What Makes Royal Caribbean One Of The Best Cruise Lines?

Royal Caribbean Has Cruises for Everyone

By Amanda Mesa | Published on January 11, 2024

When it comes to planning a vacation, you certainly have plenty of options at your disposal. Narrow your focus down to cruising, and you're still met with a nearly overwhelming selection of choices — with many claiming to be the best cruise lines within their specific sector. Do a little digging, and you'll find options ranging from small to supersized ships sailing a variety of itineraries, including family-friendly, party-centric and even some adults-only voyages.

For a cruise getaway that checks all the boxes no matter what kind of experience you're looking for, there's Royal Caribbean. Repeatedly named one of the best cruise lines for families and best cruise lines for adults by travel partners, publications and critics, we have earned a laundry list of accolades and awards for our world-class dining, dazzling entertainment and our five-star service.

You don't need to be a long-time cruiser to see that our reputation is well deserved. We've been voted Best Cruise Line Overall, Best Cruise Line in the Caribbean, Best Cruise Line Entertainment and Best Sales and Service by the Travel Weekly Readers' Choice Awards. We've also been named Best Big-Ship Cruise Line by TPG during their Readers' Choice Awards. They even gave us the Innovation in Cruising Award and named our loyalty program the best in the industry. And Travel Age West dubbed us the Best Cruise Line for Shows and Nightlife and the Best Cruise Line for Caribbean Sailings in their WAVE Awards.

These are the industry's recognized experts — and they all rave about the Royal Caribbean experience. But don't just take their word for it. Here's an insider look at what makes us one of the best cruise lines in the industry, delivering the best cruises for couples, the best cruises for kids, and of course, the best cruise ships in the world.

A Fleet Filled With Futuristic Feats

Let's start with our cutting-edge technology. Every ship in the Royal Caribbean fleet is an engineering marvel — the product of years of research and brainstorming, with groundbreaking design, architecture and construction. We like to push the envelope when it comes to what a cruise can and should be. It's what we've done since we launched our very first ships decades ago. Our team dreams bigger and bolder than any other brand in the industry, making the impossible possible to deliver vacations unlike any other.

Cruise Nightlife North Star Bar — North Star Bar onboard a cruise with 360º views from 300 feet above sea level.

It's why Royal Caribbean ships have broken so many records, such as the tallest slide at sea, Ultimate Abyss^℠ — a nine-story plunge sure to thrill adults and kids equally. Or the North Star®, an observation capsule that holds the Guinness World Record for tallest viewing deck on a cruise ship. There's also our AquaTheater, the deepest and largest freshwater pool at sea — and the stage for some of the industry's coolest original shows and productions. Those are just three of the record-holding attractions you'll find onboard Royal Caribbean ships.

Bottles in front of the Bionic Bar — Bottles at the Bionic Bar

Every ship in our fleet is kitted out with game-changing features that combine next-level tech and off-the-charts creativity. A great example is the Bionic Bar, a guest-favorite hangout where two robotic bartenders mix, muddle, shake and stir up cocktails and mocktails coded in binary. You'll find it on some of our most popular ships, including Anthem of the Seas®, Quantum of the Seas®, Harmony of the Seas® and Symphony of the Seas®.

On Quantum Class cruise ships, you'll find that every experience onboard spotlights technology and innovation to some degree. For instance, there's Two70® — a spectacular venue that transitions from café and lounge to multimedia theater. It's lined with 270 degrees of windows two stories high. During the daytime, guests can gaze through them at breathtaking ocean views. When the sun goes down, this revolutionary space sets the stage for immersive entertainment that spotlights aerialists, robotic dancing screens and more.

Every ship in the Royal Caribbean fleet is an engineering marvel — the product of years of research and brainstorming, with groundbreaking design, architecture and construction.

Crave-Worthy Cuisine On Every Cruise Ship

Couple Enjoying Date Night at Chops Grille

The Seattle Space Needle yields some of the most dramatic views in the city.

Delicious food is a big part of any vacation, and Royal Caribbean has created a collection of culinary concepts sure to wow even the pickiest eaters. Our ships boast dining scenes that can rival those of top foodie capitals. Options range from quick and casual grab-and-go goodness that goes long on the flavor to fine dining that's sure to elevate any date night or special-occasion dinner.

First, you have our staple specialty restaurants — original Royal Caribbean concepts that have been tantalizing guests for years. Chops Grille℠, for example, is a classic steakhouse experience that specializes in prime cuts seared to perfection, fresh seafood and family-style sides such as Yukon gold mashed potatoes, creamed spinach and truffle fries. As a go-to for birthdays, anniversaries and romantic evenings out, it's one of the most elevated dining options onboard any Royal Caribbean ship.

Izumi Hibachi and Sushi^℠is another long-standing fan favorite, and like Chops Grille, it's available on most of our ships. At Izumi, it's all about the flavors of the Far East, prepared right at your table by master chefs whose agility with cooking tools will surely wow you as much as the bold flavors they whip up.

There's also Giovanni's^℠ Table, also known as Giovanni's℠ Italian Kitchen on some cruise ships. The menu here was curated to transport guests to Italy. It spotlights authentic Old-World flavors, such as hearty veal osso buco, gnocchi tossed in a thyme-scented lamb sauce and risotto made the old-fashioned way with truffle and porcini tapenade. Dishes are served family-style, too, giving the cozy eatery a true trattoria feel.

Of course, those are just a few of our classic specialty restaurants — there are plenty more options onboard to suit any taste or preference, and we're constantly dreaming up new concepts to delight guests' palates. The Mason Jar℠ Southern Restaurant & Bar is one of our newest restaurants, specializing in comfort food from the Deep South to Bayou country. Think: crispy buttermilk-fried chicken and waffles, flaky biscuits with sausage gravy, rich lobster and crawfish gumbo and hearty crab beignets. There's also El Loco Fresh®, which first debuted onboard Symphony of the Seas. This fast-casual dining spot serves up crazy-good favorites from south of the border, such as shareable loaded nachos, flavorful burritos and mouthwatering tacos — all complimentary.

