Our Company

Adam Endures 49 Hours in the Air as His Travels Continue

My travels have continued with visits to San Juan for the annual Florida Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA) conference and to Asia/Pacific for company business.

The FCCA conference is always an intense affair because of the economic significance of the cruise industry to many of the island nations of the Caribbean basin. The focus of the meeting has evolved over time and this year the impact of the globalization of the industry was more evident than in the past. Although new ships still make their presence felt in the region (not the least of which being Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas), the growth of other cruise markets and the predominance of “homeport” cruises (i.e., cruises originating on the U.S. Coast that do not require air travel for many of the guests) have caused the number of cruise visitors to certain ports to decline quite dramatically. Many of these ports are to the south and southeast of San Juan. So it was important that the conference took place in San Juan. The government of Puerto Rico took advantage of the opportunity to restate its commitment to the cruise industry. They really put on an impressive showing from Governor Fortuno on down.

(more…)

BY:Adam|15th November, 2011 5 Comments

Ask Adam Blog Series - October 2011 Answers


The air has turned crisp and fresh and just in time for the October edition of our “Ask Adam Blog Series.” To see the answers to September’s questions please click here, or if you have a question you would like to ask Adam regarding Royal Caribbean news, what he’s have been up to or just curious about anything Royal related, please follow this link to our Facebook discussion page.

How many passengers will the refurbished Splendour of the Seas hold in 2012?
– Pamela B.
(more…)

BY:Adam|8th November, 2011 19 Comments
CATEGORY: Our Company

Our President and CEO Shares Some Random Thoughts

Randomness:

- Someone once said the business of America is business. Even taking that into consideration, the outpouring of grief and accolades for Steve Jobs after his death was remarkable. And it wasn’t limited to America. There is a global recognition that his leadership and accomplishments were transformational. As both an admirer and a customer, I join in the mourning of his untimely passing and wish the leadership of Apple well in the daunting task of carrying on with Jobs’ vision. He obviously inspired a lot of people. Who else do you find similarly inspirational?

(more…)

BY:Adam|28th October, 2011 5 Comments

The Royal Oldies: An Ocean-Sized Reunion

My name is Michael Bayley and I am the Executive Vice President, International at Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Since joining Royal Caribbean in 1981 as Assistant Purser on the Nordic Prince I have worked with so many wonderful and talented people. Too many to count and too many to remember.

Over the years as I bumped into former shipboard and shoreside colleagues literally all over the world we would share our many memories and re-live some magical moments. Many times we would say good bye with the words “we really should get all the oldies together, it would be a blast”.
(more…)

BY:Michael Bayley|14th October, 2011 13 Comments

Ask Adam Blog Series - September 2011 Answers

Fall is in full swing and so is the September edition of the “Ask Adam Blog Series.” To see the answers to August’s questions please click here, or if you have a question you would like to ask Adam regarding Royal Caribbean news, what he’s have been up to or just curious about anything Royal related, please follow this link to our Facebook discussion page.

Do you plan on having a ship stay year round in Tampa? Other cruise companies do. Thank you.
- Karol W-W.
(more…)

BY:Adam|11th October, 2011 14 Comments
CATEGORY: Our Company

Meeting Presidents, Heading to DC, and Visiting Europe: All in Days Work

I’ve been on the road a bit lately. We are all quick to highlight the hassles of travel but with those hassles usually come a variety of interesting experiences.

Richard Fain and I recently spent a day in Port au Prince, Haiti. We met with Haiti’s new and energetic President Michel Martelly. Given our status as Haiti’s second largest foreign direct investor, it made sense to take the time to meet the President and a number of his advisors. The outlook for the new government is uncertain given the President’s struggle to obtain the Parliament’s approval of a Prime Minister. It was apparent that President Martelly and his team understand the role of tourism in generating sorely needed economic activity. We hope and expect the government will actively support the necessary steps to establish the Citadelle and the Palais Sans Souci as first tier attractions.

citadelle-laferriere-mountaintop-fortress-at-the-top-of-labadee-in-haiti

(more…)

BY:Adam|6th October, 2011 4 Comments

Adam Shares Some Humorous “Outtake” Stories during his Time at Royal Caribbean

There must be a subliminal current of nostalgia running under our buildings, because we’re quite focused on our history right now. There is a history videography project going on at the moment and there is also a first ever company sponsored reunion event for employees from the early years coming up soon in South Florida. This prompted me to think about some of the past moments I remember or came to know about that wouldn’t show up in press releases or webisodes. There are more where these came from, and feel free to volunteer your own Royal Caribbean “outtake” moments.

1. 1988, underneath Heathrow Airport. During the three plus months of insanity while our company was experiencing a merger and a potential acquisition by Carnival, we had a lot of tasks to complete in Europe. At one point, our CFO, Treasurer and I needed to catch the next flight to Oslo fast. I went to the airport in a different car from the other two and we encountered each other in one of the tunnels under Heathrow, all running as fast as we could with our suitcases – in opposite directions! Fortunately we made the flight.
(more…)

BY:Adam|22nd September, 2011 20 Comments
CATEGORY: Our Company

Finalizing Plans for 2012 and a Look at 2013 and Beyond

The end of summer is upon us. We are finalizing our thoughts about the 2012 Plan for Royal Caribbean International. This is always a challenging exercise with 22 ships sailing around the world and customers coming from over 100 countries to those ships. We want to do the best we can for our guests, our shareholders and our employees. This is the primary process for making the necessary trade-offs. It’s never easy.

Even as we define next year’s activities and expenditures we are casting our eyes further forward. All of the strategic discussions about where our ships will sail from spring 2013 to spring 2014 are taking place at this time. There are a lot more opinions than there are ships. Now that we are offering our All Access behind the scenes tour onboard the ships, maybe Chris Allen should offer an All Access behind the scenes tour of our deployment planning. Just kidding.

image-ship-royal-caribbean

(more…)

BY:Adam|13th September, 2011 32 Comments
CATEGORY: Our Company

Ask Adam Blog Series - August 2011 Answers

As the summer begins to wind down here is the August edition of our “Ask Adam Blog Series.” To see the answers to July’s questions please click here, or if you have a question you would like to ask Adam regarding Royal Caribbean news, what he’s been up to or just curious about anything Royal related, please follow this link to our Facebook discussion page. Now let’s get to the questions.

Adam, are you from Brooklyn?
- Michael B.

Actually I am from Philadelphia.

Can frequent Royal Caribbean International cruisers submit name ideas for future ships?
– Steph R.
(more…)

BY:Adam|9th September, 2011 10 Comments
CATEGORY: Our Company

Updates on the Impact of Hurricane Irene and Concierge Lounge Policy

One of the striking features of cruising is its complexity. When hospitality intersects with maritime, the result is — a lot of variables!

Usually we master the variables in a way that reinforces the world class reputation Royal Caribbean is fortunate to enjoy. This blog just posted an entry about a spectacular passport retrieval that saved a cruise with minutes to spare. There are many stories directionally like that and we are proud of our people who so often deliver the WOW.

The complexity produces two consequences from time to time. First, we sometimes fail to read a guest situation correctly and the failure has implications. Second, we sometimes do get things right but there is nevertheless a perception that something is amiss. In recent days, we have experienced one of each. This blog provides an opportunity to comment on such matters.

(more…)

BY:Adam|6th September, 2011 84 Comments
CATEGORY: Our Company
 

Community picks