New Internet Packages Cost
RCI’s ship internet offering was revamped from only one plan into different per day packages with pricing based on the number of included devices. Two new packages are currently available for booking:
- Note: All below listed unlimited Internet package prices are CruisePlanner booking rates and include the 30% pre-cruise booking discount. Packages can be purchased onboard and also pre-purchased via RCI’s “Cruise Planner” booking system.
- “Voom Surf Voyage” is the “light package” providing high-speed Internet for general web browsing, e-mails and social media platforms . The “Voom Surf Voyage” Internet package cost depends on the number of mobile devices using it. “Voom Surf” pricing is as follows: $13 , $12 , $10 and $20 .
- “Voom Surf + Stream” is the “real deal”, offering unlimited Internet activities, including high-speed video streaming . The “Voom Surf + Stream” Internet package cost also depends on the number of mobile devices included. Voom Surf + Stream pricing is as follows: $18 , $16 , $14 and $28 .
Occasionally, Royal Caribbean offers VOOM package discounts for passengers with pre-purchased online internet packages. Discounts are also offered for Royal Caribbean loyalty program members when the VOOM package is purchased onboard.
The Cocktails Were Expertly Crafted And Tasted High Quality
Unlike the drinks on other cruises that skimp on alcohol or have a hit-or-miss consistency, the beverages on the Getaway were exceptional.
Guests could choose from two drink packages: the unlimited open bar package or the premium plus beverage package. I had the former, which was less expensive and was included as a free bonus when I booked my cruise.
I like fruity cocktails and there were so many options for margaritas, mojitos, and caipirinhas. Every cocktail I ordered was delicious and seemed similar to the cocktails you would get at a good tiki bar. None of the drinks I enjoyed had the hallmark taste of cocktails made with cheap alcohol and mixes.
Each day, the ship’s 15 bars and lounges served a cocktail made with surplus ingredients. For example, the Pineapple Surplus had JAJA Tequila, passion fruit, pineapple juice, pineapple peel, and turmeric honey.
A Quicker More Consistent Dining Experience
As previously mentioned, one of the reasons for this change is to decrease the time guests spend in the Main Dining Room.
The company believes that dinner should last around 75 minutes. Prior to the new menus, passengers could spend 95-120+ minutes at dinner. A shorter dinner service allows guests to get enjoy other activities during their cruise vacation.
If you do not want a faster dining experience, all you have to do is tell your waiter.
“I think holistically, when you look at both the service experience we create with the theming of nights and then the food that’s layered in…you’re going to see hotter, fresher, more consistently plated, beautiful food,” said Mr. D’Souza.
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Panama Canal Cruises 2023
For winter 2023-2024, Rhapsody OTS has scheduled an RCI-first Caribbean and Latin America program based on 3x homeports – two in Panama and one in Colombia .
The 7-night roundtrips also visit Panama Canal and The Netherlands’ ABC islands in the Leeward Antilles. The Panama Canal itinerary visits Cartagena, and Costa Rica’s Puntarenas and Quepos.
Rci’s Shipboard Dreamworks Experience Program
“DreamWorks Experience” was a family-themed program via a partnership between Royal Caribbean International and Amblin Partners . Universal Pictures is the distributor of DreamWorks movie productions through its subsidiary company Touchstone Pictures.
RCI’s DreamWorks programming featured 3D movies and DreamWorks characters meets-and-greets. It was introduced in June 2010 and terminated in March 2019. This new entertainment program was geared toward families and offered DreamWorks movie-themed activities on only 9 RCI ships . The list of such activities included:
- DreamWorks characters meetings and greetings . The list of characters included Po , Shrek, Fiona, Puss , Alex, Gloria, King Julien, penguins .
- Character Breakfasts were offered in the Main Dining Room restaurant.
- 3D DreamWorks movie screenings were available in the Royal Theater , including first-run movies which premiered on the ship were on the same day they went at land-based theaters. Among the films were “Shrek”, “Madagascar”, “How to Train Your Dragon”, “Kung Fu Panda”.
