgeball on board Allure of the Seas.

Royal Caribbean UK recruited the athletes to show off the fun things you can on a Royal Caribbean ship while enjoying a Caribbean cruise.

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

Episode 26 is available for downloading where we look at why you might want to book a transatlantic cruise.

Matt looks at Royal Caribbean's private island of CocoCay and explores what there is to see and do here.  The private oasis is the perfect place for a day by the sea and also offers activities for those looking to be more active.  From the beaches to the food to the cabanas, there's a lot of great activities to choose from when visiting CocoCay.

Here’s the podcast page for Episode 26. 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!

Sadly with the outbreak of Norovirus on Royal Caribbean's Explorer of the Seas, there's a lot of attention being put on this nasty little bug.  The good news is if you are going on a cruise, there are steps you can take to avoid getting infected too.

How do you get Norovirus?

It's important to understand how Norovirus is spread to be able to avoid getting it.  Norovirus is acute gastroenteritis, which generates symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea and stomach pain.  

Norovirus is spread from person to person through food or water that is contaminated with the virus as well as touching contaminated surfaces.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) says Norovirus is commonly spread by contact with people who are infected by the virus.

How can you avoid getting Norovirus?

• First and foremost, washing your hands thoroughly with warm water and soap prior to eating or drinking is the best defense.  
• In addition, washing your hands after using the restroom is always a good idea.
• If someone you know is sick, keep in mind they can spread the disease up to 3 days after they recover so avoid contact with them.
• If an outbreak happens, also refrain from shaking hands.  
• If any clothing is contaminated with vomit or stool, be sure to wash the clothing immediately to avoid the spread of the virus.

Norovirus requires you to get in physical contact with it.  It's not spread via the air and with good hygiene, you can stand a good chance of avoiding getting sick.

For its guests returning early on the Explorer of the Seas cruise that was struck by gastroenteritis, Royal Caribbean will give them compensation for not only the lost time but also the poor experience.

CNN reports that all passengers will get a 50% refund of their fare as well as a 50% future cruise credit.

Royal Caribbean is also giving passengers that were quarantined in their cabins due to the Norovirus-like symptoms an additional credit of one future cruise day for each day they were kept secluded.

On top of all this, Royal Caribbean is reimbursing any change fees imposed by the airlines to book travel home due to the early return.

More than 600 passengers reported feeling sick on the cruise, which has garnered headlines around the world.  Royal Caribbean made the decision to bring the ship back early to perform thorough sanitization of the ship.

Royal Caribbean has reached a deal with the Port of Galveston, Texas for a five-year agreement after the Port of Galveston’s governing board approved the deal on Monday.

The deal will generate a minimum of $1.86 million in annual operating revenues for the public docks.

In addition, the deal requires making about $10 million in improvements to the port's Cruise Terminal No. 2.

Royal Caribbean currently operates Navigator of the Seas out of Galveston although Royal Caribbean did promise to bring a larger cruise ship to the port if the improvements made to Cruise Terminal No. 2 are completed.

Port Director Michael Mierzwa believes they can borrow enough to cover an estimated $10 million in improvements Royal Caribbean has requested, he said. 

The agreement differs from the now-expired arrangement Royal Caribbean forged with the port in 2007. Unlike the previous agreement, Royal Caribbean chose to guarantee a yearly minimum revenue based upon a Voyager-class vessel making 19 calls to the port, rather than the guaranteed 25 calls a year under the expired agreement, Mierzwa said.  

Royal Caribbean agreed to an additional 30 calls in both 2014 and 2015, essentially committing to a year-round vessel in both years with a promise to bring a larger vessel to Galveston next year if improvements were made to the Cruise Terminal No. 2, which has accommodated smaller passenger liners in the past.

Royal Caribbean could still decide to build a fourth Oasis-class cruise ship that would be ready by 2018.

Cruise Currents is reporting that UBS Investment Research says Royal Caribbean is deciding if they want to exercise the option to build a fourth Oasis-class class ship.  The decision to go ahead or not needs to be made by mid-2014.  

If Royal Caribbean picks up the option, then the ship would be deployed by 2018.

Royal Caribbean already has an active order for a third Oasis-class cruise ship that is due for delivery in mid-2016.

During Royal Caribbean's fourth quarter financial results conference call, Royal Caribbean Chairman Richard Fain announced the company would not invest in the option to build a fourth Quantum class cruise ship in 2017.

"We remain committed to improving our shareholder returns, returning to an investment grade credit and maintaining moderate growth," said Fain.  "We think that the ships we have on order for our wholly-owned brands will serve us well and we do not anticipate an additional newbuild for delivery in 2017." 

The option Royal Caribbean had in 2017 was for either a fourth Quantum class cruise ship or a Celebrity Reflection cruise ship.

Currently, Royal Caribbean has plans for its first Quantum class ship, Quantum of the Seas, to debut this fall with sister ship Anthem of the Seas following in spring 2015 and a third unnamed Quantum class ship in 2016.

Royal Caribbean chairman Richard Fain spoke to CNBC about the recent bout of sickness that spread to over 600 passengers onboard Explorer of the Seas that is believed to be Norovirus.  He defended the way Royal Caribbean looks for passengers who may be sick prior to cruising to prevent them from infecting others.

"We screen our passengers as best we can," Richard Fain told CNBC in an interview.

“It’s a very unfortunate inciden. Our people responded quickly and aggressively.”

Fain also noted the recent cold temperatures in the northeast may have played a part, with the cruise originating from Bayonne, New Jersey.

Future bookings wouldn't be affected, said Fain. "Most people understand just how common a thing this is," he said.

Fain stood on the company's record in response to incidents like these. “We do an amazing job of helping guests when they do get sick and then cleaning after," he said.

Royal Caribbean reported fourth-quarter net income of $7.02 million or $0.03 per share, compared to a loss of $392.80 million or $1.80 per share, prior year. 

Adjusted net income was $50.0 million, or $0.23 per share, for the quarter. In the prior year quarter, the company recorded an impairment of Pullmantur related assets of $385.44 million.

Total revenues increased to $1.85 billion, from $1.81 billion, prior year. Analysts expected revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter.

Royal Caribbean currently estimates its 2014 adjusted earnings per share will be in the range of $3.20 to $3.40. Analysts expect the company to report fiscal 2014 earnings per share of $3.17.