Icon of the Seas: The Biggest Cruise Ship on Earth
Filer photo. Icon of the Seas is the biggest cruise ship on earth, and can carry more than 5000 passengers. It made its inaugural cruise in January 2024. It has already visited St. Kitts.
Waiting in Line: A Common Complaint on Cruise Ships
Most people who go on cruise ship voyages enjoy the experience, but if there is one thing that they complain about most it is the waiting in line to get on or off the ship. Clearly, if there are over 5,000 passengers on a ship, (which could be the case if the Icon of the Seas is fully occupied) they cannot all embark and disembark at the same time, hence the standing in line or sitting around waiting for the doors to open. That’s a problem that Royal Caribbean Lines has been working on, specifically with respect to passengers having to stand in line.
Introducing New Procedures to Speed Up Embarkation and Disembarkation
Icon of the Seas, the cruise line’s newest, biggest ship, has introduced some new procedures that help with this problem. Making getting on and off the ship a bit less tiresome is a key focus for the cruise line, according to Royal Caribbean Chief Product Innovation Officer Jay Schneider.
An Improved Cell Phone App
One change Royal Caribbean has made is an improvement to its cell phone app, which will enable passengers to talk to guest services without waiting in line at the desk. That process starts with an artificial intelligence virtual assistant that can answer some simple questions, but it that doesn’t work, then they can communicate with a person. This “Human in the Loop” features can connect you to an actual agent without having to physically visit Guest Services.
Express Boarding Lane
Passengers who scanned their passports, took an identification photo, handed over their credit card details, and completed the health questionnaire in advance were given access to an Express Boarding lane. Passengers who did all those things thus don’t have to wait in line behind passengers who need to complete one or more steps before boarding.
State-Room Attendant App
Another improvement is a state-room attendant app. With this passengers can request clean towels or report a blocked toilet without having to speak to anyone.
Beta-Testing New Procedures
All these changes are being beta-tested on Icon of the Seas, but they could easily be added to more ships in the fleet as app-based changes are relatively easy to implement and put into practice on other ships. Royal Caribbean has generally taken the approach of trying out any major onboard changes on a single ship before expanding it to others.
Conclusion
Royal Caribbean is working hard to make the embarkation and disembarkation process smoother and faster for its passengers. With the new procedures and technology, passengers can expect to have a more enjoyable and stress-free experience on board.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Voom?
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Voom is a proprietary satellite Internet service that enables Royal Caribbean vacationers to stay in touch with their work while they are cruising.
How much does Voom cost?
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The FAQ page about ‘What is Voom and how much does it cost?” does not say how much it costs. You must buy your ticket first, and then find out the price, it suggests. (However, an article in Cruisecritic.com suggests that the price might be $12.99 per day for basic Internet with an extra $5 per day if you wanted to add streaming movies or videos.)