Royal Caribbean International has announced the itineraries that will be available when its newest ship, the Odyssey of the Seas, homeports in Rome for the summer 2021 season. The move will make it the first Quantum Ultra-class ship to sail from the city.
The Odyssey of the Seas is scheduled to debut in November 2020, sailing from Fort Lauderdale to the Caribbean for its first season, before heading to Europe and offering Mediterranean cruises during summer 2021. These Mediterranean cruises are now open for booking.
Beginning May 2021, the Odyssey of the Seas will sail seven-, nine- and 12-night Eastern Mediterranean itineraries with calls including Santorini, Mykonos and Athens, Greece; Ephesus and Rhodes, Turkey; Naples, Italy; Heraklion, Crete; and Haifa and Jerusalem, Israel. Royal Caribbean said that these itineraries will aim to incorporate more time ashore, with up to 15 hours at every port, as well as two full days in Athens and Naples on both nine-night Greek Isles and 12-night Holy Land sailings.
Local experiences on the new itineraries will run the gamut from a traditional cooking class in Athens to a visit to a winery in Crete. Tours and personal explorations will also be available in Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast, Mykonos, Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Nazareth.
When the ship makes its North American debut in November 2020, it will be the first of its class to sail the Caribbean, calling on destinations including Curacao, Aruba, Grand Cayman and Mexico on six- and eight-night itineraries from Fort Lauderdale. The ship will return to Fort Lauderdale in November 2021 for a second winter, sailing the same combination of itineraries; bookings for these cruises are also open now.
The ship will include a number of new features, such as the next-generation SeaPlex indoor recreational space, which will see the addition of the venue’s first Playmakers Spots Bar & Arcade with club-level views of the competition below. A reimagined Adventure Ocean kids program will join a revamped teen lounge with gaming consoles, music and movies, while guests of all ages will be able to enjoy a pair of new dining experiences: Teppanyaki will serve up East Asian flavors in a traditional Japanese style and Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar will offer rustic Italian dishes with a contemporary flair. The ship’s two-level pool deck will have two open-air, resort-style pools and four whirlpools along with casitas and hammocks. A number of Royal Caribbean’s signature features will also make their return, including the FlowRider surf simulator, the Ripcord by iFly skydiving experience, the North Star glass capsule offering 360-degree views from 300 feet above sea level and the robot bartenders in the Bionic Bar.
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