Royal Caribbean's newest cruise ship that is under construction, Quantum of the Seas, has its cruise director picked and the lucky man is Jimmy Rhodes.  Rhodes has been a cruise director for Royal Caribbean for 10 years now.

As cruise director, Rhodes said he will head all entertainment for guests 18 and older. In doing so, Rhodes said he will manage a team of about 120 dancers, musicians, youth and activities staff.

While Rhodes may be the full time cruise director for Quantum of the Seas, there are other reports that Richard Spacey will be the cruise director for Quantum of the Seas during its first few cruises, with Rhodes assuming the duties afterwards.

Quantum of the Seas' inaugural cruise is set for November 14, 2014 from Cape Liberty, New Jersey.

Royal Caribbean Australia has launched the first Instagram film festival as part of a new marketing campaign that builds on the "designed for WOW" brand.  Royal Caribbean is calling it the InstaFilm Festival.

To participate, Australians and New Zealanders are able to upload 15 seconds movies that show enthusiastic "WOW" cruise moments using the hashtag #instafilmfest on Instagram.

A judging panel will decide which films meet the criteria and a winner will recieve a Pacific islands cruise.

Royal Caribbean Australia commercial manager Adam Armstrong thinks the new campaign is all about their guests, "This campaign is about making our guests and the general public the hero.. inspiring them to show us their wow moments."

Launched at an event at the Sydney Opera House last night, the venue was chosen as it is the most photographed icon on instagram in Sydney.

"150 million use instagram every month, about a million of those are Australian. It is the fastest growing social media platform in the country," Armstrong said.

The port of Falmouth, Jamaica that Royal Caribbean has spent a lot of money working with Jamaica to build, is set to receive new improvements to ease traffic flow within the port and access to the town.

Specifically, the pre-booked tours area is getting a $400,000 refurbushment to help with traffic flow and passenger comfort. The traffic routing will be completed this month, according to William Tatham, VP of cruise shipping for the Jamaica Port Authority. Tatham also indicated landscaping and cover will follow, replacing the use of tents, for next summer.

The Falmouth improvements spring from advice and technical expertise offered by Disney Cruise Line, which volunteered a couple of experts to make assessments and suggestions regarding tour bus movements and signage that led to the redesign.  

In addition, there will be renovations and upgrades in the town of Falmouth to make it more welcoming and accessible for visitors. Tatham said these will address how people move around the town, by trolley or on foot, to facilitate more exploration and discovery of Falmouth's history and culture.

A number of government agencies under the transportation ministry are studying the infrastructure and flow; Tatham expects town works will be carried out by the end of the 2013/14 season.

Hey everyone! Episode 7 of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is now available for your listening pleasure.

This week, we're sharing the details about our cruise on Jewel of the Seas to the Southern Caribbean that begins this weekend.  Let's look at why we picked this cruise, the cool things to do on Jewel of the Seas and our plans for each port of call.  

Be sure to also check out our pre-cruise summary of what our plans are for the cruise and for how you can read our live blog each day from the cruise.

Here’s the podcast page for Episode 7. And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast via RSS 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!

Following the announcement head of Royal Caribbean Entertainment Peter Compton was leaving last week, Royal Caribbean formally introduced their new head of entertainment, Nick Weir.  Weir is the new Vice President of Entertainment and will oversee the cruise line’s onboard entertainment and guest activities programming, as well as Royal Caribbean Productions.

Weir has more than 25 years experience in both the entertainment and cruise industries.  Nick also hosted and presented a number of major network television shows in the United Kingdom before moving to the United States. He is best known for hosting a re-launch of the primetime network-television show "Catchphrase," where he succeeded in the mission of markedly improving the ratings in the critical 18-54 target demographic.

For the past 10 years, Nick owned and operated an entertainment consulting company with projects that included television and live event production services, speech and script writing, entertainment program analysis and solution development, charity event/live auction production, corporate video production, cruise industry start-up projects and Cruise Director services. Additionally, he has served in many capacities in the cruise industry, including as Entertainment Consultant and Cruise Director for Celebrity Cruises and Costa Cruises, and consulted extensively for Star Clippers Tall Ship Cruises.

