Deployment 2024-25 booking season begins

[twangster]

21 minutes ago, Ethanol95 said:

Which is why for the last 10 years, Royal has been sailing the same itinerary over and over again with each deployment. Singaporeans (I would want to say) 'used' to love Phuket, back in 2010's, but recently with its development as Thailand's popular beach destination, they've over-commercialised the place ridiculously. When you compare other less popular places in Thailand, they are just as beautiful and likely a lot cheaper. I remember on my most recent royal cruise there, a grab ride was 20SGD on average for 10-15 mins ride. Ridiculous. 

 

Singapore is a country with much fewer paid vacations and public holidays compared to other western countries. Hence the market here for short getaways (not just cruising) is especially strong. That is why Royal only does 3/4 nights. It is hard for us, and uncommon for us to travel longer than 5 days at any one time for vacation. 

 

Though their itinerary evolution in Singapore over these 10 years have been super slow, they are being way more experimental in the last 5 operating years (not including covid period), where you will now start to see 2 or 3 7N cruises, and the most recently experiment of 12N. 

 

I for one think Royal doesn't have anywhere to go on a regular basis that has enough demand for a 7 night cruise the entire year. Sailing up the eastern coast towards Thailand, Vietnam offers more variety but takes likely 1 and a half sea days - 2 sea days to reach those coastlines. That would easily be 3/4 sea days on a 7 night cruise. That's why when sailing there currently, it's only offered on reposition and one way trips, not round trips.

 

Also, Singaporeans' love Japan like. LOVE. Hence why you have 2 - 12Nights one way cruises to and from Japan this year. The first 12N sold out very fast, so clearly there is demand there, so much so that they added a second one, but i have heard demand for that has dropped since. 

 

Dream Cruises was the only other cruise line Pre-covid that offered diverse itinerary round trip from SG. Some of the unique itineraries:

EG. SG - Bintan Island (Indonesia) 2N

SG - Christmas Island (Australia) 5N

SG - Bali (Indonesia) 5N

 

Now with them coming back as Resorts World Cruises, their itineraries have gotten boring again.

 

Thank you.

 

The excursions for Penang don't seem to be very exciting at the moment.  Hopefully more will be coming or I'll just self-explore.

[Ethanol95]

Just now, twangster said:

 

Thank you.

 

The excursions for Penang don't seem to be very exciting at the moment.  Hopefully more will be coming or I'll just self-explore.

I would like to see Royal invest in port infrastructure in SEA in the less well developed port nations. We could have amazing itineraries to even challenge the Caribbean head on, but a lot of that currently is inaccessible for a Quantum class ship, or even a voyager class for that matter. The islands of the philippines, the viet coast, Thailand and all its little islands, The Andaman and Nicobar islands, even Eastern Malaysia, has tons of potential.

[SherriZ366]

22 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

 

I only asked b/c knowing her a bit, she's more likely to spend 3-4 weeks on Wonder (which I know she already did) than go near a 3 or 4-night cruise.

 

I'm with you except that the prices for Indy are already high for the 3/4 cruises and if Utopia wasn't coming, I think we'd just have kept Allure that will be doing them for a little while. Would Allure be cheaper than Utopia? Probably, but I'm not sure by how much. I guess my general feeling is that the short cruise prices are going to be pretty awful no matter what going forward. Obviously I hope I'm wrong. Those aren't our typical cruises either but we did a few on Indy back in July and October just b/c of the price at the time. And one was a 3/4 B2B just to spend time on the ship and go to Cococay twice b/c we love it there.

When Allure's 3 and 4 night sailings were first released, I booked a B2B GS for $2,000 cheaper than a 7 night JS on Wonder.  Prices have gone up and I would expect Utopia, if she is homeported in Port C, will be much higher.  

[SherriZ366]

16 hours ago, FlowBroTy said:

The port authority is actively working on that issue. They are adding a whole new lot with new spaces across the street from CT-1 before Allure arrives in the fall. 

 

PCV 😉

 

I read a story about Port Canaveral adding the new parking spaces a few months ago in Florida Today -- maybe around 400  And there are plans for a second parking areas if needed (around 200 more spaces).  

[twangster]

As far as Utopia goes, remember Liberty has stated the new revenue modeling holds back some inventory and releases it down the road. The new process doesn't make everything available all at once.

 

This allows the hype to drive up rates, especially for suites, so expect reduced inventory, especially suites, on opening day and then at some point later they will make more inventory available at higher rates.  

[Hoopster95]

17 hours ago, Biker19 said:

The blue line is the route she actually took:

 

17 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Thanks, definitely notvyhe route they showed and made a big deal of as a one off route in the presentation they made. 

