New class being possibly revealed “very soon”

[TheBucketLister]

I posted this in another forum section (Austrailia/New Zealand) to an existing thread, but I figured I would mention it here as well.

 

On Grandeur now and the captain, while speaking at the loyalty event also did confirm that we should be hearing about a whole new class very soon.  He did mention that it is not as large as the current classes being built and said it would be a little larger than the Grandeur (Vision Class).  
 

For what it is worth, he also mentioned dry dock for Enchantment and Vision in the coming year or so, so those ships should be staying in service for at least a couple more years (as of right now.)

Edited April 30 by TheBucketLister

[RobInMN]

Current threads/discussion on the new class. It's been hinted at for about 2-3 years now, but more recently captians have been mentioning it at Q&A's and Bayley has even dropped mentions. No real details, just that "it's smaller". But there's lots & lots of speculation.

 

 

[smokeybandit]

I bet after Utopia launches they start to hype discovery 

[TheBucketLister]

I have heard it mentioned recently as well, but this is the first time I have heard someone give a time frame, other than sometime this year.  Of course very soon can mean different things to different people, but it seemed sooner rather than later. 🤷‍♂️

 

9 minutes ago, RobInMN said:

Current threads/discussion on the new class. It's been hinted at for about 2-3 years now, but more recently captians have been mentioning it at Q&A's and Bayley has even dropped mentions. No real details, just that "it's smaller". But there's lots & lots of speculation….

 

Edited April 30 by TheBucketLister

[sandebeach]

They may wait to hype this new class until Star is launched. 

[leaveitallbehind]

14 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

I bet after Utopia launches they start to hype discovery 

Good possibility.  Bayley has intimated as recently as the last directors call that they were working on some final feasibility details for project Discovery but that things were progressing in favor of this new class of ships.  Indicated smaller but with all the updated technology and desired venues, etc. Fun to speculate.

Edited April 30 by leaveitallbehind

[PhillyFan33579]

43 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

I bet after Utopia launches they start to hype discovery 

Possibly, but you still have the 7th Oasis class ship coming plus Star and the 3rd Icon class ship. Just my two cents opinion, and probably not worth that much, but I think the majority of RCI cruisers won’t get excited about a new, smaller class ship (if/when it happens). 

[firefly333]

57 minutes ago, RobInMN said:

Current threads/discussion on the new class. It's been hinted at for about 2-3 years now, but more recently captians have been mentioning it at Q&A's and Bayley has even dropped mentions. No real details, just that "it's smaller". But there's lots & lots of speculation.

 

 

Agree "very soon" doesnt mean much to me either after years of speculation.

[TheBucketLister]

6 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

Possibly, but you still have the 7th Oasis class ship coming plus Star and the 3rd Icon class ship. Just my two cents opinion, and probably not worth that much, but I think the majority of RCI cruisers won’t get excited about a new, smaller class ship (if/when it happens). 

 

I agree with you.  The majority will probably not care.  I am in the minority (I believe) as I love the smaller ship classes.

[RobInMN]

1 minute ago, TheBucketLister said:

 

I agree with you.  The majority will probably not care.  I am in the minority (I believe) as I love the smaller ship classes.

I don't necessarily love the smaller ships, in and of themselves. When it comes to the ship, I love the Oasis class and the amenities the newer ships have to offer.

However, I love where the smaller ships can go. We loved our Artic Circle, and Iceland & Ireland cruises. We loved doing the Panama Canal. Very excited that this new class will give us the best of both. Not to mention the fact that RCI is dropping the Norwegian fjords due to the new environmental restrictions that I believe they will solve with this new class (LNG?)

 

[Southern Dan]

I am looking forward to this announcement and any information pertaining to the long rumored Discovery Class ships.

[Sunshine3601]

7 minutes ago, TheBucketLister said:

 

I agree with you.  The majority will probably not care.  I am in the minority (I believe) as I love the smaller ship classes.

+1. We love radiance class.  

[Vibe]

I think that new Royal Caribbean ships are going to be large and be geared towards families and active younger adults looking for a a wow factor that includes many activities and has many different options for things to do.

 

The smaller new ships are probably going to Celebrity and are going to be geared to the cruiser that want a quieter more sophisticated experience, 

[RobInMN]

37 minutes ago, Vibe said:

I think that new Royal Caribbean ships are going to be large and be geared towards families and active younger adults looking for a a wow factor that includes many activities and has many different options for things to do.

 

The smaller new ships are probably going to Celebrity and are going to be geared to the cruiser that want a quieter more sophisticated experience, 

So... everyone's been lying?

[Vibe]

19 minutes ago, RobInMN said:

So... everyone's been lying?

There hasn’t been any official decision, confirmation or announcements for new smaller ships. Only speculation.  
 

No one is lying.

 

We are discussing opinions and rumors.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 1 by Vibe

[PhillyFan33579]

1 hour ago, RobInMN said:

I don't necessarily love the smaller ships, in and of themselves. When it comes to the ship, I love the Oasis class and the amenities the newer ships have to offer.

