Odyssey Rome inaugural season moved to Israel

[FionaMG]

5 minutes ago, ace2542 said:

Wouldn't Anthem be too big to get into places like I dunno Liverpool, Newcastle, Shetland. Harwich, Belfast? 

To be fair, I have absolutely no idea.

[Mapleleafforever]

53 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

As Royal Caribbean continues to navigate an environment that is ever-changing, our commitment to each of you, our valued travel partners, is one area where transparency and support prevail. For this reason, we are reaching out today to ensure you are among the first to learn of a new development.

Our newest ship, Odyssey of the Seas, will now sail from Haifa, Israel beginning May 2021, offering a combination of 3-to-7-night escapes visiting the Greek Isles and Cyprus. Residents of Israel will be the first to experience this Quantum Ultra Class newcomer during an inaugural season that offers a variety of new and signature onboard experiences. Highlights onboard include a two-level pool deck designed for downtime under the sun and stars, SeaPlex - the two-level indoor and outdoor activity complex that is a high-adrenaline playground for all ages, and a lineup of complimentary and specialty restaurants primed to please every palate with cuisine from around the world. Itinerary details for these new sailings will be available in the coming days, at which time Israeli residents can begin making reservations.

“We are thrilled to debut Royal Caribbean cruises from Israel with our newest and most innovative ship, Odyssey of the Seas. Israeli travelers will be looking to get away, relax with total peace of mind, and enjoy the travel experiences they are missing dearly; and that is what we do best,” said Michael Bayley, president and CEO of Royal Caribbean International. “Sailing from Israel is an opportunity we have had our sights on for quite some time. We greatly appreciate the government of Israel for their collaboration and confidence in us to deliver memorable cruise experiences to their residents, and look forward to delivering on that promise aboard our newest ship – the first ‘Green Island’ at sea.”

Additionally, in conjunction with Israel’s health and tourism authorities, these will be the first fully-vaccinated sailings, where both crew and guests above the age of 16 will be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to boarding. Details on the additional health and safety measures to be implemented by Israel and Royal Caribbean will be announced at a later date.

As you can imagine, it's never an easy decision when our guests’ vacation plans are disrupted. Much thought and planning went into moving Odyssey’s debut to Israel, resulting in the cancellation of a planned Europe season. Guests currently confirmed on an impacted European cruise departing May 9 — October 28, 2021 will have the option to request a refund of the funds paid or leverage Lift & Shift to move to any 2022 sailing of their choice; otherwise, a 125% Future Cruise Credit (FCC) will be automatically administered. Plus, knowing that your clients were eagerly awaiting Odyssey’s inaugural season, a special $100 Onboard Credit per stateroom will be issued to those guests selecting a Future Cruise Credit or the Lift & Shift option. All affected guests and associated travel partners will soon receive an email notification to outline the compensation options in greater detail.

Your partnership means the world to us and, little by little, we are making strides toward crafting vacation memories on the high seas once again!

Stay safe!

So unvaccinated kids can still sail or only those 16 and older who are vaccinated can sail? Hopefully it's the former.....

[Bobal]

57 minutes ago, MrBoccia said:

What does this mean for our TA starting in Rome on Oct 28th?

 

55 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

RCI will likely won't tell for you a while, but assume it's cancelled - likely all TAs will be for the fall.

 

They are telling us now. I am the OP and I was due to be on the TA. It's cancelled, received the email this morning.

[ace2542]

15 minutes ago, FionaMG said:

To be fair, I have absolutely no idea.

I think to be honest it is too big for Liverpool. They would have visited the city if they could. The people of liverpool love giving the ships a send off. And if too big for Liverpool then too big for all of them. They might be able to tender ashore though who knows.

[Ourusualbeach]

4 minutes ago, Mapleleafforever said:

So unvaccinated kids can still sail or only those 16 and older who are vaccinated can sail? Hopefully it's the former.....

Unknown.  They did not mention one way or the other, only that there will be more details on the health protocols to follow. 

[MichiganMan4]

Glad to see another (small) step to getting back to normal operations... This makes sense on multiple levels.  

 

I'm not trying to start a debate on this (this horse has already been buried) but I'm interpreting the following statement to be the fleet wide standard going forward:  

 

"Royal Caribbean will be the first to offer fully vaccinated sailings, where both crew and guests above the age of 16 will be vaccinated against COVID-19".

 

Yes, I know some people don't like it and won't sail because of it... but it's their ship and their rules.  I'm fully expecting Proof of Vaccine required to sail to eventually be extended to all ships when they resume.

 

[Mapleleafforever]

17 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Unknown.  They did not mention one way or the other, only that there will be more details on the health protocols to follow. 

Keeping it vague.....ugh. I'll temper my excitement until it's known for sure. 

[smokeybandit]

Israel has a very high vaccination rate.  So if this cruise is only for Israelis nearly all adult citizens have at least one vaccine dose in them already anyway.

[Biker19]

1 minute ago, smokeybandit said:

So if this cruise is only for Israelis nearly all adult citizens have at least one vaccine dose in them already anyway.