Of course, we'd be remiss not to mention Windjammer and the main dining room, two Royal Caribbean mainstays where every delectable bite is included in your cruise fare. At Windjammer, you can taste your way around the world all day, every day. In the morning, the spread here features every breakfast staple under the sun, including creamy yogurts and smoothies, fresh-cut fruit, fluffy waffles and pancakes and made-to-order omelets. You'll also find some dishes with a global spin, such as spiced eggs Bhurji. The selection available during lunchtime and dinner is no less impressive. You can bounce from one station to another enjoying tender carved meats, crisp salads, just-pressed paninis and juicy burgers — in addition to an ever-changing assortment of heartier mains from Jamaica to Jaipur and Beijing to Buenos Aires.

Freedom of the Seas Main Dining Room Large Dining Table

No Royal Caribbean cruise is complete without at least one meal at the main dining room. Dinner in this elegant venue is an extravagant, multi-course affair. Like Windjammer, the menu highlights delicacies from every corner of the globe — many of which rotate from one night to the next. Whether you're craving a bit of tangy duck a l'Orange that transports you to France, spiced ahi tuna that blends Far East and Mid-East flavors or mojo-marinated pork line that channels plenty of island vibes, get ready for a flavor fest unlike any other.

Of course, guests who sail with Royal Caribbean aren't limited to the items listed on the menus at our onboard restaurants. Our kitchen is filled with talented chefs who can tailor meals to accommodate any allergies, dietary preferences or restrictions, from vegetarian to vegan to gluten-free.

Show-Stopping Entertainment Every Night Of Your Sailing

Yet another reason why Royal Caribbean is largely considered one of the best cruise lines for families and one of the best cruise lines for adults is its spectacular entertainment. It's a category we've won awards in year after year, ship after ship — thanks to our all-star entertainment team and fleet-wide cast of world-class performers. We're one of the few cruise lines that offer full-length Broadway productions onboard our ships, including globally acclaimed hits and award-winners. Some favorites include CATS, Saturday Night Fever, MAMMA MIA! and Grease.

Allure of the Seas Mamma Mia Performers Singing — Mamma Mia Performers Singing On Stage

That said, in addition to familiar favorites from the West End and the Great White Way, we're also proud to offer a dazzling lineup of original productions dreamt up in house by our incredible entertainment team. Shows run the gamut from stunt-filled spectaculars on ice to multisensory extravaganzas that combine state-of-the-art lighting, sound effects and visual media with electrifying choreography and aerialist displays.

If you're sailing onboard a ship with an AquaTheater, expect some of the coolest performances at sea. For example, HiRO is an extraordinary aqua show that pushes the envelope with edge-of-your-seat acrobatics and unexpected stunts. Or there's Oceanaria, which takes viewers on an adventure beneath the surface of the sea with elaborate synchronized swimming and hair-raising high dives — all set to a spellbinding soundtrack.

Our ice-skating shows are also second to none. You can witness the incredible talents of our cast of professional skaters in Ice Games, a winner-takes-all showcase of stunts inspired by the classic board game, Monopoly. And in Ice Odyssey, skaters bring the history and mystery of tarot cards to life with extravagant costumes and choreography that are impossible to look away from.

One of the best things about cruising with Royal Caribbean is that every show onboard is included in your cruise fare, and you can look forward to a different production nearly every night of your vacation.

Environmentally Aware And Continuously Improving

Finally, it isn't just our ships and onboard attraction that have earned us a reputation as one of the best cruise lines in the industry; it's also our commitment to making cruising cleaner and more environmentally friendly. For starters, we are proud to say we've removed 60% of single-use plastics over the past several years — including all plastic straws, stirrers, picks, coffee creamer containers and condiment packages — and we're still planning to do more to reduce our use of plastic and our impact on the environment.

Additionally, we've continued to grow Save the Waves. It started as an onboard recycling program in 1992 and has since become a company-wide philosophy and initiative that defines and guides our commitment to managing waste and sourcing sustainable and evolving energy-saving technologies.

Perfect Day Coco Cay Aerial Harmony of the Seas

The Seattle Space Needle yields some of the most dramatic views in the city.

These initiatives are led by environmental officers and their teams onboard our ships as well as on land at our private island destination, Perfect Day at CocoCay. Here, the program includes a water specialist who oversees the advanced water treatment and desalination plants that repurpose treated wastewater to irrigate the island's landscaping.

We're constantly working to innovate our ships in ways that make a difference. One example is our air lubrication system, which coats our ship's hulls with millions of tiny bubbles to create a barrier between the ship and the water around it. It facilitates a smoother, more efficient ride that uses less energy. We've also implemented LED lights and tinted windows to help conserve energy onboard — seemingly small adjustments that can have a big impact at the end of the day.

These are just some of the many reasons why Royal Caribbean is consistently voted one of the top cruise lines by guests, travel partners and travel publications. Of course, there are plenty more areas we shine in — including award-winning childcare services, five-star service, a wide range of comfortable accommodations and so much more. Don't just take our word for it, though — the best way to understand why we're an industry leader is to experience a Royal Caribbean cruise for yourself.

Written By
AMANDA MESA

Amanda has written for Royal Caribbean since 2017. She also covers travel, lifestyle, food and beverage for Indulge Magazine, the Miami Herald and PureWow. She's traveled extensively around the world, enjoys building unforgettable itineraries and loves introducing readers to lesser-known.

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