CLIA anticipates talks with CDC on return to the sea

MSC Magnifica at anchor in Queensferry Edinburgh

Days after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) extended the No Sail Order for cruise ships from U.S. ports through September, CLIA expressed confidence that it was close to starting a meaningful dialogue with the agency about resuming sailings. 

CLIA global chair Adam Goldstein said that so far, its engagement with the CDC has focused mostly on the health and repatriation of crew members who were still aboard ships in U.S. waters. 

The CDC had not thus far engaged meaningfully with CLIA and the industry about resuming service, Goldstein said, but he was encouraged that would begin, citing commentary in the No Sail Order extension that indicated “a willingness for information exchange and development of approaches beyond what we had seen from them before.”

CLIA was also encouraged that its voluntary suspension through Sept. 15 closely aligned with the CDC’s No Sail Order extension to Sept. 30.

“The fact that we’re beginning to converge makes us more optimistic that the kind of engagement we’re looking for with the CDC as our regulator will begin in the near future and will allow their experts, our experts, our operations personnel, our leaders and their leaders to have the kind of dialogue that will result in the safe and successful resumption of service,” Goldstein said. 

According to CLIA, being involved in such high-level talks with regulators in Europe has helped enable the resumption of limited cruise operations in Germany and Norway. 

“The EU has engaged with us fairly intensively through multiple rounds of discussion to work toward an EU guidance permitting national regulators to adopt appropriate regulations, which, in combination with our protocols, we believe is what put Germany and Norway in a condition to restart under the limited conditions,” Goldstein said. 

CLIA believes more European countries in the near term may also begin limited cruise operations. 

“This is a reflection of one of the expectations we’ve had for a couple months now -- that cruising would restart in kind of a sequential manner,” Goldstein said. 

CLIA’s primary focus is still on its members’ primary source market, North America, and most popular destinations: the Caribbean, Alaska, Bermuda and Mexico. Goldstein said that CLIA and the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association are in dialogue with destinations around North America “to work toward alignment” on how they can confidently open up to cruise ship visits.

“In order for the North American cruise market to regenerate, two things need to be true: The cruise industry needs approval from the CDC to resume operations in and out of the U.S., and the ports of call need to accept the ships,” Goldstein said. “This critical work will take time, but it is in everyone’s interest to come to a mutually agreeable approach.” 

In what seemed to be a response to the CDC’s citing a lack of consensus among cruise lines and the need for additional industry-led efforts regarding safely resuming passenger operations, Goldstein said that over the next weeks and months, CLIA expects to emerge with one or more policies that members will eventually sign onto in response to the pandemic.

“Our goal remains to emerge with a unified approach policy-wise across the associations that all member lines will sign up for,” he said. “I can’t tell you when that will occur or the steps that will get us there.”

A crucial part of the cruise restart: Lines and ports must agree on health protocols

Carnival Cruise Line ships in Cozumel, Mexico. As it works towards a restart, the cruise industry must work with port authorities and governments to agree on health protocols.

As cruising looks to resume operations after the coronavirus-induced industry halt, it faces challenges unique to an industry in which the majority of its ships touch multiple nations on each itinerary. 

CLIA global chair Adam Goldstein said in a conversation with Travel Weekly editors that the association is aware that it will be paramount for travel advisors to have clarity about when cruising can resume and what protocols will accompany that resumption.

Among the challenges the cruise industry faces is that each country will have its own set of rules and regulations to comply with. But Goldstein said this is not new for cruising, and he said CLIA is supporting its member cruise lines to put together protocols that should "meet the test of any international national health authority."

"There's never been a perfect harmony across the 1,000 destinations that cruise ships visit, and somehow we managed to work out a fairly seamless vacation environment," Goldstein said. "This presents new challenges across every dimension. And while our aspiration is for the most harmonized global approach possible, it's a complex world. Regions are quite different from one another. It's possible we won't end up with a perfectly harmonized Covid-19 world to deal with. But I don't think there's anybody more experienced, clever or determined to succeed in a global environment than the cruise industry, and that's been well demonstrated over a half-century."

