by Brian Major
Last updated: 10:30 AM ET, Fri November 8, 2024
Like the company itself, Royal Caribbean Group’s three brands are poised for expansion as they capitalize on the cruise industry’s two-year trend of surging passenger growth.
Royal Caribbean in fact tapped its own financial resources to aid travel advisors during the pandemic, and the bet has paid off, said Michael Bayley, president of Royal Caribbean International.
Speaking during a panel discussion this week at the CruiseWorld conference in Fort Lauderdale, Bayley said Royal Caribbean “reached out and provided a great deal of financial support to our travel partners.”
Bayley said travel advisors’ post-pandemic success guaranteed the cruise operator’s largess would be rewarded. “We literally offered loans to keep our travel partners [supplied] with working capital,” he said. “We loaned something like $60 million and believe it or not, it's all been paid back.”
Bayley said the episode exemplifies the enduring partnership between the cruise line and advisors. “I think it speaks to the relationship between our travel partners and Royal Caribbean Group and the brands of Royal Caribbean,” he said.
Royal Caribbean’s brands will work both in tandem and separately to provide travelers with an increasing array of vacation options. Celebrity Cruises ships will call at Perfect Day at CoCo Cay, the company’s private Bahamian island for the first time in 2025, said Laura Hodges Bethge, Celebrity’s president.
(Photo Credit: Celebrity Cruises)
The premium brand will also continue to augment its fleet in 2025. “We are taking delivery of our last Edge-class ship, Xcel, which comes out in the fall of next year,” Bethge said during the CruiseWorld panel discussion.
“I’m really excited about [Xcel],” she said. “I can't say anything about it except to say that there are new products and experiences on Xcel that we're really excited about.”
Going forward, Celebrity will also focus on “the revitalization and modernization” of its Solstice-class ships, which have reached a “half-life” of 15 years, as most cruise ships have a 30-year life span, Bethge said.
She added that the company is also examining the options for its next class of vessel. “We're dreaming up our new class of ships, we're calling that project Nirvana,” she said.
Silversea Silver Origin. (Photo Credit: Terika L. Haynes)
Meanwhile, luxury operator Silversea will celebrate its 30th anniversary in 2025, as the company seeks to extend its track record as an innovator in the segment, said Bert Hernandez, the company’s president.
“We have 12 ships and some breadth of portfolio that's unique both in the expedition side and the classic group side that not a lot of other cruise brands can replicate,” said Hernandez.
He added, “I think it's important that being part of the Royal Caribbean Group gives us access to resources and expertise to really innovate, grow and invest in the brand. I think you're starting to see a lot of that, particularly with our Nova class that came out last year,” said Hernandez.
“Between the [Nova class debut] and the recent announcement of the hotel we're building in Puerto Williams and things of that nature, it really highlights the synergies that we get by being part of the larger group.”
Bayley said Royal Caribbean’s successful debut of its Icon-class ships, launched in January with 5,610-passenger Icon of the Seas, is emblematic of the company’s surging passenger growth.
“The satisfaction scores for Icon of the Seas have been absolutely stunning,” Bayley said. “People are paying great ticket prices to sell Icon. They are absolutely delighted with the experience."
He added, “If you have customers who pay a high price to have a phenomenal vacation and they come back absolutely super-happy and satisfied with that product, you really have kind of landed in that sweet spot.”
Bayley also touched on the upcoming Discovery class, which will feature ships that are smaller than the Icon and Oasis classes. In doing so, Royal Caribbean will be able to go to some other ports these larger ships cannot reach.
While he did not provide details, Bayley said Royal Caribbean is working to innovate and deliver a high-quality product.
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