Wow! Back to sailing and it feels great! I just returned from sailing on the beautiful amplified Freedom of the Seas from Royal Caribbean. I thought you might like to hear a little about what Royal Caribbean is doing to ensure their clients are sailing safely.

From the moment the pandemic started, Royal Caribbean has been on top of every aspect of returning to sailing. For the Travel Advisors, they meet with us weekly and keep us up to date and informed about the latest news. As a Director and Travel Advisor, you couldn’t ask for more.

We arrived for our sailing at a scheduled time. They are scheduling groups of people to go through the embarkation process. Those guests who are vaccinated have their vaccination card scanned and viewed three times before boarding. You are also presented with a purple wristband so the staff knows you are vaccinated and allowed in those areas of the ship. The boarding process went smoothly. The Royal Caribbean app allows you to flow through your safety check, confirm you have completed viewing all the safety information, and guides you through your voyage. One of the things I enjoyed most was the new muster drill process. You show at your designated area and are individually informed of the process.

 

The crew was amazing the entire time. There were only 1037 guests on this sailing so it actually felt like we were in our own private yacht. We have 1027 crew serving us.

The majority of the guests were vaccinated. There were specific vaccinated-only locations throughout the ship. If someone was traveling with children or guests unvaccinated they needed to participate with that group only if they wanted to be with them. We wore masks in all common areas and were able to remove them in vaccinated venues and of course outside. Vaccinated people had their own pool area as well.

 

 

Many ask about the buffets. They were still there, however, the crew served you. This was at Windjammers and also on their private island, Perfect Day Cocco Cay. I personally really appreciated the service. They have created menus that would make this easy. There were also some prepackaged grab-and-go items.

Social distancing was prevalent in all venues and as soon as someone would leave a table or seating area it was sanitized and prepared for the next guest.

Overall, exceptional service! I can’t wait to sail again! Don’t wait to plan if you want to sail later this year or in the future as sailings are really filling up.