CLIA CEO Kelly Craighead said that regulatory agencies worldwide have approached the cruise industry in different ways.

"Some of the challenges in the U.S. are different from the challenges we're having [elsewhere]," she said. "In Europe in particular, the industry is welcome to participate in dialogue about thoughtful resumption protocols. In the U.S., with the CDC, we're having some challenges with having that kind of engagement and dialogue with them."

Craighead added that in Europe, "there is an interest from governments to reopen tourism, and cruising is considered an important part of that."

Given those complexities, Goldstein said it is premature to say where CLIA members might first relaunch.

"We can't comment for the authorities," he said. "They're dealing with a billion different things. Travel and tourism is one piece, and cruise is a very small piece of that piece."

He also said that it is likely there will be the sequencing of cruise resumption in different regions.

"I just can't say which will go first, second, third," he said. "We also expect [cruises may be shorter] toward the beginning, they could go to fewer ports at the beginning. It will take time, and there will be an evolution back towards what we were doing pre-pause."  

Above all, right now, Goldstein said it is important for the industry to be ready to engage with governments around the world at any time.

"What concerns us is: would we miss opportunities to engage at the time when governments are prepared to engage with us?" he said. "So the message to the member lines is, 'let's be as ready as we can be as an association.' It's an everyday challenge we work through." 

Set the first block of the "Ovation of the Seas" into the Dock

In building dock II Meyer Werft in Papenburg now the first block for the cruise ship ovation of the Seas was placed on the Pallungen. Adam Goldstein, Royal Caribbean International, together with Bernard Meyer, put the lucky penny on the Pallungen before the 800-ton crane deposed the block of the new ship.

This block is one of the 74 blocks of the new luxury liner and has a weight of 740 tons. This officially keel laying, construction begins on the Ovation of the Seas, which counts with a survey of 168,600 gross tonnage of the 5 largest cruise ships in the world.

The first flame cut steel for the ovation of the Seas took place in September 2014. Meyer Werft in laser center. The ship will be delivered in April 2016.

The Anthem of the Seas, which is currently on Equipment pier of the Meyer Werft is completed and the next week Papenburg leaves towards the North Sea, the second ship in a series of three ships being built for Royal Caribbean International at Meyer Werft.

Photo 2:. Vl Lambert Kruse (Managing Director Meyer Werft) Jarmo Laakso (Project Manager Royal Caribbean) Adam Goldstein (CEO, Royal Caribbean International) Bernard Meyer (Managing Director Meyer Werft), Dr. Jan Meyer (CEO Meyer Werft), Mika Heiskanen (Project Manager Royal Caribbean), Carsten Pengel (Project Meyer Werft) Claus Andersen (-Anthem captain of the Seas - Royal Caribbean)

Longtime executives promoted to lead Celebrity, Royal Caribbean

By Jerry Limone

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (RCCL) has named Michael Bayley president and CEO of Royal Caribbean International, transferring to the company’s largest brand from the helm of Celebrity Cruises.

Lisa Lutoff-Perlo replaces Bayley as Celebrity’s president and CEO, promoted from her position as Royal Caribbean’s executive vice president of operations.

Each executive has 30 years of experience in the industry.

Bayley had been Celebrity’s president and CEO since July 2012. At that time, Bayley had been promoted from his position as Royal Caribbean’s executive vice president of operations, and Lutoff-Perlo was promoted to replace Bayley.

The top spot at Royal Caribbean International had been vacant since April, when Adam Goldstein was promoted to president and COO of the parent company.

In a statement, RCCL said Bayley “delivered strong results” at Celebrity “while building the company's ‘modern luxury’ positioning, which resonated successfully with Celebrity's sophisticated customer base.”

RCCL said Lutoff-Perlo “played a critical role in the recent successful launch of Quantum of the Seas.”

Royal Caribbean’s roll out of RFID wristbands will be gradual

FORT LAUDERDALE — Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. President Adam Goldstein said it will be several years before the Sea Pass wristbands being used for room keys on Quantum of the Seas can be rolled out fleetwide.

