Wells Fargo thinks RCI will order new ship in early 2011

[nuphidelt]

Outside of the initial excitement for a new ship, I can't see how adding any more to the RCCL fleet would make good business sense. Oasis and Allure are still very new ships and occupancy is nothing to worry about at the moment. However, I believe with a 5,400 person double occupancy, keeping these beast's full every week is going to become a challenge that RCCL is going to have a handful with.

 

In my opinion, I would think that RCCL's best move would be to relocate some of the Vision class into the 3/4 day market (Charleston, Mobile, NOLA) to bring some heat to Carnival.

 

When you take a look at RCCL's main competitors, Carnival and NCL, both lines have invested alot of money in keeping their smaller/older ships feeling new. This seems to be paying off in the form of the consumers bottom line (in regards to stateroom costs) and generally their occupancy rates are pretty decent (at least in these economic times). I think refreshing the oldest of the Voyager class (VOS, EOS) would be a great way to bring these ships back up to standard and fill the gap/need for another ship in the near future...

[PhoenixCruiser]

Outside of the initial excitement for a new ship, I can't see how adding any more to the RCCL fleet would make good business sense. Oasis and Allure are still very new ships and occupancy is nothing to worry about at the moment. However, I believe with a 5,400 person double occupancy, keeping these beast's full every week is going to become a challenge that RCCL is going to have a handful with.

 

In my opinion, I would think that RCCL's best move would be to relocate some of the Vision class into the 3/4 day market (Charleston, Mobile, NOLA) to bring some heat to Carnival.

 

When you take a look at RCCL's main competitors, Carnival and NCL, both lines have invested alot of money in keeping their smaller/older ships feeling new. This seems to be paying off in the form of the consumers bottom line (in regards to stateroom costs) and generally their occupancy rates are pretty decent (at least in these economic times). I think refreshing the oldest of the Voyager class (VOS, EOS) would be a great way to bring these ships back up to standard and fill the gap/need for another ship in the near future...

 

A lot can change in 4 years :D

 

As stated earlier people like NEW ships, us included :p

 

 

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[Jerrycobra_RCI]

RCI needs to build some mid sizers again, too many maga ships

[The_Big_M]

I can't see how adding any more to the RCCL fleet would make good business sense. Oasis and Allure are still very new ships and occupancy is nothing to worry about at the moment. Oasis and Allure are still very new ships and occupancy is nothing to worry about at the moment.

 

There are other opportunities outside the US. They have seen a lot of growth from opportunities in the Australian region, and there are other parts of the world that are also showing good growth and are relatively underdeployed.

 

Currently there are many relocations, but this has both a fuel cost and complexity to scheduling and resourcing (and sometimes currency issues for local pax). Deploying new smaller ships would be more appropriate for those markets, where they are currently stretched trying to send ships all over the place to part meet demand.

[PhoenixCruiser]

There are other opportunities outside the US. They have seen a lot of growth from opportunities in the Australian region, and there are other parts of the world that are also showing good growth and are relatively underdeployed.

 

Currently there are many relocations, but this has both a fuel cost and complexity to scheduling and resourcing (and sometimes currency issues for local pax). Deploying new smaller ships would be more appropriate for those markets, where they are currently stretched trying to send ships all over the place to part meet demand.

 

Hey Big M, we would LOVE to visit Australia, just not sure we could endure the long flights :(

 

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[apk1389]

there is speculation onboard every ship and I too find what to believe anymore. on the brilliance this summer I herd from a RCCL employee that they was considering to build a ship that was almost just a floating amusement park with many rides of sort and only provided entertainment.. idea is neat.. feasible unsure.. ill just be patient and what ever happens happens and may we then have new opportunities to enjoy

[The_Big_M]

Hey Big M, we would LOVE to visit Australia, just not sure we could endure the long flights :(

 

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It's not so bad - about 14 hours coast to coast. I prefer overnight flights. Have a meal, get some rest, wake up for breakfast and you're there!

 

For us, the killers are to Europe... 22-26 hours!

[Cruising89143]

Outside of the initial excitement for a new ship, I can't see how adding any more to the RCCL fleet would make good business sense. Oasis and Allure are still very new ships and occupancy is nothing to worry about at the moment. However, I believe with a 5,400 person double occupancy, keeping these beast's full every week is going to become a challenge that RCCL is going to have a handful with.

