We love to share with our readers different tricks, secrets and other lesser known tidbits about cruising on Royal Caribbean so you can take advantage of them on your next cruise.  Today, we've got a great spot to go to for sail away on Freedom of the Seas that will get you a great view without a lot of people around.

The helipad on Freedom of the Seas is located on the bow (front) of the ship and during sailaway, Royal Caribbean permits guests access to the helipad.  This is a great spot to see the port as you leave, especially for those that do not have a balcony stateroom or simply want something a little different.

Photo by Andrew Quested

You can get to this special spot by walking all the way forward on deck 4 outside. There will be stairs that go up to the next deck, and farther forward is the helipad.  Once there, you will find benches to sit on but the best spots are as far forward as you can get.

In addition to sailaway, the helipad is usually open most of the day, but it can close at any time for safety reasons (usually high winds).

In addition to Freedom of the Seas, you should expect this secret to work on her sister ships Independence of the Seas and Liberty of the Seas.  Guests may access the helipad on all Freedom, Voyager and Radiance Class ships.

Royal Caribbean announced today that Rear Admiral William D. Baumgartner, U.S. Coast Guard, Retired, will serve as the Senior Vice President of Marine Operations.  RADM Baumgartner will be responsible for the global cruise brand’s fleet and their nautical, technical and maintenance operations.

Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, executive vice president of Operations, commented on the new hire, "We take our work so seriously here, and there is such commitment throughout our entire organization to give our guests the safest, happiest and smoothest vacation experiences we can.  It’s a good feeling to know we are adding someone with Bill’s background to make our team even stronger.”

Recently retired from a distinguished 33-year career, RADM Baumgartner served as Commander of the Seventh Coast Guard District and Director of Homeland Security Task Force Southeast, with responsibility over 40 ships, more than 11,000 people and all Coast Guard operations in the Southeastern U.S. and Caribbean basin – an area encompassing more than 1.8 million square miles.  RADM Baumgartner coordinated Coast Guard operations with 34 foreign countries and territories in addition to overseeing several thousand search and rescue missions, the confiscation of nearly $2 billion in illegal narcotics, and the safety and security of commercial shipping in a region that included the three largest cruise ship ports, six of the nation’s largest container ports, and three strategic military outload ports.

“I’m thrilled to be joining the Royal Caribbean team,” said RADM Baumgartner. “Royal Caribbean has an outstanding reputation not only for delivering the Wow Factor, but also for being an industry leader and doing things right.  With my skills and experience, I believe I can be a driving force for growth and can help Royal Caribbean become even better.”

Just prior to the above role, RADM Baumgartner served as General Counsel (Judge Advocate General) for the Coast Guard, a $10 billion organization with more than 50,000 full-time and 40,000 part-time employees.  He managed more than 250 attorneys in more than 15 offices worldwide and was the Federal Government’s lead maritime attorney.  RADM Baumgartner began his career at sea and served as the commanding officer of two Coast Guard ships.  

RADM Baumgartner holds Bachelor of Science Degrees in Marine Engineering and Electrical Engineering from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, an MBA from the University of New Orleans, and a Law Degree from Harvard Law School.

Now through September 30, Royal Caribbean is offering 30% off the Barbie Premium Experience package on Royal Caribbean cruises departing from November 22 through December 31, 2013.

The Barbie Experience is an exclusive partnership between Royal Caribbean and Mattel.  The special stateroom overlay and onboard experience that is centered around Mattel's Barbie doll, offers girls 4 to 11 a Barbie themed cruise with decorations, parties, fashion shows, movies, interactive events and more.

The 30% off sale is valid on existing cruise bookings as well as new cruise bookings.  Guests may not cancel a current Barbie Premium Experience booking and rebook to receive the Offer. Offer is not available on Majesty of the Seas or Enchantment of the Seas 3/4-Night Bahamas sailings.

Royal Caribbean is kicking off its biggest marketing campaign in Australia this week as part of National Cruise Week.

The "Designed for WOW" campaign is being rolled out across magazines, weekend newspapers, cinema advertisements.  

According to Royal Caribbean Cruises Australasia marketing manager, Rosie Rissetto-Spiers, the new brand campaign shows passengers enjoying WOW moments, such as sky diving, rock climbing and surfing.

Royal Caribbean is also offering a special sale starting today through September 9, where guests can get US$100 in onboard credit for each stateroom they book on select 2014 cruises. This offer is applicable to all ships except Quantum of the Seas, for all 2014 cruises of 5 nights or longer departing between January 1 and December 31, 2014.

Royal Caribbean has been quiet on details related to its second Quantum class ship, Anthem of the Seas, to this point but we may know a little more about where this new cruise ship is going.  

A schedule of cruises from the Port of Le Havre, France shows a number of ports of call by Anthem of the Seas in 2015, which gives more evidence that Anthem of the Seas will be based out of Southampton, England.

