Set to open in January 2024 with the debut of Royal Caribbean’s newest ship, Icon of the Seas, the getaway will have a private beach and pools as well as two bars and three dining spots.
“Everything from its hideaway location to the exclusive beach and pools to the private cabanas is designed for adults who want a day just for them,” said chief executive and president Michael Bayley.
Located in the north-west of Cococay, Hideaway Beach is an all-day experience reserved for adults aged 18 and above.
The unveiling comes as the cruise line announced earlier this week it was putting on sale the 2025-2026 season onboard Icon of the Seas three months in advance due to skyrocketing demand.
Royal Caribbean International and Norwegian Cruise Line are taking different business approaches when it comes to Caribbean deployment.
Caribbean itineraries will make up roughly 65 per cent of Royal Caribbean’s deployment this year, compared to approximately 33 per cent for Norwegian Cruise Line, according to the 2023 Cruise Industry News Annual Report.
Next year those numbers should climb for Royal Caribbean, which will put the Icon of the Seas in the year-round Caribbean market, sailing week-long cruises from Miami in January. That will be followed by the Utopia of the Seas, which will sail short voyages year-round from Port Canaveral, with the Miami-based cruise line betting big on the Caribbean cruise market, including the short cruise business.
“Utopia will be the first Oasis-class ship that will be entirely focused on short cruises in the Caribbean, supporting our strategy of competing with land-based vacation alternatives and driving new-to-cruise customers into our vacation ecosystem as we seek to close the value gap,” said Jason Liberty, president and CEO of Royal Caribbean Group, on the company’s second-quarter earnings call in July.
Norwegian Cruise Line has taken the opposite approach.
Norwegian’s short cruise portfolio, which account for 25 per cent of its deployment in 2019, will make up just seven per cent of cruises in 2023, according to the company’s second-quarter earnings presentation.
It also means Caribbean deployment is down some nine per cent this year when compared to 2023.
“We strategically shifted our deployment to longer, more immersive itineraries at the Norwegian Cruise Line brand and increased our concentration of premium destinations while reducing our Caribbean deployment,” said Harry Sommer, president and CEO of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, speaking on the company’s second-quarter earnings call.
“This was designed to attract a higher quality guest and maximize our competitive position.”
CFO Mark Kempa noted: “This is really about yield and EBITDA where we believe being in more premium itineraries that are booked further in advance, giving us a much longer booking curve and a more stable and predictable demand profile, which allows us to manage demand, manage our marketing a little bit more effectively and not rely so much on close-in, unstable and unpredictable demand is really key to our success.”
Royal Caribbean Group is pleased with the increased demand for European itineraries, resulting in a better-than-expected yield performance.
“While the Caribbean remains a standout performer this year, we were particularly pleased with the strength and quality of cruising [Ph] demand for European itineraries. This acceleration of demand for Europe contributed to the better-than-expected yield performance for the quarter,” said Chief Executive Officer Jason Liberty, speaking on the company’s second-quarter earnings call.
Liberty added that volumes from European consumers looking to book their summer vacations have accelerated, leading to double-digit yield growth expectations for this year compared to 2019.
“Europe sailings account for 17 per cent of our full-year capacity and 35 per cent in the third quarter. The acceleration in demand is increasing our revenue expectations for Europe sailings,“ said Chief Financial Officer Naftali Holtz.
“The better-than-expected performance has mostly been driven by our European customers, which underscores our nimble and global sourcing model,” he added.
Commenting on the somewhat surprising takeaway regarding the European market, Liberty explained that Europeans’ willingness to spend was very competitive with the North American consumer. Still, the difference is that they were delayed in activating their vacation.
“We expected Europe to be a little bit lighter versus 2019, in terms of load factor and it came roaring back,” continued Liberty.
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