Ok, I have my stuff together today, vacay day 5. Cruise day 4 Labadee

We arrived early into Labadee this morning. The forecast today? 92, humid with a uv index of 10.

As the first island day & the place being Royal's private destination, people were ready to see what this gorgeous place had to offer. Sean & I are going relaxing in a big way. We reserved an over the water cabana for the day.

If you've read anything about the cabanas offered at the private destinations, you know then they're in high demand & lower quantity & a bit in the pricey side.

We met our friends for bfast in the windjammer on the earlier side. Headed down to the island right after. The long hot walk to the gates of Labadee & to our waiting island cabana transport and away to our slice of paradise we went.

Upon arrival we were greeted by our cabana steward, Ronald, who showed us to our cabana & told us about everything it had to offer. An ice chest filled with large bottles of ice water, complimentary of course. Our floating beach mats, snorkel gear & towels.

I'm sure some of you when you hear 'over the water cabana' are picturing the four seasons Bora Bora. Not exactly the same thing. These are built into the rocks on the water, but have super convenient water access stairs and in some cases ladders to get to the water quick.

The cabanas for us were adjacent to Barefoot Beach, the suite section, Nellie's beach. The beach get quite busy during the day,. Nellie's beach is where the kayak tours leave from ad it's the not rocky beach under the dragon flight line, so it's more pleasant on fresh pedicures. No waves though.

Even though its a busy beach. It's a great beach day beach.

Another perk of your cabana fee is getting to have the upgraded lunch buffet BBQ. We hoofed it over to barefoot beach for lunch. It was a quick walk in all honesty. The buffet offered real china & silverware compared to the WJ melamine & plastic ware. A huge salad selection, hot dogs, burgers, rice & beans, grilled chicken, steak w/herb butter, shrimp kabobs, corn on the cob, baked potatoes, and a dessert selection. Plus iced tea & fruit punch.

In the barefoot beach section I saw the difference between suite section & everybody else. Quiet beach, same amount of cabanas for fewer people to rent. Lots of peace & quiet. And no kayakers, paddle boats or boarders.

We spent the the entire day on Labadee while in port. The horn of the freedom called us back at 3 & we sailed away promptly at 4.

Back onboard, we headed to the pool deck for the sail away party & then to a late afternoon nacho snack in the WJ.

Back to the room for showers & naps the off to dinner.

Battle of the sexes, a wine flight at vintages later & we are off to bed!

We're in Jamaica tomorrow. We're staying on board tomorrow, we've never done it before so, we'll see if its as great as people say.

Cyndi Lauper may have had it right with her famous song, "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" and onboard a Royal Caribbean cruise, there's a lot for girls to do.  Here's our take on the top five activities for girls to try on their next Royal Caribbean cruise.

1. Barbie Experience

Royal Caribbean rolled out this new immersive package for fans of the Barbie brand of dolls last year and it's perfect for girls who just cant get enough Barbie.  To be honest, the Barbie Experience is less about the doll itself and more about letting girls "glam out" and do the sort of grown up things they usually can only pretend to do with their dolls.

Aimed at girls between the ages of 4 and 11, the Barbie Experience begins with a very pink stateroom overlay and then offers decorations, parties, fashion shows, movies, interactive events and more.  If your daughter likes playing with Barbie dolls or even just the idea of dressing up, painting nails and fashion, then this is a must-do for her.

2. H2O Zone

Girls love playing in pools and the H20 Zone that is available on Freedom and Oasis class ships is the perfect playground for them.  The H2O Zone is basically a huge aquatic obstacle course, with plenty of sprays, buckets and nozzles spraying water everywhere.

A pool is fun and all, but being able to run around and stay cool in the water is what makes the H2O Zone so appealing to girls.  It's more than just a "sit and soak" experience for them with a number of different water toys to play with.

3. Ice skating

It's hard to find a girl that doesn't want to at least try ice skating and with an ice skating rink on Voyager, Freedom and Oasis class ships, this may be the right time to introduce your daughter to ice skating or take your little pro to see how she does while skating at sea.

The ice skating rink is open to girls of all abilities and for those that do not have easy access to an ice rink or frozen pond at home, going for an ice skate on a Royal Caribbean ship could be a really fun and unique opportunity.

