Maybe it is time to end my sabbatical. I want to express my appreciation for all of my colleagues who have been writing entries about diverse aspects of the business. I will certainly continue with this practice as there is nothing like having people write in the first person about their passion to improve their part of our world.
I really cannot put my finger on why it suddenly became harder to write. Some of it was working on topics that were confidential for a sustained period, such as Project Sunshine, which we have now announced will yield our next new ship in 2014. Some of it was an even greater abundance of incoming emails than I would have ever thought possible. In any event, I apologize and will try to write more regularly going forward.
There is certainly no lack of excitement to write about. We are really pleased with the changes we have made to Freedom of the Seas and Liberty of the Seas. Now we are only a few weeks away from undertaking the revitalization of Radiance of the Seas as the next element of the Royal Advantage.
Our Radiance-class ships are truly beautiful and it is fantastic that the first of the class will receive additional features inspired by our newer ships. Radiance of the Seas pioneered many operational and management approaches that have become fleetwide over time. Some of those approaches contributed to her rough start back in 2001. In hindsight, we simply asked for trouble by having too many crew without prior shipboard experience take a new ship class into service. We wanted to (and did) break our previous paradigm of operations, as successful as it had been up until that point. But in so doing we caused guests, travel agents and ourselves more problems than we should have done. Eventually, however, “Project Radiance” led to the successful global, 22-ship operation that Royal Caribbean International is today. And our beautiful Radiance is about to become more beautiful still.
Although I am blogging about the revitalization of Radiance of the Seas, in the office this project is already old news. Next up this fall is the revitalization of Splendour of the Seas. That is one of the projects currently occupying us at headquarters.
My first cruise was on Radiance of the Seas…I’ll always remember it the best as it had a fabulous crew and was an amazing ship!!
We’re glad to hear you had such a great time onboard Radiance of the Seas, Aggie. You’ll never forget your first time, we’re just happy you enjoyed it with us. When is your next cruise?
RADIANCE OF THE SEAS IS OUR FAVORITE SHIP OF ANY LINE. PLEASE BRING HER BACK TO THE WEST COAST !!
Thanks for sharing with us, Patricia. We are pleased to hear that Radiance of the Seas is your favorite ship. Although there are no plans currently to reposition her back on the West Coast, please continue to follow our blog or our website for all of the latest news.
In January I was on the last US sailing of the Mariner of the Seas. It was the greatest experience. Entertainment was the Shintas and I sincerely hope Royal hires them to entertain on other their other ships. They went over and above to keep everyone happy and entertained.
Arlene, we are happy you could share that moment with us. We’ll be sure to notify the proper department about how entertaining The Scintas were during your cruise, and we will keep them in mind for future opportunities. Thank you so much for sharing your great experience with us.
Dear Adam,
Please we all understand your statement, “Some of it was an even greater abundance of incoming emails than I would have ever thought possible.” As due to the arrival of Royal Caribbean Cruising to New Orleans, totally understand the backlog of e-mails. It only goes to show how much you care about your guests and referring partners. Looking forward to sailing with RCCL in the future. The Court of Two Sisters has a men’s tasting club and knows Vicki Freed’s name well.
The best to you in 2011/2012 Season in New Orleans. Looking forward to upcoming sales events in N.O., which Joe and Jerry Fein approved for Monday, May 16th and Monday, May 23rd RCCL Trade Show. Kindest Regards, June Fallo Director of Sales The Court of Two Sisters Restaurant
It’s great to hear from you, June, and thank you so much for your well wishes. We are all very excited about New Orleans and we are definitely looking forward to spreading the WOW to Louisiana.
The Radiance Class remains my favorite. Maybe I’m like Goldilocks they “aren’t too big, or too small; they’re just right” with the best options, itineraries, services, and crews ever!
We’re glad our Radiance Class ships could give you a story book experience, Melanie. Thanks so much for sharing and we hope to see you back onboard again soon.
My wife and I took our 1st cruise 2 weeks ago on Voyager. Like it so much we booked the same cruise for next Spring. Bless RCCL for the work being done in Falmouth, Jamaica.
That’s great to hear, Bill. We’re so happy you and your wife enjoyed cruising with us and that we could be a part of your first cruise experience. Thank you so much for your kind remarks, it truly means a lot to us. We’re looking forward to seeing you both next year.
Can’t wait to sail the Radiance of the Seas for our Honeymoon to Hawaii. Thanks for the upgrades
You’re more than welcome, John. Enjoy your honeymoon! What are you looking forward to the most?