Upon further inspection, the schedule of calls to Le Havre matches Independence of the Seas' current itineraries for 2014.  Some are speculating that Anthem of the Seas will replace Independence of the Seas.

If you have your doubts about this information being accurate, keep in mind we saw a similar occurence with Quantum of the Seas in February when the Port of St Maarten posted a schedule similar to Le Havre with Quantum of the Seas listed and that turned out to be accurate.  

Tip of the hat to Cruise Critic and RCI Fans for reporting this news.

Happy Labor Day weekend to all of our American readers!  This weekend marks the unofficial end to summer and Royal Caribbean had plenty going on this week, so let's jump right in.

Royal Caribbean News

• Royal Caribbean CEO Adam Goldstein confirmed there will not be a water slide on Quantum of the Seas.
• Speaking of Quantum of the Seas, her engines arrived this week.
• Have you ever stayed onboard your Royal Caribbean ship when it was in port? We share why you might want to stay onboard too.
• Royal Caribbean announced it will add a second cruise ship to Tampa next year.
• Royal Caribbean released the Brazil 2014-2015 schedule.
• In other new ship news, the French shipyard where the third Oasis-class ship will be built is getting ready to begin construction.
• Check out these amazing robots that Royal Caribbean will be using onboard Quantum of the Seas.

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast

The fourth episode of the Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast is available and it's all about Royal Caribbean's private destination of Labadee.

This beach destination is one of my favorite Caribbean ports of call and there's a lot to do here.  We discuss Labadee's beaches, shore excursions you can try, the cabanas you can rent and the food available to eat there.

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

USA Today has a list of the best onboard cruise ship activities, and there's a few Royal Caribbean staples included.

BerNews says Reverend Run from the rap group Run D.M.C. was spotted on a Royal Caribbean cruise this week.

Cruise Critic has its list of the best cruise ships for sea days and there's plenty of Royal Caribbean ships making the list.

We love sharing Royal Caribbean photos that our readers took on their cruise vacations, so each week we ask everyone reading this to send us your best, favorite and fun Royal Caribbean photos to share with the world.

This is our weekly fun opporunity to show off these really well taken shots and give everyone else a "quick fix" of a Royal Caribbean vacation.

Let's take a look at this week's batch of photos!

First up this week is a photo from April Brown who took this photo from Jewel of the Seas as it was pulling into St. Lucia.  There's something really fun about watching your cruise ship dock in a beautiful port and definitely one of those perfect moments onboard any Royal Caribbean cruise.

Speaking of ports, here's one of Independence of the Seas in Flam, Norway that was sent to us by Chris Davis.  Who says your port has to be in the Caribbean for it to be beautiful?  The mountains, water and sky all look perfect.

Christopher Pescatore sent in this great photo of Adventure of the Seas when she was docked in St. Croix.  I'm a sucker for clear blue Caribbean water so consider this photo approved by yours truly.

Having been on Freedom of the Seas a few times, I feel like I could spot their Royal Promenade anywhere, including this photo by Don Donahue.  I love that light up bridge!

Harry Yerikyan sent in this photo of Oasis of the Seas.  So let's see, beautiful ship, tropical paradise, clear blue water.  Yes, I do love this photo too.

Woa, this photo by Jörgen Anderson is up close and personal with the bow of this Royal Caribbean ship!

Speaking of beautiful islands, Shawn Holmes sent in this photo of Explorer of the Seas at Kings Wharf in Bermuda.  This is a fun cruise because the ship is docked in Bermuda overnight, which isn't something you always get to do.

Thanks to everyone who sent in their photos this week. Have a great weekend and be sure to send us your photos so we can post them next week by using this form.

If you like taking a look "behind the curtain" of how a Royal Caribbean ship works, then check out these two interviews TravelXena posted with the Food & Beverage Director and the Staff Captain from Jewel of the Seas.

On a recent cruise, both crew members took some time to answer questions about their day to day work aboard this beautiful Radiance class ship.

Staff Captain Kate McHue shared a little bit about the exciting and challenging parts of her day when she's on duty.

"Every day is different. Every day is a different port. You wake up and there’s a different situation you have to handle, there’s a different emergency there are different people. That’s probably the most challenging and the most interesting part of this job. Never have the same day twice. That was one of those things that I wanted to get out of the office from. It was getting a little redundant."

Food & Beverage Director Tony Fitzsimmons, who has been working on cruise ships for 28 years, shared some insight for anyone who is considering working on a Royal Caribbean ship.

"I’d tell them (about) sometimes the heartache of being away from home if anything happens. And the actual blessing that you’re going to be amongst people of good nature and good character and all working together for one particular aim and that’s to make the guests happy."

You can read the full interviews with Tony and Kate on the TravelXena site.

Royal Caribbean’s Quantum of the Seas is blending robotics and entertainers to create thrilling shows in Two70. Robot arms move visuals as seamlessly as performers glide through the space giving guests an extraordinary experience.