Jumping Cruiser

I believe her last one was in 2020, so would expect one in 2025.

Not officially, it’s a Royal Caribbean production.

Two outdoor pools - No indoor family solarium like on Anthem, but still has the same 16+ forward solarium. Main Dining Room - One large dining room that spans deck 3/4, rather than the 4 individual restaurants on Anthem. Lime & Coconut - The Lime & Coconut bar and pool deck can be found on Odyssey, which is quite a bit more colourful than Anthems. Seaplex - This space has been much improved on Odyssey. Playmakers can be found on the upper level, while arcade/interactive games are scattered throughout. However, Odyssey does lack Seaplex Dog House, which can be found on Anthem. Skypad - Odyssey is one of two Quantum Class ships to have SkyPad, which is a VR trampoline experience. ZoneZero - An augmented reality experience, which can be found in the Seaplex on Odyssey, which isn’t an amenity on Anthem. El Loco Fresh - Odyssey has El Loco Fresh quick-service venue, as opposed to the extra-charge Johnny Rockets on Anthem. Giovanni’s - Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar can be found on Odyssey, replacing Jamies Italian and Vintages on Anthem. Teppanyaki - Teppanyaki can be found on Odyssey, not on Anthem Starbucks - Odyssey has a full Starbucks location, rather than La Patisserie found on Anthem. Shows - On Odyssey, the two70 show is The Book, whereas Anthem has Spectra’s Cabaret. Also, Odyssey does not have a Broadway musical, unlike WWRY on Anthem. Suite Sun Deck - Odyssey has the Suite Sun Deck in a different location, above the Lime & Coconut and by the forward pool. Social 180 - Outdoor patio on Odyssey, designed for teenagers. Aft Balconies - Odyssey does have a reduced number of loft suites, which means there are now Aft facing balconies, which cannot be found on Anthem. That’s pretty much all of the differences I believe. Obviously, there will be small cosmetic and retail differences between both ships too.

That looks to be the case! 🥳 Odyssey has currently got bookings on various Southampton routes for the summer 2025 season. I’ll post the all the current port bookings when the 2025/26 deployment thread opens later in the year.

Lots of port bookings for Odyssey referencing homeporting in Cape Liberty and also appeared in test loads last week. It looks to be pretty much confirmed, just waiting for the official release any day now.

There is not just one website for port bookings, you have to check individual ports and piece it together. It can be quite the task at times, especially when dealing with foreign languages! 😂 If it’s Southampton 2025 that you’re interested in, then it looks to be Odyssey OTS from early May to October. Not seen any Norway bookings yet, but there looks to be a few of the usual Canary Island cruises and at least one Med cruise (July/August), with probably some France & Spain 7-nighters thrown in there too. As @Biker19 mentioned, keep an eye out for 2025-2026 thread later in the year, as port bookings become more accurate as time goes on. I’ll be sure to post some updates when I see them!

Personally, I haven’t noticed any. The last bookings I can see are only for her last currently scheduled cruise.

Has Explorer ever docked at Marina Bay Sands? I can see that there is a filter set up on their cruise schedule with Explorer of the Seas listed as one of the options. Currently there are no calls which appear, as the schedule only shows up until June 2023, but could be a potential for the future?

I’m pretty confident that it will be Odyssey, as there are lots of little pieces of evidence that help to build a bigger picture. - November 2024 Madeira port call for Odyssey has destination marked as Cape Liberty, this will be for her TA. - Odyssey has various bookings in St Maarten throughout January and February 2025, with no mention of Anthem unlike previous years. Two of these calls are 11-days apart, which would tie in with the 11-night Southern Caribbean cruises usually carried out by Anthem. - May 2025 Madeira port call for Odyssey has origin port marked as Cape Liberty and destination as La Coruna (Then Southampton I presume.) As I say, I’m pretty confident that this will be the case and would be very shocked if actual deployment differs. Also, I did see a post about a NextCruise employee mentioning a potential ship change for NJ, which would back this up further.

I agree that Anthem is a better fit for NJ, but would be excited to see Odyssey in Southampton. At least those in NJ have different ships throughout the summer, whereas Southampton has only had Anthem since 2020. Maybe Royal could focus more on warmer sailings from Southampton, as opposed to Northern Europe, in order to take advantage of Odyssey’s improved outdoor areas.

Looking further ahead into 2025 port bookings, it looks like Odyssey will homeport in Southampton for Summer 2025, after its winter season in NJ. It definitely looks like there are no plans to bring Anthem back to Southampton in 2025.

