Supplement to Travel Trade
May 2004

RCI’s Mariner of the Seas:

Ultimate Expression of the
Voyager Class

If ships reflect their godmothers, Royal Caribbean’s new Mariner of the Seas can count on a lifetime of being successful, independent, brave and beautiful. The ship’s deeply moving naming ceremony last November by Jean Driscoll was surely one of the finest starts a vessel could have.

Driscoll, the only person in Boston Marathon history to win the women’s wheelchair division eight times, placed in the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympic games and was recognized by Sports Illustrated for Women as one of the top 25 female athletes of the 20th century.

She dedicates herself to Wheels for the World, a program that restores wheelchairs and takes them to people in third world countries, and is the spokesperson for the ASPIRE project in the U.S., working to bring youth sports leagues to each state for athletes with physical disabilities.

Driscoll’s presence underlined Royal Caribbean’s dedication to accessibility, visible in the accessible public areas, with enough space in each to make a 180-degree turn in a wheelchair to the ramps in most public areas.

Hydraulic lifts are available at the pool and whirlpool. Strobe-light door knockers and ringers, amplifiers for telephones and alarm clocks with under-mattress or under-pillow vibrators are among the amenities for the hearing impaired, and FM sound receivers are in the theaters for sound enhancement. Braille deck numbers are placed on staircase banisters and elevator buttons, and menus and service directories are offered in Braille, as well.

The company can cater to most special diets and can accommodate guests needing oxygen therapy. While the line does not provide wheelchairs or medical equipment required for oxygen therapy or dialysis, access coordinators are available to help plan accessible vacations at (800) 722-5472. Ext. 34492. There are also brochures available detailing Royal Caribbean’s accessibility offerings.

RCI executives cited cruising as the most accessible form of travel and that the company wants to be the leader in the market for these guests, estimated at a sizeable 54 million out of 280 million potential cruisers.

Besides the accessibility emphasis, the Mariner is notable as the fifth ship and culmination of the Voyager-class ships, a design so successful that it will be used as the basis for the upcoming UltraVoyager. However, the tremendous success of the Voyager design was not a foregone conclusion.

Royal Caribbean executives discussed the way they agonized about the feasibility of the three-level dining room and whether the passengers would enjoy and accept the Royal Promenade or consider it a sort of shopping mall. The original concept, refined over the years, brought such positive feedback that Mariner, the ultimate expression of the class, feels like a perfected form of a familiar story of lightness, openness, acres of glass and a lovely blending of the ship and the world outside.

One unique feature on Mariner of the Seas is its art, highlighted by the joyful explosion of color and images on the pool deck by Brazilian artist Romero Britto. His work is collected by connoisseurs from the Guggenheims, Rothschilds and Kennedys to Michael Jordan and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The artist defines his images as “a celebration of the good things in life,” a theme that runs through the $8.5 million collection on board. His whimsical figures cover mushroom-like jacuzzi and bandstand canopies, the deck and wading area, pool columns and wall panels. A 10-foot aluminum sculpture of a surfer called “All About Fun” is a signature piece.

Passengers who fall in love with Britto’s colors and images will enjoy the gallery that chronicles the yearlong pool deck project. They can also purchase cards, beach towels, sun visors and scarves in Britto’s distinctive designs, along with his men’s and women’s fragrances,

The Mariner boasts Royal Caribbean?s signature sports deck, including a rock climbing wall, inline skating track, golf and basketball.

Intriguing art is not confined to the pool area. The elegant six-story sculpture by Larry Kirkland in the ship’s Centrum was inspired by the designs of 19th century planispheres, the intricate instruments for mapping celestial constellations.

Passengers on their way to the main dining room stopped in their tracks to see the bronze sculptures of Maria and Captain von Trapp from “The Sound of Music”, on the verge of their first kiss in front of a trompe l’oeil mural of the von Trapp house. Art spills over into the design of the casino, an old fashioned State Fair midway with games of chance and strength and a strong contrast to the ambience of the Savoy Theater, which is set with New York skyscrapers.