According to https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations?country=~ISR, they only passed the 50% threshold last week.

[NancyIL]

I can’t imagine that there are enough residents of Israel interested in cruising to keep Odyssey busy for 6 months. 

[Biker19]

1 minute ago, NancyIL said:

I can’t imagine that there are enough residents of Israel interested in cruising to keep Odyssey busy for 6 months. 

You could say the same for Singapore, but RCI extended Quantum's season there.

[smokeybandit]

4 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

According to https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations?country=~ISR, they only passed the 50% threshold last week.

That shows 93 doses administered per 100 people. Which does appear misleading as it looks like the majority of those are 2nd doses.

[NancyIL]

3 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

You could say the same for Singapore, but RCI extended Quantum's season there.

I thought about Singapore, too. I don’t know how full Quantum is sailing, but I guess some revenue is better than none - as long as RCI at least breaks even. 

[Ocean Boy]

1 hour ago, Ourusualbeach said:

It will be interesting to see the details of this lift and shift option below. 
 

 

 

 

Guests currently confirmed on an impacted European cruise departing May 9 — October 28, 2021 will have the option to request a refund of the funds paid or leverage Lift & Shift to move to any 2022 sailing of their choice;

That is very impressive.

[Biker19]

1 minute ago, NancyIL said:

 I don’t know how full Quantum is sailing, 

They were limiting capacity to 50% but even then some reports indicate below 2K guests on some sailings so they don't even reach that capacity level (100% capacity is about 4200).

[Ocean Boy]

1 hour ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Just saw the detail on another thread. Any sailing +/- 1 day in length, any ship med cruise. 

Ok, not as impressed as I originally was.

[orville99]

1 hour ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Additionally, in conjunction with Israel’s health and tourism authorities, these will be the first fully-vaccinated sailings, where both crew and guests above the age of 16 will be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to boarding. Details on the additional health and safety measures to be implemented by Israel and Royal Caribbean will be announced at a later date.

This is the most interesting statement in the announcement. How this plays out will be a big factor in the no jab, no sail debate out of U.S. ports.

[Ourusualbeach]

2 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

Ok, not as impressed as I originally was.

Why.  It states any 2022 sailing. Itinerary length can vary by a day. 

[Ourusualbeach]

1 minute ago, orville99 said:

This is the most interesting statement in the announcement. How this plays out will be a big factor in the no jab, no sail debate out of U.S. ports.

I think pretty much everyone saw that coming.  The only thing needing clarification is kids under 16. 

[Ocean Boy]

1 minute ago, orville99 said:

This is the most interesting statement in the announcement. How this plays out will be a big factor in the no jab, no sail debate out of U.S. ports.

I commented abour that in another thread. I think it is a strong indicator of how things will open up in North America.

[Ocean Boy]

5 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Why.  It states any 2022 sailing. Itinerary length can vary by a day. 

I take back my comment. I misread. I'm still very impressed.

[Ocean Boy]

6 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

I think pretty much everyone saw that coming.  The only thing needing clarification is kids under 16. 

It does say fully vaccinated. I think the vague wording just makes it easier to adjust as the vaccine becomes available to younger age groups.

[Ethanol95]

16 minutes ago, NancyIL said:

I thought about Singapore, too. I don’t know how full Quantum is sailing, but I guess some revenue is better than none - as long as RCI at least breaks even. 

My friend just tried to book a sailing, and he can't even find availability. 

[twangster]

9 minutes ago, NancyIL said:

I can’t imagine that there are enough residents of Israel interested in cruising to keep Odyssey busy for 6 months. 

 

In Singapore Royal is reporting a high number of never cruised before booking. 

 

With international travel looking undesirable one theory is that these cruises to nowhere are viewed as a safe way to get the family out of the house and travel beyond the physical limits of Singapore but staying within a Singaporean bubble while on a ship.   With few other options to go somewhere, these cruises appeal to a lot of Singaporeans beyond the traditional cruise market.  They get to leave without leaving the safety of Singapore.  The same desire could apply in Israel opening up the target audience beyond the normal cruise market.

 

Some of these cruises appear to be 2, 3 and 4 night cruises to nowhere.  Mid June they begin to go somewhere.  Presumably that makes the initial cruises to nowhere effectively test cruises to prove process and protocols plus working out any kinks with the government.

 

If cruises to nowhere were allowed in the US that would be a game changer to restarting the cruise industry.  Since they are not legal here cruise lines need to find places where they are combined with places that are doing well with the pandemic.  Israel seems to fit that.

[Bobal]

10 minutes ago, Ethanol95 said:

My friend just tried to book a sailing, and he can't even find availability. 

 

They go on sale on 9th March https://www.royalcaribbeanpresscenter.com/press-release/1498/royal-caribbean-says-shalom-israel-with-odyssey-of-the-seas-debut/?fbclid=IwAR2t0gNkYHYR99aGH21YC46uPE9Y7x8xLqdd2Tfr0ujTts_lfFEWDdKBPSY