59 Fun Facts About Royal Caribbean

In which country was Royal Caribbean founded?

Norway is where three shipping companies founded the line in 1968; its first purpose-built cruise ship entered Caribbean service two years later.

In which city is Royal Caribbean based?

Miami has been the line's home port since its first ship sailed in 1970; the headquarters stands on Dodge Island at the Port of Miami.

What was the name of the line's first ship, which entered service in 1970?

Song of Norway, built by Wärtsilä in Helsinki and delivered in 1970, was among the first ships purpose-built for cruising; she ended her days as a casino ship before being scrapped in India.

Which phrase ends the name of every Royal Caribbean ship delivered since 2000?

The suffix of the Seas has been used for every delivery since 2000; older names such as Nordic Empress were brought into line by renaming, in her case to Empress of the Seas in 2004.

Which 1988 ship was the largest passenger vessel afloat when launched?

Monarch and Majesty of the Seas followed as her Sovereign-class sisters in 1991 and 1992.

Royal Caribbean's private resort Labadee is on the coast of which country?

Haiti's northern coast holds Labadee, leased by the line since 1986; though often marketed like an island, it is a fenced-off peninsula near Cap-Haïtien.

CocoCay, the line's private island, was originally called what?

Little Stirrup Cay is the island's original name; it lies in the Bahamas' Berry Islands beside Great Stirrup Cay, which Norwegian Cruise Line has used since 1977.

Roughly how much did Royal Caribbean spend renovating CocoCay into "Perfect Day at CocoCay" in 2019?

$250M went into the 2019 makeover, which added a pier so ships no longer tender and a waterpark whose Daredevil's Peak slide was billed as North America's tallest.

Which Greek cruise line did Royal Caribbean merge with in 1997, prompting its change of name?

Celebrity Cruises, then owned by Greece's Chandris family, was acquired in 1997; the deal turned Royal Caribbean Cruise Line into Royal Caribbean International, with both brands held by Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.

In what year did Royal Caribbean list on the New York Stock Exchange?

1993 saw the initial public offering of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. on the New York Stock Exchange, where it trades under the ticker RCL.

Which ship class was the first to feature an ice rink at sea and the Royal Promenade?

Voyager of the Seas opened the class in 1999 with the first ice rink afloat and the Royal Promenade; built in Finland at about 137,000 gross tons, the ships were the world's largest when new.

Which class introduced the FlowRider surfing simulator?

Freedom of the Seas brought the FlowRider when she debuted in 2006; at 154,407 gross tons the Freedom ships held the title of world's largest until the next generation arrived.

Which class is built to Panamax dimensions and uses gas turbine engines?

Radiance of the Seas led a four-ship class from 2001 whose General Electric gas turbines and Panamax beam let them transit the original Panama Canal locks.

Which two ships were the first of Royal Caribbean's record-breaking class delivered in 2009 and 2010?

Oasis and Allure of the Seas were named through a contest run with USA Today in 2008; they debuted a year apart as the largest cruise ships ever built.

Roughly how much does each Oasis-class ship cost the line?

$1.4 billion is the rough price per ship, each of which tops 225,000 gross tons; the first was ordered from Aker Yards in Finland in 2006.

Which dry-slide attraction debuted on Harmony and Symphony of the Seas?

The Ultimate Abyss is a ten-storey pair of spiral slides dropping from deck 16 to the Boardwalk; it first appeared on Harmony of the Seas in 2016.

Which observation capsule on a 41-metre crane arm is a signature of the Quantum class?

North Star lifts guests in a glass capsule to about 300 feet above the waterline; the class also carries the RipCord by iFLY skydiving simulator and the Two70 lounge.

Which Quantum-class venue hosts bumper cars, roller skating and a trapeze school?

SeaPlex is a double-height sports hall with bumper cars, roller skating and a trapeze school; the class dropped the ice rink found on earlier ships.

Which shipyard built the Quantum-class ships?

Meyer Werft, Papenburg built all five Quantum-class ships, floating each down the narrow Ems to the North Sea; they were the yard's first for the line since the early 2000s.

Which fuel powers the Icon-class ships?

Liquefied natural gas powers the Icon ships' dual-fuel engines, the line's first to use it; it cuts sulphur and particulates, though critics point to methane slip from unburned gas.