Groupings of regional art on board help to guide guests through the ship, with the California wine country featured in VINTAGES wine bar, an old English courthouse theme at the Wig and Gavel Pub, images of the Moulin Rouge in the Café Promenade and Latin American ambience in Boleros lobby bar.

Guests memorized the routes to their staterooms by the themed art in the corridors (“There are the trains; we must be getting close”). There was sometimes congestion on the stairways, where guests paused to see some of the most striking paintings.

Dining options on Mariner of the Seas include Jade, Southeast Asian fusion cuisine, and the next door Plaza Bar with specialty sakes, Singapore Slings, Chinese beer and green tea. The Chops Grille steakhouse offers dishes from filet mignon to Norwegian salmon accompanied by family-style side dishes and killer desserts like Mississippi Mud Pie. Portofino, the Italian specialty restaurant, captured the title of most romantic dining place on board. Many passengers commented on the high quality of the food and its presentation in the three-level main dining room. The huge windows of the Windjammer Café drew passengers who avoided lines by using the various cuisine islands.

Royal Caribbean’s signature Johnny Rockets was packed during most of the cruise. The jukebox belted out classics nonstop and the burgers and fries flowed in huge quantities.

Likewise, the strategically placed Café Promenade was kept busy serving pastries and coffee as patrons sat and enjoyed the people watching. Ben & Jerry’s ice cream scoop shop was very busy, but it didn’t seem to affect the turnout at the complimentary frozen ice cream dispenser, which probably needs constant maintenance to avoid burnout.

VINTAGES wine bar, shaped in partnership with Robert Mondavi, Beringer Blass Wine Estates and Niebaum-Coppola Estate Winery, was introduced in December 2002 on Navigator of the Seas. Added features on the Mariner include 61 wines from around the world offered by the half glass, glass or bottle. Wine tenders offered free tastings to guests to help them choose their wines for dinner, and food and wine demonstrations and lectures on vintages are well attended.

Other beverages were popular in the 19th Hole sports bar, the Wig & Gavel Pub, the classic teak and leather of the Schooner Bar and Boleros, where Latin rhythms contrasted with cold drinks. The Dragon’s Lair was the hot adult nightspot, while the teens’ Fuel is dedicated only to younger cruisers.

Well-staged production shows filled the two-level Savoy Theatre and guitarists, ballroom dancing, island sounds and piano entertainment pleased passengers. But the show everyone was talking about was the breathtaking “Under the Big Top” with an international ice cast and amazing costumes by Emmy-winning designer Pete Menefee. Far beyond any expectations in risk-taking and sheer beauty, the show drew a standing ovation at each performance, and has a special surprise for children.

The Mariner’s 22,000 square-foot Adventure Youth program space includes a video arcade that never seemed to quiet, with new bodies pouring into any vacancies regardless of the hour. The casino drew very well, and everyone appeared to find the games they wanted without waiting. The line’s signature active sports, from rock climbing wall and inline skating track to golf and basketball, brought a very wide range of ages together.

Mariner’s Tuscan-themed day spa and fitness center area is so immense that even with 3,000-odd passengers there should be little problem in enjoying the workout and treatments.

The beauty salon has a full range of hair, manicure and pedicure and skin care options and spacious whirlpool, sauna steam and shower areas, 14 massage and treatment rooms. The workout area would be the envy of many a major land-based spa with a wood-suspended aerobics floor, mirrored wall, large screen TV monitors and wraparound windows in the aerobics area.

A full stereo sound system and television monitors enliven the gym, which is equipped with top notch equipment including elliptical steppers, recumbent bikes, treadmills, resistance machines, free weights, etc. With all the activities, life on board sounds fairly intense, but in fact many guests took advantage of the comfortable chairs and lounges inside and out to relax and enjoy the vistas.

Mariner of the Seas offers year-round 7-night alternating Eastern and Western Caribbean cruises. She departs Sundays out of Port Canaveral, calling in Nassau, St. Thomas and St. Maarten in the Eastern Caribbean. Ports of call on Western Caribbean cruises are Ocho Rios, Grand Cayman and Cozumel, as well as the company’s private beach retreat in Labadee, Hispaniola. Pricing starts at $699.