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MIAMI — The search for a 66-year-old woman who fell from a Taylor Swift-themed cruise on Tuesday night has been suspended, the U.S. Coast Guard has announced. According to the USCG, the woman traveling on Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas ship that left from Miami Monday went overboard the next night just before 10 p.m. At the time, the ship was about 17 miles north of Nassau, Bahamas.

Cruise-goers and industry stakeholders have endured a waiting game since cruising stopped in March of last year, with restart dates being pushed back further and further amid COVID-19. On Wednesday, the world’s second-busiest cruise port announced when it believes cruising will finally be able to resume. At a January 27 port authority meeting, Port Canaveral commissioners approved a revised budget, which assumes that passenger cruise-ship operations won’t resume until at least July. Several major cruise lines at the Florida port have already voluntarily canceled their sailings for the next few months—Carnival, Norwegian and Royal Caribbean have postponed sailing until May,...

A mom is missing after she fell off a Royal Caribbean cruise ship Monday during a voyage from Malaysia to Singapore, officials said. Reeta Sahani, 64, was vacationing with her husband Jakesh Sahani, 70, on the Spectrum of the Seas when he woke up in the middle of the night and noticed his wife was missing from the cabin, the Strait Times reported. The vessel’s overboard detection system revealed that something had gone overboard and the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre was notified about 7:50 a.m. Monday that a passenger “had fallen overboard in the Singapore Strait,” according to the Maritime...

Measuring a staggering 1,188 feet, Royal Caribbean's Wonder of the Seas was delivered last month and is due to begin its maiden voyage from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to the Caribbean on March 4. The 18-deck cruise ship was built at the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France, and has capacity The ship will begin operating five- to seven-night cruises from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to the Caribbean in March before launching Western Mediterranean cruises from Barcelona and Rome in May. Wonder of the Seas comprises eight neighborhoods, one of which contains over 20,000 real plants, and its on-board features include...

Royal Caribbean pauses new cruise bookings through mid-January 2022 due to limited capacity and to accommodate social distancing. Royal Caribbean International has decided to voluntarily pause new bookings for all cruises departing through mid-January 2022. This is a proactive effort to limit capacity onboard while still providing safe, enjoyable cruises to already booked passengers. Royal Caribbean Bookings Paused According to a statement provided to Cruise Hive, a Royal Caribbean spokesperson said “Cruises departing through early January 2022 are unavailable to new reservations because our ships will continue sailing with a limited capacity to accommodate physical distancing. These sailings were removed...

Fifty-five passengers aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship that departed Fort Lauderdale, Florida on Saturday have since tested positive for COVID-19, a report said. Due to the infections, the Odyssey of the Seas, which is carrying 3,587 guests and 1,599 crew, will now bypass planned stops at Curacao or Aruba during its eight-day journey, a company spokesperson told USA Today. People aboard with positive cases are experiencing either mild symptoms, or none at all. They, and their close contacts, have gone into quarantine. Ninety-five percent of those on the ship are fully vaccinated – as the company requires all crew...

Fifty people tested positive for COVID-19 aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship that departed from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Saturday. Royal Caribbean spokesperson Lyan Sierra-Caro confirmed to USA Today that 47 crew members and three passengers aboard the Odyssey of the Seas tested positive. The ship, which is carrying 3,587 passengers and 1,599 crew members, is on an eight-day trip but briefly returned to port Sunday to disembark a passenger who had COVID-19....

Forty-eight passengers and crew members tested positive for COVID-19 on Royal Caribbean’s Symphony of the Seas ship, which docked at PortMiami on Saturday, the cruise company said. Miami-based Royal Caribbean said in a statement on Sunday that each person who tested positive immediately went into quarantine. Six people who had tested positive disembarked the ship mid-voyage and were transported home. The passengers who tested positive were either asymptomatic or had mild symptoms. The new cases come as the omicron variant is quickly spreading across the United States, potentially throwing a wrench in holiday travel plans. Royal Caribbean said that Symphony...

For the first time, Royal Caribbean details an epic 274-night Ultimate World Cruise that will visit all seven continents, call at 150 destinations in 65 counties that include 11 wonders of the world. Serenade of the Seas will be the lucky ship to offer one of the most spectacular and longest cruises ever offered. Serenade of the Seas World Cruise It’s going to be a cruise to remember, with Serenade of the Seas sailing a 274-night Ultimate World Cruise which will be the longest out there. The voyage will commence from Miami, Florida, on December 10, 2023, and end back...