- DreamWorks channel was part of the in-cabin TV programming.
- Themed activities and games included 3D animation workshops, storytime, themed dance parties, character story-based adventure games, regular character visits to kids facilities, onboard parades, meet-and-greets with photo ops .
- DreamWorks shows were available in Studio B and AquaTheater .
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Who Goes On Royal Caribbean Cruise Ships
For the most part, Royal Caribbean ships that sail from the United States attract a wide variety of North American passengers, mostly between the ages of 30 and 55 on the seven-night and shorter cruises, and 50 and over on cruises longer than seven nights. Seven-night and shorter cruises are also popular with families, especially during American school vacation periods, when the ships will often be at filled at well past double capacity and carrying more than a thousand kids.
Cruises from the U.K. — as well as Mediterranean, Asia and Australia cruises — attract a significant number of locals from each area, as well as Royal Caribbean’s usual North Americans.
Why Go With Royal Caribbean
- Onboard fun includes FlowRider surf simulators and rock climbing walls
- Has two private islands in the Caribbean and Bahamas: Labadee and Perfect Day at CocoCay
- Sails wide range of itineraries to countries across six continents
Best for: Groups, couples and families who like big ships with a vast amount of entertainment, day and night
Not for: Those who are after a quiet, intimate, small-ship experience gourmands couples avoiding kids
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Rci Cruise Cancellation Policy
Starting April 18, 2018, Royal Caribbean passengers who want to cancel an upcoming cruise without penalty have to do so farther out from the departure date than before. The new RCI cruise cancellation policy simplifies the penalty fee schedule by reducing the number of itinerary categories from 5 to 2: those of 1 to 4 nights and those 5 nights or longer.
The previous time when RCI updated its cancellation policy was on March 7, 2016.
Itinerary Changes And Updates In Anticipation Of Hurricane Ian
Hurricane season is at the forefront of several itinerary changes and updates for Royal Caribbean ships, with Hurricane Ian due to make landfall on Floridas gulf coast on Wednesday.
Port Canaveral’s U.S. Coast Guard Captain of the Port has set the current port conditions to ZULU, indicating that sustained Gale Force winds are predicted to make landfall within 12 hours. Due to this, the port has been temporarily closed.
In addition, Orlando International Airport will be closed at 10:30 AM EDT Wednesday, September 28 and is not expected to reopen until 10:30AM EDT on Friday, September 30.
The Mariner of the Seas September 29 sailing will now depart Saturday, October 1st and return on October 3rd.
Guests on this sailing have the choice of sailing and getting 3 days of your cruise fare as a refundable onboard credit. Or they can cancel for a 100% refund.
The September 30 sailing of Independence of the Seas out of Port Canaveral will now depart Saturday, October 1st and return as planned on Monday, October 3rd.
Guests on this sailing have the choice of sailing and getting 2 days of your cruise fare as a refundable onboard credit. Or they can cancel for a 100% refund.
The Harmony of the Seas October 2 sailing from Port Canaveral will go on as planned.
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Rci’s Cruise Planner Packages & Prices
Cruise Planner is an online booking system for adding/pre-purchasing shore excursions, specialty restaurants, beverage packages, internet packages, photo packages, gifts and gear, onboard activities , The Key , as well as making wellness reservations .
Specialty restaurant dining packages currently offered by RCI include “Unlimited” , “3-Night” and “Chops+1” .
Drink packages include Deluxe , Refreshment and Soda .
The Key must be purchased prior the voyage and is priced US$20-35 per person per day.
Arcade Gaming credit packages via CruisePlanner cost less .
Royal Caribbean Brings Back A Covid Change Passengers Like
The Royal Caribbean cruise line has gone back to a policy it used during the early part of its pandemic-era return to sailing.
Few, if any cruise passengers miss wearing masks and dealing with ever-changing rules on exactly what was required of them in different parts of the ships they were on.
People generally also appreciate not having to take covid tests before their cruises because the effort made taking the trips that much more complex.