However, I love where the smaller ships can go. We loved our Artic Circle, and Iceland & Ireland cruises. We loved doing the Panama Canal. Very excited that this new class will give us the best of both. Not to mention the fact that RCI is dropping the Norwegian fjords due to the new environmental restrictions that I believe they will solve with this new class (LNG?)

 

We have a Norwegian Fjords cruise booked in Summer 2025 on Independence. Is this cruise going to be cancelled? It is part of a B2B cruise we have booked on Independence. 

[Southern Dan]

18 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

We have a Norwegian Fjords cruise booked in Summer 2025 on Independence. Is this cruise going to be cancelled? It is part of a B2B cruise we have booked on Independence. 

If I remember correctly I read somewhere that after the 2025 season Norway is cracking down on ship emissions so a more "green" ship will be required to sail to certain regions up around there.  Someone else here probably has better details....

[PhillyFan33579]

Just now, Southern Dan said:

If I remember correctly I read somewhere that after the 2025 season Norway is cracking down on ship emissions so a more "green" ship will be required to sail to certain regions up around there.  Someone else here probably has better details....

Thanks. That’s basically what I read from googling after reading RobInMn’s post. 

[RobInMN]

1 hour ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

We have a Norwegian Fjords cruise booked in Summer 2025 on Independence. Is this cruise going to be cancelled? It is part of a B2B cruise we have booked on Independence. 

 

40 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

Thanks. That’s basically what I read from googling after reading RobInMn’s post. 

Yes. Sorry to freak you out. "Dropping" as in not scheduling new, not cancelling already announced ones. And I was probably a bit overreactive. They are not necessarily dropping all of Norway, but they are severely limiting where they are going. You'll note that starting in 2025, there's no Radiance class from Amsterdam. So no Flam, or Geringer, and no Arctic Circle up to Honningsvag like in previous years up to this summer. They are only scheduling the southern "big" city ports. We'll have to see if they continue with your itinerary in 2026 & beyond.

[sgmn]

I definitely think there's a place for smaller more environmental friendly ships.  More and more ports/countries seem to be voting against mass tourism, and perhaps with smaller ships Royal Caribbean can offer more interesting itineraries 

[Billy Baltic]

7 hours ago, RobInMN said:

I don't necessarily love the smaller ships, in and of themselves. When it comes to the ship, I love the Oasis class and the amenities the newer ships have to offer.

However, I love where the smaller ships can go. We loved our Artic Circle, and Iceland & Ireland cruises. We loved doing the Panama Canal. Very excited that this new class will give us the best of both. Not to mention the fact that RCI is dropping the Norwegian fjords due to the new environmental restrictions that I believe they will solve with this new class (LNG?)

 

I think a lot of people would have a similar opinion as this. Smaller ships with modern features combined with access to interesting ports. With a bit of imagination on behalf of RC this could be a game changer. Families might be the core demographic but IMO a lot of families would pay more $ to escape the same 7 day loops that RC seem to be stuck in. 

[captainannoyed!]

7 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

+1. We love radiance class.  

Agree 100%❤️

[RobInMN]

10 hours ago, Vibe said:

There hasn’t been any official decision, confirmation or announcements for new smaller ships. Only speculation.  
 

No one is lying.

 

We are discussing opinions and rumors.

 

Correct, nothing official, and certainly no actual details has been published, but Michael Bayley has commented at least twice, and numerous captains have commented about a new smaller class ship in the design phase. Bayley has said they hope to make an official announcement sometime this year.

Your comment was that RCI will only do big ships, and leave the smaller ships to Celebrity. This seems to run counter to what insiders are saying.

[Vibe]

1 hour ago, RobInMN said:

Correct, nothing official, and certainly no actual details has been published, but Michael Bayley has commented at least twice, and numerous captains have commented about a new smaller class ship in the design phase. Bayley has said they hope to make an official announcement sometime this year.

Your comment was that RCI will only do big ships, and leave the smaller ships to Celebrity. This seems to run counter to what insiders are saying.

Again.   That is my opinion, not saying anyone is lying.

 

 I feel that Celebrity should continue have smaller intimate ships geared towards cruisers that want a nice ship with sophisticated experiences with better food. I also feel that Royal Caribbean should have large ships geared towards families and younger adults that want action, adventure, high energy experiences. The two cruise lines sho their own identity and be marketed that way.  This is my opinion, everyone doesn’t have to agree.

Edited May 1 by Vibe

[TheHawk1]

I agree that Royal could use more variety in their ships.  While I love Oasis class, it's size is restricted from so many ports that their itineraries have become overly repetitive.

 

But I don't think going all the way back to Radiance class size is the answer.  That's too small with not enough amenities or activities to do onboard.  Something closer to Voyager class would be better, which would be similar in tonnage to Celebrity's new Edge class ships.  Big enough to still offer some wow factor (remember that old RC slogan) while small enough to visit a wider variety of ports would be the sweet spot.