 

In my opinion, I would think that RCCL's best move would be to relocate some of the Vision class into the 3/4 day market (Charleston, Mobile, NOLA) to bring some heat to Carnival.

 

When you take a look at RCCL's main competitors, Carnival and NCL, both lines have invested alot of money in keeping their smaller/older ships feeling new. This seems to be paying off in the form of the consumers bottom line (in regards to stateroom costs) and generally their occupancy rates are pretty decent (at least in these economic times). I think refreshing the oldest of the Voyager class (VOS, EOS) would be a great way to bring these ships back up to standard and fill the gap/need for another ship in the near future...

 

The US is not the only place where people cruise. Europe is growing in double digits which is the reason RCI and so many other cruise lines are sending more and more ships across the pond. Keep Oasis and Allure full each week will not be an issue. The same thing was said about the Voyager and Freedom class.

[chotton]

Project "Sunshine" will have all the features of the Freedom class with the size of Radiance class. Possibly a little bigger. RCI is talking to variety of ship yards for this project but one hasn't been chosen.

[Cruising89143]

Project "Sunshine" will have all the features of the Freedom class with the size of Radiance class. Possibly a little bigger. RCI is talking to variety of ship yards for this project but one hasn't been chosen.

 

No way can they build a ship the size of the Radiance with the Freedom features. Even Fain himself has stated that to put all of those features on a ship it has to be on a larger vessel. Also, I don't believe that anyone other than a few top execs knows exactly what size the next ship will be. I know that many keep coming back from cruises where the CD or Captain stated that the next size ship would be this size or that size when in the end, they are talking out their butt. The crew is that last to know.

[chotton]

My source isn't crew......

[Cruising89143]

My source isn't crew......

 

So one can assume that it was Richard or Adam that told you this information?

[seatraveler24]

Here is the latest. http://travel.usatoday.com/cruises/post/2010/11/royal-caribbean-cruise-ship-order-allure-oasis/132359/1

[ExploreroftheSeas92]

I saw a rendering a few months ago of the new Falmouth port being constructed. The left side of the picture has an Oasis Class ship docked but I couldn't depict exactly what RCCL ship was on the right side. If anyone knows what picture I'm talking about, could that possibly be a rendering of this new ship? I am most likely completely wrong but the ship sure dosen't remind me of any of the current RCCL ships. I'll try to find that exact rendeirng of Falmouth and post it here.

[Cruising89143]

I saw a rendering a few months ago of the new Falmouth port being constructed. The left side of the picture has an Oasis Class ship docked but I couldn't depict exactly what RCCL ship was on the right side. If anyone knows what picture I'm talking about, could that possibly be a rendering of this new ship? I am most likely completely wrong but the ship sure dosen't remind me of any of the current RCCL ships. I'll try to find that exact rendeirng of Falmouth and post it here.

 

I saw that photo but I doubt that it has anything to do with a new class of ship. At this point no one knows what the next class of ship from RCI will look like. RCI has been tight lipped about it. Everyone of us can sit here and debate that someone in the "know" told them what the next ship will be like when in reality, none of us knows any more than the next guy.

[ExploreroftheSeas92]

That's absolutely true. We'll just have to wait and see what happens.

[NewShips]

Looks like a crazy design to me ;)

That ship is longer than Oasis :eek: guess the romours about a shorter ship arent true at all.

 

Also in the blog they said they had a new build team which they would pass information/requests about new ships on to. To me that sounds like they are working on something.

[canucks4]

Talk this week on Oasis was of a Radiance class all-suite ship is on the way. That would be nice, but I'll believe it when I see it.

[The C]

As for that picture I think that has more to do with Falmouth's future, and therefore their own rendering. Anything that RCI puts out is going to have their logo on it. The only thing drawn on that rendering that show's it would be a RCI ship is the Viking Crown lounge which is their trademark. Otherwise the ship is only of a 'typical' shape.

 

Also for those who mention ships are getting too big, companies like RCI are unlikely to build anything smaller than the Voyager class unless the industry drastically changes. The cruise market has had positive gains in its share of the vacation market the extra space was warranted therefore they built it.