What is the name of Royal Caribbean's loyalty programme?

Crown & Anchor Society is the loyalty scheme, its tiers running from Gold through Platinum, Emerald and Diamond to Pinnacle Club on points earned per night at sea.

Which footballer christened Icon of the Seas in January 2024?

Lionel Messi, the Argentine World Cup winner, served as godfather and released the ceremonial champagne bottle on 23 January 2024; her maiden voyage left four days later.

How many swimming pools does Icon of the Seas have?

It also has six water slides across its 20 decks and claims the tallest waterfall at sea.

What is the maximum passenger capacity of Icon of the Seas?

7,600 is the maximum with every berth filled; double occupancy is 5,610, served by a crew of 2,350.

What is the name of the glass-domed diving and performance venue atop Icon of the Seas?

AquaDome, a glass dome over the ship's forward top decks, houses the aqua theatre and a 55-foot waterfall; The Hideaway, aft, has the first suspended infinity pool at sea.

Thrill Island on Icon of the Seas is billed as what?

The largest waterpark at sea is the billing for Category 6, Thrill Island's six-slide park, which includes the Frightening Bolt, the tallest drop slide afloat.

Which shipyard builds the Icon-class ships?

Meyer Turku, the former Wärtsilä and Kvaerner Masa yard in south-west Finland, builds the Icon ships; Meyer bought it from STX Finland in 2014.

Which Icon-class ship entered service in August 2025?

Star of the Seas, the second Icon-class ship, was delivered from Finland in the summer of 2025 and began sailing from Port Canaveral that August.

Which sixth Oasis-class ship entered service from Port Canaveral in July 2024?

Utopia of the Seas, at about 236,860 gross tons the biggest of her class, was built in France and sails short Bahamas cruises from Port Canaveral.

Which Oasis-class ship of 2022 held the largest-ship title until Icon of the Seas arrived?

Built at Saint-Nazaire, she measures 235,600 gross tons.

Which ship was the fleet's first to resume sailing in the pandemic, from Singapore in December 2020?

Quantum of the Seas ran 'cruises to nowhere' from Singapore from 1 December 2020 under a pilot scheme that capped capacity at half and required pre-boarding tests.

Which company's Starlink service did Royal Caribbean adopt fleet-wide in 2022 to fix weak internet?

SpaceX's Starlink was ordered for the whole fleet in August 2022, weeks after the FCC cleared the satellite service for use on boats, planes and trucks.

Which harbour did Royal Caribbean agree in 2017 to use as a preferred berth for Oasis-class ships?

Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale won the 2017 agreement, which hinged on Broward County rebuilding Cruise Terminal 25 at a cost of roughly $100 million.

Which two ships left the fleet for Britain's Thomson Cruises in 2016 and 2017?

Splendour and Legend of the Seas went to Thomson Cruises, which became Marella Cruises in 2017, and sailed on as Marella Discovery and Marella Discovery 2.

Which cruise line did Royal Caribbean merge with in 1988, gaining the lease on CocoCay?

Admiral Cruises, itself formed in 1986 from Eastern, Western and Sundance Cruises, brought the island's lease into the merger; Royal Caribbean branded it CocoCay two years later.

Which glass-domed train tours did Royal Caribbean start offering in 2000?

Alaska was the destination, with Royal Celebrity Tours' glass-domed Wilderness Express railcars linking Anchorage, Denali and Fairbanks to the cruises.

Which ship's 2014 norovirus outbreak sickened 689 people, one of the largest in two decades?

Explorer of the Seas cut short a ten-day Caribbean cruise in January 2014 after 689 passengers and crew fell ill; guests got a 50% refund plus credit toward a future cruise.

Passengers from which ship were among those killed in the 2019 Whakaari / White Island eruption?

Twenty-one people from the ship died; it was docked at Tauranga, New Zealand.

What was the signature lounge wrapped around the funnel on early Royal Caribbean ships called?

Viking Crown Lounge, a glassed-in bar cantilevered around the funnel, debuted on the line's first ship in 1970 and was modelled on the Space Needle's restaurant.

Royal Caribbean Group's holding company is incorporated in which country?

Liberia is the place of incorporation of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., a common flag-of-convenience choice, though the group is run from the United States and listed in New York.

Which cruise line did Royal Caribbean Group take full ownership of in 2020?

