Tag Archives: Richard Fain

Royal Caribbean CEO Urges Travel Advisors to Rebuild

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Appealing to travel advisors to start to sell cruises again, Royal Caribbean Group Chairman and CEO Richard Fain states his case in a newly released video.

The time has come, he said, to focus on how we come out of the pandemic, rather than how we should live during it. The time has come to look forward and do what we have done for decades, sell cruises.

Fain said a surge of interest has come mainly via the internet rather than from travel advisors, as people became used to buying things online during the pandemic, and continue to do so, while many travel advisors cut down on staff and marketing.

“Now, we need to rebuild so travel advisors need to do more,” he said. Appealing to travel advisors, Fain said: “We need you to reach our full potential. It was the personal contact with travel advisors that built up the knowledge and awareness (of cruising) in the first place.

“We need you and we need your personal touch, and the clients need you to help them understand the complexity of the product.”

Fain noted that while the pandemic is not over, its prevalence in the industrialized world is falling, and the main drivers behind the disease are understood and can be controlled.

He also noted that cruise ships have advantages over land-based comparables with the vast bulk of people onboard being vaccinated, and the sanitation being controlled, including air filtration, and strict health and safety protocols being enforced.

“As a result, we can make ships safer than shore-based alternatives,” Fain said.

Compared to a CDC colour-coded COVID-19 map of the United States, Fain said that cruise ships would be blue, representing the lowest category of risk, and better than most of the counties in the U.S.

Royal Caribbean: U.S. Cruise Service Start By July Realistic

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“We believe we are now seeing a clear way forward to safe cruising in the near future,” said Richard Fain, chairman and CEO of the Royal Caribbean Group, on Thursday’s business update call.

Citing the letter that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released last night, modifying its requirements for the industry’s return to service, Fain said it represented a significant improvement in their dialogue with the CDC.

Added Michael Bayley, CEO and president of the Royal Caribbean International brand: “With what (CDC letter) we received last night July looks very realistic (for restarting cruises in North America).”

As for the Alaska season, Fain noted there are uncertainties and that service resumption may require a waiver from the Passenger Vessels Service Act as long as Canada will not allow ship calls. Alternatively, Canada could allow technical calls.

“Given the momentum, there is the reason for optimism,” he added.

“We have had a very constructive dialogue with the CDC and other government agencies over the past few weeks,” Fain continued. “Many elements of the CSO (Conditional Sail Order) were unrealistic. The letter was very encouraging with multiple corrections to the existing CSO, elements that were very challenging. Certainly, vaccinations were a major element of change.”

Fain also pointed out that the company’s brands in Asia and Europe have carried some 125,000 passengers since the shutdown with only 21 COVID-19 cases and that has been without the benefit of vaccinations.

“With cruise ships, we can control the environment and we have already demonstrated that we can do that,” Fain said. 

There are still some uncertainties, however, and Bayley noted that he hopes to see further clarifications in the next few days and weeks.

According to the CDC, ships can reportedly bypass the simulated test voyages it had required before and move to sailings with paying passengers if 98 per cent of the crew and 95 per cent of passengers are fully vaccinated. It will also respond to applications for simulated voyages within five days rather than 60 days as previously suggested.

Commented Bayley: “As soon as we have port plans lined up, we can now apply to the CDC for permission to sail. The process has improved considerably.”

The CDC also stated it will update its testing and quarantine requirements to align with its guidance for fully vaccinated people.

The CDC letter comes as pressure has been mounting on the agency through public opinion, legislative initiatives and lawsuits.

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Royal Caribbean Group Chairman and CEO Richard Fain saw total compensation of just over $12 million for the fiscal year 2020, according to a company SEC filing.

Fain saw his base salary cut by nearly 50 per cent, but made up for it with $11 million in stock awards.

Other company executives also had a good year, with CFO Jason Liberty seeing total compensation of $5.6 million, up from 2019.

Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley earned $7.4 million, also up from 2019.

The SEC filing noted that executives did forgo portions of their base salaries

The company said it wants to establish a mix of compensation components, including fixed and variable pay and short- and long-term incentives, that encourages “focus on both the short- and long-term interests of the company and its shareholders.”

Of note, Carnival Corporation CEO Arnold Donald took home $11 million and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings CEO Frank Del Rio saw compensation of $36.4 million.

Royal Caribbean Group Compensation Table:

Name and
Principal Position		Fiscal YearSalary ($)Stock Awards ($)One-Time
Stock Awards		Non-Equity
Incentive
Plan
Compensation		Change in
Pension Value
and NQDC
Earnings		All Other
Compensation		Total ($)
Richard D. Fain
Chairman/CEO		2020$645,000$11,171,146 $3,042,000*$154,879$112,478$12,083,503*
2019$1,276,923$8,699,024$4,006,080$189,347$187,545$14,358,919
2018$1,100,000$7,664,567$3,500,000$157,949$12,422,715
2017$1,100,000$7,661,433$4,327,400$99,493$155,087$13,343,413
2016$1,092,308$6,441,770$2,740,222$131,384$10,405,684
2015$1,038,462$5,803,644$2,426,667$119,796$9,388,569
2014$1,000,000$3,673,186$4,923,759$2,246,222$56,611$114,100$12,013,878
2013$1,000,000$3,371,587$2,083,629$250,089$127,858$6,833,163
Jason T. Liberty
CFO		2020$818,798$3,228,563 $1,411,938$89,503$100,429$5,649,231
2019$788,462$2,621,510$1,731,002$91,472$113,674$5,424,004
2018$788,462$2,136,947$1,685,523$140,932$4,751,864
2017$692,308$1,700,547$2,792,203$1,521,533$57,849$125,806$6,890,246
2016$592,308$1,127,080$798,217$21,980$88,478$2,628,062
2015$511,538$765,923$655.175$66,801$1,999,437
2014$444,231$519,248$716.111$508.197$6,393$79,563$2,273,743
2013$380,019$373,728$364.324$25,741$77,676$1,221,488
Michael W. Bayley
President/CEO RCI		2020$866,346$4,943,887 $1,435,000$74,355$116,244$7,435,832
2019$941,923​$4,061,696$1,803,361$110,1190$140,711$7,057,881
2018$870,769$3,086,742$1,577,143$187,432$5,722,086
2017$792,308$2,834,275$2,792,203$1,519,461$121,223$135,123$8,194,593
2016$696,154$1,784,470$938,428$11,630$107,334$3,866,773
2015$675,000$1,436,142$986,229$115,934$3,213,305
2014$598,846$944,096$1,909,604$861,000$15,897$79,207$4,408,650
2013$575,00$770,630$658,891$67,786$101,625$2,173,932
Lisa Lutoff-Perlo
President/CEO
Celebrity		2020$710,558$2,719,084 $1,092,650$130,177$96,854$4,749,323
2019$770,769$2,278,490$1,098,258$140,211$142,114$4,429,842
2018$688,462$1,786,762$1,228,438$136,520$3,840,202
2017$596,154$1,558,865$1,861,505$1,072,083$64,609$123,701$5,276,917
2016$546,154$1,033,167$639,532$92,045$2,310,898
Harri Kulovaara
EVP
Maritime		2020$803,846 $1,483,167 $830,250$81,764$107,746$3,606,773
2019$761,923$1,139,243$870,446$98,382$102,335$3,422,329
2018$692,308$893,480$924,236$764,728$109,262$3,844,014
 

*Declined Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation of $3,042,000