Daily Travel Deal – Royal Caribbean Cruises starting at just $229 + bonus credit

by Scott Carmichael on

Royal Caribbean is currently offering a huge variety of very nicely priced cruise packages, starting at just $229.

That low price actually gets you a 3 night/4 day cruise from Miami to the Bahamas (and back).

To make the deal even better, they’ll also throw in a $25 on-board credit on select dates, making the final price just a couple of bucks over $200.

That $200 includes all your meals, entertainment, pool access, rock climbing, 9 bars, a casino, movie theater and a fitness center/spa. That means you get an all inclusive vacation for just $68 a night!

If you have a little more time (or money), you’ll find a nice lineup of other cruises including 10 nights in Alaska for $1049 (with a $200 on-board credit) or even a 12 night transatlantic cruise from London, via France, Ireland, Iceland and Canada to Boston for $1099.

Of course, these prices are all based on an inside room, but in my experience, if you plan your ship time well, you’ll only be using the room for sleeping. Upgrades to an oceanview room start at just $50. As with most travel deals, availability will be limited, and not all dates will be available for the lowest price.

Check out the entire lineup of Royal Caribbean cruise deals here. If you’d prefer to keep both feet on solid ground, be sure to check out the top 5 travel deals!

Cruise line trends to look out for

by Jamie Rhein on

There are some trends in the cruise industry that might make you pleased or disgruntled, depending on if the trends tip in your favor.

Non-smokers may feel more pleased to find out that one growing trend is to restrict smoking to fewer and fewer places on a ship. Smokers, of course, may not be thrilled.

Another trend is for bigger ships. Royal Caribbean’s Independence of the Seas is the biggest of them all. It can carry 3,634 passengers. Both Celebrity and Carnival Cruises have gone for larger ship sizes as well.

While on-board, you might be paying more fees than in the past. Even the snacks might cost you. Other fees are for on-board tours and eating at an alternative restaurant. Before you book a cruise, find out what your money will pay for and what it doesn’t so you don’t end up feeling mad, cheated or disappointed.

Because more and more people are looking to find R&R while on board, more ships are offering spa classes and areas for retreats where passengers can meditate or just hang out in peace and quiet.

Along with these cruise line trends, Jay Clarke also mentioned in his article in the Columbus Dispatch that there are half-dozen new ships in southern Florida. I imagine this means that if you’re looking for a travel bargain, consider a cruise.

Finland is building the world’s longest cruise liner

by Jeffrey White on

A 1,200-foot-long Royal Caribbean cruise liner being built in Finland got a test run of sorts yesterday, launching into water not far from the country’s capital, Helsinki.

The ship boasts 16 passenger decks, 2,700 cabins and can hold 6,300 passengers and nearly half as many crew. And get this: It’s got an open-air arena that, according to the Associated Press, is the size of a football field!

It’s also got a Greek amphitheater, a skating rink and much more. It cost about $2.5 billion to build.

The official name for the cruise liner is the Oasis of the Seas. Royal Caribbean has ordered another one from Finland, to be launched in 2010.

Shipbuilders say the inaugural liner will be completed in about a year and will then sail to Miami before taking on its first passengers. If you’re a cruise fan, this is one ship you should keep an eye out for.

See the world’s largest cruise ship (again)

by David Breisch on

Man, it seems like just a couple years ago that Royal Caribbean took home the “world’s largest cruise ship” award (oh, wait, it was.) Well, they’re at it again, with construction of the new Oasis-class of cruise ships. Ships, in case you didn’t know, are measured by their gross tonnage. Back in 2006, Royal Caribbean held the aforementioned title with the Freedom of the Seas, which weighed in at 160,000 gross tons. And actually, I went on a cruise in (if I recall correctly) 2001 on a Royal Caribbean ship called Voyager of the Seas, which at the time was billed as the “world’s largest cruise ship.”

