Royal Caribbean Fans

Royal Caribbean has announced that as of March 1, 2013, all passengers will be charged an automatic daily gratuity for the crew members in the dining room and housekeeping team.

Royal Caribbean will add an automatic daily gratuity of $12.00 USD ($14.25 USD for Suite guests) to the onboard account of each guest to be shared by Dining Services Staff, Stateroom Attendants and Other Housekeeping Services Personnel. The new gratuity system replaces the previously optional gratuity guidelines and the distinct gratuity envelopes.

Passengers who have already prepaid their gratuities for their upcoming cruise will not be affected by the change.

The move by Royal Caribbean now mirrors what rival cruise lines Carnival , Princess, Cunard, Holland America and Norwegian have already instituted.

In response to the Costa Concordia disaster, Royal Caribbean Cruise Ltd. has directed all ships to hold passenger muster drills on the day of departure.

RCCL's U.S. brands are Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity and Azamara Club Cruises.

Typically, all RCCL vessels hold muster drills 30 to 60 minutes prior to departure on the day of embarkation or turnaround, the company said.

“On rare occasions, primarily due to very late departure times, the drill is held the following morning,” said an RCCL spokesman.

RCCL is the first cruise company to directly address evacuation drills since the Concordia accident, which occurred before about 700 passengers could attend a muster drill.

Those passengers embarked the ship in Civitavecchia, Italy, about four hours before the crash near the Tuscan island of Giglio.

Source: www.travelweekly.com

Royal Caribbean has come to a conclusion not to offer its all-you-can-drink alcohol packages that are currently offered onboard Independence of the Seas when she arrives in Florida for her seasonal deployment.

In November 2012, Independence of the Seas will sail out of Fort Lauderdale, Florida for the fall and winter Caribbean sailings. While scheduled in the United States, the alcohol beverage packages will not be offered onboard. Royal Caribbean will continue to offer them when Independence is based back in Southampton after that period. They will also offer them on the transatlantic repositioning cruise from Southampton to Fort Lauderdale.

Royal Caribbean spokesman Harrison Liu discussed the decision, "As Royal Caribbean International is a global cruise brand, our ships' offerings are tailored to the markets from where they draw their guests. Independence of the Seas [from] Southampton was primarily a British product. When the ship sails in the Caribbean, the onboard offering will be adjusted to cater to a more North American and international clientele, as well as reflect the cultural norms here. The drinks package will not be expanded to additional ships yet."

The all you can drink packages start at $29 per day and are available on Independence of the Seas, Grandeur of the Seas and Legend of the Seas. All three of these ships are based outside of the United States.