On April 29th, 2011, several hundred mom bloggers will board a Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines Majesty of the Seas in Miami to begin their voyage to the Bahamas, as part of the Bloggin’ Mamas Conference & Cruise. Organizers Heather Lopez of Happy Healthy Mom and Caroline Schafer of the Moms On Vacation Travel Club have teamed up to create this one of a kind opportunity for moms to network for both business and pleasure.

Schafer & Lopez took the concept of mom group traveling and combined it with a mom blogger conference after hearing many complaints from moms about having to spend too much money to attend onshore conferences, having to be away from their family, and not really enjoying everything because they were too overwhelmed. According to Heather Lopez, “The cruise environment allows for the controlled scheduling of workshops and social events, and even onshore activities, which makes it easier to ensure that moms will benefit from both the information and the experience. Plus, the moms can bring their kids and spouses, so they get the benefit of a vacation as well.”

Highlights for the event include:

• Engaging workshops conducted by experienced bloggers sharing how bloggers can grow their following, grow their influence, and convert their blogs into profitable endeavors
• Networking opportunities that can help connect faces to their blogs
• Brand 2 Blogger connections, giving moms the opportunity to try out the latest in products for their family
• On shore excursions in the Bahamas
• Workshops scheduled in mid afternoon, rather than morning to allow moms to shop and tour the Bahamas
• Childcare available
• Evening social mixers to bring some more fun onboard
• Invitation Only events for VIP’s
• Swag Bags & Giveaways
• Affordable Package Price & Payment Plan

When Lopez and Schafer first came up with the concept, they immediately assembled an advisory board made up of some of the most influential mom bloggers out there to ensure that all aspects of the event were planned with several viewpoints in mind. Advisory board members include Traci Bisson/ The Mom Entrepreneur, Amy Bellgardt/ Mom Spark and Mom Made That, Holly Hanna/ The Work At Home Woman, Dawn Berryman/ Market Mommy, Toni Bloomfield/ Market Mommies, Abbey Fatica/ Living My MoMent, Lin C/ Blogomomma, and Lucinda Cross/ Corporate Mom DropOuts; reaching a combined total of over 100,000 moms nationwide between them.

The Bloggin’ Mamas Cruise & Conference has already garnered tons of brand interest and will be launching a marketing campaign to promote the event shortly. Megan Calhoun of TwitterMoms agreed to help promote the event to her network of over 25,000 members and Jennifer James of the Mom Bloggers Club & Mom Salon is tentatively scheduled as one of the event’s keynotes. Moms are encouraged to register soon to reserve the current rate.

Calling all families!  Royal Caribbean International and USA TODAY announced today a search for America's best and brightest family to cover the unveiling of Allure of the Seas, which will share the title of the world's largest and most revolutionary cruise ship along with sister ship, Oasis of the Seas.  Today through October 29, 2010, families are invited to enter to win the coveted role of field correspondents alongside USA TODAY'S own cruise editor, Gene Sloan. Once onboard the ship, the lucky winning family of up to six will receive behind-the-scenes access to file reports that will appear at USA TODAY's Cruise Log about one of the most buzzed-about hospitality and entertainment stories of the year.

The Pan American Development Foundation will honor Royal Caribbean as part of its 2010 Heroes of the Hemisphere event.  Royal Caribbean has been awarded this honor because of its" corporate social responsibility efforts in the Western Hemisphere". Also, the non-profit will recognize the efforts of everyone who provided relief to Haiti after the devastating earthquake.

In addition, five extraordinary people from Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Colombia, Brazil and Mexico will be honored as the 2010 Heroes of the Hemisphere for their dedication to improving the lives of people in their communities

If you're an "I Love Lucy" fan, then there's a cruise for you.  Fans of the famous television show can now be a part of the week-long "I Love Lucy Diamond Jubilee Cruise".

The cruise, on Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas, will celebrate the "once-in-a-lifetime double-anniversary celebration" on October 15, 2011 (this coincides with the 60th anniversary of the TV show).  The ship will make stops in Labadee , Haiti ; Falmouth , Jamaica ; and Cozumel , Mexico.

Onboard activities include celebrations of the 60th anniversary of the TV series as well as the 100th birthday of its famous star, Lucille Ball. Other events include special banquets, “Lucy”-themed “live” shows, discussions with special guests who knew and worked with the great lady, screenings of her most-loved episodes, trivia contests, and more.

If this is of interest you can book by contacting Barb Shulman ([email protected]) 619.548.1289 Toll Free 877.278.9386 or Danielle Marsh ([email protected]) 864.228.7992 Toll Free 866.403.1318

Ministry of Transport and Communications of Ukraine and the Yalta Sea Trade Port signed a protocol on cooperation with Royal Caribbean International on reconstruction and development of the port.

The The Brazilian Association of Representatives of shipping companies (of which Royal Caribbean is a member) estimates that the six destinations of the state of Rio in Brazil that are scheduled to receive ships (Rio de Janeiro, Buzios, Angra dos Reis, Jaguanum Island, Big Island and Cabo Frio) will receive a total of almost 1.210 million of visits in the 2010/2011 season, which begins in Brazil in October.

A Florida burrowing owl was discovered in the mini-golf course aboard Oasis of the Seas this past Saturday.  Just before Oasis was about to leave, the federally protected bird was discovered at which point Royal Caribbean contacted the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC).

FWC Lt. David Bingham and a Broward County Sheriff's Office deputy safely removed the pint-sized bird from the golf course. The owl was released in an open field in western Broward County.

As a species of special concern, Florida burrowing owls, their burrows and their eggs are protected from harassment and/or disturbance by state law. Burrowing owls also are protected by the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

A sneak preview of Allure of the Seas' newest show "Blue Planet" was presented at Nova Southeastern University’s Don Taft Arena earlier this week.  Blue Planet is a high energy aerobatic show and includes a good dose of songs written by the Beatles with depictions of scenes in the jungle, desert and underwater.

This new show is Royal Caribbean's attempt to compete with other cruise line's Cirque du Soleil style shows.

Royal Caribbean CEO Adam Goldstein was excited about the show, “We like to deliver the wow to our guests. For the last 22 years, I have seen our entertainment group constantly push the envelope to bring to our guests the most compelling entertainment we can produce. … We should do groundbreaking work. We don’t say, ‘We are a cruise ship we have limitations.’”.

Blue Planet will be held in the 1,380-seat Amber Theater aboard Allure. The performance at NSU was without full costumes and scenery, but a video screen on the side showed sketches of what the finished product will look like.

Robin Farley, a leisure and gaming analyst with UBS Warburg, just issued her latest projections for cruise industry berth capacity— aimed at projecting any growth in ship deliveries for 2013-14

"Royal Caribbean International brand has no new orders on the books after the [fourth quarter 2010] delivery of Allure of the Seas, so [we] could see an order for 2013 delivery," Farley says.

Nassau port officials announced on September 16 that they had completed a major project to improve the port of Nassau for cruise ships. The $44 million contract, started in April of 2009, dredged 1.9 million cubic yards of material from Nassau Harbor and installed three mooring dolphins, causeways and ladders at Prince George Wharf and extension of the western end of Arawak Cay by 1,000 ft.

So why all the work?  Principally the project was to accommodate Royal Caribbean's new Oasis of the Seas, which made its maiden voyage to Nassau on December 11, 2009.

“The decision to dredge the harbour was based in part on the need to keep abreast of changes in the cruise industry where new Genesis class vessels have been introduced by the major cruise lines. In response, the Government proceeded with the enhancement of the Harbour’s capacity by dredging to accommodate the new mega cruise ships,” said Public Works and Transport Minister Neko C. Grant.