 

I posted the following in previous various threads ..... I did a whale watching tour out of Campbell River (Vancouver Island)  and we sailed much of the channel (Georgia Strait)  that the cruise ships go through as we followed a pod of Orcas. There's a specific part of the voyage that enters and goes through the Seymour Narrows... super dangerous swirling currents and there's also aerial electrical lines spanning the passage. At the time, looking up at the wires  I couldn't even believe that a Radiance Class ship can get under those wires. This was also the reason that Capt. Hendrik (at the time Capt. of Ovation in 2019 the very 1st time she did Alaska) answered that Q Class can't do the BC inside passage during Captain's Corner when asked

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2661933-ovation-may-13-24-live-in-alaska-wlots-of-photos/page/22/#comment-57534562

 

Note as we get closer to the shortest span between the islands you can see the towers on one side in the first photo. Below we are at about 3/4 way across the channel

 

 

As we get closer and go under, the photos aren't the greatest however you can see the visibility marker balls attached to the wires. They're not that high in my opinion, But I guess they're high enough for the cruise ships (Radiance and smaller?) to get under.

 

 

 

 

Edited May 15, 2023 by Hoopster95

[Ethanol95]

Well there we have it. Spectrum to Shanghai in April 2024 and Anthem to Singapore in October 2024

[cruiseboy89130]

6 minutes ago, Ethanol95 said:

Well there we have it. Spectrum to Shanghai in April 2024 and Anthem to Singapore in October 2024

Where is it?

[Ethanol95]

1 minute ago, cruiseboy89130 said:

Where is it?

In Royal's press center. Latest news.

[cruiseboy89130]

Just now, Ethanol95 said:

In Royal's press center. Latest news.

Any news on the reposition voyage?

[Ethanol95]

2 minutes ago, cruiseboy89130 said:

Any news on the reposition voyage?

None yet. These will likely be revealed when Singapore's itineraries are coming out around July 24th. Still a pretty long wait. 

[ScottishRobbie]

4 minutes ago, cruiseboy89130 said:

Any news on the reposition voyage?

Anthem's last cruise of the 2024 season gets back into Southampton on 14th October, so I'd guess it would be leaving for Singapore sometime around then.

[Ethanol95]

Just now, ScottishRobbie said:

Anthem's last cruise of the 2024 season gets back into Southampton on 14th October, so I'd guess it would be leaving for Singapore sometime around then.

Yes Mid October for a 2-week repositioning cruise to Singapore, to start roundtrips by end October.

[cruiseboy89130]

4 minutes ago, Ethanol95 said:

Yes Mid October for a 2-week repositioning cruise to Singapore, to start roundtrips by end October.

2 weeks to Singapore would point to a non-rev - with stops it would be something like 3-4 weeks!

[Ethanol95]

4 minutes ago, cruiseboy89130 said:

2 weeks to Singapore would point to a non-rev - with stops it would be something like 3-4 weeks!

Then likely it'll be non-rev given its tight timeline.

[ScottishRobbie]

8 minutes ago, Ethanol95 said:

Yes Mid October for a 2-week repositioning cruise to Singapore, to start roundtrips by end October.

Just a thought on this, Anthem would be due her 10 year dry dock in early 2025, perhaps they'll bring it forward and just do it as soon as she arrives in Singapore and take the chance to introduce Asian language signs etc. Quantum is due in dry dock in Singapore mid-late October 2024 so Anthem could just go in after Quantum.

[cruiseboy89130]

Just now, Ethanol95 said:

Then likely it'll be non-rev given its tight timeline.

Sounds like it -Suez on it's own is 2 days - so no time left for any stops.

Last time Dubai to Barcelona was 13 days....

[Ethanol95]

13 minutes ago, ScottishRobbie said:

Just a thought on this, Anthem would be due her 10 year dry dock in early 2025, perhaps they'll bring it forward and just do it as soon as she arrives in Singapore and take the chance to introduce Asian language signs etc. Quantum is due in dry dock in Singapore mid-late October 2024 so Anthem could just go in after Quantum.

I'm not even 100% sure there will be Chinese signs introduced on Anthem as she was not built for the Chinese market, and now that SG cruise market is back to normal, the majority of cruisers are international, coming from India, Indonesia and of course, Singaporeans as well, excluding the other smaller nationality groups. All of whom i would dare say does not struggle to read English compared to the Chinese. But the Chinese have Spectrum so, Anthem shouldn't need more tweaking. 

[Ethanol95]

14 minutes ago, cruiseboy89130 said:

Sounds like it -Suez on it's own is 2 days - so no time left for any stops.

Last time Dubai to Barcelona was 13 days....

Yea, then bad luck to those who wanted to do a repo on her I guess.

[twangster]

2 hours ago, ScottishRobbie said:

Just a thought on this, Anthem would be due her 10 year dry dock in early 2025, perhaps they'll bring it forward and just do it as soon as she arrives in Singapore and take the chance to introduce Asian language signs etc. Quantum is due in dry dock in Singapore mid-late October 2024 so Anthem could just go in after Quantum.

 

Signage isn't something that requires a dry dock.  They converted Ovation's Kung Fu Panda to a Fish n Ships during a revenue cruise as an example.  They closed off the area during an Alaska cruise and by the time that voyage was over it was reopened as Fish n Ships.  Changing most signs, if that was a requirement, for the most part isn't a terribly demanding task. 