In addition, while cruise passengers likely have mixed feelings about vaccine requirements being dropped, that change has certainly been a positive for the industry,
During Royal Caribbean’s second-quarter earnings call, Chief Executive Jason Liberty talked about how dropping covid-related rules helped the cruise line.
The other major milestone for the group and the industry is related to the CDC ending its program for cruise ships, as we are now transitioning to the point where everyone will be able to vacation with us. As we’ve always said, the health and safety of our guests, crew, and communities we visit are our top priority, and cruising has proven to be one of the safest environments anywhere. After two years of successfully working with us, the CDC has transitioned from enforcing protocols and policies for the cruise industry to suggestions and recommendations to be in line with the travel and tourism sector.
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Royal Caribbean Carnival See Cruising As Too Good A Value
Royal Caribbean and Carnival want to offer good value to consumers compared with land-based vacations — but there are limits to that effort. Weinstein commented on the matter during the cruise line’s third-quarter-earnings call.
“The issue is we are way too much of a value. We should not be priced at a significant discount to land, which is exactly the case today, anywhere from 25% to 50% based on itineraries,” he said.
Bayley told TheStreet that the problem is that it generally takes a year of selling to fill a ship, so the industry had to scramble after its long covid-related shutdown.
“But all of us were coming from very low load factors. And we were trying to get to our model number of 100% plus. And so, yeah, pricing was a challenge during that period,” he said.
He does believe that higher prices will return.
“I am more optimistic about pricing now than I’d been before. I think we’ve seen ourselves, our load factors are back, our bookings are solid, and our pricing is recovering,” Bayley said.
Importance Of Guest Feedback
It’s been a few years since the last time Royal Caribbean refreshed their dining menus, which is why they relied on guest feedback when curating the new menus.
During the testing phase, they sent a team of six people onboard the Symphony go the Seas who were responsible for conducting in-person meetings with 30-40 passengers per day. In addition, surveys were sent out via email.
In an exclusive interview, Linken D’Souza, the Global Vice President of Culinary, Dining, & Beverage said, “If there’s four or five modifications we can make, we’ll iterate and make those changes. If there’s a theme that’s not working and we’re seeing a lot of dissatisfaction on a specific day within the cruise period, we’ll review that experience.”
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How To Get The Best Price On A Cruise
With both Royal Caribbean and Carnival forecasting higher prices, people looking to cruise should act quickly to lock in the current lower prices. January and February are somewhat the offseason for the cruise industry. Kids are back in school, it’s slightly colder in the Caribbean, and overall demand is generally weaker.
Prices for cruises in the short term, with the exception of the holiday season and the newest ships in both cruise lines’ fleets, remain low by historical standards.
That’s not as true for cruises further into 2023, but prices are still broadly lower than normal, so it generally makes sense to book now, then monitor the price because you can ask for an adjustment until the final payment due date.
If Bayley is correct, low prices, at least relative to land-based vacations, may not continue much longer. He believes the industry has taken its lumps but is on the path back to normal.
“It’s a little bit like being knocked in the mud, and everybody standing up, and then we slip a little bit, but you kind of get yourself back on your feet,” he said.
“And then, you know, you’ve slipped a little bit. But now we’re in this position where we’re all … looking pretty clean and back on our feet and everything started to normalize, stabilized, and get better and better.”
Which Cruise Stock Is A Better Buy Right Now
Since Carnival’s last quarter showed a net loss, a good way to compare the two companies is using their price-to-sales ratios. Based purely on revenue over the trailing 12 months, a stock’s price-to-sales ratio can help reveal whether a company is undervalued or overpriced based on its current market cap — a lower ratio being preferred.
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The Case For Carnival
Down more than 83% from its pre-pandemic highs, and 88% below its all-time high, Carnival now trades in a price range first reached by the stock in the 1990s. Is it time to buy the dip or abandon ship?
In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022, Carnival’s per diem passenger revenues outperformed 2019 levels. That’s certainly a start.