Goldstein said the radio-frequency identification (RFID) wristbands are simple, but they go hand-in-hand with a new shipboard property management system that takes a fair amount of time to install.

“The next-generation embarkation and the RFID bands will kind of follow that process,” Goldstein said in a speech at the CruiseWorld conference, a Travel Weekly event.

Royal Caribbean will proceed ship by ship with the installations. He did not say which would be the next ship in line for Sea Pass.

Goldstein said that older ships such as Majesty of the Seas that look their age next to Quantum have been given extended life by adding newer features in scheduled drydocks.

“We’ve found across the board — and this is industrywide — that we’ve been able to inject a lot more features from the newer ships onto the older ships than probably any of us thought possible.”

He also noted that RCCL has six brands and that older Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises ships such as Majesty of the Seas have traditionally migrated to its other, primarily European, brands.

Goldstein said pressure on concessionaires to be more efficient has resulted in smaller footprints for areas like the photo gallery on Quantum. That has freed up more space for a variety of extra features that make the ship more exciting overall, he said.
Goldstein said he’s never been a big fan of the contemporary-premium-upper premium-luxury continuum that many use to label the market segments of the cruise business, and that the edges of those categories are increasingly blurring into each other.

“If you’re in a loft suite on Oasis of the Seas, you’re in a pretty luxurious product,” he said.

“Very often our bigger brands are the second choice for couples that are normally cruising on small luxury ships,” Goldstein said. He said those passengers want the attributes of a large ship with all of the luxury amenities of a small one. “It is an interesting marketing challenge.”

Everything we know about the virtual balcony

Aug2013

If there's one feature of Royal Caribbean's next-generation cruise ship that is just starting construction, Quantum of the Seas, that is capturing people's imagination the most, it's likely the virtual balconies.  These 80-inch LED screens attached to a wall are promising to deliver an innovative take on the inside cabin.  

Understandably, there's a lot of intrigue regarding this new kind of cabin and people want to know what it is exactly and what to expect.  We don't know everything quite yet, but here's a listing of all the information on virtual balconies that we do know in one place.

What is a virtual balcony?

The virtual balconies will be 80-inch LED projection screen that stretches from floor to ceiling.  They will offer digital real-time views of the ocean and destinations visible from the ship’s exterior.  

It will be displayed in high-resolution color on a giant 80-inch LED screen on the wall of an otherwise windowless stateroom.  It will work at sea and in port.

Will virtual balconies cost extra?

When they were announced, Royal Caribbean CEO Adam Goldstein said there will not be a specific surcharge for interior cabins with virtual balconies, but added that he hopes they will bring higher yields.

How many inside cabins on Quantum of the Seas will have virtual balconies?

There will be 373 inside cabins on Quantum of the Seas that will offer the virtual balcony feature.

Will any ships other than Quantum of the Seas have virtual balconies?

It's a safe bet sister ship Anthem of the Seas will have virtual balconies along with the unnamed third Quantum-class cruise ship Royal Caribbean has on order.  

In addition to those ships, Navigator of the Seas will receive virtual balconies as part of a previously planned refurbishment.  Navigator of the Seas will go for its refurbishment in December 2013. It is scheduled to sail from Galveston when the upgrades are complete.  Royal Caribbean will use Navigator of the Seas as the "testing ground" for this brand new innovation.

In addition to Navigator of the Seas, virtual balconies will be included as part of scheduled refurbishments for Voyager, Adventure and Explorer of the Seas.  Those ships are set to undergo the revitalization process in 2014-15.

Will the virtual balcony projection be on all the time?

No, you may turn the virtual balcony feature on or off at your convenience.

Where did Royal Caribbean come up with the idea for the virtual balconies?

According to Royal Caribbean Chairman Richard Fain, they got the idea from Disney Cruise Line's virtual portholes that debuted on their ships a few years ago.

"We actually had looked at the idea, and we didn't think that the technology and the receptivity from the public was there," he says. Disney "proved that the public does value something like this."

