Royal Caribbean to Increase Gratuities
Royal Caribbean is increasing its daily gratuities as of September 7th.
Guests that are staying in a standard stateroom, which include an interior, oceanview, or balcony will soon be paying $1.50 more at $16 per person per day, guests in suites will see a $1 increase.
This past spring both, Norwegian also increased its gratuities, followed by Carnival Cruise Line. This is Royal Caribbean’s first daily gratuity hike in over four years.
Gratuities go to both crew members in the front of house like dining servers and cabin stewards, as well as back of house staff, which include those in the laundry room and cleaner’s.
STORY: Royal Caribbean Raises Gratuities For First Time in 4 Years
Bahamas to Soon Change COVID Protocols For Cruise Visitors
The Bahamas government will soon change its cruise visitor protocols to align with those for guests arriving by air. This is according to a statement from the country’s Minister of Tourism Chester Cooper to The Nassau Guardian.
Cruise guests will no longer need to be vaccinated to visit the Bahamas, something the country has been requiring for passengers 12 and older. Currently, air travelers to the Bahamas do not have a vaccine mandate.
Unvaccinated cruise guests will need to continue testing with 72 hours of arrival to the Bahamas, just like air travelers do.
There’s no word yet on when the Bahamas will officially make these changes.
MSC Seascape Completes Sea Trials
MSC Seascape, the second ship in the Seaside EVO class for MSC Cruises has entered the final phase of construction. During four days of sea trials, the ship completed intensive systems tests with navigational and engineering team.
MSC Seascape successfully completed her first intensive systems tests at sea during a multi-day trial from August 17th to 20th.
The 169,000 gross ton ship will be delivered in late November and will enter service in December, sailing year-round from Miami to the Caribbean. It’ll be the second new MSC ship to launch this year following MSC World Europa.
STORY: Upcoming U.S.-Based MSC Cruise Ship Completes Sea Trials