 

However I don't think they would go through the expense to change signage unless she was heading to China eventually and I don't expect that outcome for Anthem.  It's more likely something OA size will eventually go to China if the 2024 China Spectrum relaunch is as successful as I expect it to be.  

 

There are dry docks in Singapore that can service Q class ships so that may be part of the strategy behind moving Anthem there.  Anthem can get her 2025 dry dock done at the shipyard were Ovation and Quantum have been serviced.  With 2025 cruises not open yet they can put that on the calendar and not disrupt bookings. 

 

If Anthem is home ported in Singapore in 2025 there would be no major crossing required to reach the shipyard for a dry dock so the loss of revenue is minimized compared to sailing empty transatlantics like a number of Royal ships have done in the Atlantic recently.

 

The short Singapore market looks to have been successful addition with an occasional 12 night to Japan as icing on the revenue cake.  With Spectrum returning to China they didn't want to lose the momentum they've built in Singapore so Anthem is the solution.

[Ethanol95]

1 hour ago, twangster said:

 

Signage isn't something that requires a dry dock.  They converted Ovation's Kung Fu Panda to a Fish n Ships during a revenue cruise as an example.  They closed off the area during an Alaska cruise and by the time that voyage was over it was reopened as Fish n Ships.  Changing most signs, if that was a requirement, for the most part isn't a terribly demanding task. 

 

However I don't think they would go through the expense to change signage unless she was heading to China eventually and I don't expect that outcome for Anthem.  It's more likely something OA size will eventually go to China if the 2024 China Spectrum relaunch is as successful as I expect it to be.  

 

There are dry docks in Singapore that can service Q class ships so that may be part of the strategy behind moving Anthem there.  Anthem can get her 2025 dry dock done at the shipyard were Ovation and Quantum have been serviced.  With 2025 cruises not open yet they can put that on the calendar and not disrupt bookings. 

 

If Anthem is home ported in Singapore in 2025 there would be no major crossing required to reach the shipyard for a dry dock so the loss of revenue is minimized compared to sailing empty transatlantics like a number of Royal ships have done in the Atlantic recently.

 

The short Singapore market looks to have been successful addition with an occasional 12 night to Japan as icing on the revenue cake.  With Spectrum returning to China they didn't want to lose the momentum they've built in Singapore so Anthem is the solution.

More like Anthem is a downgrade, which is fact. Still better than nothing.

[GlasgowCruiser01]

I wonder how long Anthem will stay in Singapore.

 

With Odyssey likely switching to the UK, looks like Civitavecchia is left without a ship in 2025.

[twangster]

18 minutes ago, Ethanol95 said:

More like Anthem is a downgrade, which is fact. Still better than nothing.

 

Would you consider Quantum to be a bigger downgrade?  It wasn't that long ago that Singapore had Quantum. 

 

At least Anthem has outdoor Windjammer seating.  I've always loved that about the pre-Ultra Q class. 

 

Spectrum is the only Q class I haven't sailed.  For me they are all very close except for the open MDR on the ultra Q. 

 

Anthem has been "anchored" to Bayonne for a very long time.  Singapore has benefited from a variety of different ships.

 

All home ports around the world sometimes get a ship that is older than the one it is replacing.  Port Canaveral is getting "old" Allure.  Port Canaveral got "old" Jewel and "old" Mariner.  Soon Miami gets "old" Allure.  Port Everglades got "old" Liberty after having "new" Odyssey.  Such is life. 

 

 

[Ethanol95]

19 minutes ago, twangster said:

 

Would you consider Quantum to be a bigger downgrade?  It wasn't that long ago that Singapore had Quantum. 

 

At least Anthem has outdoor Windjammer seating.  I've always loved that about the pre-Ultra Q class. 

 

Spectrum is the only Q class I haven't sailed.  For me they are all very close except for the open MDR on the ultra Q. 

 

Anthem has been "anchored" to Bayonne for a very long time.  Singapore has benefited from a variety of different ships.

 

All home ports around the world sometimes get a ship that is older than the one it is replacing.  Port Canaveral is getting "old" Allure.  Port Canaveral got "old" Jewel and "old" Mariner.  Soon Miami gets "old" Allure.  Port Everglades got "old" Liberty after having "new" Odyssey.  Such is life. 

 

 

I haven't been on Anthem before, but based on perspective, the suite in a suite concept of Spectrum was what distinguished itself from the rest of Quantum class and fit well with our market. Also Spectrum's large main dining room is distinguishably a notch better. Generally, we are a very competitive market when it comes to product offerings, in the same way, you can say we're spoilt for choice. Hence, from our perspective, if it doesn't offer anything 'new' (i say that in parathesise, because it could be old features that are new to us), it is then considered a downgrade. 

 

Also I think that many cruisers in SG also have a liking towards the Voyager/freedom class, for some variety. But yes, Quantum is technologically more advanced than Voyager, newer, and just more wow. 

[masteradept]

Rather than which ship it is, I'm actually more disappointed that Singapore seems to be going back to seasonal instead of having a year-round ship, especially considering the increase in popularity of cruising since cruising restarted here.