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23 ships that could be laid-up, sold or scrapped

livingonthebeach
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JAMESCC

JAMESCC

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For he life of me I can't understand I can't understand why Empress is still in the Royal Caribbean fleet and it's up in NJ here for part of the year. Not to sound like a snob but no way I would even contemplate sailing on that ship.

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Ourusualbeach

Ourusualbeach

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Posted (edited)
3 minutes ago, JAMESCC said:

For he life of me I can't understand I can't understand why Empress is still in the Royal Caribbean fleet and it's up in NJ here for part of the year. Not to sound like a snob but no way I would even contemplate sailing on that ship.

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Because she was returned to Royal specifically to sail to Cuba and they are holding out hope that she can resume those sailings after November. 

Edited by Ourusualbeach
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JAMESCC

JAMESCC

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Because she was returned to Royal specifically to sail to Cuba and they are holding out hope that she can resume those sailings after November. 
Ah yeah I did hear that. My in laws did a Cuban cruise a few years back and they loved it. It wasn't on empress though.

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pstone1

pstone1

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Posted
5 minutes ago, JAMESCC said:

For he life of me I can't understand I can't understand why Empress is still in the Royal Caribbean fleet and it's up in NJ here for part of the year. Not to sound like a snob but no way I would even contemplate sailing on that ship.

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Empress was scheduled to sail some unique itineraries that included Montreal and Newfoundland.  I think those bookings were popular.

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JAMESCC

JAMESCC

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Empress was scheduled to sail some unique itineraries that included Montreal and Newfoundland.  I think those bookings were popular.
Yeah they did have really cool itineraries I will say that for Canada but I wouldn't sail on her. Just my preference for bigger ships.

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RKHOOKER

RKHOOKER

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Under the circumstances it’s inevitable that ships will be scrapped.  How much?  I don’t know.  But, dumping an old ship for say 10 million plus the savings on outgoings etc. is much better than spending 10 million a month & not cruising with paying passengers. Royal has 28 ships, at the earliest it’ll be 2 years before all 28 are cruising with paying passengers.  Royal should get in first before the market is flooded with ships to be scrapped.

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gatour

gatour

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14 hours ago, livingonthebeach said:

Is this a sign of the times, or are 23 ships normally at risk at one time?  

 

https://thepointsguy.com/guide/cruise-ship-sold-scrap-list/

It is high, but in the early 90's is when the cruise lines started the ship building spree.  Those ships are now approaching 30 years old. 

 

Carnival seems to keep their ships longer to serve markets that won't support a larger ship.  Jacksonville is an example of this.  But they are probably now thinking they have reached the end of their life for the US market.

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gcelkk

gcelkk

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So sad to miss my back to back on Empress in May.  Wow, to miss docking downtown instead of the navel yard in Bermuda.  I love Empress for the unique itinerary’s and great crew.

 

Majesty is a pretty cool ship also.  My favorite is the deli.  Just a short set of steps up over the buffet, it never seems to be busy.  We plan a trip to New Orleans just to sail her again.

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Hoopster95

Hoopster95

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Most recent ship movements away from the RCL fleet:

 

  • Empress  ... 1990-2008 = 18 yrs
  • Sovereign ... 1998-2009 = 21 yrs
  • Monarch ... 1991-2013 = 22 yrs
  • Majesty ... 1992-2016 = 24 yrs (was to join Pullmantur)
  • Splendour ... 1995-2016 = 21 yrs
  • Legend ... 1995-2017 = 22 yrs
  • Grandeur ... 1996-2021 = 25 yrs

 

See the picture? I predict Vision Class is gone from the RCL brand due to this economic crisis/pandemic. Current age of the fleet:

 

  • Enchantment ... 23 yrs old
  • Rhapsody ... 23 yrs old
  • Vision ... 22 yrs old

 

  • Voyager ... 21 years old
  • Explorer ... 20 years old
  • Radiance & Adventure ... 19 years old
  • Navigator &  Brilliance ... 18 years old
  • Serenade & Mariner ...  17 years old
  • Jewel ... 16 years old

 

 

 

 

Edited by Hoopster95
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EatonDoolittle

EatonDoolittle

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I know this is an unpopular reminder on this board, however, IF there is a regime change in the US in November, 

Cuba cruises would most likely start up again.