I’ve been keeping my eye out for Anthem in port schedules, but yet to see any evidence. The only thing I can see is that Madeira has an unnamed port listing each week from 8th Jan 2025 until 16th April 2025, with the port agent being JFM Shipping. This agent is normally only used by RCG ships and occasionally MSC. Obviously just an observation, but something to definitely keep an eye on over the coming weeks.

Do you happen to know the date of Joff’s last cruise on Anthem? We are sailing 23rd June and wondered if he would still be the CD or already left for Ovation? Thanks

It looks like Explorer is getting waterslides added as a minimum. The Perfect Storm is now showing up on Deck 13, when viewing deck plans through the app. Still no mention of Playmakers and other possible features though.

I’ve been searching, but not come across anything as of yet. There’s still Utopia to come as well and in my opinion, I think a full China deployment would be unlikely. Although, I could very well be wrong! Hoping that there will be some updates to the deployment release flyer within the next couple of weeks… the suspense is killing me!

Here are my thoughts regarding possible amplifications to Quantum Class: - La Patisserie replaced by Starbucks. - Johnny Rockets (Anthem) possibly replaced by another complimentary venue, such as El Loco Fresh or Fish and Ships. - Caribbean Pool Deck with Lime and Coconut. - Playmakers added to Seaplex. - SkyPad possibly, but doubtful. I also think it is very unlikely for them to add water slides, as it would be too compact in my opinion.

See this post below for some information regarding Explorer’s upcoming dry dock/partial amplification.

I’ve heard on another forum that during her dry dock next month, Explorer OTS will receive some of her previously planned amplification, which was postponed in 2020. Information seems to have come from crew members onboard, including the Captain during a recent Captains Corner. Addition of Playmakers Sports Bar (Possibly replacing some shops on the promenade) Perfect Storm Waterslides Explorer Dunes Refurbishment General Cosmetic Repairs (e.g. Carpets, Furniture, Paint, etc)

Odyssey from NYC - More Evidence! A couple of new bookings have shown up for Odyssey, suggesting she will be sailing from Cape Liberty between November 24 and May 25. Here is a summary of all the current evidence: 1) Possible TA call in Funchal, Madeira on 10th November 2024 with destination marked as Cape Liberty. 2) Multiple bookings for Odyssey in St Maarten in Jan 2025, which line up with Anthem’s usual ‘11-night Southern Caribbean Cruises’, without no mention of Anthem anywhere. 3) Possible TA call in Funchal, Madeira on 4th May 2025 with port of origin marked as Cape Liberty. This is around the usual time of Anthem’s spring TA. Also, slightly off topic, but thinking further ahead into Summer 2025. Odyssey OTS has multiple port bookings in Funchal throughout the year, which are usually ports on Canary Island cruises from Southampton. Could this be an early indication that Royal are looking to homeport Odyssey in Southampton in Summer 25? I really hope so!

My biggest concern is what will happen with Sofa-beds for 3rd and 4th guests. These take up quite a bit of room, especially on Quantum and newer Oasis class, and make it difficult to manoeuvre around the cabin. Would these cabins still receive a morning and evening service?

We sailed on Anthem for 12-nights in June and had the most amazing time! IFly and North Star are both free on port days and an extra charge on sea days. Reservations for port days open around 8pm the night before, while paid slots can be reserved at any time, through the Royal Caribbean app. Both paid experiences are also slightly longer than the those which are free - IFly is lengthened to 2 mins and North Star extends over the side of the ship, rather than just up and down. The only show which has to be reserved is Spectra’s Cabaret in two70, which is shown quite a few times during the week. There is often a mix of 7pm and 9pm showings, so you should be able to make the later show with your dining time. We Will Rock You and other shows in the Royal Theatre are on a first-come first-served basis, but get there early to avoid disappointment! Hope you have a great cruise!

Here is a copy of a full Cruise Compass from an 11-night Southern Caribbean Cruise earlier this year. Hope this helps! https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/cruise-compasses/anthem-of-the-seas/mon-01312022-0000

Has anyone got any recent updates to this please? Did these new cups continue to be rolled out or did Royal revert back to the tumbler style? Thanks.

New Renderings Released Here are some new renderings of Icon, recently uploaded to Royal Caribbean Press Center. Basecamp - Beneath Sports Court Desserted Milkshake Bar - Basecamp/Beneath Sports Court? Mini Golf The Lemon Post Bar - Surfside Pier 7 - Speciality Restaurant serving beachside bites - Surfside Surfside Eatery - Family Buffet Restaurant - Surfside Carousel- Surfside Arcade - Surfside

This photo is the most we have seen at the minute. It looks to be spread over three decks, as usual with Oasis Class. Also looks to follow the same format as Oasis, with a large atrium in the centre and a smaller one on either side.