 

Think of Las Vegas, the properties out there started small. Now look at it, in its time of growth some of the largest properties in the world are in Las Vegas. Eventually like Vegas shipbuilding will level out at a particular size, but I don't think we have realized that size quite yet.

 

As for ports, they will change and build to accommodate. RCI, or any company for that matter, will not build something without first being assured that their new investment will fit or be accommodated in enough ports. Those ports choosing not to invest in renovations to fit these ships will be passed by. And believe me, the ports lose tons more money from the loss of even one more ship than RCI loses from even just 5-10% of its customers leaving due to non-varied ports. Not to mention there are many customers like myself who are bored with some of the ports enjoy the service and type of customer RCI attracts and continue with them despite the same ports.

 

Eventually ports will save money to invest in their ports to take in the Oasis class ships and larger.

[The_Big_M]

Note the distinct Oasis ship is embellished with RCCL logos. The other ship is completely unmarked, so as with The C, it appears just intended to be a generic cruise ship.

[The Big Booper]

I like Project Sunshine on the Celebrity S class hull. The major structural components on the Solstice are right where they would be on an RCI ship.

[thelion]

The US is not the only place where people cruise. Europe is growing in double digits which is the reason RCI and so many other cruise lines are sending more and more ships across the pond. Keep Oasis and Allure full each week will not be an issue. The same thing was said about the Voyager and Freedom class.

 

No, but the US is the major share of RCI's guests on the majority of their ships. Europe is hitting a debt crisis that they will not soon come out of - this is not something RCI can overlook as it WILL impact numbers. While they send ships over there, their marketing is still on the US for those sailings.

 

Project "Sunshine" will have all the features of the Freedom class with the size of Radiance class. Possibly a little bigger. RCI is talking to variety of ship yards for this project but one hasn't been chosen.

 

Not true.

 

My source isn't crew......

 

Your source - if there is one - is wrong, dear. My company would be the first to know if RCI had active plans. They don't.

[The Flying Pirate]

I thought there was talk a while back that RCI planned on a new ship that would be a combination of the Radiance/Voyager class.

 

That would be excellent, those two classes got it "right" the Voyager class turned out excellent, the Freedom seems to have missed the mark, we have sailed on both and on a Voyager ship you never noticed the crowd on the Freedom it seems all you did was wait in line. The Radiance class ships are our favorite.

 

RCCL should start a thread as to what features you would want to see on the new ship design. It would make for interesting discussion!

[ExploreroftheSeas92]

No, but the US is the major share of RCI's guests on the majority of their ships. Europe is hitting a debt crisis that they will not soon come out of - this is not something RCI can overlook as it WILL impact numbers. While they send ships over there, their marketing is still on the US for those sailings.

 

I don't think this is entirely true. I've read several times that many of the ships that cruise from Europe are filled with more Europeans than Americans on their sailings, especially on the Independence of the Seas. Its also been stated that the amount of international passengers on Royal Caribbean cruises is significantly increasing and is expected to out number the number of American passengers onboard its ships. Basically, Royal Caribbean's mass deployment of ships around the world is to also attract international passengers who may have never cruised before. Its not all about us Americans and where we want to visit, other factors come to play as well.

 

Regarding the new ship, it will most likely feature some of the most popular amenities throughout its brand that can fit comfortably on a ship the size of the Freedom Class. For example, it was said by someone at RCCL that if they have known the huge popularity of the loft suites, they would have added more of them on the ship. This means that we can expect the same amount or more loft suites on this new ship. I also expect this new ship if ordered to come equipped with some of the latest safety features in addition to technology. Originally a fourth Freedom Class was going to be ordered several years back but many of the safety features would have to be altered around. No matter what happens, if this is ordered it will still be unique and innovative somehow.

[The Big Booper]

Yes, I saw a comment somewhere from either Fain or Goldstein that they couldn't just build a 4th Freedom class ship today because of safety and engineering requirements. Times have changed.

 

While the Voyager class was stretched to add space and features, RCI added too many cabins and lowered the GRT ratio. The Freedoms are not as good as the Voyagers but they are still far superior to their main competition, the Princess super-Grands and the Carnival Dream / Magic duo.

 

I still like "Solstice" of the Seas. It would work.