Comment: Cruise industry must take China's rise on board

Following the announcement of the deployment of Royal Caribbean’s newest ship year-round from Shanghai next year, David Selby assesses the significance of the decision and the impact on established markets

China is vast - it has a population over 20 times that of the UK and is the world’s second largest country by land mass.

Between 2007 and 2011, its economy grew at the rate of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States combined – and while we dither in the UK about where the next commercial airport capacity will be situated, around two-thirds of the world’s airports are being built in China, with 55 planned between 2013 and 2015!

Shanghai is China’s biggest city, with a population of over 22 million, according to the last National Population Census in 2010. While a significant number of residents still have insufficient income or interest in cruising, it was perhaps only a matter of time before a major international cruise line would announce year-round deployment from the city, as Royal Caribbean has done.

The fact that it is its newest and “shiniest” ship, Quantum of the Seas, does make it interesting. It goes against the traditional idea of growing “new to cruise” markets typically using older tonnage, and keeping the key markets fresh with the newest innovation hardware.

During last week’s announcement, Adam Goldstein, Royal Caribbean’s president and chief operating officer, said: "Every trend we are seeing in China tells us we can achieve real long-term competitive advantage and appealing returns on our investments in this fast-growing market by accelerating our presence there. We will have to be nimble, but the ability to move fast is one of our strengths."

I agree! It comes from having – in my view – the strongest single international cruise brand in the world.

Meanwhile, analysis commissioned last year by the Asia Cruise Association predicts a market size in Asia by 2020 of 3.8m, of which China will be 1.7m – just below what the UK is today. Cruises are typically of short duration and to serve 3.8m cruisers on 5 night voyages, the region will need the equivalent of eighteen 3,000 berth ships sailing in the region year round. It is unlikely to stop there.

Where will they come from, and what of traditional core markets?

Well, Royal Caribbean points out that the ports of Florida (with ships sailing to the Caribbean – the most popular cruising destination), will be operating with record levels, while from New York passengers will have the chance to cruise on ships not previously deployed from there.

In the UK of course, we look forward to seeing Anthem of the Seas – Quantum’s sister-ship – sailing from Southampton after she is launched next year. Longer term however, we could see a general shift away from current core markets unless there is an acceleration of new-build activity.

For the remainder of this year, apart from Quantum, there are just three ships over 2000 berths being launched worldwide – for Princess, Costa and Tui in Germany. Next year there are five, in 2016 there are six and in 2017 there are so far just three. While this may increase, it is barely enough to cover the Asian growth over the next six years.

Therefore, the challenge is on for the industry in traditional markets to keep the product and marketing fresh, to drive value and deliver exceptional levels of customer service – and the same goes for the destinations the ships visit.

Looking even further ahead – once the Chinese have tried cruising at a local level, they will without doubt be cruising further afield and coming to Europe.

So while we sort out the runway problem, it would be a good idea to sort out the UK Visa situation at the same time.

Quantum’s China deployment reflects a new economic reality

By Tom Stieghorst

The decision to make Shanghai the home for Royal Caribbean’s Quantum of the Seas has immediate implications for U.S. travel agents who had been looking forward to selling the ship’s originally scheduled cruises from South Florida and New Jersey.

The Shanghai deployment is the clearest sign yet that the U.S. and Europe will have to compete for the future attention of a cruise industry they’ve grown accustomed to thinking of as their own.

“We were in a two-theaters-of-operation mode for the last 20 years,” said Adam Goldstein, president of Royal’s parent company, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. “Now, its North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific.”

In addition to China, Australia is getting strong support from North American cruise companies.

Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, Royal Caribbean’s senior vice president for operations, said the plan had always been an Asia deployment for one of its upcoming ships.

“We have clearly accelerated that with the decision to send Quantum to Asia,” she said.

In its announcement, Royal Caribbean said Quantum would sail year-round from Shanghai on three- to eight-day cruises to Korea and Japan.

Details about the itineraries will be available in a month or two, said Christopher Allen, Royal Caribbean’s assistant vice president of global deployment and itinerary planning.