Silversea Cruises, the Monaco-based ultra-luxury line, joined the group when it bought a two-thirds stake from the Lefebvre family in 2018 and the remainder in 2020.

How was the line's first ship made bigger in 1978?

An 85-foot midsection was inserted at the Wärtsilä yard in Helsinki in 1978, lifting her from about 18,000 to 23,000 gross tons and adding cabins for roughly 300 more passengers.

Which Vision-class ship had a 74-foot midsection added in 2005, pushing it over 80,000 gross tons?

Every Vision-class ship carries more than two acres of glass.

Which new private destination did the line open in Nassau in December 2025?

Further private resorts are planned in Cozumel, Mexico, and on Lelepa Island in Vanuatu.

Which South Pacific spot did Royal Caribbean pick in 2019 for a planned private resort?

Lelepa, Vanuatu was announced in 2019 as Perfect Day at Lelepa, planned as the line's first private destination outside the Caribbean and Bahamas, a short sail from Port Vila.

Which ship was involved in the 2005 disappearance of passenger George Allen Smith?

Brilliance of the Seas was on a Mediterranean honeymoon cruise between Greece and Turkey in July 2005 when Smith vanished overnight; the family later settled with the line for about $1.1 million.

Which Quantum-class ship's 2021 debut was delayed after eight crew members tested positive for COVID-19?

Odyssey of the Seas had her inaugural Fort Lauderdale sailing pushed back to the end of July 2021 after eight crew members tested positive during the delivery period.

Which Oasis-class neighbourhood is planted with thousands of live plants and trees?

Central Park, open to the sky amidships, holds more than 10,000 live plants and dozens of trees, with balcony cabins facing inward onto the greenery.

Which three shipping companies founded Royal Caribbean Cruise Line in 1968?

Anders Wilhelmsen, I.M. Skaugen and Gotaas Larsen, three Oslo shipping houses, set up the line in 1968, taking delivery of its first purpose-built ship from Finland two years later.

Which second ship joined the fleet in 1971 and was itself stretched in 1980?

Nordic Prince arrived from Wärtsilä's Helsinki yard in 1971 as the second of three near-sisters, with Sun Viking following in 1972; her 1980 lengthening mirrored that of the first ship two years earlier.

What name did Royal Caribbean give its fleet-wide refit programme launched in 2018?

Royal Amplified was the programme, budgeted at about $1 billion, that from 2018 refitted ships with waterslides, escape rooms, laser tag and reworked pool decks.

Which shipyard built four of the six Vision-class ships in the 1990s?

Chantiers de l'Atlantique at Saint-Nazaire delivered four Vision-class ships between 1995 and 1998; the other two came from Kvaerner Masa-Yards in Helsinki.

Which unusual amenity did the Radiance-class ships introduce as a first at sea?

Self-levelling billiard tables, mounted on gyroscopes to stay flat as the ship rolls, debuted on Radiance of the Seas in 2001, alongside glass-walled lifts and a Solarium with a retractable roof.

Which Royal Caribbean ship suffered a mooring-deck fire in May 2013 and diverted to Freeport?

Grandeur of the Seas was sailing from Baltimore when fire broke out on her aft mooring deck on 27 May 2013; nobody was hurt and passengers were flown home from Freeport.

What is the robot-bartender venue introduced with the Quantum class in 2014 called?

Bionic Bar uses two Makr Shakr robotic arms to mix drinks ordered from tablets; it debuted with the Quantum class in 2014.

How much did the EPA fine Royal Caribbean in 2024 over hazardous-waste reporting failures?

The lapses covered the period from July 2019 to July 2024.

Who succeeded Richard Fain as chief executive of Royal Caribbean Group in 2022?

Jason Liberty, previously the group's chief financial officer, took over as chief executive in January 2022 when Richard Fain stepped down after 33 years in the job.

Royal Caribbean Group holds a 50 percent stake in which cruise company that operates Mein Schiff?

TUI Cruises, a joint venture with Germany's TUI AG formed in 2008, runs the Mein Schiff fleet and, since 2020, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises as well.

Which Madrid-based line did Royal Caribbean's parent company buy in November 2006?

Pullmantur, then Spain's largest cruise operator, came with two former Renaissance ships that were spun off the following year to launch the Azamara brand.