Changes coming to RCCL ships in Australia?

[avalon007]

So it seems according to a thread in the RCCL section that Rhapsody is leaving for Europe & will be replaced by Mariner of the Seas (a Voyager class ship).

 

Royal's cruise calendar does have Rhapsody listed as being in Dubai May 2015.

 

Gbenjo did mention last year we would be getting another larger ship coming over - so seems he is on the money!

 

I wish they would just leave at least 1 ship here full time, so we can cruise Royal in Winter without having to fly overseas to do so.

 

No listings past Mar 2015 for Mariner as yet.

[rkmw]

So it seems according to a thread in the RCCL section that Rhapsody is leaving for Europe & will be replaced by Mariner of the Seas (a Voyager class ship).

 

Royal's cruise calendar does have Rhapsody listed as being in Dubai May 2015.

 

Gbenjo did mention last year we would be getting another larger ship coming over - so seems he is on the money!

 

I wish they would just leave at least 1 ship here full time, so we can cruise Royal in Winter without having to fly overseas to do so.

 

No listings past Mar 2015 for Mariner as yet.

 

is this still a rumour or have they made a decision, if ever they had a ship here full time they should change the currency to AUD to compete with the other AU ships

[springaussie]

So it seems according to a thread in the RCCL section that Rhapsody is leaving for Europe & will be replaced by Mariner of the Seas (a Voyager class ship).

 

Royal's cruise calendar does have Rhapsody listed as being in Dubai May 2015.

 

Gbenjo did mention last year we would be getting another larger ship coming over - so seems he is on the money!

 

I wish they would just leave at least 1 ship here full time, so we can cruise Royal in Winter without having to fly overseas to do so.

 

No listings past Mar 2015 for Mariner as yet.

 

Rhapsody is listed in Port of Rome cruise ships visits July 2015 - October 2015.

Then is rumoured to work summer season out of Santos Brazil.

Starting in March / April we should know what ships we will get in Oz for 2015/16 season.

If Mariner stays on the present Asian cruises in 2015 they will not be on sale until October 2014 if they follow previous years.

[keagle]

Was talking to someone who did the rock and roll cruise recently.

 

He mentioned Rhapsody was being sold to P&O.

[gbenjo]

So it seems according to a thread in the RCCL section that Rhapsody is leaving for Europe & will be replaced by Mariner of the Seas (a Voyager class ship).

 

Royal's cruise calendar does have Rhapsody listed as being in Dubai May 2015.

 

Gbenjo did mention last year we would be getting another larger ship coming over - so seems he is on the money!

 

I wish they would just leave at least 1 ship here full time, so we can cruise Royal in Winter without having to fly overseas to do so.

 

No listings past Mar 2015 for Mariner as yet.

 

Unfortunately Royal Caribbean are keeping their cards close to their chests and speculation is rife as to what ship will replace Rhapsody after next season and the answer you get depends on who you ask, they do their deployments two years in advance (so I'm told) so they must know but are not saying.:mad:

 

It's a bit like the proposed renovations for the OPT ..no one is confirming (or denying) what they are actually going to do.Rumour has it that the pier itself will be extended to accommodate Oasis class vessels but that does not necessarily mean that the Allure or Oasis will be coming to Australia.........or does it????????? Wharf might be long enough but the water is not deep enough. Let the rumours and assumptions begin. As the guy at the strip club said" all will be revealed in time" we will just have to wait and see.:D

[avalon007]

I think the only thing that seems certain is that Rhapsody is leaving.

 

Mariner seems a good choice for Australia since she already does Asia in the off season like Voyager, so it's close by for repositioning.

 

Royal does seem very good at keeping secrets! :)

 

However, since they monitor these boards ( I was told this by a the entertainment officer on a cruise last year) then lets not keep our wishes a secret.....

 

Give us a ship here full time Royal & while your at it add some new itineraries to the list - how about a little more of Fiji, Samoa, Tahiti & include Tonga or Solomon islands, PNG, etc.!!

 

I would love to see some cruises ex Sydney that include some Asian ports but return to Sydney as well. Thanks. :D

[Jacs]

I loved the Mariner, but didnt they renovate it for the Asian market, took out some shops, extended the casino etc? I wonder if they're thinking moving it here would tap into the Asian cruise market more?

 

I've also heard rumours that an Oasis class ship is relocating to Singapore when the Quantum Class is finished, and will run between Singapore and Hong Kong. I guess it makes sense to not have 3 mega ships all doing the Carribean, but Asia seem like an interesting choice for a ship that big.

[Dizziedi]

I have heard the Mariner is staying in Asia as it is going very well there. I was told that the Voyager was being fitted with tender boats and Flowrider as RCI are aiming at the young and families and getting them out to the Pacific Islands and the Voyager would be staying here from 2015.

 

We are going on the Rhapsody, Sydney B2B2B to Istanbul on 17 April 2015.

 

Cheers

Di

[gbenjo]

Was talking to someone who did the rock and roll cruise recently.

 

He mentioned Rhapsody was being sold to P&O.

 

I was talking to someone who wasn't on the rock and roll cruise and they said Rhapsody was not being sold to P&O:confused::confused:

[lizzy77]

It is so sad to see Rhapsody leaving Aus. It's a lovely ship and just the right size. We have been on Mariner and didn't like it. When we were in the Promenade area we felt like were in a hotel and not on a ship:(

[avalon007]

I don't think they are selling Rhapsody, I believe she is just being relocated into Europe where the smaller sizes ships are better suited.

 

I hope Radiance stays as she is a lovely ship, not too big & with all that glass you really know you are at sea, unlike the Voyager class which with the inside promenade I agree can feel less like a ship.

 

Try Radiance Lizzy77 if you haven't as yet - I think you will love her as she isn't that much larger than Rhapsody.