Goldstein said the Chinese market has evolved from being in research-and-development mode to one that is contributing to the company’s profitability.

He said that even without the ability to sail to Japan from China, due to political tensions between the two countries, 2013 was a profitable year for China-sourced business.

Royal Caribbean has been sailing the Voyager of the Seas and Mariner of the Seas from China. Although the addition of the 4,200-passenger Quantum will increase Royal Caribbean’s capacity in the market by 66%, Goldstein said he’s confident it will sell.

“This year, there’s more of a desire by [Chinese] travel agents and tour operators to go to Japan,” he said.

China has grown at a blistering pace, as has its outbound tourism, Goldstein said. “The Chinese have a very strong belief that they have emerged as an economic powerhouse,” he said, adding that the feeling they should be at the forefront of every industry comes along with that.

Goldstein said that the tourist experience in Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau and Shanghai is world-class, so the positioning of a top-of-the-line ship there is seen as only natural.

Although he has said several times that Caribbean countries need to take heed of the global competition for ship calls, Goldstein said the Quantum announcement was less a reflection on the Caribbean market than a sign of the new world economic order.
That order might not be good news for U.S. travel agents, who typically profited from the power of a line’s newest ship to fill fast and command premium prices.

U.S. agents, particularly those in South Florida, benefited from that effect when Royal Caribbean introduced its last new Oasis-class vessels, the Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas, based in Fort Lauderdale.

The move of the Quantum to Asia means a new lineup of Royal Caribbean ships in important East Coast ports.

After the Quantum leaves New Jersey in May 2015, it will be succeeded by the Liberty of the Seas until November.

The Anthem of the Seas, which will debut in the summer of 2015 doing European cruises from Southampton, England, will then take up the New Jersey routes to Bermuda and the Caribbean.

Vicki Freed, senior vice president of sales, trade support and service, said she had already heard from some agents in the Northeast U.S. who want to have clients sail on all three New Jersey-based ships in one year.

“They feel like they’re getting the trifecta,” Freed said.

But Fort Lauderdale, which had announced itself as the winter home of the Anthem, will have to make do with the Navigator of the Seas, along with its monopoly on the Oasis-class ships.

Royal Caribbean officials took pains to say that New York, South Florida and China are all important markets. As Royal Caribbean becomes more global in its deployment, the key will be to strike the proper balance, said Lutoff-Perlo.

“North America is always at the forefront of everything we think about because it is such an important market for us now. Always has been and always will be,” Lutoff-Perlo said.

One area that has lagged in Royal Caribbean’s deployment is the U.S. West Coast, particularly Los Angeles. Freed said that the line hoped to be back one day, but noted that itinerary options were somewhat limited.

Allen added: “I think that that’s a market we will continue to review and continue to look at the opportunities, and when the time is right we’ll be excited to come back to the West Coast.”

The decision to move the Quantum to China shed new light on the announcement of “Dynamic Dining,” which eliminates the main dining room on the Quantum for five smaller, alternate dining venues, a style more in tune with Asian preferences.

Lutoff-Perlo said that during a 50-day repositioning cruise from New Jersey to Shanghai in 2015, workers would modify the retail, gaming and galley areas of the ship to adjust for Chinese tastes.

She said that a press conference in Shanghai to announce the Quantum’s commitment to China was heavily attended and lasted a long time.

“The world is changing. How our ships are sourced is changing,” Lutoff-Perlo said. “The fact that these ships are popular all over the world is much different now than it has been in the past.”

Quantum of the Seas headed to China after inaugural season

By Tom Stieghorst

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will take the unprecedented step of putting its newest ship in China, following a 2015 winter season of cruising from Cape Liberty in Bayonne, N.J.

Starting in May 2015, Quantum of the Seas will be repositioned to Shanghai, where it will offer a series of three- to eight-day cruises to Korea and Japan.

“Every trend we are seeing in China tells us we can achieve real long-term competitive advantage and appealing returns on our investments in this fast-growing market by accelerating our presence there,” said RCCL President Adam Goldstein. “We will have to be nimble, but the ability to move fast is one of our strengths.”

