The cruise magazine Cruise International is asking its readers to vote for their favorite cruise line in a number of categories and Royal Caribbean has been nominated for a few of them. 

Royal Caribbean recieved nominations for

• Cruise Line of the Year
• Most Outstanding New Ship of 2010/11
  • Allure of the Seas
• Innovation of the Year
  • Rising Tide Bar - Oasis of the Seas
• Hidden Gems – the places you can only reach with cruise
  • Labadee, Haiti
• Coolest Cruise Captain
  • Herman Zini - Allure of the Seas
• Best Value Cruise Line
• Best Dining
  • 150 Central Park
• Best for Kids
  • Adventure Ocean & Dreamworks
• Best Entertainment Activities
  • Flow Rider, Ice Skating, Rock Climbing Walls
• Best Live Performance
  • Chicago
  • Hairspray
  • Saturday Night Fever

Want to vote?  Click here to cast your vote for these and other categories.

Investments for the development of the Zakynthos, Greece harbor will be addressed at a special meeting, which will take place this afternoon at the office of Mayor of Zakynthos Stelios Boziki.

The initiative for the idea is from naval architect Dimitris Caper. Present at the meeting will be John Tercek, Senior Vice President of Royal Caribbean, Demi Karapatakis, Director of Royal Caribbean, Andrea Stylianopoulos, President of Navigator Tours, MP Dimitris Varvarigos, Antiperifereiarchi Dionysis Mylonas, Harbour Master John Stathis, President of the Port Fund Dionysis Kardiani, and the President of the Chamber of Costa Kapodistrias.

Mr. Tercek and Ms. Stylianopoulos are visiting the island of Zakynthos at the invitation of Mr. Capers to explore whether to invest capital to build the port infrastructure that is necessary to accommodate cruise ships in Zakynthos. The master plan by Mr. Capers for the development of Zakynthos por has received favorable comments from both the municipality and the Ministry of Tourism. 

Royal Caribbean also met with officials from Thessalonica, Greece yesterday about bringing Royal Caribbean ships to their port as well.

The challenge of visibility and awareness is required to win over Royal Caribbean if it was to return to Thessalonica, Greece.  Royal Caribbean Vice President John Tersek was visiting Thessalonica today and spoke to local officialls about the possibilities of the port as a cruise destination.

Royal Caribbean is considering giving Thessalonica a second chance and returning after the departure of Navigator of the Seas from the city a few years ago.  Back then, Navigator of the Seas had only made half of her stops to Thessalonica in order to avoid extensive paperwork due to local port authority regulations.

"I see that Thessalonica is very well placed, but the condition is becoming a recognizable tourist destination, so first priority should be to promote the tourism of the location," said Mr. Tersek during press conference.

Mr. Tersek declined to say when if Royal Caribbean intends to bring cruise ships back to Thessalonica, noting simply that Royal Caribbean has completed the itineraries until 2012. "Any change will take place after 2013" he stated.

The new mayor of Thessalonica knows that the city must do more to entice Royal Caribbean to retun, "Depends on us whether it's Royal Caribbean Cruises.  We are confident that any cruise ship come in Thessalonica will not want to leave," he said, while noting that the port has more than sufficient infrastructure for any size ship.

Italian Coast Guard responded to a report of a heart attack aboard Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas, located 27 miles from the port of Ancona.  The passenger, a person from Cyprus, suffered the heart attack while the ship was headed to Venice, Italy.

The Coast Guard Operations Centre in Ancona asked the Captain of the ship to anchor, interrupting the journey, so they could transfer the passenger to a Coast Guard patrol boat. 

Following the transfer, an ambulance has took the patient to a hospital for treatment. Following the incident, Voyager of the Seas was able to start sailing towards the north once more.

Photo by Ivan Pineiro

Royal Caribbean believes its strong brand and appeal around the world will make certain that it remains an exciting cruise option despite increased competition from local cruise companies as well as protect it from from any potential over capacity in the Australian cruise market.

Earlier this month, Royal Caribbean announced that it will have five of its ships operating in the Australia/New Zealand region in 2012-2013.  The big news was when Royal Caribbean announced Voyager of the Seas was coming to the region, the largest cruise ship ever to regularly operate there.

In total, there will be 12 New Zealand, South Pacific and Australian itineraries from November 2012 and that could lead to a problem of there being too much capacity and not enough customers for the market.

Royal Caribbean Australia commercial manager, Adam Armstrong did admit there is the potential for that problem in the future, but was confident Royal Caribbean could overcome an obstacle like that.

“But the opportunity we’ve highlighted is for a different kind of product,” he said. “We have more international-style product, have an international cuisine and a guest mix that other operators don’t have.”

In addition to Royal Caribbean's brand, Armstrong believes as much as 30-40% of the cruise guests coming to Australia will be international cruisers.

“Of our three Royal Caribbean ships, Voyager has the biggest and broadest range of kids facilities so we will be pushing families on those cruises."

“We’ve had a very successful couple of years since we opened an office here and have lifted average yields on local cruises,” he continued. “There are price pressures but we wouldn’t be putting another ship in the market unless we thought we could sustain a similar level of pricing.”

We reported earlier this week that Royal Caribbean will send Serenade of the Seas to replace Brilliance of the Seas for the winter 2012-13 season.  Already people familiar with the Persian Gulf cruise market are excited for the move.

Oman Tourism manager for Australia & New Zealand, Mona Tannous, spoke with e-Travel Blackboard yesterday about the move and shared her excitement.

“I am delighted at this news - cruising in the region is only growing and this is a welcome addition. Cruise passenger arrivals into Oman rose to 231,100 in 2010 which is a 72% increase on 2009 with the Ministry of Tourism expecting visitor arrivals to exceed well above 300,000 by 2015.”

“Muscat Harbour is a visually stunning port to sail into. You have this sense of stepping back in time as you sail past the ancient 16th century twin forts that stand guard over the harbour, as old Muscat is slowly revealed to passengers as they sail into the port - simply breathtaking.”

Senior Manager Trade, Marketing & Strategic Relations DTCM, Veronica Rainbird, thinks the new cruise tour option will be a big hit, “The Arabian Explorer cruise tour itinerary, which combines a four-night escorted land tour with Serenade of the Seas’ seven-night cruise is a wonderful initiative for Dubai, one we look forward to promoting in both the Australian and New Zealand marketplace."

Royal Caribbean launched a new promotion today for its cruises to the western Caribbean, departing between July 16, 2011 and May 27, 2012. Guests who make reservations on Wednesday (06/22), will receive $100 onboard credit per stateroom on all cruises aboard Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas of seven nights, and $50 for itineraries of five or six nights on sailings between November 12, 2011, and April 19, 2012 on the Liberty of the Seas, Jewel of the Seas or Navigator of the Seas.

The offer applies only to new bookings, and cabins must belong to the categories or suites with a balcony outside. The credit can be used to pay expenses of board and spa treatments, shopping in stores or in the casino.