 

Regards Voyager staying full time - that would be good, but we still need a Rhapsody replacement. I hope they don't just give us 2 ships even if one is staying full time.

[The_Big_M]

Unfortunately Royal Caribbean are keeping their cards close to their chests and speculation is rife as to what ship will replace Rhapsody after next season and the answer you get depends on who you ask, they do their deployments two years in advance (so I'm told) so they must know but are not saying.:mad:

 

 

Things change and aren't always that certain. If they were then people would never have cancelled cruises and changes as e.g. even happened to Rhapsody cruisers booked for >Apr 2015.

[The_Big_M]

I was talking to someone who wasn't on the rock and roll cruise and they said Rhapsody was not being sold to P&O:confused::confused:

 

Haha... as if they would sell to P&O. :-)

[The_Big_M]

I have heard the Mariner is staying in Asia as it is going very well there. I was told that the Voyager was being fitted with tender boats and Flowrider as RCI are aiming at the young and families and getting them out to the Pacific Islands and the Voyager would be staying here from 2015.

 

Not just Voyager, but all the Voyager class are being fitted with tenders. One of the limitations with them replacing Rhapsody as they can't visit half of the locales in our area without tenders. BTW, the addition of the flowrider means the loss of the skate track.

 

With three larger ships on the way, having tender facilities would enable RCL to deploy this class to other ports such as in this region.

 

Personally, even though you /can/ theoretically do something, tendering in such large numbers hasn't been done before, and I'd be questionable about the experience, given the length of queues. That said, not everything gets better over time, so it doesn't mean that it won't happen.

[springaussie]

Personally, even though you /can/ theoretically do something, tendering in such large numbers hasn't been done before, and I'd be questionable about the experience, given the length of queues. That said, not everything gets better over time, so it doesn't mean that it won't happen.

 

Queen Mary 2 tenders.

[Australian family]

I hope they keep Radiance of the Seas here all year round. It looks like a beautiful ship, hope to sail on it one day.

[avalon007]

I hope they keep Radiance of the Seas here all year round. It looks like a beautiful ship, hope to sail on it one day.

 

 

I agree with that for sure! I have spent approx. 6.5 weeks all up sailing on Radiance & she is a really lovely ship.

 

I have sailed on her in a variety of climates from the South Pacific Islands, Alaska, Hawaiian Islands, NZ & across the Pacific.

 

Regardless of wether the ice is floating in the ocean, or only in your drink - she is a great ship to be on. :D

[Dawn1004]

We weren't that taken with Radiance.

 

There is little seating inside available, all the seating inside seems to be on one side of the ship, and only the dining rooms had views of both sides of the ship in the one area. And they take the chairs away for setting up photo events and shopping events.

 

And the Star Quest area is lovely to sit and gaze out to sea, but over half the time, they stick the art up there and take away the seating - ridiculous to do that on the scenic cruising days.

 

 

Probably on the warmer cruises - not an issue as there is lots of seating outside.

 

We were really interested to see what Radiance would be like as it is raved about for Alaska cruises, but we were left with a poor review of that ship, and will stick with NCL Pearl for our Alaska trips (just love their disco/lounge area with huge windows, with views to both sides of the ships, and lovely comfy chairs and beds!)

 

We would welcome any new ships to Oz and hopefully some varied cruise routes. Cruising is still a lovely way to travel and we would be open to travelling Royal again, but not Radiance again.

[avalon007]

Horses for courses I guess. I never found seating an issue on Radiance myself, but maybe I don't tend to sit down as much as you may like to, so didn't find it an issue?

 

Lovely seating at he back of the Colony Club with rear wake views which I have always found fairly empty during the day, the solarium with seating indoors has ocean views both sides.

 

Centrum seating is only on two sides of the four on some decks that's true, but I believe that is because of the multi story glass elevators that you can see through out to the sea. The glass elevators are a feature I really like on Radiance

 

They do take part of the seating away in a few lounge areas around the centrum for photo shoots, but I only recall that happening in the evening & only on formal nights.

 

I use the Starquest for dancing mostly so no views after dark.:D

 

Once or twice went up there for viewing in the day, but quite often we find those sort of spots on any ship full of older passengers in the day, snoozing or reading & not even watching the scenery! :rolleyes: Whilst people who wanted to watch the actual view have to stand behind them - you get some very selfish people on board all cruises who hog seats as well.

 

Although different cruises on the same ship can have different things happening, having been on 4 cruises on Radiance I can't say I experienced your issues with her, but everyone views things differently.:)

[bazzaw]

Queen Mary 2 tenders.

 

I think that QM2 carries about 1000 less people - even though it is a bigger vessel.

 

 

Barry

[avalon007]

Funny thing about QM2 my father in law said.

 

He went on her last year on a cruise out of Sydney, he liked her - but complained there were a lot old people on board - he's 83 years old! :eek: :D

[aussielozzie18]

Funny thing about QM2 my father in law said.

 

He went on her last year on a cruise out of Sydney, he liked her - but complained there were a lot old people on board - he's 83 years old! :eek: :D

 

LOL! My father is 77 and says the same things about RSL clubs.

[The_Big_M]

Queen Mary 2 tenders.

 

Which is the point, Queen Mary 2 only has a max 2600 passengers. That's still basically 20% more pax than QM2. QM2's numbers are similar to Radiance.

[springaussie]

Which is the point, Queen Mary 2 only has a max 2600 passengers. That's still basically 20% more pax than QM2. QM2's numbers are similar to Radiance.

 

Royal Caribbean tender on the Freedom Class ships in the Caribbean and they 500 more then voyager.

[The_Big_M]

Royal Caribbean tender on the Freedom Class ships in the Caribbean and they 500 more then voyager.

 

Let's hope it runs as smoothly then.