The Miami-based cruise operator also closed out the year by breaking bookings records during its annual Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales. During the Q4 earnings call, CEO Josh Weinstein encouraged, “We’re gaining momentum on our return to strong profitability.”
Indeed, occupancy has been progressively improving for Carnival, which expects to see 90% or higher occupancy in the current quarter. By this summer, the company expects occupancy to reach — and surpass — pre-pandemic levels.
Despite improved company performance, Carnival faces looming uncertainties from both COVID and the ongoing war in Ukraine.
An inconsistent reopening of the cruise industry across the globe presents a major challenge, with each country posing different COVID protocols. And Russia’s war in Ukraine has severely impacted Carnival’s European itineraries and significantly reduced consumer confidence in the region.
What’s Different About The Menus
One change is more of a cohesive theme to each night, with different cuisines and cooking styles highlighted in each day’s menu.
Look for themes such as Italian, American, or Caribbean themes, with the chef’s featured choices listed at the top of the menu.
Something else guests may notice is the removal of the “classics” section, which offered a subset of menu options that were available each night and never changed.
Royal Caribbean is also limiting guests to one lobster tail for no additional cost on the evening the broiled lobster is available.
Prior to this change, guests could order unlimited lobster tails, but the realities of the lobster trade forced Royal Caribbean’s hand in part.
Royal Caribbean can only buy 90% Marine Stewardship Council certified food, which means that lobster needs to be either farm raised or wild caught. A recent shift in Maine lobster purchasing due to environmental concerns has places like Whole Foods halting the purchase of the items.
As a result, Royal Caribbean has changed to buying Canadian lobster that is still MSC certified.
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After 23 Royal Caribbean Cruises Here’s What I Pack
On a cruise ship, none of these are really options. Ships do have gift shops and some newer Royal Caribbean Group ships even have vending machines selling necessities, but prices are high and selection can be limited. Over the past four years, I’ve taken 23 Royal Caribbean cruises and my packing strategies have changed quite a bit.
We are initiating coverage of MSCI with an Overweight rating and a December 2023 price target of $580 . The company has demonstrated best-in-class organic revenue growth, margins, and free-cash-flow conversion within the already impressive information-services sector.
Royal Caribbean Cruise Pool Overflows As Epic Waterfall Spills Over 6
Royal Caribbeans Harmony of the Seas cruise ship had a 6-deck waterfall when pools overflowed during an emergency manoeuvre.
The pool deck is one of the best places to be on the Royal Caribbean Internationals mega-ship. With spectacular slides, water features and a variety of pools to pick from, whats not to love?
Guests aboard Harmony of the Seas thought they had gotten away from rainy winter weather. However, whilst holidaying in the Sunshine State they got an unexpected pouring down.
The surprise came when a pool overflowed after the ship took an emergency change in course. Lets find out more about what went down.
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Silversea Cruises President And Ceo Roberto Martinoli Transitions To Senior Advisor Role Barbara Muckermann Named To Succeed Him
Silversea Cruises President and CEO Roberto Martinoli has elevated the brand into the industry’s leading ultra-luxury cruise line. On January 1, 2023, Martinoli will assume the role of senior advisor to Royal Caribbean Group President and CEO Jason Liberty. Barbara Muckermann, currently Chief Commercial Officer, will become Silversea’s next president and CEO, and will join Royal Caribbean Group’s Executive Committee.
Royal Caribbean Looks To Build Future Cruisers
Most people 25 and under who are on a cruise likely did not pay for that cruise themselves. They might still live with their parents , but even if they have moved out, someone else is likely footing the bill.
Creating programming for that age group accomplishes a couple of things for the cruise line.
First, it gives that somewhat overlooked age group a much better chance of having a good time on their cruises. That’s important because if younger folks find cruising boring. it becomes hard for the cruise line to get them to sample again when they have families of their own .
Second, Royal Caribbean’s Hyperlink program should build friendships and maybe even love connections that may lead to people wanting to cruise more. If you have friends that like to cruise, it’s natural that you may plan future cruises with those people .
Royal Caribbean is solving an onboard problem here while also building for its future.
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