Tag Archives: Allure of the Seas

Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas to Undergo $100 Million Upgrade

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The Allure of the Seas is set for a $100 million upgrade in April 2025, Royal Caribbean International announced in a press release.

The refurbishment, which is part of the company’s Royal Amplified refit program, will see the creation of new venues and features onboard.

For a complete picture of the drydock market, see the 2024 Drydock and Refurb Report by Cruise Industry News.

According to Royal Caribbean, after the update, the Allure of the Seas will offer more than 35 ways to dine and drink, as well as new bars, a new water park and upgraded pool decks.

The 2010-built vessel will also see the creation of new suites, as well as Royal Caribbean’s signature Ultimate Abyss slide.

The refurbishment will be completed ahead of the ship’s summer program in the Western Mediterranean, the company added.

Between April and October 2025, the newly amplified ship is scheduled to offer seven-night cruises to Spain, Italy and France.

“From the new Icon and Utopia of the Seas to now the more than $100 million transformation of Allure of the Seas, we’ve upped the ante threefold on the different ways vacationers can get away and make memories with Royal Caribbean,” said Jay Schneider, Chief Product Innovation Officer, Royal Caribbean International.

“Allure will be reimagined with the best of Royal Caribbean and what travellers love. Between new favourites, like the Pesky Parrot tiki bar, and experiences that unlock core memories time and time again, from an incredible pool deck to an unmatched combination of thrills and ways to chill, Allure will have even more of everything that makes it standout favourite,” he added.

First introduced in 2018, the Royal Amplified program included significant refurbishments onboard Voyager-, Freedom- and Oasis-class ships.

Allure’s sister ship, the Oasis of the Seas, was one of the vessels that underwent an “amplification” in 2019.

After debuting its new features in Europe, the Allure of the Seas is set to return to the United States in November 2025 for a series of six- to eight-night cruises to the Caribbean departing from Fort Lauderdale.

Icon of the Seas: Culmination of Innovation of Royal Caribbean Ships

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When the Icon of the Seas launches service for Royal Caribbean International in early 2024, she will not only be the biggest cruise ship at sea but will be the result of a 12-to-15-year creative process that is essentially the culmination of building the most innovative cruise ships on the planet, said Jay Schneider, senior vice president and chief product innovation officer for the brand.

“It’s our first white paper ship in about 10 years,” he said, speaking to a group of media aboard the Allure of the Seas on its debut in Galveston, Texas.

It is not just a bigger brother or sister to the Oasis class, he stressed.

“When we started working on Icon it was smaller, and as we researched what people needed and wanted, it grew over time and we ended up with the largest ship in the world.”

Space has been “over-indexed,” he said, meaning more space per guest.

The new ship, which will be floated out in December at Meyer Turku, is a continued evolution of the Royal Caribbean brand, said Schneider, adding that guests are looking “for experiences, not things.”

The new class of ship was designed around five fundamentals, he said, including unrivalled water experiences (including pools, slides and more), adrenaline-pumping thrills, the ultimate family vacation, entertainment and food and beverage.

The popular neighbourhood concept from Oasis-class ships will be back, with some returning and expanded areas and also new concepts.

Schneider also said there will be over 40 food and beverage experiences on Icon, of which 23 will be completely new to the Royal Caribbean brand, plus an added emphasis on what he called “eatertainment,” blending entertainment and dining together.

Royal Caribbean Opens New Cruise Terminal in Galveston

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Royal Caribbean Group’s new cruise terminal in the Port of Galveston is officially open, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony held at the new facility on Wednesday morning with the Allure of the Seas docked in the port.

Generating 100 per cent of its needed energy through on-site solar panels, the 161,334-square-foot facility is set to become the first in Texas to achieve LEED Gold certification.

Marking the arrival of the Oasis class to Texas, the vessel departed from its new homeport for the first time on Wednesday afternoon.  

Launching a series of Western Caribbean cruises departing from Galveston, the Royal Caribbean International ship is sailing on a promotional short cruise before kicking off a schedule of week-long cruises to Mexico and Honduras next Sunday.

The program features a regular itinerary that includes visits to Cozumel, Costa Maya and Roatán.

One of the world’s largest cruise ships, the Allure of the Seas has a capacity for over 5,400 guests.

Following the Oasis of the Seas, the 220,000-ton vessel introduced a groundbreaking design that is highlighted by features such as Central Park, a park with real plants, surrounded by shops and restaurants. 

The 2010-built vessel also has its public areas divided in seven different neighbourhoods, each one of them having a different appeal. The BoardWalk, for instance, was inspired by a seaside pier and features a carousel, and carnival games, in addition to retail outlets and eateries.

With its new terminal in Galveston, the Royal Caribbean Group will be able to accommodate up to 630,000 guests in the port per year.

The $125 million project saw construction started in 2021 and is a collaboration between Royal Caribbean International, Ceres Terminal Holdings, LLC and Galveston Wharves.

In addition to the Allure, a second Royal Caribbean International vessel, the Adventure of the Seas, is set to offer cruises from Galveston during the 2022-2023 season.

In November 2023, the Harmony of the Seas is set to take over Allure’s program, offering similar week-long itineraries in the region.