4. Movies by the pool

When you combine popular movies on a massive outdoor LCD screen and swimming in a pool, what you get is the perfect place for nearly any girl.  Watching their favorite movies like Grease, the Wizard of Oz, or the latest Dreamworks release while they go for a swim is something lots of girls would consider perfect evening.

5. Breakfast with Dreamworks characters

The Dreamworks Experience on select Royal Caribbean ships has become a real hit with kids and girls will love the opportunity to have breakfast with some of their favorite characters.  

Meeting characters from popular movies like Shrek, Madagascar and Kung Fu Panda as they stop by each table for some playful shenanigans. And of course the girls can take their photos with the characters to remember it all by.  Oh and did we mention this experience is free? Now the parents will be looking forward to it too!

Bonus: Hanging out with other girls in Adventure Ocean kids club

You know what most girls like to do perhaps more than anything else? Hang out with other girls their age and socialize! Royal Caribbean's Adventure Ocean is the perfect supervised venue for this.

Girls get a chance to meet other girls their age, do various activities together and well, spend time together doing girly things!  All these activities we listed are fun enough for any girl but doing it with newly made friends can be the icing on the cake and amount to what any girl would consider to be the perfect vacation.

Next year, Royal Caribbean will offer cruises out of the capital of Norway, Oslo, once again with 4 stops planned on Legend of the Seas.

Royal Caribbean CEO Adam Goldstein commented on why Royal Caribbean is returning, "Norway is a wonderful country and an amazing destination, as people from all over the world want to visit. We have offered cruises often to Oslo in the past, and look forward to being here again."

Goldstein also pointed out cruises out of Oslo have the ability to sail to other ports in Norway, Sweden, Estonia, St. Petersburg and so on. In addition, ord are very special.

Royal Caribbean cruises from Norway will also have stops in Stavanger, Geiranger and Aalesund. There will be a 14-night transatlantic cruise that ends up in the United States

Part of the reason why Royal Caribbean may be offering Northern European cruises once more is because of the Euro crisis in Southern Europe.  In addition, Norway's popularity among tourists is on the rise from 1.9 million in 2011 to 2.5 million last year. This year it is expected that there will be 3 million passengers, according Visit Norway.

Royal Caribbean's public relations team is at the Meyer Werft ship yard this week to take a peek at the progress being made on Royal Caribbean's newest cruise ship, Quantum of the Seas.  Royal Caribbean Senior Account Executive Lyan Sierra-Caro posted a photo of the steel laser cutting process, which will likely be part of an upcoming preview for the new ship.

@ Meyer Werft ship yard ready to take a peek at #QuantumoftheSeas @RoyalCaribPR #buildingacruiseship pic.twitter.com/Keu3ZuUDEw

— Lyan Sierra-Caro (@lyan10) September 17, 2013

Quantum of the Seas is Royal Caribbean's next cruise ship that will be built and will have her first official cruise in November 2014.

Royal Caribbean has signed an agreement with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government for a series of ex-Tokyo sailings on Voyager of the Seas in 2014.

The memorandum was signed by Royal Caribbean Regional Vice President for Asia Zinan Liu and Mitsuchika Tarao, Tokyo Metropolitan Government Director Deneral, Bureau of Port and Harbo while they were aboard Voyager of the Seas on Saturday during a Tokyo stopover on a 12-night cruise from Tianjin.

Voyager of the Seas' 2014 Tokyo season will start with a 10-night sailing from Singapore on April 10 with calls at Hong Kong (overnight), Kaohsiung, Taipei (Keelung) and Nagasaki, before arriving in Tokyo on April 20. From Tokyo, the ship will then feature a six-night round-trip South Korea and Nagoya cruise to Jeju Island, Busan and Nagoya on April 20, a nine-night round-trip cruise to Taipei (Keelung), Kaohsiung and Hong Kong on April 26 and a four-night Tokyo to Taipei cruise visiting Kobe and Naha, Okinawa on May 5.

Voyager of the Seas will also offer a seven-night round-trip itinerary from Taipei (Keelung) visiting Nagasaki, Beppu and Osaka departing May 9.