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Royal Caribbean Cruise Line: A View from the Top

Last updated 15th May 2018

Using high-tech displays, virtual-reality simulators and augmented-reality technology, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line dazzled a pier full of journalists and influencers last night in New York City. The aim? To give a unique peek into the cruise line’s upcoming news.

We got a one-on-one with President and CEO Michael Bayley to find out just how Royal Caribbean is planning to make some major waves in the cruise space. And, we got a chance to use a pair of futuristic glasses to record some mind-blowing augmented-reality footage that will give you a little taste of what’s in store. It’s going to be a wild ride!

 

Symphony of the Seas. Courtesy of Royal Caribbean

The World’s Largest Cruise Ship

“In about three weeks we take delivery of the $1.5-billion Symphony of the Seas. It’s the world’s largest cruise ship. It’s packed full of stuff for kids. We have rock-climbing walls. We have Flowriders. We have ice-skating rinks. We have the Ultimate Abyss, which is a 10-story slide that kids go crazy on. The Perfect Storm waterslides are an endless fun factory: kids laughing and screaming as they propel themselves through mayhem. Happy kids means a happy mom and dad, so we put a lot of energy into bringing the kids into a happy place.”

The Ultimate Family Suite

“We’ve got lots of suites, but this one on Symphony of the Seas was created to be unapologetic about the fact that families are uber welcome on Royal Caribbean. It will accommodate six people.” [Family Traveller’s note: The two-story suite has an in-suite slide that takes kids from the bedrooms to the playroom. It has its own air-hockey table, a private 3-D cinema, a popcorn machine — and if that wasn’t enough — there’s also a huge wraparound balcony.]

Perfect Day on CocoCay

“There’s nothing new about private islands in our space, but we thought we needed to change the game. With our Oasis-class ships, we have changed the game. So we thought, ‘How can we change the destination experience and bring the kind of innovation that we’ve brought to these ships to the destination.’ So we are introducing a Perfect Day Collection. But to start, we’ve invested $200 million into rebuilding CocoCay in the Bahamas. This idea is absolutely targeted at multi-generational families.”

The water park on CocoCay. Courtesy of Royal Caribbean.

Thrill and Chill

“When we thought about the perfect day in the Caribbean, we came back with two thoughts. First: chill. Mom and dad want to chill, they want to sit in the infinity pool and have a cocktail and look at the ocean. They want to stroll on the sand.  They want a couple’s massage overlooking the ocean. Great food. A calypso band in the background. But with kids, chill alone is not going to cut it. You’ve got to have some thrill. So we have built the Caribbean’s largest water theme park, with the tallest waterslide in North America, combined with a huge wave pool, the Caribbean’s largest freshwater pool, a balloon that will take you up 450 feet so that you can see the whole island and a replica of a Spanish galleon full of water cannons and water slides.”

Thrills for the Little Ones

“Splash Away Bay is a 5-and-under water park with little slides and lots of water cannons. The kids can play there for hours. It’s attended by lifeguards and our Adventure Ocean youth staff. All of our Adventure Ocean staff are trained teachers.”

And Education, Too

“On Perfect Day, we have a nature walk that is attended by staff that can explain various elements of the Bahamian Caribbean natural life. We also have multiple tours that leave from Perfect Day on boats; naturalists can take kids on explorations. There are plenty of opportunities for educational programs that are curated by our staff.”

Read more about the new CocoCay in Royal Caribbean’s CocoCay Set to Provide Perfect Day.