Well, kids, they’re at it again, only this time the ship – the Oasis of the Seas – weighs in at 222,900 tons. That’s a horrifying 39% bigger than the Freedom, in case you didn’t feel like doing the math yourself. (Well, horrifying depending on your point of view, I suppose.) Now, Royal Caribbean has a lot of practice with this whole “biggest ship” thing, and as is typical with a new launch, they’re debuting a number of “firsts at sea” on-board amenities. There’s Central Park, a six-deck-tall open-air atrium. The Boardwalk features a full-sized carousel. The Sports Deck has pools, basketball and volleyball courts, a rock climbing wall and a mini-golf course. And, oh yeah, there’s apparently a zip-line ride over the Boardwalk.

Now, I’m not as opposed to cruises as other Gadling bloggers, but this is a pretty ridiculous ship.

Royal Caribbean bans Cleveland couple for life

by Jeffrey White on

It appears that cruise lines will only take so much complaining.

Royal Caribbean has banned for life Cleveland residents Brenda and Gerald Moran after the couple has spent the last four years sailing with the company — a total of six voyages — and complaining about it every step of the way

“On all but one of those sailings the Morans felt there were a variety of service failures they experienced,” Michael Sheehan, a VP at Royal Caribbean, tells the Associated Press. “In a small number of cases we agreed and compensated them appropriately. In most cases, however, we disagreed. Having concluded that we are unable to meet the expectations of the Morans, we have told them that they would be best served by sailing with another company.”

What’s really gotten the couple in trouble is that they posted all of their complaints — including Brenda Moran having her birthday greeting sent to the wrong stateroom! — and dealings with RC on their Web site Cruise Critic. There latest run-in involved a two week Alaska cruise on the Radiance of the Seas. Here are the bits that apparently sent RC over the edge, direct from the Moran’s “review”:

Our stateroom 8276 (AFT D1) was nicely appointed but the bathroom reeked of sewer smell for the entire 14 night cruise. Guest Relations did nothing but tell us about other guests who flush oranges, apples, silverware, diapers, etc down the toilet so we should talk to them. So our balcony door remained open the entire cruise even in 40 degree nights to keep the air fresh. Night 14 at midnight we have a guy banging on our door to deliver an envelope from the Hotel Manager giving us 20% off our next cruise. Too bad it took 2 weeks to do it.

Other Group Cruises, a gift was on the bed each night, but this cruise we got only 6 – DVD zipper case, a compass that is a clock also, pens that light up & unscrew to be a light, tote bag with Royal Caribbean scarf, backpack looking item that is actually a duffel bag with a Royal Caribbean scarf in it & what resembled a bench seat that actually the felt blanket pulls out to be a waterproof Royal Caribbean poncho which we used in 4 rainy days at ports.

We are Diamond members and on other Member Cruises we had FREE Seattle’s Best Specialty coffees (Latte, Espresso, Cappuccino as well as regular & decaf) but not this one. The Concierge Lounge is now for Suite Guests only. We have a Diamond Lounge which past Member Cruises had the machine with china cups & plates for continental breakfast for all Diamond & Diamond Plus to enjoy. This Diamond Lounge on Radiance had a plastic push button coffee server with paper cups & milk on ice. 30 minutes after it was delivered the coffee was cold.

While I can’t understand whole sentences here, it seems in general to be pretty trivial stuff (the sewage problem notwithstanding). Still, RC sided with the couple on this on, offering them $500 in addition to that 20 percent off voucher.

Not long after their review went live, a RC customer service executive contacted them to demand they take it down. They refused. A day later, they were blacklisted.

In fairness, other cruise fans who frequented Cruise Critic had been complaining that the couple was using the site, and complaining in general, simply to get freebies from RC. Some posters on the site even contacted RC directly to complain about, among other things, the couple getting that 20 percent off voucher and $500 for the sewage incident.

Whether the Morans were diligent consumer advocates or simply scam artists, RC is finished dealing with them. Last November, they sent the Morans a letter making the travel ban official: They cannot set foot on any RC ship, including subsidiaries Celebrity and Azamara.