Cruise ships may finally be operating again in much of the world. But not everything about cruising is back to normal. As I’ve experienced first-hand over the past few months on some of the first sailings to resume in North America and several voyages in Europe, the cruise experience has been changed by the COVID-19 pandemic in ways big and small — for both better and worse. Taking a cruise right now involves dealing with new hassles such as pre-cruise COVID-19 testing and once-unthinkable restrictions both onboard ships and on land. But it also brings some unexpected rewards, including experiencing...

Royal Caribbean Cruises shares fell about 4% on Friday after six passengers on board its Adventure of the Seas ship tested positive for Covid-19. The four of those guests were fully vaccinated and not traveling together.

Royal Caribbean International said on Tuesday it would require unvaccinated guests over 12 years of age traveling from Florida to show proof of insurance that covers COVID-19 related medical expenses, quarantine and evacuation.

Presumably, loyal cruisegoers were overjoyed to learn of Royal Caribbean’s impending July restart of U.S. operations, but it seems that pandemic-era sailing is going to be an even more complex affair than was originally imagined. A political tug-of-war, Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis’ lawsuit against the CDC for its “coercive” cruise line vaccine guidance, and new legislation in Florida and Texas that prohibits operators from requiring that customers be vaccinated in order to cruise caused Royal Caribbean to reverse its original requirement that passengers be fully COVID-19 vaccinated before boarding its vessels. Now, the company’s guest guidelines merely state, "We strongly...

Royal Caribbean Group today announced that it has commenced a private offering of $1.25 billion aggregate principal amount of senior unsecured notes due 2028 to be issued by the company as it continues its ongoing fundraising. The company intends to use the proceeds from the sale of the Notes to repay principal payments on debt maturing or required to be paid in 2021 and 2022, and the remaining for general corporate purposes (including to pay fees and expenses in connection with such repayments), according to a press release.

It looks like the comeback of big-ship cruising in North America is, finally, at hand. Two of the world’s biggest cruise lines, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises, on Friday announced they would resume North America cruises in June with sailings out of the Bahamas and St. Martin, respectively. Royal Caribbean — the world’s largest cruise line — said it would begin seven-night sailings out of Nassau in the Bahamas on June 12 that will feature calls in the Bahamas and Mexico. The trips will take place on the line’s 3,807-passenger Adventure of the Seas — a ship that originally was...

Richard D. Fain delivered a video message today with the hope of a better future, and patience, as the end is not quite here yet. He also talked about no decision yet on vaccine requirements for guests. The news of Odyssey of the Seas operating her maiden season in Israel was an incredibly positive step towards cruising resuming. However, the cruise line requires guests over 16 to be vaccinated onboard. News met with skepticism by avid cruisers, while others have been overjoyed by the prospect of being able to set sail. That is just a small part of the larger...

Today, a remarkable announcement from Royal Caribbean confirmed Haifa in Israel to be the vessel’s homeport in May of this year. Odyssey of the Seas, the global cruise line’s highly-anticipated new ship, will offer Israelis a combination of 3- to 7-night getaways on the Greek Islands and Cyprus. The new sailings will go on sale on Tuesday, March 9. Sailing from Israel is an opportunity we have had our sights on Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley said in a statement today that the line has been eyeing Israel as a potential homeport for some time now: “Sailing...

Royal Caribbean announced its financial results for the 2020 financial year and provided insights into where the company will be heading this year. As can reasonably be expected, the company experienced huge losses due to the pandemic, calling it the most difficult time in the company’s history. It’s not all bad though, bookings are positive. At the same time, guest feedback from cruises in Singapore and the Canary Islands onboard affiliate cruise line TUI/ Mein Schiff has been overwhelmingly positive. A Painful And Profound Impact Royal Caribbean CEO and Chairman Richard D. Fain called the last 12 months the most...

When Carnival Cruise Line announced they would be canceling all cruises from the home ports of Miami and Port Canaveral, many people’s thoughts went to their December cruises. What will happen to cruises booked from the homeports in December, and is it even reasonable to think that Carnival will be cruising this year? We look at the complexity that Carnival Cruise Line has to navigate to offer a cruise in December, what measures are needed, how much depends on the CDC and White House decisions, and what efforts will be needed to get the crew to the vessels. One thing...

Crew members on a stranded luxury cruise ship have gone on a hunger strike and a worker on another ship jumped to her death as luxury line employees grow increasingly desperate to get home after months on coronavirus lockdown, according to a report.