Quantum will join Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas and Mariner of the Seas, increasing capacity in the region by 66%.

To fill the void left by Quantum’s departure from New Jersey, Royal Caribbean will move Liberty of the Seas to Cape Liberty for the 2015 summer schedule of sailings to Bermuda, the Caribbean and Canada/New England.

Quantum’s sister ship, Anthem of the Seas, will reposition to New Jersey after an inaugural summer season sailing from Southampton, England. It will begin cruises from Cape Liberty in November 2015.

Goldstein said that consumers in China have grown to expect the best the world has to offer, and Quantum of the Seas meets that standard.

“We are ready to accelerate the growth of this vital market with a ship that will capture the imagination of travelers looking for a one-of-a-kind vacation experience,” he said. 

Goldstein named RCCL president

By Tom Stieghorst

Adam Goldstein has been named president of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (RCCL), the parent company of Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises.

Goldstein has been president of RCCL’s largest brand, Royal Caribbean International, for the past 12 years.

In addition to president of RCCL, he will hold the title of chief operating officer.

The company said it will begin a search to find a successor to Goldstein as president of Royal Caribbean International.

In his new role, Goldstein will lead the company’s cross-functional teams, RCCL Chairman and CEO Richard Fain said.

“Adam has played a key role in growing Royal Caribbean International, step by step, into a global leader. In the course of doing so, he has become an impressive leader in his own right,” Fain said.

Goldstein joined the company in 1988, and served in a number of positions before taking the helm of Royal Caribbean International, including senior vice president of total guest satisfaction, senior vice president of marketing and corporate secretary.

A graduate of Princeton University who also holds a law degree from Harvard University, Goldstein is an accomplished table tennis player and has competed in middle-distance running events in the National Senior Games Association track and field championships.

RCCL doesn’t currently have a president or a chief operating officer.

In addition to its three North American brands, RCCL owns Spain’s Pullmantur, French line Croisieres de France, and a 50% interest in TUI Cruises of Germany.

‘Allure of the Seas’ to Undergo Repairs at Grand Bahama Shipyard

Royal Caribbean International announced yesterday that a mechanical issue has made it necessary to perform unscheduled repairs to Allure of the Seas. The repairs will take place at Grand Bahama Shipyard, in Freeport, Bahamas, the week of February 24, 2014. As a result, it will be necessary to cancel the February 23, 2014, sailing of Allure of the Seas.

“We sincerely regret that we will be unable to deliver the Royal Caribbean cruise vacation that our guests were looking forward to,” said Adam Goldstein, president and chief executive officer, Royal Caribbean International.“We understand that our guests’ vacation time is very precious and can assure you that we did not take this decision lightly. But it was very important to us that we bring Allure back up to speed so that she could continue to deliver the amazing cruise vacations our guests expect.”

Allure of the Seas has been experiencing unanticipated bearing wear in one of its three propulsion motors. All three motors are fully operational, and there is no impact on the maneuverability of the ship or on the safety of guests and crew. However, since the rate of bearing wear is directly related to ship speed, the ship’s top speed has been limited. This has reduced the rate of bearing wear, and will ensure that all three propulsion motors are fully available for maneuvering and emergencies until repairs can be completed.

“While Allure could have continued to sail at a reduced rate of speed, we felt it was important to fix the problem as soon as possible,” said William D. Baumgartner, senior vice president of Marine Operations, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. “We explored numerous repair options. Unfortunately, there was no satisfactory solution that did not involve taking the ship temporarily out of service.”

The company said guests currently booked on the February 23, 2014, sailing of Allure of the Seas will receive a full, 100 percent refund, or the option to sail on select itineraries at the same rate.

Additionally, until the repairs can be made, it will be necessary to make minor adjustments to Allure of the Seas’ eastern Caribbean itineraries. Allure of the Seas will now call on Nassau, Bahamas, from 7:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and on Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. There is no need to modify Allure of the Seas’ western Caribbean itineraries.