For more than a year, Royal Caribbean has been talking about building smaller ships.

The cruise line has been pushed on this issue by loyal passengers who have seen the cruise line pursue a bigger-is-better strategy, ordering more Oasis and Icon-Class megaships.

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Many cruise lines like smaller ships because they offer a more classic cruise experience. Some older passengers feel that the older ships were sleeker and offered a more refined experience than the larger, more family-friendly ships.

Additionally, small ships can dock in places where larger ships cannot dock. For passengers who consider a ship’s route rather than the amenities it offers, small ships become very important.

Royal Caribbean Chief Executive Officer Jason Liberty addressed the issue during Royal Caribbean’s second quarter earnings conference call.

Older Royal Caribbean ships are smaller

“And of course, the other thing… that’s important when you think about ship classes, whether they can be small or larger, is… we also have ships that reach 30, 35 years,” Liberty said. said. “And it’s not just about building ships of the same size, smaller ships. It’s also about replacing ships that will eventually reach the end of their life.”

These older ships make up the cruise line’s smaller classes, Liberty confirmed.

“We’re potentially looking at smaller ships that will probably replace some of these older ships,” he said.

“It’s a little less about the supply market. It’s more about where these ships can go. It’s about getting them to maybe some of the more unique, bespoke destinations in order to diversify further our footprint in the world.”

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No small Royal Caribbean ships coming soon

Liberty has officially shared the name “Discovery Class” as a working title for the cruise line’s new class of smaller ships. And although the CEO said design work has begun, Royal Caribbean has not set a specific date for when it will add one of the new ships to its fleet.

“I think when your question is about the motor vehicle market, the vessels that you’re referring to and that we’re potentially looking at, smaller vessels will probably replace some of those older vessels,” he said.

These comments have given hope to cruise line passengers who want newer, smaller ships. But those plans come with a major caveat, according to comments Liberty made during the company’s most recent earnings conference call.

“I think for the most part, you’ve definitely seen all of our orders through 2027 and maybe even through 2028,” he said at the news conference. Third Quarter Earnings Call.

The current order book includes three Royal Caribbean Icon-class ships, one Oasis-class ship and one Edge-class ship for Celebrity Cruises.

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“We continue to look to moderately grow our fleet and moderately grow each of our brands,” Liberty said. “And again, as a general reminder, when we order ships and we take ships, they don’t all go to the same brand, they don’t all go to the same market, they don’t all go to the same market, same route. We operate a very large global footprint.

New small ships are coming for Royal Caribbean but the first probably won’t arrive until 2029.

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