 

That would give a bit more useful life to the oldies (Majesty, Empress, Pacific Princess), as they can comfortably fit into the Havana harbor and existing dock. 

 

If I were a cruise line decision maker, I would wait until at least then before I put these ships on the chopping block. JMO. 

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Ourusualbeach

Ourusualbeach

Posted
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8 minutes ago, Hoopster95 said:

Most recent ship movements away from the RCL fleet:

 

  • Empress  ... 1990-2008 = 18 yrs
  • Sovereign ... 1998-2009 = 21 yrs
  • Monarch ... 1991-2013 = 22 yrs
  • Majesty ... 1992-2016 = 24 yrs (was to join Pullmantur)
  • Splendour ... 1995-2016 = 21 yrs
  • Legend ... 1995-2017 = 22 yrs
  • Grandeur ... 1996-2021 = 25 yrs

 

See the picture? I predict Vision Class is gone from the RCL brand due to this economic crisis/pandemic. Current age of the fleet:

 

  • Enchantment ... 23 yrs old
  • Rhapsody ... 23 yrs old
  • Vision ... 22 yrs old

 

  • Voyager ... 21 years old
  • Explorer ... 20 years old
  • Radiance & Adventure ... 19 years old
  • Navigator &  Brilliance ... 18 years old
  • Serenade & Mariner ...  17 years old
  • Jewel ... 16 years old

 

 

 

 

With the Voyageur Class still having many of the modern amenities and the amount that they spent on their amplifications I would say Royal is looking at significantly upping the age that they remain in service to at least the 30 year mark.

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twangster "Live from...." Rare

twangster

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I'm still trying to figure out how The Points Guy became an authority on the cruise industry.  

 

As a million miler on a U.S. airline I'm very familiar with the site but it never bothered with the cruise industry until recently.  Recently there have been a number of click bait type cruise articles on it.

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Hoopster95

Hoopster95

Posted
Posted (edited)
11 minutes ago, EatonDoolittle said:

I know this is an unpopular reminder on this board, however, IF there is a regime change in the US in November, 

Cuba cruises would most likely start up again.

 

That would give a bit more useful life to the oldies (Majesty, Empress, Pacific Princess), as they can comfortably fit into the Havana harbor and existing dock. 

 

If I were a cruise line decision maker, I would wait until at least then before I put these ships on the chopping block. JMO. 

 

What would be the social distancing requirements on a ship the size of Empress?

Where would 2000 cruisers go on a ship that size? 

What are the medical staff requirements and hospitalization areas within the ship if there's a C19 breakout?

How big are the staterooms to allow for a quarantine?

How many balcony staterooms are there?

How much public space is there per passenger?

What is the profit margin for RCL? Fein already quoted as saying Oasis Class can break even at 30% capacity, the smaller ships need much more capacity.

 

That was a nice thought, however RCL is not about Cuba... RCL is about having cruisers stay on board their newest/most technologically advanced and innovative ships, taking them to their own private resort locations in order to keep as much money within RCL as possible. Empress = zero innovation. Does not fit whatsoever anything that RCL promote's for their brand.

Edited by Hoopster95
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Hoopster95

Hoopster95

Posted
Posted (edited)
10 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

With the Voyageur Class still having many of the modern amenities and the amount that they spent on their amplifications I would say Royal is looking at significantly upping the age that they remain in service to at least the 30 year mark.

 

Agreed. Would love to hear what ChengP thinks about this and all the MEGA ships getting over 20 yrs of age with regard to mandatory drydocks, SOLAS, etc. 

 

Further, now that they won;t be raking in billions in profits to support purchasing another 10 billion dollar cruise ships over the next decade, I feel new builds will cease to be ordered and they'll likely stretch the age of the current fleet (just like we would do if we get into economic crisis... we drive our older car longer instead of buying a new one). Then again, when was RCL ever linked to common sense?

Edited by Hoopster95
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